Up the Bracket

up the bracket

Track Listings

1. Vertigo

2. Death on the Stairs

3. Horrorshow

4. Time for Heroes

5. Boys in the Band

6. Radio America

7. Up the Bracket

8. Tell the King

9. Boy Looked at Johnny

10. Begging

11. Good Old Days

12. I Get Along

13. What a Waster [*]

14. Mayday [*]

Up the Bracket,The Libertines,Rough Trade Us,Britpop,Garage Rock Revival,Indie Rock,Pop,Punk Revival,Rock,Rock/Pop

Up the Bracket

Average customer rating:

Masterpiece
You need this.
Ups and downs

Up the Bracket
The Libertines
Manufacturer: Rough Trade Us
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Punk Revival | Hardcore & Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Britpop | British Alternative | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Indie Rock | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

Down in Albion
The Libertines
Waterloo to Anywhere
Favourite Worst Nightmare
The Blinding EP

ASIN: B0007M7O2I
Release Date: 2005-01-25

Tracks:

Vertigo
Death on the Stairs
Horrorshow
Time for Heroes
Boys in the Band
Radio America
Up the Bracket
Tell the King
Boy Looked at Johnny
Begging
Good Old Days
I Get Along
What a Waster [*]
Mayday [*]

Customer Reviews:

Masterpiece.......2007-03-24

Wow, this album, is just so great, such great songs, it opens with a killer trio that will leave you wanting for more, key tracks on this album are:Horrorshow,Vertigo,Time For Heroes,I Get Along,Up The Bracket,and The Good Old Days

You need this........2007-03-09

I absoutely adore this album. It's intelligent, witty and overall a very good time. I say, buy it now.

Ups and downs.......2005-04-09

The Libertines are a band that would have fitted in perfectly in the golden days of rock'n'roll, and it's only a shame that they have yet to really reform. In their debut album, "Up The Bracket," this London band churns out catchy, gritty rock'n'roll with a Britpop twist.

The album starts on a strong note with "Vertigo," a catchy garage-rocker that alternates between Pete Doherty's slightly slurred singing, and combustive short basslicks. "The rapture of vertigo/And letting go/Me myself I was never sure/Was it the liquor/Or was it my soul?" Doherty asks. His irreverent edge takes away any softer sentiments.

That style carries over to the yowling "Horror Show" and and sizzling "Boys in the Band," and drapes itself over the entire album like a worn leather jacket. There are a handful of lower-key guitar rockers, like the simmering "Begging" and the smooth "Tell the King," as well as the strummy and slightly surreal "Radio America."

The Libertines have only made two albums, but their kinetic sound has made them a musical presence on both sides of the pond. What's more, it's just fun to listen to -- their music has the rare quality of being genuinely catchy, energetic, rough and well-written. It's difficult enough to find one of those qualities, so finding one with all of the above is a rarity.

Pete Doherty, now out of the band, does pretty good service as a frontman. His vocals are strong if a bit slurred; he can raise his voice to a scream, or lower it to a seductive little chant. But surprisingly, the more you listen to this, the more it becomes obvious that the other Libertines are just as important to their sound.

Doherty and Carl Barat do exceptional double-duty as guitarists, all punk riffs and deliberately sloppy edges. And it's all wrapped around strong, lyrics about drinking, groupies and being bad-boy rockers is some good music. If Doherty doesn't shoot himself up into the grave, he will undoubtedly be regarded as a masterful rock writer.

In places, they sound like a band about to disintegrate, but that only adds to the punky-laddish flavour of "Up The Bracket." Whatever happens to the Libertines next, their debut is a must-have.

