You've heard all about it by now. On Saturday, The Libertines reunion reached its climax with a huge headline show as part of the British Summer Time series at London's Hyde Park. And, in typical Libertines fashion, the ultimate victory was shadowed by a sense of chaos.
From the moment you arrived on site, you could sense that something boisterous was brewing. One could barely move ten feet without coming head-on with a stream of revellers charging from one side of the venue to another. Weaving among the bleary-eyed became quite the mission, as you got the sense that anyone who'd had a vague interest in indie since 2003 had descended upon Hyde Park.
The surge was surely felt by anyone who tried and failed to catch Wolf Alice in the absolutely rammed Barclaycard Theatre stage - with fans spilling out of the tent and clamouring over each other for a view. Shortly after Reverend And The Makers had finished their explosive set, the stage was closed, before Swim Deep and Graham Coxon were due to play - due to 'health and safety fears', with the officer in charge deeming it too unsafe to open the next day. One can only imagine the damage that crowds must have done.
Swim Deep took to Twitter to voice their disappointment:
Sorry to everyone who couldn't see us perform at hyde park tonight, they had to close the tent for "health and safety" reasons..
— SWIM DEEP ≈ (@SWIM_DEEP) July 5, 2014
..we played a show next door but couldnt get everyone in because it was so small and the organisers wouldn't let anyone else in :(
— SWIM DEEP ≈ (@SWIM_DEEP) July 5, 2014
BST then took to Twitter to announce:
Due to a venue technical fault at the Barclaycard Theatre, Graham Coxon will not be appearing as scheduled. We apologise to Graham & fans
— BST Hyde Park (@BSTHydePark) July 5, 2014
Festival-goers were also less than pleased:
Sad I didn't get to see Graham Coxon yesterday cause of the stage being closed! piss take
— Owen Hackett (@Owen_Hackett) July 6, 2014
so annoyed/disappointed that swim deep (n graham coxon) got cancelled though )-:<<
— Louise Stansfield (@Luweeees) July 6, 2014
Still angry at the Graham Coxon cxled show. 8hr flt from US, straight to Bst Hyde Park,5hr wait in barclay, wet from beer, bruised by mosh.
— EStyle (@estyle_1000) July 6, 2014
Graham Coxon and Swim Deep got cancelled last night cos the floor broke during reverend and the makers set 😂
— Emma Campbell (@EmmaCampbell96) July 6, 2014
As for the event itself, #BSTHydePark was pretty disastrous. A stage was closed due to a technical fault. Graham Coxon's set was cancelled.
— Luke Edwards (@IAmLukeEdwards) July 5, 2014
Awful toilets, awful bars and now no Graham Coxon. @BSTHydePark showing how not to put on a gig. And I bet we won't get our money back.
— David McGlashan (@DaveMcGlashan) July 5, 2014
As The Pogues played on the main stage, the crowd, fuelled by booze, Irish folk and Godknows whatelse, swelled again into a ruckous - with the band being forced to halt their set so to calm the masses down and so the injured could leave. It was not boding well for the evening to follow.
The atmosphere grew only more feral. A van acting as a bar next to the main set of bars on the left soon became a free-for-all bargefest, more akin to the front of a mosh-pit than an orderly queue as festival-goers stole cider from their fellow queuers as they attempted to exit. Meanwhile, security was on hand feet away ferrying people away from the main bar and pouring away the drinks of those who'd smuggled them in.
It wasn't long into The Libertines' headline show before the band were forced to halt their set, stopping after second song 'Boys In The Band' when Doherty told the crowd "We can't carry on until you calm down a bit". So strong was the crowd crush that a 10 minute wait followed while an injured audience member was lifted out, the crowd stepped back a bit to allow for space, and we all started singing 'Seven Nation Army' by The White Stripes for some reason. The set was again halted later after 'Time For Heroes'.
We also remember Doherty introducing 'Music When The Lights Go Out' by chanting "Albion-ey, Albion-ey, ole, ole, ole" - and things again being paused when one rowdy crowd member climbed up one of the speaker towers during 'France', with Barat saying: "If you don’t stop climbing the towers, Pigman [Doherty] can't do his solo."
While we waited, a message flashed up urging the utter burkes that hung from the tower to come down before the gig could go on:
Haha the libertines were amazing last night, British Summertime Festival just wasn't ready for them! pic.twitter.com/53vZO7PijD #thelibertines
— ✌️ (@martin123_emma) July 6, 2014
Why weren't the towers policed? Why weren't security making sure that all queues were properly adhered to? Why was any sense of crowd control so largely ignored? Why did we have an umbrella confiscated on entry but remain unfrisked like the vast majority as drugs ran rife? Why were there toilets full of vomit shortly after gates had opened? Why is there such a vast 'premium viewing' VIP area dominating so much of the area before the main stage, blocking access for regular fans and ticketholders?
Organisational flaws aside, what it all boils down to is the fact that hammered tools were allowed to hijack and sabotage the day.
The success of the day falls upon the shoulders of The Libertines. They played with a conviction and prowess that we've not seen from them in years - they are tighter and more 'together' than ever, playing a greatest hits set with the passion and calibre of a band with far more than two albums under their belt. If they continue on this form, they may yet reclaim the champagne years that they lost to in-fighting and tabloid nonsense. Best of luck to them, they seemed to have figured something out.
But from the moment of the first stage halt and crowd crush, something was lost. Bassist John Hassall's face contained a mixture of concern and fury as he gazed out upon the dedicated masses being thrown and squashed - the same fears could be heard in drummer Gary Powell's pleas for a little bit of sanity. Something in the vibe died, as the focus was drawn away from the electricity on stage and towards the carnage that surrounded us. As Doherty and Barat, stood arm in arm for a reading of Siegfried Sassoon's Suicide In The Trenches in tribute to our nation's fallen heroes, the moving levity seemed lost on the wasted masses who howled their way into a night, as if they'd been at any football match or pub rock gig.
The band couldn't have done more, and ultimately, The Libertines won, but it was Hyde Park and BST that lost.
Below: 15 exclusive photos of The Libertines' reunion gig at Hyde Park
