“Whenever talk turned to The Libertines he became visibly upset. He wanted a reunion, he said. He had sent Barât numerous messages but had got no reply. He even sent one while we were there.”
— Interview with Peter Doherty, Hot Press, January 2005
A friend of mine once said, the difference between our fans and those of “real” rock bands is that ours show poems rather than tits. But that’s okay, I like poems.
Interviewer: How do you evaluate each other as a song writer? If there is something one of you doesn’t have and the other has, what is it?
Peter and Carl: …… (Look at each other for a while)
Carl: We are like Bonnie and Clyde.
Peter: For example, people think that John Lennon and Paul McCartney always wrote together, but it’s just a romantic fantasy. In fact, each of them wrote many songs alone and …
Carl: I don’t want to treat what I wrote as something different. I feel it’s what we wrote together. I think that songs we write together are on a higher level than those I do alone. And more powerful.
Peter: I don’t think so. Carl often writes better and more powerful songs when he writes alone, to be honest.
Carl: No, I don’t agree with that.
Interviewer: So which is the case?
Peter: When we are making music together, it’s kind of like there’s magic I can’t explain in words … it’s like we need each other, and songs need the two of us. And that’s our friendship (Peter does a headlock to Carl and kisses him passionately).
“I never thought I’d make it in a band. For me, it was an impenetrable world, and playing in front of a small audience was already intimidating enough. Peter’s attitude was different: We can do this, you can be that. He was full of faith, life and vitality, and that sustained me; it was a real part of the magic of the time.”
Interviewer: I’ve got a question. Can I ask one? We told them please don’t ask him anything about Pete Doherty and I’m not asking about Pete Doherty. But I’ve read some interviews and I really like the way you were talking about this relationship, which is upside down and an up and down relationship. Seems like a very brotherly relationship. And you have a lot of patience for this man whom you seem to really love. Deeply.
Carl: Yeah, sometimes I have patience.
Interviewer: You gave it a try, right?
Carl: Yeah, I do give it a try. I think when something is that special then it’s worth fighting for. And sometimes it’s..I think if you keep yourself in the right head-set and heart-set then if something’s meant to happen it will. That’s why last year happened…that’s why it didn’t happen this year…I keep on trying but I’m not going to sort of devote my life to it really.
Interviewer: You seem like a very wise person.
Carl: *shakes head*
Interviewer: Do you get that from all your readings? You don’t get that kind of attitude very often in the music maelstrom. Things go very fast and you seem quite balanced.
Carl: Well, I don’t know. It would be foolish of me to agree with you. Pride coming before a fall and all that. But thank you very much.
Like anything in my experience with Pete it’s been quite fraught with many different emotions, fears, euphorias. I was relieved when it was over if only for the fact that I think it went well. The encore was a bit odd; it was certainly in true Libertines tradition, wasn’t it?…It always feels natural and there’s the occasional flicker of worry, but I think it’s mutual, you know? But when I’m playing those songs it feels really good…
Obviously when you’re connecting with someone on that level, when there’s a soulmatedom and you grow an intrinsic part of your entire ethos of the world with that person then you’re going to remain….. no matter what they do ….. there’s always going to remain a vestige, a little light which you can’t extinguish even in the darkest times. The tomb of the unknown pigman!
–Carl speaking about the Hackney Empire Reunion, NME April 2007
““We’re writing all the time. We exchange thoughts about things like old movies. It’s part of our relationship – we have our own language, and we use that to share things that inspire us…Touring always has its drama, but Pete and I have managed to keep the drama where it belongs – on stage. Our friendship is always intense, but we’re learning better how to handle it properly. And it’s better to be intense than to have no relationship, which was obviously the case for a while. We really do appreciate our relationship now.”
— Carl Barat on Peter Doherty, 2016 NME Awards Interview (x)
“Its got to the point where Carl and I don’t speak except on stage. It breaks my heart. He treats me badly and every time I come running back like a battered housewife. I feel like I’m seeking the ghost of a former friendship but Carl gave up on me years ago… If he comes and grabs me by the hand, maybe we can reclaim the empire together.” (Pete Doherty, 2004)
remember ages ago when Carl did this interview thingy and got 5/5 on How Gay Are You and that was the same interview that gave birth to the famous ‘there have been moments in our relationship where physicality has ensued’, could anyone source it for me? Was it just an old NME or?
suchasinistergame 