Average customer rating:

One of the Greatest British Albums of the 2000s
Excellent punk rock album
Yawn...
Rock isn't dead after all
If you've lost your faith in love and music oh the end won't be long

Up the Bracket
The Libertines , and Libertines
Manufacturer: Rough Trade
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Punk Revival | Hardcore & Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Britpop | British Alternative | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Indie Rock | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music
Similar Items:

The Libertines
Down in Albion
Waterloo to Anywhere
For Lovers
First Impressions of Earth

ASIN: B000089RVY
Release Date: 2003-03-18

Tracks:

Vertigo
Death On The Stairs
Horrow Show
Time For Heroes
Boys In The Band
Radio America
Up The Bracket
Tell The King
The Boy Looked At Johnny
Begging
The Good Old Days
I Get Along
What A Waster

Amazon.com

Can the debut album from London dandies the Libertines live up to the hype? With the Clash's Mick Jones at the production helm, gravelly tracks such as "Horror Show" and "The Boy Looked at Johnny" rattle along like first-gen punk classics. But like the Strokes, the Libertines manage to imbue snotty garage rock with a sort of wistful romanticism that adds genuine soul to their raucous clatter. Although there's no sign of "What a Waster," the single that made their name, there's no shortage of excellent tunes here. "Boys in the Band" is an affectionate ode to a groupie, with frontmen Pete Doherty and Carl Barat hollering: "And they all get 'em out / For the boys in the band." "I Get Along" proves that these boys have a knack for penning tight, nervy songs that evoke the Jam and the Buzzcocks. --Louis Pattison

Customer Reviews:

One of the Greatest British Albums of the 2000s.......2007-01-27

There are very few albums of the 2000s that look like they'll be viewed as "classics" in years to come; the kind of albums that change the way people view music, maybe even inspire them to start bands of their own. This is definitely that kind of album.

What is it about it that makes it so good? Though this may seem like a digression from the main point of the review, the band's history is inseparably intertwined with their music. The Libertines is a band that ended up attracting a very devoted, loyal fan-base in the UK. The songwriting partnership of Pete Doherty and Carl Barat appears unlikely from a technical aspect, since they are actually quite different (both music and personality-wise). However, their varied vocal and lyrical styles complement each other rather harmoniously. Besides, they had the same objective: to play music, get it heard, and get signed!

The popular British music magazine, NME, heavily promoted the band from their early days up until their demise. The success of The Strokes, a successful American band at the forefront of the "garage rock revival", helped open the door for The Libertines to get signed to a record label (Rough Trade). Over time, The Libertines became well-known for their intense, impassioned live shows, including performances held for fans at their own house! They popularized a "mythology" of the band in some of their song lyrics and interviews: The Libertines were hypothetically "sailing the good ship Albion (also an archaic name for Britain) to Arcadia", a utopian land without rules or authority. This notion has been particularly important to Pete, as he has continued these references in his subsequent band, Babyshambles. It embodies the poetic spirit of The Libertines very well, as it is a metaphor for Carl and Pete's 'quest' to revive a sort of British romanticism in music.

The Libertines' style is mainly reminiscent of 70s British punk-rock bands (especially The Clash). Then again, there are a few slower and heartfelt tracks, like "The Good Old Days", "Tell the King", and "Radio America", which show the more literary side of the band, as opposed to the cocky, modern tone of tracks like "Up the Bracket", "The Boys in the Band", and "I Get Along". The whole album is varied enough to be interesting and enjoyable, and the band's incredibly distinctive style is a result of Pete and Carl's mixed influence of music and literature alike. The Libertines' debut, " Up the Bracket", has made quite an impact on contemporary British music and will (hopefully!) continue to affect music overall for many years to come.

Excellent punk rock album.......2007-01-04

How could they part their own ways? This two vocalists went over to form the Baby Shambles and Dirty Pretty Things. For footage of them and similar groups buy Later with Jools Holland....cool Britania 1 and 2. Excellent band and cd by the way...

