Peter Doherty's music has always teetered between spontaneous and chaotic. Sometimes, this balancing act is thrilling; on
Hamburg Demonstrations, it's charming.
Doherty's second solo album is filled with appealingly loose songs that are more listenable than
Babyshambles'
Sequel to the Prequel and more exciting than
the Libertines' return,
Anthems for Doomed Youth. He also balances indulgence and restraint more nimbly than he might be given credit for. Recorded at Hamburg's acclaimed Clouds Hills studio as an homage to
the Beatles' early days,
Demonstrations marries the intimacy of a first take with surprisingly ambitious instrumentation that blends well, thanks to the low-key mood. "Kolly Kibbler"'s nods to French jazz and Graham Greene novels feel light and effortless, as does the way "A Spy in the House of Love" briefly morphs into James Bond intrigue before returning to its shuffle, or the way "Oily Boker"'s meditations on Arcadia intercut reveries and fanfares. As
Doherty revisits familiar themes, his melodies and imagery are as potent as ever. The rawness of
Hamburg Demonstrations' setting fits his voice and frame of mind on the
Amy Winehouse tribute "Flags from the Old Regime," where the sound of his breath and fingers moving on the strings are as vital as the gliding chord progression. His combinations of the ragged and the majestic have grown more rollicking, sardonic, and poignant over the years; "I Don't Love Anyone (But You're Not Just Anyone)" undercuts its sweet melody with a segue into "When Johnny Comes Marching Home." This undercurrent of battlegrounds, romantic and otherwise, resurfaces on "Hell to Pay at the Gates of Heaven." Inspired by the 2015 attack at Paris' Bataclan concert hall,
Doherty implores listeners to choose between
John Lennon's favorite acoustic guitar model or an assault rifle with the passion of an old-school folk singer. While this song and "Down for the Outing" resemble more thoughtful
Libertines songs, saving them for his own album allows him the freedom to pair them with a gently rustic ballad like the lovely "She Is Far."
Doherty's solo career has resulted in some of his most rewarding music even if it's not the most attention-getting, and fans who have stuck with him this long will find a lot to enjoy on
Hamburg Demonstrations. ~ Heather Phares