Crack The Champagne

Anxiously awaiting 

It's a day to crack champagne because the new Libertines album is dropping tomorrow. I watched the documentary There Are No Innocent Bystanders a while back, and clearly Carl Barat is madly in love with Pete Doherty, but how could he not be? It seems any band's success usually hinges on one bandmate's magnetism, and when this person figures out they are the draw, the source of success, then corruption ensues, unless they are given clear authority as the leader (see Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band or Win Butler and Arcade Fire, oh wait…)

On my drive home from Tahoe today, I listened to Libertines albums and thought about their dynamic relationship. From the documentary, it seemed obvious Pete figured out he is the draw for The Libertines, however, the band was not tolerating his lackadaisical work ethic, in regard to him wasting their time, and they gave him the boot.
Pete does not hide his financial woes when he talks to the camera, claiming money is the reason the group is getting back together. Pete has a power over people, most especially supermodels, which paved way for his offspring. The supermodels looked happy to carry on the Doherty name, and happy to collect their child support checks, which will keep even a rich man working because rich people are accustomed to, as they like to say, "a certain way of living," that a retiring young artist will be unable to provide for.
Pete must have been a work horse coming up in the music world, but then he sort of lost that passion. Maybe he was underwhelmed by wealth and fame, or maybe it is high levels of tolerance people have for reckless behavior when everyone's check is riding on his ass, that allows for someone to get to bad places with drugs and alcohol in a very public space. There is a resentment that comes along with being the money maker, and its a well thought out defiance to make people believe you're always on the brink of a drug induced melt down, therefore they're always on the brink of being out of a job.
Arbeit Macht Frei came on the player and I reminded myself to google what that means. Turns out, it's a German slogan from nazi concentration camps, meaning "work will set you free." Next, I googled the lyrics of Arbeit Macht Frei, which is a perfect length for analyzing, two versus. The message in this song is don't pat yourself on the back for seeing the evil in Nazis because racism and concentration camp equivalents are basically alive and well. Maybe he says "work will set you free" in the modern text because it will distract you from the racism and hate that are very much prevalent in modern times. Boycotting Chick-fil-a doesn't mean you're not a racist hate-monger, it really means you are a slightly less racist hate monger, because the seemingly innocent task of grocery shopping is feeding into a world view where the third world is enslaved. So put that in your pipe and smoke it, or go to work, and work harder, keep yourself distracted from these hard truths.
I don't think Pete wants to live out his days walking cobblestone streets in Spain, feeling as much joy he did while performing by singing little ditties in his head. Anyone who has the drive to make it from the bottom to the top has a burning need inside them to keep producing. Maybe that is brainwashed Americanism speaking. Americans do love to work, but they really love talking about how much more they work than other people. It's a great superiority complex that imprisons its citizens to car payments, house payments and 3,000 square foot homes full of shit.

So basically, kudos for identifying racism in the Nazis, but don't be stupid enough to think that it doesn't exist in other forms today. The best way to deal with it is by distracting yourself through hard work, and then buying stuff that buries your conscious.
Pete's team is going to have to play this song on repeat to get him back to his youthful workaholic self. Then they can work on getting him off the bad shit and addicted to cold-pressed juice; a Winston Smith level transformation.
After googling "gaspers," meaning cheap cigarette, I feel like I am reaching my quota on new information for the day. Looking forward to hitting play on the new Libertines album tomorrow, and keeping my fingers crossed for a US tour. In which case, we know the transformation would be complete. Pete standing at the mic, two gin-scented tears trickling down the side of his nose, happy the struggle is finished as he sings, "I love you, Big Brother."