Yawn..........2006-08-19

Having grown up in London in the 70s and 80s, I actually saw the Jam, the Buzzcocks,and a host of other like bands so it is hard for me to appreciate this album; it is derivative to the point of plagarism. If you want to hear this sound, go back to the origionals plus when Paul Weller was in the Jam, he was never an uber-tosser like Pete (of course, even Weller succumbed to the inner-wanker when he formed the Style Council but I suppose one should forgive him for that.)

Rock isn't dead after all.......2006-08-03

Did you lose interest in new rock in the past several years because all those loud songs on the FM station sound about the same? Maybe you noticed one song in there somewhere that had memorable hooks and interesting lyrics among the crunching guitars? The Libertines are - or at least were - one of those diamonds in the rough.

Their raw, loud style is closer to punk than any other genre, but most of their songs are more well-developed than that suggests and might even appeal to classic rock fans. Make no mistake, though, this is a loud album. With the exception of the oddly balladish "Radio America," it's a pretty steady sonic assault, and the lyrics are mostly somewhere between "Louie Louie" and live Dylan on the intelligibility scale. What can be understood is more erudite than you'd expect, though. "What a Waster" is a frighteningly vivid look at drug addiction, "Boys in the Band" is the best groupie song I've heard in a long time, and "The Good Old Days" actually reveals a touch of sentimentality just under the power chords. Decipherable or not, most of the other songs are at least very catchy. The whole collection is a nice balance between aggressive style and memorable songs that has been all too lacking for a long time now.

If you've lost your faith in love and music oh the end won't be long.......2006-07-21

Hype is a strange beast. It can build reputations that are founded on nothing more than rhetoric and commercial ambition. Or it can turn opinion viciously against genuine talent and smother it before it ever has time to blossom. Greatness exists on a different plane than hype, yet it takes more than greatness to flourish in hype's shadow. Different roads lead to different destinations: take Oasis for example. Long ago they became a parody of the snarling, visceral rock n roll band that briefly set them head and shoulders above their peers. On the other hand Radiohead got lost in introversion and obscure electronica, while The Stone Roses went AWOL for five years, eventually reappearing as a chronically dysfunctional shell of the zeitgeist definers they once were, before quickly falling apart.

And so The Libertines emerged in 2002 swathed in rumours of drug-addled excess and promises that they had inherited the true spirit of rock n roll. Early interviews with Pete Doherty and Carl Barat saw them outlining The Libs' blueprint of recreating a mythical `Albion' peopled by poets and troubadors, Eritrean maidens and men who would be kings. Early live shows witnessed unbridled exuberance and glorious melodies, the birth of guerilla gigging, run-ins with the police, and some of the most ramshackle, unpredictable and electrifying performances by any band in years. The Libertines were as tight-knit a gang as all the best bands ever have been, yet Doherty and Barat's relationship bordered on more than being best mates: there was a sense of brotherhood and platonic love that added to the romance and engendered a myth. What they needed to do was to match the hype that went before them with a great debut album - and boy did they pull that off.

`Up the Bracket' was released in 2003 to generally positive acclaim. The roughness of Mick Jones's production (the band had recorded debut single What a Waster with ex-Suede guitarist Bernard Butler, whose more polished approach was seen as out of kilter with the Libertine ethos) had some critics questioning its quality. But as with many classic records, `Up the Bracket' initially seemed out of step with the current music scene - only taking its rightful place in the pantheon of great rock n roll albums once its influence had had time to gestate. And its influence on the likes of Franz Ferdinand, Kaiser Chiefs and Arctic Monkeys was huge. Without `Up the Bracket' the British musical landscape post 2003 would look entirely different. But where did the Libertine's sound originate? It certainly owed a massive debt to The Strokes, but also borrowed from the bloodline of classic British rock bands - the likes of Mick Jones's old band The Clash, The Buzzcocks and Supergrass. Jagged, ragged guitars and spectacularly unpolished vocals - especially from Doherty - infuse `Up the Bracket' with genuine energy and charm. Lyrically it is razor sharp, a 21st century rake's progress through fights and riots, encounters with groupies and various other questionable characters. Vertigo initiates proceedings tremendously, a call to all romantics to serenade the object of their affections by shinning up a drainpipe - fear of heights be damned! Death on the Stairs and Horror Show (with its reference to a much loved Doherty subject - heroin) then usher in the brilliant Doherty-penned Time for Heroes, boasting one of the great rhyming couplets of recent times - "there are few more distressing sights than that/Of an Englishman in a baseball cap" - together with some inspired guitar duelling from Pete and Carl. Boys in the Band is another Libs classic, a raucous, testosterone-fuelled tale of fighting and groupies who "all get them out for the boys in the band/they scream and they shout for the boys in the band" (Kate Moss take note...). The album's title track is another belter, Pete's strangled cry a rather alarming intro into another tale of dodgy dealings with shady characters, while The Good Old Days, with its chord sequence lifted straight from Iggy Pop's The Passenger, exhorts us not to hark back to a time that never really existed, instead pointing out that "the Albion sails on course".

