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The Enemy in the Press
15/07/09: Radio 1 - The Enemy Hit Back At Rumours 
Tom Clarke has set the record straight, quashing rumours the band weren't up to it. Speaking to Radio 1 and reported by Damian Jones: The Enemy's frontman Tom Clarke has hit back over claims the band pulled out of supporting Oasis at Wembley Stadium because they couldn't be bothered. The Coventry trio said that they were forced to pull out of their performance on July 11 because their singer Tom fell ill. "The fact of the matter is we smashed a hole in Wembley for two nights and we couldn't do one because I had a reaction to some lillies," he told Radio 1. "It's pathetic that in 2009 a man can't walk past a lily without getting a sore throat but what can you do?" This is the second time The Enemy have pulled out of a support slot during Oasis' UK tour. Last month, Clarke's band were forced to cancel a performance at Heaton Park because he was struck down with food poisoning. Reports at the time suggested that the singer believed Oasis were "past it", prompting Liam Gallagher to criticise the band on his Twitter page. But Clarke was quick to point out that he was misunderstood. Now, Clarke has hit back and launched a scathing attack on music journalists. "There's not that many interesting bands around at the minute," he said. "There's us, Kasabian, Oasis, maybe Muse but to be honest they've been quiet for a bit, Reverened And The Makers and that's pretty much it. "So all these petty little music journalists have to sit in a room and decide what they're going to write about and normally they pick on the exciting bands and then try and make it more exciting. "Why don’t they just write Oasis, Kasabian and The Enemy smashed a hole in Wembley and if you go down there just off the A40 you'll find it?" The Enemy are due to perform at this year's Ibiza Rocks line-up on 4 August. 14/07/09: NME.COM - The Enemy And Lady GaGa Reward Volunteers  Here is what NME magazine had to say about The Enemy's performance at the Orange Rockcorps event (and not even the slightest feud between Alex Zane!) : The Enemy and Lady GaGa were among the acts who played a charity gig at the Manchester Apollo yesterday (July 13) to say thank you to 3,000 of the city's volunteer workers. The show, staged by Orange Rockcorps, was only open to fans who had given up four hours to work in community projects across Manchester. Mainly playing songs from their 2007 debut album 'We’ll Live And Die In These Towns', Tom Clarke and co got the crowd going with tracks including 'Had Enough' and 'Away From Here'. Fresh from supporting Oasis, Clarke even found time to dedicate their final song 'You're Not Alone' to the evening's headliner Lady GaGa, declaring: "I think she's a bit rock 'n' roll, fair play to her - this one's for her!" Talking to NME.COM after his set, Clarke praised the volunteers, explaining: "Orange RockCorps is right up our street. As a band, we passionately believe in helping people to put a bit back into their community. The way you have to earn your ticket makes young people realise you've got to earn things in life. Plus, we love Manchester and love playing the Apollo." He added: "Its always an honour to step on stage and play for your fans, after all we're just there normal lads from Coventry, but tonight’s going to be extra special, because everyone here's had to earn their ticket." The Enemy played: 'Had Enough' 'Aggro' 'Away From Here' 'No Time For Tears' 'You're Not Alone' 18/05/09: The Sun - The Enemy Play Acoustic Set The Enemy performed an acoustic set for The Sun newspaper and here is the story and link for the session:
 LONG before THE ENEMY’s TOM CLARKE was battling BOB DYLAN in the charts, he showed the same drive selling tellies and working on the tools as a gardener.
Now the rocker has urged Britain’s youth to get off their games consoles and knuckle down to achieve their dreams.
Tom & Co will be supporting OASIS this summer, but hope to take over as our No1 band before long.
They visited Bizarre HQ for an exclusive Sun Session playing a three-song set of We’ll Live And Die In These Towns, Sing When You’re In Love and No Time For Tears.
Listen to Enemy's exclusive Bizarre session: HERE
Tom, drummer LIAM WATTS and bassist ANDY HOPKINS then popped into the studio next door for a chat with me and Gaunty on SunTalk.
Listen to The Enemy on SunTalk by clicking on the button below.
“I used to do gardening in the summer and sell washing machines and tellies in the Co-op.
“And I wanted to be the best at selling washing machines and tellies.
“If you’re going to do a job, you’ve got to give it your best. You get out what you put into life.
“When you’re given an opportunity and you want it, then work your a*** off for it.”
Even though The Enemy are set to play with the GALLAGHERS in front of 90,000 people at Wembley, their determination means they won’t be truly happy until they are headlining there themselves.
Tom said: “I don’t think NOEL needs to do it any more. He’s doing it for the love of it. That’s the dream.
“That’s when you can say you’ve made it.”
The first time I saw The Enemy, they’d headed down from Coventry to London on the Megabus for a quid.
This time they had just jetted back from LA where they were driving a Jag in the Gumball Rally.
But despite their rise and a No1 debut album Tom says the band’s feet are firmly on the ground.
He added: “Our biggest achievement isn’t in platinum discs, awards or album sales — it’s that we can sit down at the end of the day and have a drink as mates.”
They even took the news that Bob Dylan had pipped them to No1 spot in the album chart early this month with good humour.
Tom said: “I was disappointed for about two minutes then it occurred to me it was Bob.
“You have worse days than coming second to him.”
*Source: The Sun15/05/09: The Sun - Tom Gets His Hair Cut By Mum  THE ENEMY frontman TOM CLARKE may be a modern-day rock ’n’ roll star but his mum still cuts his hair.
