Dirty Pretty Things
Waterloo to Anywhere (2006)

So the waiting is over and finally we get to hear the fruits of Carl Barat’s labour. Since the break-up of his previous band The Libertines, there has been a debate as to who was the creative force behind the band. On one hand we have Pete Doherty, who released an album with his band, Babyshambles in late 2005; we also have John Hassall, who on leaving the Libertines formed Yeti, who as yet have only released a couple of singles.

Despite the lukewarm critical reaction to which the Babyshambles received, I personally really like the album and it succeeded in reminding me of Pete Doherty’s prodigious talent. This offering from Dirty Pretty Things was always going to be compared to the Babyshambles album. Musically it is just as strong, with the sound of the Libertines dominating most of the songs. So is it fair to be critical of this? Whereas the Babyshambles album created a new, dark sound to Pete’s songs, Carl’s songs sound as if they could have come from the ‘Up The Bracket’ era – only not quite as strong.

The next offering from Dirty Pretty Things will be very interesting, to see if Carl wants to expand on the type of tunes he writes. But for now, here are 11 punk rock tunes that do push all the right buttons. Yes, we’ve heard it all before…but if the tunes are good then who cares. There are five or six tracks on here that will definitely capture the imagination, so for now at least, Dirty Pretty Things are one of the best, and most exiting bands out there.


+ Review by Arfyn

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