Pete Doherty brings his acoustic set to Liverpool for the first of solo gigs.
This is the first of his live acoustic gigs and having formed his new band The Puta Madres, it allows Pete Doherty to showcase some of what he is about to embark on and bringing all this to Hangar 34 ensured a full house with an atmosphere of unbridled expectation that could be felt all around the venue.
Pete arrives on stage to a loud roar and with his name being shouted from every corner of the room. Looking quite dapper in his suit and polo shirt he breaks straight into “What a waster” which obviously sets off the already frantic crowd, following that with a cover of The Warning is not particularly a good idea with the crowd gathered. That has nothing to do with the song itself, but down to the majority of the audience not knowing what it is. Pete decides that maybe Gunga Din would be a more apt choice and he is right as the crowd pick up again and people are shoved side to side in the process.
Announcing that he hadn’t toured for a while and could be a little rusty, Pete plays a track from the new album with the Puta Madres entitled The Steam which, from the response of the crowd, goes down well and looks like it could be another winner.
In a bizarre moment, Pete is joined on stage by Zeus. Zeus isn’t a new band member but could possibly be an upcoming star in his own right. Zeus is a Siberian husky and he is joined by what I would assume was his brother/sister. Wandering around nonchalantly as Pete entices him to sing along with the songs, obviously to no avail mainly as he is a dog and such frivolity is not to his liking.
The dogs continue on regardless as Pete continues his set with more Libertines/Babyshambles track such as don’t look back into the sun, Time for heroes, What Katy did and an early classic in the form of Breck road lovers. The crowd are becoming more intoxicated with the set prompting rock n roll moments of blatant flesh exposure, the obligatory plastic glass pint throwing antics (luckily in this instance most were empty) and the occasional Welsh flag for Pete to drape himself in, this is one something that most bands can only dream of creating and sustaining even 20 years after first coming to the forefront of the music world.
Culminating in When the lights go out and cleverly weaving in Sandie Shaw’s There’s always something there to remind me Pete finally leaves the stage with a wave and a salute leaving the audience waiting for an Encore which never appears. I guess when you have done 90 mins of an exquisite set of this stature its best to leave on a high.
Overall mixture of new, old and solo stuff ensured Pete Doherty was truly on form and embracing the audience whilst constantly feeling for the vibe in the room. Picking up the set with favourites if he felt a lull descend, he masterfully crafted a set that was both entertaining and showcased that on his day, he can be one of the greatest solo artists and writers of a generation.