The little singer, whose band will be supporting OASIS and KASABIAN at Wembley in July, isn’t ashamed of his home truth.
He said: “My mum still does my hair for me. I need a trim but haven’t been able to get home in a while.
“I’ve had it done in a salon in London before, too, but haven’t had a chance to get there either. Mostly my mum does it.”
Tom’s long, 70s-style barnet is definitely suited to The Enemy’s new video, Sing When You’re In Love.
It sees the Coventry band turn back the clock to the Mod era. The lads, also including drummer LIAM WATTS and bassist ANDY HOPKINS, look like they’ve stepped on to the set of cult 1979 Mod flick Quadrophenia.
*Source: The Sun INDIE rockers The Enemy got lost on the Magic Roundabout on the way to Radio 1’s Big Weekend – comparing their experience to being stuck in a desert.
In the end the trio of Tom Clarke, Liam Watts and Andy Hopkins had to ask a member of the public for directions to Lydiard Park.
The band eventually flagged down a helpful motorist who gave them his mother’s address and postal code as she lives just five minutes from the site.
Without it the band said there would not have been the headline gig on the In New Music We Trust Stage on Sunday evening.
“Thanks to the geezer at the first traffic island coming into Swindon,” said vocalist Tom.
“He told us how to get here because without him there would have been no gig.
“We did have a sat-nav but all your roads are phantom roads.
“It felt like we got lost in a desert. I didn’t know there was a desert in Swindon.
“We looked at the sign and thought what is that? Update your GPS that’s all I’m saying.
“So this geezer gave us his mum’s postcode because he said his mum lives close to the site.
“We got to his mum’s house and had a chat – lovely woman – and managed to find the site from there.”
The band, who have released eight UK singles and three albums since 2006, also said aspiring bands in Swindon should follow their hearts if they are serious about making it big in the music industry.
“Be dedicated and know what you want to do,” said Tom.
“Don’t sacrifice your music for anything and make the tunes you want to make.
“Don’t be put off if it doesn’t work straight away.
“It’s a lot of hard work, effort and a bit of luck.
“If you stick with that you’ll be all right.
“Sometimes you have to be in the right place at the right time. If no one knows you then you’re not going to get a break.
“MySpace helped us a lot in the early days to get our music out there for free.”
The Enemy, who hail from Coventry, said that they had enjoyed seeing all their fans in Swindon.
“The crowd in Swindon are absolutely mental,” added Tom.
“I don’t know why more bands don’t come here to play.”
The band’s debut album We’ll Live And Die In These Towns went straight to number one in the UK album chart in 2007.
Their latest single is called No Time For Tears.
In the United States they are marketed as The Enemy UK.
*Source: Swindon Advertiser 11/05/09: BBC Newsbeat - Enemy Miss Prodigy As Headliners Clash The Enemy might have been chuffed to hold the title of Sunday night headliners on the In New Music We Trust Stage at Radio 1's Big Weekend in Swindon.
But that doesn't mean they weren't a little bit upset about missing out on some Prodigy action on the main stage.
"I really want to see them", Tom confessed, "but haven't had a chance as we were on stage.
"We thought about bringing back the interval and having a little one mid-set so we could go off and watch The Prodigy. I'm a bit gutted to be honest."
But Tom knew just the way to get over it.
Having just flown in from Miami, the band were off in search of some Englishness - a cheese sandwich.
*Source: BBC Newsbeat 
The Swindon Advertiser has this story by Sarah Hilley about The Enemy's performance at the BBC Radio 1 'Big Weekend':
AS the sun started to set on the Big Weekend tent, The Enemy gave the Swindon crowd a memorable send-off.
The Coventry-based band played in the Oasis more than a month ago, but were glad to be back.
"All right Swindon? It is great to be back, let's get to work," said frontman Tom Clarke, before he launched into "No Time for Tears".
With the song "Away From Here", the crowd joined in with the chorus with enthusiasm.
He stepped away from the microphone and the crowd gladly took over for him.
With The Prodigy kicking off on the main stage, that meant the crowd started to thin out at the back, but you could see everyone there really wanted to be there.
As the stage lights illuminated the crowd's happy faces, the Enemy closed the Swindon In New Music We Trust Stage with the track, "You're Not Alone".
Steve Franklin 16, from Wootton Bassett said: "They were really great. I have their CD. The Big Weekend has been really good. It was special and a one-off."
*Source: Swindon Advertiser
04/05/09: The Sun - Tom's Doner Book  The Sun has printed a story claiming that The Enemy's Tom Clarke is writing a book:
NOW here’s a guide everyone should own.
THE ENEMY frontman TOM CLARKE has decided to pen a book about his passion — kebabs.
He said: “I’m working on a book called The Good Kebab Guide.
“It will direct you to the best doners you can get.”
The singer is rather fond of a meat-brimming pitta after gigs and never forgets a top-notch buy. In fact, he has a favourite in almost every corner of the country.
Among the best in the UK, says Tom, are Pizza World in his home city of Coventry and Abdul’s in Manchester. But there is only one king of the kebab — the Golden Horn in Exeter, Devon.
Tom said: “Huge portions, good meat, not a bad chip and tasty chilli sauce.”
I wonder if the Golden Horn delivers to London...