So where, inevitably, did it all go wrong? Like The Stone Roses before them, a brilliant debut was followed by an underwhelming second album and then a very messy - and very public - break up. Subsequent events in the extraordinary life of Pete Doherty (increasing drug intake fuelling increasingly erratic behaviour, thrown out of the band on the eve of a European tour, burgling Carl's house, incarceration, new supermodel girlfriend catapulting him into the gossip columns, eventually to become a tabloid pariah) have only added to the myth of The Libs as one of the great unfulfilled talents in rock n roll history. Rumours of a reunion remain rife, but it seems unlikely given the emergence of Doherty's Babyshambles and Barat's Dirty Pretty Things. Perhaps it is best to draw a line under a brief but brilliant career and let The Libertines' legacy remain untarnished by cash motivated, headline grabbing reunion tours. `Up the Bracket' distills their early promise perfectly and captures The Libertines in all their ragged glory: a snapshot of a band hungry for success and notoriety, certain that they have the talent and charisma to pull it off, and above all filled with songs that we'll be singing decades from now.

Average customer rating:

Ups and downs

Up the Bracket
The Libertines
Manufacturer: Spunk
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Punk Revival | Hardcore & Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Britpop | British Alternative | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Indie Rock | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

Rock | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B00007G73D
Release Date: 2002-11-18

Tracks:

Vertigo
Death on the Stairs
Horrorshow
Time for Heroes
Boys in the Band
Radio America
Up the Bracket
Tell the King
Boy Looked at Johnny
Begging
Good Old Days
I Get Along
What a Waster [*]
Mayday [*]

Album Description

Recorded by none other than the legendary Mick Jones of the Clash, The Libertines debut record has been hailed as a genius debut. The even better news is this little wonder comes with two bonus tracks, 'What A Waster' & 'Mayday'. Rough Trade. 2002.

Album Details

Produced by Former Clash Man Mick Jones, this Australian Exclusive Version of "up the Bracket" features the Band's Debut Single (And Its B-side) as Exclusive Bonus Tracks. Bonus Tracks ("What a Waster" and "Mayday") were Produced by Former Suede Guitarist/Songwriter Bernard Butler.

Customer Reviews:

Ups and downs.......2005-04-17

Average customer rating:

You can listen to it over and over......
Absolute Gem
Two Crooked Fingers I Show, oh the Horror
Heard the band in concert...
It Grew On Me...

Up the Bracket
The Libertines
Manufacturer: Import [Generic]
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Punk Revival | Hardcore & Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Britpop | British Alternative | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Indie Rock | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

Alternative Rock | Imports | Stores | Music

Rock | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B00006JSIU
Release Date: 2003-02-04

Tracks:

Vertigo
Death on the Stairs
Horrorshow
Time for Heroes
Boys in the Band
Radio America
Up the Bracket
Tell the King
Boy Looked at Johnny
Begging
Good Old Days
I Get Along

Album Description

2002 debut album for London-based rock 'n' roll outfit, produced by Mick Jones of the Clash. 12 tracks including the first two singles, 'I Get Along' & the title track. Rough Trade. 2002.

