MUSIC SCENE
Babyshambles
MUSIC REVIEWED BY BOB JONES

Shotter's Nation - Astralwerks

Shotter's Nation

Babyshambles front man Peter Doherty is a household name in the UK for his music, his drug use, and his scrapes with the bobbies who enforce the laws across the pond. Supermodel Kate Moss, Doherty's ex-girlfriend, was photographed snorting several lines of cocaine at a Babyshambles recording session, so if you follow the tabloids you may have come across the band's name. Shotter's Nation is the second full-length album from Babyshambles, and it is a fine pop rock record. This release has hints of Wire and mid-period Kinks as well as American garage bands from the '60s, with Farfisa organ and all. That being said, it is its own animal- it just has many familiar references. It is 12 tracks of relatively fast-paced pop tunes, well-played and well-written. One of the standout tracks is "Unstookie," where Doherty hints at his disheveled lifestyle: "You smoke your cigarettes down to the bone/ It's best not to mention your crave for attention." Shotter's Nation truly can be enjoyed by music fans who are nostalgic for the first British invasion as well as by kids who like newer power pop. If they were not good, the UK tabloids wouldn't care after all. Bob Jones is the founder of Silver Platter CDs EST1998 in Fort Myers. For more

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