*Source: The Sun Review by: Oasisteria.com 
There’s a bit of a misnomer in the title of the second album from Coventry’s The Enemy. Its not so much “Music For The People” than “Music From The People”. The Enemy are much like Oasis the band they will support this summer. Not in sound but in influence. They don’t so much plagiarise but take influence. And on this album The Enemy have taken their influences and at some points other bands songs wholesale. This is not to say it’s a bad album, its not its an enjoyable listen from beginning to end. It’s just that it all seems naggingly familiar like Tom Clarke has made an album of his iPod favourites play list. The Enemy were once the victims of scathing put down by the singer of some Shoreditch band or other, (lets face it they’re all alike). The claim being that their NME award laughed in the face of natural selection, yet the songs on this album sound exactly like natural selection. From the brooding opening bars of “Elephant Song” sounding like Led Zeppelin not just in musical terms but in literary ones, to the closing “silver spoon” stealing the messianic refrain from The Who’s “Tommy” finale. This is big music.. Music for the everyman. Just as Oasis did before them. 
The debut’s title track stole heavily from The Jam’s “That’s Entertainment”, but “Music For The People” simply wants to entertain.. There isn’t really a track that is anything less, nothing you would skip. In-between the two 60’ influenced bookends we get a little history of popular culture as interpreted by Tom Clarke, yes he’s still angry at the state of the country but its far more palatable when dressed up as Pulp’s “Common People” or Blur’s “Universal”. The former is a biting little nugget now titled “A Nation Of Checkout Girls”.. the supermarket theme of the Pulp songs video obviously took hold in Clarke’s head and never let go. Blur’s influence can be heard on “Last Goodbye”, a soaring ballad also in the vain of Richard Ashcroft. For a young man Clarke has an old head on his shoulders. “Keep Losing” another slow paced number laments “its hard when you’re young, too late when you’re old” in a similar vain to an Oasis B-Side “Just Getting Older”, but Noel had 10 years on Clarke when that was written so you have to tip your hat to the younger man he can touch the soul of this reviewer. “Sing When You’re in Love” is the centrepiece of the whole record, it’s the song Clarke himself put forward as testament to The Enemy’s bigger sound and was road tested live back in 2008. Its an anthemic feel good sing at closing time number, exactly the sort of thing he was aiming for, and he’s nailed it. As he does with the single “No Time For Tears” resplendent with choral backing vocals echoing Pink Floyd’s “Great Gig In The Sky” Its not all good, “51st State” is a clichéd pun that the UK is just another part of America, something New Model Army noted when Clarke was still in nappies. Even worse is that the songs trite lyrics are attached to a 2nd hand Jam riff, which is exactly what the detractors had them for in the first place. “Don’t Break The Red Tape” is a lumpen mid paced number best left to the likes of Snow Patrol, as a political statement its more pink panther than black panther. In short though this is a good record, a record you’ve heard before in other peoples collections but it’s a big record and it shows the band have progressed, and that’s good enough for Clarke and its good enough for me. Scruff’s Rating: 7/10 
The Coventry Telegraph spoke to Tom Clarke about the head to head battle in the album chart with Bob Dylan, here is the interview by Alan Poole
THE Enemy are locked in a neck-and-neck race with icon Bob Dylan to see who will head the UK album chart tomorrow
Fans of the young Coventry trio are snapping up Music For The People, successor to No.1 debut We’ll Live And Die In These Towns, despite a mixed reception from the critics.
But the spending power of the grey pound means that they could miss out to 67-year-old Dylan whose 33rd album, Together Through Life, was also released this week.
“It’s a bit mad,” said Enemy vocalist Tom Clarke, “I mean, it’s not just anyone – this is Bob Dylan!”
Struggling with a sore throat as he broke off from rehearsals for last night’s Jonathan Ross Show, Clarke admitted: “I can’t say that I’m a massive fan, but we obviously appreciate everything he’s done. He’s a genuine legend – he set the bar in social awareness and he’s been vitally important to every songwriter who’s come since.
“I’d love to sell more in the first week than someone like that but, even if we don’t, it’s a huge honour to be in the same ball park.
“And if we did happen to get to No.1, it wouldn’t be our victory, it would be the fans’ – all we do is make music, it’s the fans who do the amazing bit by going out and buying it and taking it to No.1 or 2 or whatever.
“We’re just so happy that they seem to be enjoying the new songs. We’ve been getting e-mails all week from people telling us what their favourite track is and things like that – far too many to reply to individually, unfortunately, so I’d like to say a massive thank you to them.”
Although Music For The People has picked up some glowing reviews in the specialist rock press, some national newspapers have been distinctly sniffy about the new material.
But Clarke insisted: “You’re always going to get negative reviews on the second album – some people enjoy building you up and then tearing you down.
“The important thing is that you mustn’t believe your own hype; when you get a good review you take it with a pinch of salt because you know there will be bad ones as well.
“The fact of the matter is that 15,000 people went out on Monday morning and bought the album and that’s a huge number, especially when we’re in a declining economy. I find it inspiring.”
Many reviews, for and against, have picked out comparisons with other bands but Clarke responded: “If you look at a piano you can see there’s only so many notes and it doesn’t take a genius to work out that there are only so many combinations.
“People who make those comparisons tend to be from an older generation, and some of the similarities that they’ve mentioned are intentional – it’s us doffing our caps to people we respect.