Album Details

Their Debut Full Length Produced by Former Clash Member Mick Jones.

Customer Reviews:

You can listen to it over and over.............2003-02-15

This CD has hardly left my CD player for the past month. After a month of the musical doldrums brought on by Joe Stummer's untimely death, the music of the Libertines has lifted my spirits. Their music has tremendous energy that recalls The Clash's London Calling era and The Jam. Produced by Mick Jones, he has left his mark all over it. If we can't have the Clash, at least they left some great followers in the Libertines.

Absolute Gem.......2003-01-25

A great listen all the way through. Give it time and they'll be playing sold out venues in the US...

Two Crooked Fingers I Show, oh the Horror.......2002-11-28

Ah, the Libertines. Like the Santa Ana winds blew the stale smell of cigarettes and greasy chips in my face while watching episodes of "The Young Ones" in my bedroom adorned with old Jam posters. Ok, I was trying to get a vibe across. If you need it in spoon fed pap form...think Supergrass meets The Strokes produced by Paul Weller back in the Jam heyday. I got this cd in Tokyo and man did a big painful smile come across my face. From track one "Vertigo" all the way to track 12 "I get Along" which really busted me up since that track was also on their debut single "What a Waster". Although I loved Waster, I really thought "I get Along" was the killer track. Here, it has been slightly redone and has never sounded better. I can see how people might write these guys off as Jam rip-offs etc. But I see them as being more clever and cheeky for that. The lyrics are way better than they need to be and the craftsmanship is apparent in it's rawness and clarity. nothing overdone and overdubbed. Simply perfect if you ask me and since you won't, get this cd and judge for yourself. If you like these guys and wanna expand your brit-rock horizons may I offer up these deserving bands...1. The Datsuns"The Datsuns" 2. V Twin"The Blues is a Mindfield" 3. The Coral "The Coral" 4. Radio 4 5. Ikara Colt 6. The Beatings

Heard the band in concert..........2002-11-09

Although I do not yet have the CD for these guys, I did just see them in concert, and all I can say is WOW!! They opened for Morrissey, and blew the crowd away. It was like seeing the Ramones for the first time. I hope this is the start of a new musical renaissance, which sees boybands and manufactured music fade, and a livelier music scene happen, with original sounds and high energy lyrics! If you like your music rebellious, in which you can ride along the tide of rebellion with the band rather than having it thrust in your face, this is your scene! Put this music to the test if you are about to hit the highway, the powder in the mountains, or bike through a canyon of double-decker buses! The party has begun-grab your leather jacket and hightops, and jump into the crowd!

It Grew On Me..........2002-11-08

I completely agree with alexliamw's excellent review of this album. When I first heard it I thought it was pretty average but the more I listen to it the more I find to like.

It's more rough and ready than the other other slightly mainstream sounding punk/rock bands that alexliamw mentions but that's my kind of thing - In fact it sometimes sounds as if the band only started practicing on their instruments a couple of months before recording the record...

Tracks:

Punch Up the Bracket
Man the Myth
Second Hand Youth
Secret Jokes
Toilets of Northern Europe
Insect Boy
Happy Accident
No Tears
Geordie Lout
Desperate Hours
Yr Love It Lies to You
Contradictions
Normal
Perennial Underdog
Louise
Stand by Your Words
Yr Silent Years
Kids Don't Follow
More Than Most
Pleasantries
Tactile

Average customer rating:

Single No. 2 on the road to being the next great punk band

Up the Bracket
The Libertines
Manufacturer: Rough Trade
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Punk Revival | Hardcore & Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Britpop | British Alternative | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Indie Rock | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Alternative Rock | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B00006J9MO
Release Date: 2002-10-01

Tracks:

Up the Bracket
Delaney
Plan A

Album Description

Second single for London rock 'n' roll outfit, taken from their Mick Jones (The Clash) produced 2002 debut album of the same name. Includes the title track, 'Boys In The Band' & 'Skag & Bone Man' (non-LP). Rough Trade.

