Babyshambles (formed 2003)
Babyshambles is an English rock band formed in London, best known for their three albums, Down in Albion (2005), Shotter's Nation (2007) and Sequel to the Prequel (2013).
Formation: The band was formed by Pete Doherty - former member of The Libertines - after he was expelled from his previous band due to drug addictions. Doherty recruited another former Libertine, Steve Bedlow, and, with the band being made-up entirely of Yorkshiremen, intended to name them T'Libertines. On the night of their first gig, Doherty was arrested for breaking into the flat of the Libertines frontman, Carl Barât. Doherty served two months in prison, before being released and re-joining The Libertines. B
Career: In April, 2004, Doherty and his potential new band released their first single 'Babyshambles' as a side project from The Libertines. A few months later, Doherty was kicked out of The Libertines for his drug use again. This time, Doherty hit back by reorganising his new band and arranging a selection of gigs for them to play. The band organised a tour through September and October of 2004, which sold out and received critical acclaim. The band released their second single, 'Killamangiro', in late November of that year. Due to a steadily increasing dependency on drugs, Doherty began to become a hindrance for the band. They had to finish a concert in Blackpool early as he was too intoxicated to perform, and one performance lead to a riot and stage invasion when he failed to appear at all. This led to the band's drummer, Gemma Clarke, quitting and being replaced by Adam Ficek of The White Sport. In 2005, the band began working on their debut studio album. Entitled 'Down in Albion', the album was released in November of that year, where it peaked at number 10 in the British album charts. The band had booked Oasis to support them on their 2005 UK tour, although Doherty missed the first performance due to attending a birthday party in another country. Oasis subsequently pulled their support for the rest of the tour. 'The Blinding EP' was released in December, 2006, to critical acclaim. In October, 2007, Babyshambles released their second album, entitled 'Shotter's Nation'. In 2010, Adam Ficek left the band to work on his own projects. He was replaced with Stereophonics drummer, Jamie Morrison, while the band worked on the recording of their third album. Entitled 'Sequel to the Prequel', the album was released in September, 2013.
Biography by Contactmusic.com