“We’re not the first people to do it – Oasis and Green Day have done it – and sometimes you have to include the past in there. And if you have a little nod to The Beatles or The Clash you perhaps introduce their music to a generation that might otherwise never get to hear it.
“I remember when I first bought an Oasis album and took it home mum and dad went ‘well, it’s T-Rex, isn’t it?’ So that’s how I discovered T Rex.
"My little brother is 15 and he’s bang in to people like The Clash and The Sex Pistols. It’s part of the journey of musical discovery – how it’s passed down from generation to generation.”
*Source: Coventry Telegraph  From the Daily Star Playlist:
The Coventry lads' new record is battling Lady GaGa for No 1, claim official midweek chart figures.
But working their rock socks off is taking its toll.
I revealed on Saturday how the band had to pull out of their headline slot at the Gaymers Camden Crawl when frontman Tom Clarke, 21, lost his voice.
A source close to the trio said: "The lads are being worked far too hard and it's burning them out. This new album has come out in next to no time after their first and in between they've been gigging around the world.
"Someone needs to take a look at their diary and cut some things out before they ruin them."
As well as Tom's voice taking a hammering, drummer Liam Watts, also 21, is currently dealing with a vicious bout of acne brought on by stress.
The band have a schedule filled with shows supporting Oasis on their stadium dates in June as well as next week's Radio 1 Big Weekend in Swindon.
My source added: "It's a lot to jump from one album to the next in the space of a year or so. Cancelling a gig is something the boys would never want to do unless absolutely necessary."
Last month a perkier Tom told me that he couldn't wait to get started on the Oasis tour. He admitted: "Oasis fans span about three generations.
My little brother is into them but at the same time so is my mum."
*Source: Daily Star  The Enemy: Music For The People
Review by Sam Lanes for Leeds Music Scene (3 1/2 out of 5)
Looking at the tracklisting for The Enemy's sophomore album - the band who were the new Jam-esque anti-establishment voice of the youth in 2007 - it's hard to wonder if they haven't gone a bit soft.
'Away From Here' has become 'No Time For Tears,' 'We'll Live and Die In These Towns' has become 'Last Goodbye.' Surely, a band famed for its razor-sharp analysis of modern Britain hasn't come up with a selection aimed to woo the hearts of young maidens the length and breadth of the country? Fortunately, the titles don't tell the full story.
Instrumental opener 'The Elephant Song' seems to have been so named as, at one point, the guitars sound a bit like an elephant trumpeting. A poor title matched only by that of the album itself.
From here though, the band move back into more familiar, no-nonsense territory. Single 'No Time For Tears' has a glam-rocker edge and a vocal performance that demands attention. Against what the name may suggest, the song is overtly political and is very much Tom Clarke territory lyrically.
'Sing When You're In Love' made a huge impact on the recent live tour and was a song that raised hopes for this record. However, the recorded version falls a little short of the in-your-face aggression that Tom Clarke is able to give the song on stage.
Away from the rock ballads, there are signs of 'You'll Live and Die In These Towns' here. 'Don't Break The Red Tape,' with its talk of Thatcherism and the government is the most anti-establishment track on the album and is a reminder of what made The Enemy stand out amongst a sea of political apathy found in the youth of today.
Equally, 'Nation of Checkout Girls' and 'Be Somebody' are observational songs that leave no room for imagination as to the subject matter, and the characters that are drawn up are disturbingly familiar reflections of people everyone knows. Despite being the more typical The Enemy songs carried over from the previous album, these are far from the stand out tracks. Instead the new style that comes through on particular songs provides the most interesting listening on this outing.
If Weller was one of the more obvious influences on Clarke as a performer on the band's debut, then Rod Stewart springs to mind here, particularly on acoustic numbers 'My My Hey Hey' and 'Last Goodbye.' These more downbeat, inward-looking songs are a departure from the usual bombast of The Enemy, but they're carried off well.
Instead, the most intriguing track is 'Silver Spoon/Goodnight Ladies and Gentlemen.' This is a classic slice of psychedelia taken straight from Sgt. Pepper, complete with heavily reverbed vocals, heavy rock riff leading over a driving, moderately-paced rhythm section.
Mid-song, this changes to a McCartney-style piano-led ballad. It's absolutely fantastic.
It's a "difficult second album" that is certainly full of surprises.The titles don't bode well, but the tunes speak for a band that wants to move on, slowly but surely developing from the working-class struggle imagery that was the core of the formation of the trio and the debut album. The glamour of rock n roll success has often hindered groups who have early success as a lad-rock band but find it hard to relate back to this when fame and wealth has come their way.
The Enemy have approached this is a clever way. They still sing about X-Factor wannabees and the ridiculousness of the nanny state, but they've introduced a more experimental side, with an emphasis on new influences that we never realised were there on the relatively one-dimensional 'We'll Live and Die...'. Not a complete departure from Coventry's finest, but a step on the path of a band in development.
*Source: Leeds Music Scene 25/04/09: Music For The People - Negative Reviews  You can't expect everyone who works in the media to love an album or a band like The Enemy. Music For The People has had plenty of good reviews over the past few weeks, but in the name of fairness, here are a few negative reviews from the press:
"One can only hope that The Enemy join the rest of the landfill indie groups currently drying on the gibbet in this glorious spring sun of 2009, leaving the people of Britain to be rewarded with the music that they so richly deserve." - The Quietus review. 19/04/09: Observer - Review Of Music For The People
Here is The Observer review of Music For The People by Jon Savage
The Enemy are squarely in the tradition of the early Clash and the Specials: plain-speaking music that addresses Britain's forgotten towns and forgotten teens. Hailing from Coventry, they know of what they speak. Theirs is a big sound for a three-piece, matched by big themes. As they state on Elephant Song: "Ever feel so small, stood in a world that owes you nothing at all."
