London sound: the best live music gigs this week, August 13 - 19

Gig: Peter Doherty

The drugs, the supermodel ex, the court cases, the tadbloid hysteria, the dead bodies (literally!) – former Babyshambles and Libertines frontman Pete Doherty has lived the life of 100 rock stars. He is, despite the odds stacked against him, still going, and in the live arena, he’s a raw, unbridled talent.

After his first show here at Brixton’s Jamm sold out, the unpredictable musician – now Peter, not Pete – has lined up a second gig at the same venue for the same evening. For both these acoustic performances, he is set to draw on his eclectic back catalogue which, to date, spans two Libertines records before their spectacular implosion, underrated Babyshambles debut Down In Albion and follow-up Shotter’s Nation, as well as his 2009 bona fide solo debut Grace/Wastelands, a record of poetic beauty that failed to trouble the charts.

On stage, away from the flickering flash of the paps’ bulbs, Doherty is a formidable presence, a livewire, captivating performer meant for the stage, where his unpredictable energy and air of intrigue make it impossible to turn your eyes away from him, even for a moment.

His legions of adoring, devoted fans, who are destined to make up the core of this evening’s audience, ensure his shows’ atmosphere is equally as buzzing.

Throw that into a small intimate venue the likes of Jamm, and you have all the ingredients for a stunning night. So long as Doherty remembers to turn up that is, and doesn’t get lost penning some paen to the crackpipe.


Brixton Jamm, 261 Brixton Road, SW9 6LH
Fri, Aug 17 | Doors at 6.30pm & 8pm |  £25
Tube | Brixton 
brixtonjamm.org

Festival watch: South West Four

Clapham Common is the home for this bank holiday weekend dance fest. Spread over two days, Saturday is headlined by Chase And Status, with Carl Cox (performing his only UK show this summer) and Pendulum spin-off Knife Party in support.

Skrillex (above) and Public Enemy, both delivering UK summer festival exclusives, headline the Sunday, with 2ManyDJs and their music-spanning mash-up and Eric Prydz among the other acts. See the summer out with a bang!

Clapham Common, SW4 9DE.
August 25 & 26. £50
Tube | Clapham Common
southwestfour.com

Gig: The Afghan Whigs

These blues rockers disbanded in the mid- Nineties after a string of critically lauded but, comparatively, commercially mediocre records.

They reconvened for the I Am Your Mirror show earlier this summer, and now have this solo show, too, to delight fans who’ve missed Greg Dulli and co.

Sun, Aug 19. 7.30pm £22.50
Koko, 1a Camden High Street, NW1 7JE.
Tube | Mornington Crescent 
koko.uk.com

Club: Shake

This weekly night keeps its options open, spinning everything from electro to disco to pop to indie, from the flared Seventies to the skinny-jeaned Noughties and Teens. Rickky Rock is the man in charge, and with a name like that you can expect the focus to be on party anthems and top times galore.

Sat, Aug 18. 10pm-3am £8+
Electric Ballroom, 184 Camden High Street, NW1 8QP
Tube | Camden Town 
electricballroom.co.uk