The Libertines
by Daniel Robert Epstein for SuicideGirls (http://suicidegirls.com/)

The Libertines have had a tough time during the past couple of years. After breaking out with their first song, What a Waster, they quickly descended into a Behind the Music-like hell when their frontman Pete Doherty became a heavy drug addict, nearly causing the breakup of the band.

But that’s all behind them now, and they’re releasing their latest self-titled album and it’s their best one yet. I got a chance to talk with Libertines drummer Gary Powell.

You can buy The Libertines album here

Daniel Robert Epstein: Hi Gary.

Gary Powell: Hi Daniel, where are you?

DRE: I’m outside in New York City.

GP: Let me picture this. There are building, trees, and a blue car just drove by with a woman in it. Am I right?

DRE: Close enough. Where are you today?

GP: I’m in Creation management offices, back in a dirty sterile little room.

DRE: What do you think of all the buzz that’s around the band right now?

GP: I don’t really think about it. Buzz is just people’s opinions, and I would rather people form their opinions around facts.

DRE: Are you afraid of people’s expectations?

GP: Not at all. I believe in the integrity of the band and the integrity of myself. As long as we do the best stuff we could possibly do, no matter how corny that sounds, people can say whatever they want. It’s cool that people like us, and I do care about them. There is nothing I love more than playing a show, going out and meeting people from the audience and then hanging out with them. I will go out and get drunk with them and sign autographs. But with respect to all this media hype, it’s just media hype.

DRE: Well a lot of it is positive buzz as well.

GP: I know that because of the buzz, there will be a certain demographic of people that will read about us and then go buy the album. But I’m more interested in the certain amount of people that will have bought the album who then want to come and see the show. They will have a great time with us. I love the fact that when we play a show that it’s not about us massaging our egos, but is about us having a great time with the people who came to see us perform. Make no bones about it, we do perform with the audience. That’s where we are all coming from.

DRE: On the other side of this positive buzz, there is all this stuff that went down with Pete. Is everything fine now?

GP: Yeah, everyone’s ok. We’re bearing it well. You have to remember that this isn’t new for us, it happened last year, so this year everything is ok. But we’re not going to roll over and say die because before it happened, we were Libertines and we are still Libertines.

DRE: Are you guys planning on being together as long as possible?

GP: We’ve always planned on that. But who determines how long that is? It can’t be defined. Even when we went through all that we did, there was always the possibility one of us might take off. Saying that, we do whatever we can and do it whatever we want.

DRE: How long do you want the band to go on?

GP: I want the band to continue, not because it’s the band, but because I want to keep playing with my friends. As long as we enjoy playing music together, then that’s what I want to do.

DRE: What was the inspiration for this album?

GP: The inspiration was that if you record a new album, then you get to go on tour. That was it.

DRE: So you feel the band is best when playing live?

GP: Absolutely. If you want to see what it is that makes us the Libertines, then you have to check us out live.

DRE: How is the album autobiographical for you?

GP: We all work on the album together. My emotional contribution is much more apparent on this album than it was on our first one.

DRE: There is a lot of humor on the album as well. Was it fun recording as well?

GP: We had a great time when we were recording. We recorded the album in a studio called Metropolis. They were really nice people. There was also a bar, a foosball table, and a pool table. There was plenty to keep us occupied when we weren’t recording. We didn’t go off into our separate corners and read a book. We drank a lot and played a lot. It was really cool.

DRE: Who is on the cover of the album?

GP: That’s Pete and Carl with their real tattoos.

DRE: Do you have any tattoos?

GP: I’ve got two tattoos on my back. I’m thinking about getting a couple more, but I’m undecided about what to get.

DRE: I read that you guys are collecting fan footage of the band for a DVD.

GP: Yeah, it’s been interesting.

DRE: What kind of stuff is coming in?

GP: I haven’t seen too much of it yet.

DRE: How was it working with The Clash's Mick Jones as producer?

GP: He’s the fifth Libertine because he produced both our albums. He’s a really good friend of the band. He comes to see us at shows, and we went to see him with his new band.

DRE: What did he bring?

GP: He brings emotional integrity and keeps us levelheaded in the studio. He brings a lot of emotion and is very enthusiastic. He dances around, goes into the control room, comes back out again and is just everywhere.

DRE: What kind of girls come after you guys?

GP: All kinds! Hopefully beautiful, intellectual, single and romantic 25 year olds.

DRE: What are you doing next?

GP: We’ve got four days off, and then we’re flying off to Vancouver for a show. Then we’re touring for a month, and then we’re off to Rio de Janeiro.

by Daniel Robert Epstein

SG Username: AndersWolleck

web address: http://suicidegirls.com/words/The+Libertines/