There's No Time For Tears takes you to "the morning after the revolution", while 51st State and Don't Break the Red Tape offer succinct anti-government polemics. They are less convincing on slow numbers like the Springsteen-esque No Time to Cry, where the production and the vocal delivery force attention on prosaic phrases like "a concrete jungle" and "a million miles of traffic jams".
That's the problem with social realism, but the Enemy do their best to vary their sound and mode of address. There is always pleasure in hearing a young group stretch out - as they do on the climactic Silver Spoon - and they unveil a great line in Be Somebody: "No one ever gives you anything for free/ Unless you start sleeping with the BBC."
Both these records will be deservedly successful. They both achieve what they set out to do, which is to inject into British rock music the sense of standing for or against something, the feeling that there is something more at stake than money, fame and self, the belief that human beings are important. Although they are not particularly aimed at me, I applaud their spirit.
• Download
Silver Spoon (The Enemy)
The Enemy, Music for the People, Warners, 4 stars
*Source: The Observer
16/04/09: Music Vice - The Enemy Brixton Gig Review For Music Vice The Enemy at Brixton Academy, London, UK - Show Review and PhotosGig review and photos by Music Vice contributor Lauren Towner - April 15, 2009
Gig/Concert:
The Enemy supported by Twisted Wheel and Kid British
Venue:
Brixton Academy, London (map)
Date:
April 11, 2009
Headliners:
The Enemy
In one word:
Magical
Your say:
Talk about it
The first time I saw The Enemy live was in a tiny record shop in the middle of London in April 2007, where only thirty people turned up. If someone had told me then that The Enemy would have a number 1 album in the UK charts, support Oasis on their next stadium tour, sell out the London Astoria six nights in a row (beating Blur’s record) and then sell out Brixton Academy two nights in a row all in the next two years, quite frankly, I would have laughed. A lot.
Nearly two years to the day, The Enemy are doing just that; they’ve just sold out one of the biggest venues in London for two nights in a row and I was lucky enough to have gained access to the photo pit in such a legendary venue that has hosted many of the biggest names in music.
New Manchester band Kid British were the first band on stage, kicking off with Elizabeth and Lost in London, and covering Madness classic Our House they put on a spectacular show, proving you can mix ska with a bit of indie. Sadly, due to a technical fault, they could not play their new single Sunny Days which was a real disappointment.
I was particularly looking forward to seeing Twisted Wheel live. I had seen them support The View, where they even set up their own equipment, and perform at Radio 1’s Big Weekend in Maidstone in the unsigned ‘shed’ where the venue was almost full while a big name act was on the main stage at the same time. I couldn’t believe that I would see them for the third time in just under a year.
Twisted Wheel arrived and launched into new single We Are Us which expresses their individuality to other bands.
"You will never stop us,
‘Cause you are you
And we are us"
At the Academy, bands choose their own lighting. An error on my part was that I did not make friends with the lighting manager, as when the band played She’s a Weapon, the lights were blinking ferociously during the chorus. They were almost giving my camera an epileptic fit, making it hard to focus on the subject.
Bottles were thrown and fighting occurred during Twisted Wheel’s set which surprised me. Security acted faster than I first originally thought, although frontman Johnny Brown told the members of the audience involved in the incident to ‘ignore the security and carry on’. However, I was completely oblivious to this. I had made myself comfortable on the photo pit barrier ledge, which means I had the best seat in the house.
It was a very nervous wait for The Enemy to appear on stage. My heart raced after the usual warm up songs of The Specials' A Message to You, Rudy and The Verve's Bittersweet Symphony. The band appeared in silhouettes with the backlit stage when ‘LONDON’ was on the screens up above. The crowd was going wild behind me, but surprisingly again, no crowd surfers or beer throwers in sight, which meant I could get on with my job without smelling like a walking pub.
Tom Clarke stands proudly smiling in front of his microphone with his empire standing in front of him. Starting with new song The Elephant Song which comes off their forthcoming second album ‘Music For The People’, The Enemy have shown that they can write in different styles, and make it sound even better than their first record, the second single off the bands first LP ‘We’ll Live and Die in These Towns’, Had Enough follows.
By this point in the concert, the mosh pit had changed its attitude from ‘jumpy’ to proper ‘moshing’. After my stint in the comfort of the photo pit for the ‘first three songs, no flash’, I was back on the floor with everyone else and I had at least five crowd surfers almost managing to knock me out. Almost.
No Time For Tears had almost every member of the crowd singing the chorus. This Song was particularly special. Tom Clarke introduced Tom as The Enemy’s keyboard player, and the whole venue erupted when the band paused for the final chorus.
After all the knocks to the head from crowd-surfers and everything else, I would say it was definitely worth it and I even found myself saying “I love my job.” The concert in its entirety was excellent, but ask yourself this question: How often is it that all three bands on the line up are excellent? Usually there is one band who generally don’t live up to your expectation, and may ruin your night. Tonight was one of those rare gigs where everyone was on form. © Lauren Towner
Photos of Kid British, Twisted Wheel and The Enemy at Brixton Academy:
HERE
*Show photo notes: After the gig, whilst sharing my photos via Facebook, a friend asked how I wanted to portray the band. The answer to that is that I didn’t want to take the ‘press’ photos by surrounding Tom Clarke for the entire three songs, I wanted to take photos that showed the band in their finest hour, and at their biggest show to date.