Album Details

Produced by Mick Jones (The Clash).

Customer Reviews:

Single No. 2 on the road to being the next great punk band.......2002-10-02

After their debut double-A side 'What A Waster/I Get Along' the Libertines release their second single, 'Up The Bracket'. This is a similarily brilliant punk track in the London style, calling to mind the Jam, the Buzzcocks, Sham 69 and The Clash. In fact it is produced by Mick Jones, of the Clash, as is the upcoming album, also entitled 'Up The Bracket'. This is the most exciting new band around.

Average customer rating:

Up the Bracket
The Libertines
Manufacturer: Toshiba EMI Japan
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Punk Revival | Hardcore & Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Britpop | British Alternative | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Indie Rock | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

Alternative Rock | Imports | Stores | Music

Rock | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B0001BUEYA
Release Date: 2004-12-01

Tracks:

Can't Stand Me Now
Last Post on the Bugle
Don't Be Shy
Man Who Would Be King
Music When the Lights Go Out
Narcissist
Ha Ha Wall
Arbeit Mach Frei
Campaign of Hate
What Katie Did
Tomblands
Sag
Road to Ruin
What Became of the Likey Lads
France
Don't Look Back into the Sun [New Version]
Cyclop
Dilly Boys
Can't Stand Me Now

Album Description

Japanese edition of their self-titled 2004 album release is scheduled to include four bonus tracks, 'Don't Look Back Into The Sun' (New Version), 'Cyclop', 'Dilly Boys', 'Can't Stand Me Now' (Enhanced Video) along with a hidden track that appears on all pressings, 'France'. Toshiba/EMI.

Album Details

Japanese Release featuring a Bonus Track

Average customer rating:

Great start for London boys

Up the Bracket
The Libertines
Manufacturer: Toshiba EMI
ProductGroup: Music
Binding: Audio CD

General | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Punk Revival | Hardcore & Punk | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Britpop | British Alternative | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

Indie Rock | Indie & Lo-Fi | Alternative Rock | Styles | Music

General | Rock | Styles | Music

Pop Rock | Pop | Styles | Music

Rock | Imports | Stores | Music
ASIN: B000075AXC
Release Date: 2002-12-16

Tracks:

Can't Stand Me Now
Last Post on the Bugle
Don't Be Shy
Man Who Would Be King
Music When the Lights Go Out
Narcissist
Ha Ha Wall
Arbeit Mach Frei
Campaign of Hate
What Katie Did
Tomblands
Sag
Road to Ruin
What Became of the Likey Lads
France
Don't Look Back into the Sun [New Version]
Cyclop
Dilly Boys
Can't Stand Me Now

Album Description

Japanese edition of the East London indie act's 2002 debut album includes two bonus tracks, 'What A Waster' & 'Mocking Bird'. Rough Trade.

Album Details

Japanese Version featuring a Bonus Track: "Mocking Bird".

Customer Reviews:

Great start for London boys.......2002-12-31

Taking advantage of the hype for bands who names star with the, the Libertines apear onto the british music sence reminding us of such bands as the Strokes and The Hives. With thier retro styles and worn out jeans and heavy chords. The album is a promising as the first two singles of it. Up The Bracket and Time for Heros. Two amazing tunes. Virtigo is great song to start the album. Also amazing bonus track What A Waster. This song is a true English songs, using the typical British curse words such a ... and so on. over all a trully great album for someone who likes all the other bands such as the strokes, the whitestripes, the vines, the hives, and so on. They are a promising young act with loads of potential. They have a bright future.