Feature: Dirty Pretty Things

• 29th Nov 2006

From shambolic get-togethers, prison sentences and a tale of two heroes, The Libertines encapsulated the country with their revolutionary and unique anthems. They touched us at such a rate that a car crash was certain to happen. The antics of Pete Doherty led to a heartbreak split between himself and Carl Barat, culminating in the collapse of one of Britain’s most captivating bands.

Now the dust has settled we can only look back fondly at the great times, gigs and songs that have found a place in our hearts forever. However, times change and the regime sees Pete carrying on his recklessness in his band Babyshambles with Carl creating a more complete new band in Dirty Pretty Things.

Carl is kicking the music industry up the arse again with his new band formed with ex Cooper Temple Clause bassist Didz Hammond, ex Libertine drummer Gary Powell and guitarist Anthony Rossomando. New album ‘Waterloo to Anywhere’ is packed with pirate sing alongs and indie floor fillers like ‘Deadwood’ and ‘Bang Bang Your Dead’.

A successful new album and a sell out tour, things are looking up for Dirty Pretty Things. Glasswerk caught up with Didz Hammond and Anthony Rossomando at the start of the new tour at Liverpool Academy. With a dressing room filled with ‘Bloody Mary’s’ and the two band members tucking into some posh nosh we asked:

Just what does it feel like to be at this point in your career, successful new album, sell out UK tour, obsessive adulation and every whim taken care of by a minion?

DIDZ “We always wanted to be in bands, of course, but we never thought we would be. As kids we just made shit loads of noise. We sounded like a bad version of Mudhoney! Now we‘re here it‘s unbelievable. After running round looking for stuff for months you finally realise that if you want something, just ask someone.”

ANTHONY “3 tampons and 4 midgets please! Right now we’re wired up, so much nervous energy. This tour is some serious shit. I‘ll be out there with my eyes closed doing some sweet solos and be thinking ‘we‘re really lucky.’ Basically you don’t want to be the one who drops the ball. You‘ve just gotta put your heads and hearts into it.”

We just had to ask if they thought the public were just coming to see what has formed from the ghost of Libertines‘ past. How did DPT‘s emerge after the break up?

ANTHONY “Me and Gary knew it just wasn’t going to work on that last tour. It was heartbreak time. Didz has come in and is the perfect missing piece. Right now we’re best mates. Gary is pretty damn good, he’s the nicest guy. When we started Carl had Bang, Bang and Gin and Milk and some others. Anthony did lots of the groundwork and Carl brought the lyrics.

DIDZ “You’d have to be pretty ignorant not to appreciate the Libertines.”

How has the album been received?

DIDZ “Yer, good feedback. We love Play Boys and Gentleman’s Code the most”

And then their tea’s came. Watching the two of them, you’d be hard pushed to find two more different characters. While Ant never stopped talking, far too excitable to think about eating, Didz sat cig in hand telling a few jokes and staying as cool and laid back as you like, wolfing his pork in peppercorn down for tea tonight in seconds flat. “You’re a beast Didz!”. Anthony pulled his hulk of a band mate’s shirt down to reveal a rug of hair on his chest. Anthony is a slight little thing and was still nibbling when we left.

Are you liking any of the new bands? What were your influences when you were growing up?

DIDZ “We like the View. They’ve got a good attitude. They’re rock ‘n’ roll, staying out late every night. We’re in to Larrikin Love, the Long Blondes. We’ve got huge respect for the Klaxons. You can sing along, it’s messy and there’s some real imagination and creativity going on.”

ANTHONY “Minor Threats was my best CD. When I was 15 a friend gave me the Threat CD. I was right into hardcore thrash metal. Then I got in to Britpop. It was amazing to go to the small gigs, us and 500 other people in the US cities watching Pulp, Suede, Blur.”

DIDZ “Yer, I got in to Blur first. I was well into it. My Dad had a great CD collection. We liked the Smiths for their lyrics. When I saw Ash come out with their album as 18 year olds I thought it was too late. Fortunately that wasn’t the case.”

When you’re on tour though things don’t run perfectly the whole time. Back in July Two sisters, Claire and Jennifer Stoddart, and their friend, Carla Took, died in a car crash while driving home from a gig in Ipswich at which Dirty Pretty Things had played. We asked them about their association with the Make Roads Safe campaign.

DIDZ “We see it as a platform to help out. The charity is legit and they are cool people. It was pretty crazy being on Sky news with Eamon Holmes!”

Anthony “He’s orange!!”

This is the beginning of the tour. We all know what can go wrong after some fractious months squeezed on a bus together.

ANTHONY “After Brixton the NHS will sponsor us! We’ll be ready to kill each other near the end, but then ten days after, without seeing the band, you’ll be back together and think ‘oh yeah, you’re my mate.”

Do you miss your family and girlfriends?

DIDZ “You have to go out of your way and make a special effort. You gotta look after your girl!”

ANTHONY “You’ve just got to put things in perspective. It’s a few months of madness, but then you have to have that space and look back and think this has been pretty cool”

Just as the interviewing was wrapping up in walks Mr Barat giving us a Barrymore styled ‘awight!’.

The gig itself was damn cool. Dirty Pretty Things turned Liverpool University into a heaving, boiling pit of energy and excitement. The tracks from debut album Waterloo to Anywhere sounded like they’ve been with us forever. Anthony played like a madman and Didz’s bass drove the songs forward with Gary’s awesome drumming. Didz’s vocals gave good back up and some great duets with Carl Barat. Carl was his usual hyped up self, dripping with sweat but still looking superb. He can do the front man thing without Pete no problem.

With their shirts off at the end, lapping it up, it was like watching a tight, organised cleaner cut Libertines. You can’t escape the comparison. The lyrics may be a bit more meaningless and you lose a lot of the romance and unpredictability of Pete and Carl but DPTs are a superb live band. You couldn’t help but go nuts when the guitars struck up on ''You Fucking Love it'' and ''Burma''. The encore was superb with a cover of the Jam’s '’In The City'' and to finish a Libertines classic – '‘I Get Along'' – to shut up those in the crowd who couldn’t let go and spent the whole gig shouting for Libertines songs. Everyone was living the old days.

These are new days though and Dirty Pretty Thing’s will prove they’re no tribute band.

www.dirtyprettythingsband.com

Photo By Ben Rimmer