[Lauren, these photo's are stunning! A fantastic collection of shot's from your first contribution here at MusicVice! Welcome to the team!! - Brian.]
Kid British - www.myspace.com/kidbritishmusic
Twisted Wheel - www.myspace.com/thetwistedwheel
The Enemy - www.myspace.com/theenemycoventry
*Source: Lauren Towner for Music Vice
16/04/09: The Sun - Enemy Headline Opening Camden Crawl GET your cider at the ready, stuff your ear plugs in and boost your stamina to full throttle. The full Camden Crawl line-up has been released for next weekend. Two days of non-stop music will take over the north London area, with 40 venues - including the Roundhouse, Koko and Electric Ballroom - playing home to 150 artists. THE ENEMY are set to headline the opening night on Friday 24 April, while KASABIAN will follow on Saturday 25. See below for line-up info: FRIDAY 24 ONLY The Enemy Hockey The Virgins Yeah Yeah Yeahs Echo & The Bunnymen Idlewild Wire Art Brut Filthy Dukes The Von Bondies SATURDAY 25 ONLY Kasabian Little Boots The Maccabees The View 808 State Billy Bragg The Fall Frankmusik Hot Leg Ipso Facto TWO DAY ARTISTS The Big Pink Count & Sinden Dan Black Fight Like Apes Kitty Daisy & Lewis The King Blues VV Brown Alessi's Ark Chew Lips The Computers For more details, visit Camden Crawl. 15/04/09: Coventry Telegraph - The Enemy Frontman Tom Clarke To Take Part In Gumball RallyTHE ENEMY’s frontman Tom Clarke is going behind the wheel of two Jaguars to express his pride in Coventry.
The first is an E-type Jag from 1972 he bought recently because he says his granddad would have worked on it during the halcyon days of the city’s Browns Lane plant.
He is also due to drive a new Jaguar around America next month to fulfil a “lifelong ambition” to take part in the legendary Gumball Rally.
Tom, aged 21, said: “We’ve got to do it in a new Jag because my old one just wouldn’t make it. I’ve taken it out twice and it’s broken down both times!
“My grandad worked at the old Browns Lane plant in Coventry and I wanted one old enough so that I knew he would have worked on it.”
He will be doing the Gumball rally with The Enemy’s keyboard player, also called Tom, who has also bought himself a Jaguar.
The singer and lead guitarist said: “I love them because they’re Coventry cars and on the steering wheel it says: ‘Made in Coventry’.
“They’ll be Ferraris, Porsches and Lambourghinis on the rally but I’d like to do it in a British car and represent.”
Tom, who grew up in the Castle Bromwich area of Birmingham, added: “When you’re sat in a box room of a three-bedroom semi and you see DVDs of people doing it, you never think you’ll get the opportunity to do it.
“I know the guy who runs it and I said I’d love to do it. It’s a lifelong ambition. We’re doing it in a Jaguar because it’s a Coventry-built car.”
The Enemy shot to fame two years ago when their debut album We’ll Live and Die in These Towns went straight into the charts at No.1, a first for any Coventry band.
Today at 5pm, they play a free gig to fans at HMV in Hertford Street, Coventry city centre, to promote their new album and single, out this week, called No Time For Tears.
The long-awaited second album, called Music for the People, in released on April 27, and is already receiving plaudits.
The band are currently touring and will support Oasis at the Ricoh Arena on July 7.
Source: Les Reid Coventry Telegraph 14/04/09: Guardian - Review of Brixton Gig  The Enemy @ Brixton Academy, London.
Anyone who thinks "the kids" are an apathetic lot who would rather vegetate in front of their Xboxes than start a revolution should see the Enemy. If any young British guitar band embody the insurrectionary spirit of the Clash, it's this Coventry trio. They have little in common with their noughties peers. Singer/guitarist Tom Clarke, who's barely in his 20s, writes couplets such as: "No such thing as a free meal, and there ain't no future in British Steel/ Nobody gives you anything for free unless you start sleeping with the BBC." These days, words like that are practically revolutionary in themselves.
This stuff hasn't been fashionable for 20 years, but the Enemy have amassed an ardent following: the Academy is full to the rafters, and every rip-roaring song is lustily sung along to, with pints of beer sloshing in emphasis. If the rest of their tour has been anything like this, the band should have no trouble scoring a second No 1 album when they release the grandiosely titled Music for the People later this month.
Though ostensibly promoting the new record, the Enemy do the decent thing and only play three songs from it. These are slipped in between the hits from the first album, We Live and Die in These Towns, so there's little of the tedious downtime that occurs when bands insist on filling sets with new material. But one new song, No Time for Tears, is actually a highlight - Clarke is joined on vocals by Emma Skip, a friend from Coventry in a red cocktail dress, whose rich tones make the tune more complex than it would be if he were barking it out alone.
