Pete Doherty is so rock n' roll. Every other day the kid is in rehab, and on the other days he's escaping from it. Just look at the cover of this CD; Doherty's fellow band mate looks like he is trying to help him from passing out from a drug overdose. On special occasions, Doherty steals from his band mates' flats. He is so busy being a rock star, it's a miracle that he even showed up to record the Libertines' sophomore album. The real miracle is that his friends haven't given up on him. Although Doherty is still struggling with his drug addiction, his band mates still extend their offer to let him rejoin the group after he's clean.
The Libertines have caught the ear of Mick Jones of the infamous band, the Clash; he gushes, "A record as good as this only comes along once in a generation. Yeah, you had it with the Clash. And now it's the Libertines' turn." At this time, Jones is one of the very few who finds this album as revolutionary or classic as the Clash's self-titled album and London Calling. However, let's just say that Jones is faintly egotistical, because he likes music that he produced and probably influenced. The Libertines pick up the Clash's attitude and place themselves between punk and garage rock.
"Can't Stand Me Now" is a good representation of the strained relationship between Doherty and his cohorts. The line, "can't take me anywhere" corresponds to Doherty's absences at several gigs, while "I know you lie" corresponds to Doherty's broken promises of keeping clean. "You can't stand me now" is self-explanatory. "Have we enough to keep it together?" is what the band and the press wonders about the future of Doherty and the other Libertines. "If you wanna try/there's no worse you can do" is Carl Baret and Co.'s indefinite offer to Doherty.
The Libertines sing out of tune by trying to catch a high note, and the songwriting appears to be messy in "Don't Be Shy." However, every instrument part is very precise and it only appears to be chaotic, because the rhythm is awkward and the vocals are slightly grating. The melody in "Music When the Lights Go Out" sounds familiar, but I can't pinpoint what band it sounds like. It has a smooth and soothing nursery song-like melody, and that could be one of the reasons why the melody sounds so familiar.
If pirates were punk rawkers, their sea shanties would sound like "Tomblands." The Libertines steal part of the melody from a recognizable sea shanty, and even model two lines after it. Baret and Doherty play with the lyrics and sing, "fifteen holes in the dealer's chest/yo, ho, ho, he was a mini martell man" amidst a groovy bass line and streaks of guitar notes. "The Saga" immediately follows "the Tomblands" like an extension; "Tomblands" leaves off with violent drumming and strumming, and "the Saga" picks up in the beginning in the same fashion. The two songs, along with the rest of the songs, are tied by the same themes of death, disintegration, desperation, and distance.
Though Doherty is still publicly struggling with his addiction, he still has an offer from the band, because he is a key songwriter in the Libertines. The songwriting may sound disorganized at times, but that noise is enjoyable.
