The Libertines - "Up The Bracket" (2002)

Much has been made of The Libertines’ effect on reviving indie music in the UK and the truth is that since their decline, nobody has taken up the punk mantle with the same kind of flair and assurance. A great example would be the title track from their debut album.

Lyrically, it’s a fairly simple song, but the impishness in the words are matched so well by the way it all sounds: the looseness and the distortion of the guitars, the dishevelled delivery from Pete Doherty and “Sunshine I wouldn’t wanna be in your shoes.”

There are also a number of likeable B-sides on the Maxi CD release (doesn't that sound old-school?!). While the band are often compared to The Clash, album track “Boys In The Band” opens with a riff more reminiscent of the Pistols. “Skag & Bone Man” surely needs no explanation, given Doherty’s subsequent struggles with both, but here it’s fun to listen to the guys innocently ramble about pawning souls and someone’s mum.

Then we come to “The Delaney”. It’s hard to believe that this wasn’t a single in its own right; not only because it’s ridiculosuly catchy and gloriously messy, but because it sums up so well what a libertine is. There’s no worrying about whether they can play their instruments or their lyrics rhyme, they just end up saying “I just don’t care”.

“Plan A” deserves a mention as well; a slower, spine-chilling tune that really shows off the band’s range of talents. There’s not a lot to make sense of, except that the lyrics have something to do with the music industry. The repetition of “carve it into something new” over the grinning guitar makes me picture an East End serial killer, which sums up how mental this music can drive you.