For all the camaraderie and punk spirit, the Enemy lack some crucial qualities tonight: charisma, nuance and knowing when to turn down the volume. They are hindered by their generic strum-and-drum style, which is fine(ish) on the massive anthems Away from Here and Had Enough, but begs to be expanded on elsewhere. Meanwhile, Clarke is a bellicose vocalist made for air-punching chants such as Aggro, but he's oddly anonymous. Between songs, he swearily remarks that it's great to be in Brixton and urges us to ignore the "no crowd-surfing" signs, but what's happened to the punk renegade? Shouldn't he be telling us to storm Downing Street? Since they could be with us for a few years to come, the Enemy will have time to work on it.
14/04/09: The Sun - Tom Buys Jag In Honour Of His Grandad A modest Tom Clarke
Tom Clarke bought an E-Type Jag to remind him of his grandad, as reported in The Sun newspaper today:
THE ENEMY singer TOM CLARKE already has a No1 album to his name but he isn’t letting the money go to his head.
The Coventry lad’s only big buys have been a flat and an E-Type Jag.
The car didn’t come cheap but his reason for getting it has made him rise even higher in my estimation, says Gordon Smart.
He said: “The only things I’ve spent on are a flat and an E-Type Jaguar.
“I didn’t get it to be flash. It was because in 1972 my grandad used to work in Jaguar’s Brown’s Lane plant in Coventry and I wanted a car he’d worked on. He’s dead now but whenever I look at the car I think of him.”
The Enemy second album Music For The People is out soon (April 27th).
13/04/09: The Sun - NTFT Single of the Week
The Enemy time is just right according to The Sun newspaper as Ella Harris gave The Enemy 5/5 and made 'No Time For Tears' the Single of the Week.
THE ENEMY – No Time For Tears:
Anthemic and rebellious, the highly anticipated return from these Coventry boys does not disappoint. With a climatic, momentous chorus and a thumping bass, this track will be a festival crowd pleaser. 5
13/04/09: NME.COM - The Enemy Join Camden Crawl The Enemy have been added to this year's Camden Crawl line up.
The Coventry trio join the likes of Yeah Yeah Yeahs, The Fall, The Big Pink, The Von Bondies, The View, Echo And The Bunnymen and The Fall.
The two-day event takes places in a number of Camden venues this April including the Roundhouse, KOKO and The Hawley Arms. It runs from midday on April 24 to the early hours of April 26.
The line-up so far for Camden Crawl is:
808 State
Alan Pownall
Alessi's Ark
An Experiment On A Bird In The Airpump
Baddies
Banjo Or Freakout
Billy Bragg
Bleech
Blk Jks
Brakes
Broadcast 2000
Capital
Cherbourg
Chew Lips
Circlesquare
Count & Sinden
Dan Black
Danny & The Champions Of The World
Datarock
De Tropix
Die! Die! Die!
Dinosaur Pile Up
Django Django
Drums Of Death
Echo And The Bunnymen
Elviin
Eugene McGuinness
Everything Everything
Fight Like Apes
Filthy Dukes
Flashguns
Foy Vance
Frankmusik
General Fiasco
Gold Teeth
Golden Silvers
Goldheart Assembly
Goldielocks
Heartbreak
Hexes
Hockey
Hot Leg
Idlewild
Innerpartysystem
Ipso Facto
James Yuill
Josh Weller
Jouis
Kasms
King Creosote
Kissy Sell Out
Kitty Daisy And Lewis
Lion Club
Little Boots
Little Death
Man Like Me
Marina And The Diamonds
Mini Viva
Newham Generals
Openroom
Ou Est
Outcry Collective
Peggy Sue
Plugs
Pulled Apart By Horses
Royal Treatment Plant
S.C.U.M.
Selfish Cunt
Shitty Limits
Skint & Demoralised
Sleepercurve
Sportsday Megaphone
Teeth!!!
Televised Crimewave
The Author
The Barker Band
The Big Pink
The Chapman Family
The Computers
The Cordelier Club
The Dead Formats
The Enemy
The Fall
The Invisible
The Jim Jones Revue
The Joy Formidable
The King Blues
The Laurel Collective
The Maccabees
The Plight
The Temper Trap
The View
The Virgins
The Von Bondies
The Whip
The XX
Threatmantics
Three Trapped Tigers
Toddla T
Tommy Sparks
VV Brown
Wire
Xrabit & Dmg$
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Your Twenties
Tickets for Camden Crawl are on sale now.
To check the availability of Camden Crawl tickets and get all the latest listings, go to NME.COM/GIGS now, or call 0871 230 1094.
For more information go to Camdencrawl.com. 05/04/09: thisiskent.co.uk - The Enemy @ Margate Winter Gardens - Review
THE Enemy were the good guys on Sunday night, playing their brand of indie rock to a packed Margate Winter Gardens. The trio from Coventry consist of Tom Clarke (vocals/guitar), Liam Watts (drums) and Andy Hopkins (bass/vocals). Despite having a number one album they’ve never had a number one single and perhaps this is because they sound a lot like every other indie band on the scene at the moment.  Lead singer Tom Clarke boldly swaggered onto stage just after 9pm letting rip on his Telecaster. An already happy crowd had been given 90 minutes to get the drinks in before fraternising with the Enemy. 
