There wasn’t a journalist alive a decade ago who didn’t love to sink their teeth into a juicy Pete Doherty scandal.
After his split from cult-indie sweethearts The Libertines in 2004, Doherty soon established his new project Babyshambles with the release of their debut record Down In Albion. Eight years later and they’re planning to release a third album, as well as tour Australia for the first time and play a slot at Splendour In The Grass.
He may have visited Down Under in the past, but there’s something in particular that bassist Drew McConnell is looking forward to during the upcoming trip – catching up with local artist Steve Smythe.
“Babyshambles are huge fans of his!” enthuses McConnell. “We’re trying to hook it up so that he can maybe play with us on some of our sideshows, so if anyone sees him please put in a good word for us.”
The new album – dubbed Sequel To The Prequel – is set for release in early September, with McConnell revealing what fans can expect to hear. “The track “8 Dead Boys” [off Down In Albion] is about the closest comparison to what’s on the new record. I think we backed off a bit with Shotter’s Nation but we’ve stepped it up a gear again.”
“It’s been the happiest and easiest time to ever be in the studio with the boys. Everyone’s smiled and played well, we’re really at the top of our games.”Although it’s been more than five years since Shotter’s Nation, it appears that time hasn’t impacted on the London rockers’ chemistry. “It’s been the happiest and easiest time to ever be in the studio with the boys,” says the bassist. “Everyone’s smiled and played well, we’re really at the top of our games.”
It’s been an eventful period between albums for McConnell, and not always in a good way. Now almost fully recovered, the musician encountered a serious setback a year ago when he was struck by a car while riding his bike.
“I can only remember up to the point where the car hit me, after that I was knocked out cold on the road for around 15 minutes”, he describes. “When I came to, the paramedics were telling me not to move because my spine was broken.”
Born in Ireland, McConnell spent the majority of his childhood living in Tenerife, Spain, which is where he returned during his recovery. “Going back there was my chance to get away from everything. I knew my father was away which meant the house would be empty, so it was the perfect opportunity to be alone for a month.”
Not only this, it also gave him the time to reflect on his life and on what had occurred. “After literally coming so close to death, being back in the place I grew up in, now in my early-30s, it was almost like a reflective second adolescence. It was a period where everything in my life seemed to come full circle.”
Known by the nickname ‘Helsinki’, given to him by Stereophonics’ drummer and Babyshambles contributor Jamie Morrison, it’s also the name of McConnell’s side project. His time back on the Coast Of Silence allowed him to get back to doing what he loved – writing music. “I hadn’t written a song for so long, I found myself writing purely as therapy more than anything.”
“People’s perception is that Pete’s a fire-breathing, cocaine-filled vampire. He’s pretty rock and roll I’ll admit, but he’s also a beautiful soul.”These tracks have since been uploaded to his website as a free download. “I never intended to release those songs, but my friend Mark Donne encouraged me to put them out there.”
McConnell admits he is very fond his tracks “The Very Last Boy Alive” and “Ordinary Man”, but says “Alone (For Aaron)” holds a very distinct significance. “I really believe the lyrics of that song capture the essence of that feeling of stripping everything right back down, to thinking about the innocence of youth and the circle of life,” he says.
Having learned a lot during his time away, McConnell tells of what he now believes is an important rule for songwriters. “You need to be as honest as you can, write down the truest thing that you know and keep repeating that.”
With Babyshambles now once again his top priority, McConnell is quick to shut down any likelihood of a Doherty-related controversy in the near future.
“People’s perception is that Pete’s a fire-breathing, cocaine-filled vampire. He’s pretty rock and roll I’ll admit, but he’s also a beautiful soul and a wonderful friend,” he reveals. “Pete likes to let his hair down sometimes, but you guys are from Australia so you know what it’s like to party!”
Revealing there have been times where Pete’s actions have left him shocked, it isn’t something he believes is out of the ordinary. “I think you’d be very hard-pressed to have been friends with someone for over 10 years who hasn’t annoyed you at some point in time.”
So is there any other information on Pete that Drew thinks we should know about before he hits our shores? “Have you seen him play pool? He’s absolutely terrible!”
Sequel To The Prequel will be released on Friday 30 August through Parlaphone.
Babyshambles 2013 Australian Tour Dates
Thurs 25 July – Palace Theatre – Melbourne
Fri 26 July – Splendour In The Grass – Byron Bay – SOLD OUT
Sun 28 July – Enmore – Sydney
Mon 29 July – HQ – Adelaide
Wed 31 July – Metro City – Perth
