Now in their mid-forties, Carl Barât and Peter Doherty seem to have everything together. They both live with their respective families, Barât in Margate, a coastal town in East England, and Doherty in Etretat, a town in the north of France whose cliffs overlook the English Channel. Yet they still carry their demons with them, a daily presence and an endless source of inspiration. In the summer of 2022, they headed to Jamaica with the other two members of The Libertines, Gary Powell and John Hassall, where they composed part of the aptly named All Quiet on the Eastern Esplanade, while watching Queen Elizabeth II’s funeral and seeing the birds struggle through a tropical storm.
The Libertines discuss their demons, inspirations and writing their new album in Jamaica for Qobuz
QobuzInfluenced by reggae, The Clash, and even classic orchestration from the 70s, these are intimate tracks, with both light and dark reflections on their tortured souls, written with disciplined abstinence from drugs or alcohol—a first for them. Impelled by their obsession with words and melody, Carl and Peter are finally working in harmony with one another. Ahead of their concert at the 104 in Paris, the prelude to a European tour that’s selling out fast, we sat down with them for a discussion ranging from the horizons they’re charting together, to their profound inspirations past and present, to how time has changed their views on both London and their lives.
