I will moan about the whole thing, the reasons behind it, the fact that the There Are No Innocent Bystanders documentary showed that they didn't really like each other, that, if these latest rumours do lead something, then it will take place at Hyde Park, the worst venue for live music. This is a band who were electric in small venues but they can't really cut it on the big stages. I'll moan about the ticket prices then I'll moan about the crowd, the gig, everything, I can't handle with it but I can't not go.
The Reading Festival show worked because it was closure, a one-off, a fitting end, it brought back great memories, I don't want them to be ruined. I can understand why they did it, they were skint. They still are, their careers are at the lowest, they have families to support, that is why they will do the rumoured gig but, do people really want this? The fans? Do they still care? The reason I am friends with my friends is because of this band, non of us are excited by these rumours but we will all go. How can we not. This is our youth.
It was at Manchester Academy on the 1st March 2004 when I fell for this band. I fell hard. I had been a fan for a while but this was their last ever UK tour, the first time I saw Pete in the line-up and I got it. It was special, I was blown away and that night did change my life. I can remember it vividly. The music, the passion, the atmosphere, it was tribal. How I dressed, the bands I got in to, the friends I made, what I read and watched, it was because of this band. They were the reason I moved to London. Maybe it wasn't all directly down to The Libertines but they played a huge part to play. And it wasn't just me The Libertines affected, loads of people devoted their hearts to them. I caught on quite late, it wasn't long before they self-destructed. People forget about what that band achieved, the drugs, the fights and Kate Moss steal the limelight from the brilliant music, they were the first band to use the internet to share music, break down the barriers between band and fans and had a D.I.Y. attitude not seen since the punks. This was a band who were approachable, they weren't just a band, they were somebody/something to believe in for our generation.
Pete and Carl were a charismatic couple who bickered but when they were on it, they were a power force. Nobody else was like them. John and Gary played their part to steady a sinking ship but it was all about the double act, the front pair that attacked and conquered.
If it wasn't for The Libertines there would not have been Razorlight, The Paddingtons, The Others, The Rakes the list could do on-and-on, they were responsible for so much music coming out of London in the noughties when indie was on top, not just that but Shoreditch too. Before Pete and Carl started putting nights on in Shoreditch it was a run down area in East London, far from the hipster paradise of today. The Strokes played a huge role in bringing guitar music back, they were the reason The Libertines broke from the underground but it was The Libertines who had a much stronger, relevant impact on culture. They still do today, but we don't need to relive it.
It was more than just the music. Memories. A moment in time that will never be replicated. Money can not buy love and this band don't love each other anymore.
