The Libertines have shared “Night of The Hunter,” another new single taken from the band’s forthcoming fourth studio album, All Quiet on the Eastern Esplanade. According to a press release, the track is “a Shakespearean tale of blood and revenge” featuring campfire-esque acoustic guitar chords backed by shuffling drums and bell accents that call to mind spaghetti Western soundtracks of yore.
Regarding the track, Pete Doherty explained that the title comes from Charles Laughton’s 1955 film of the same name. “The song’s about not staying ahead of the law. This fella doesn’t really know why his mate’s dead, but he’s got a feeling his mate had it coming to him. He fucked with the wrong people, and he stole something he shouldn’t have, and he got stabbed. So, he’s angry and hurt and he has to go and get revenge, so he does and that’s it for him, basically. Once he has stabbed the lad who stabbed his mate, that’s it for him. He lashed out in revenge and he knows they’re coming to get him and he’s not even going to try and run because he knows he’ll just be running forever.”
Carl Barât added, “I started writing a riff and it ended up sounding a bit like ‘Swan Lake,’ and everyone went, ‘Yeah!’ Then we got Peter’s theremin player in which took about a day to get in tune, then he played that sequence and it worked beautifully.”
The video for “Night of the Hunter” was filmed in Cliftonville in the seaside district of Kent and at the band’s hotel, The Albion Rooms, by Alex Brown. Pre-order All Quiet on the Eastern Esplanade here, and check out the video for “Night of the Hunter” below.