If you’ve ever wondered what to do with your empty plastic glass at a gig you could indulge in a drinking game I’d never seen seen until going to the Winter Gardens and which I’m putting down to youthful exuberance in the mosh pit rather than G20eque rioting. Basically, down your pint and throw your drinking vessel towards the security guards. Kids, eh? They’re obviously used to it because the stage was littered with toilet roll to mop up the offending spillages - they will stand behind Enemy lines. Another first for me was getting frisked at the entrance. Apart from those few overzealous rockers, everyone else roared their approval and waved their arms about; one group even created their own mosh pit which had pleased the warm-up band Twisted Wheel (album out April 13, folks). Gary Collins from Thanet band Crazy Train even turned out to see them, describing Clarke as a young version of Paul Weller.  With sledgehammer drumming from Watts and guitars so angry you can feel the scorn pouring out of the amps, the Enemy feel rather like the Jam. But then Clarke pulls out an acoustic and it’s like listening to an entirely different band. Take Happy Birthday Jane, for instance; unabashedly different to everything else screamed through the nose in their faux northern accents; drenched in violins and oohs. I blame Pete Doherty for the accent-riddled indie these days and – along with the Arctic Monkeys – The Enemy are no different. For instance take the lyrics from We'll Live And Die In These Towns: "Because you can’t have a bath when there’s no hot water", becomes "Cus you can ave a baff when derres no hod wader." With a stage swimming in backlight and smoke the band present a menacing image, but were clearly enjoying themselves and I have to admit I was too. Music For The People is released on April 13. 04/04/09: thisiswiltshire.co.uk - Fans Surrender To The Enemy! 
A VIRTUALLY sold out Oasis Leisure Centre rocked to the sound of chart topping indie band The Enemy last night. A massive cheer went up from the crowd as supporting act Kid British left the stage and the previous tour venues came up on the big screen above the stage eventually stopping at Swindon and the band appeared. Playing to an almost packed hall at the Oasis Leisure Centre The Enemy let the music do most of the talking, with their frontman Tom Clarke simply saying “Swindon make some noise.” He was joined by drummer Liam Watts and bassist Andy Hopkins – all of them hail from Coventry. Fans sung along to the band’s hits such as Away From Here and We’ll Live and Die in this Town. Hannah Rugg, 24, had come from Bath because she is a fan and was impressed by the supporting act Kid British. “I didn’t see the first band, but the second band everyone seemed to absolutely love, they pretty much rocked the place” she said. She also said that the atmosphere and lighting was great with some people even crowd surfing and that she now plans to buy their album. “There are people doing the surfing on top, the security guards are going nuts, but everyone’s loving it. “It’s big smiles all round, it’s a good old night.” Caroline Copestake, 20, of Cheney Manor, had come with her university friends, and agreed that Away From Here had been the best song so far. “My sister-in-law got me the tickets for a Christmas present and I started listening to them more,” she said. “It’s going really well, but it’s getting packed. “I think it needs to be a bigger place. “When they played Away from Here the whole crowd just went mental. “Swindon needs to expand in terms of venues, clearly everyone wants to see good bands.” Sixteen-year-old Brittany Abi-Nader, of Stratton, had come because her boyfriend Sam Howitt, also 16, from Station Road, town centre, had got tickets “I just started getting into them, we quite liked Pressure,” she said. Sam added: “I think they deserve to be big, I think they should play in arenas.” The band shot into the charts with songs like Had Enough and You’re Not Alone and their debut album We’ll Live and Die in this Town went to number one. Now they are now touring the UK to promote their new album Music For the People. 04/04/09: The Press - Chart Toppers Back Rugby League Club
THEY might be called The Enemy – but they are rugby league team York Lokomotives’ new best friends. In what is believed to be a first in sporting sponsorship history, the chart-topping indie rock stars have agreed to be the main shirt backers of the innovative amateur rugby club. The trio, whose debut album We’ll Live And Die In These Towns went straight to number one in the UK charts, will now have their name emblazoned across the front of the Lokos’ strip. It is another coup for the pioneering New Lane-based club, who last year became the first team from York to join amateur rugby league’s Summer Conference and, who, after a season in which they reached the Yorkshire division’s grand final, won a special award from the nationwide league for their off-field administration. Lokos’ commercial manager Bruce Wray – who was introduced to The Enemy through a family member who works with them – said the Coventry-based band loved the city of York and were happy to support the club. “When I asked if they would like to get involved with the Lokos they were pleased to do so,” he said. “We think it’s a major first – no other band as big as The Enemy have ever sponsored a club before. It’s a first for rugby league, not just the Lokos. It’s probably a first for sport. “The fact they’ve also chosen an amateur club over a professional club is great for us.” The Enemy had a secret gig at the Stone Roses Bar in February to air new material on their second album, Music For The People, which is released later this month. The single, No Time For Tears, is released next week and is already being tipped as a potential number one. They will be supporting Oasis on tour in the summer and are also due to be guests on cult Sky Sports football show Soccer AM soon – when they might wear the Lokomotives shirt. The Lokos’ new season starts at the beginning of May. They will be holding a plush sportsman’s dinner tomorrow at the Park Inn, York, where the new shirt with The Enemy’s sponsorship will be unveiled. 31/03/09: Shropshire Star - The Enemy Find Friends On The Road Review and pictures by James Watkins 
Hundreds of revellers descended on Birmingham’s O2 Academy on Monday evening to see one of the region’s finest bands play the first of two sold out dates. The Enemy, Coventry’s self proclaimed indie/punk rockers, waltzed on stage like it was their own. Their set was more punk than indie, kicking off with a high octane version of Elephant Song, followed by a host of album favorites including Away From Here and Had Enough, which whipped the crowd into a state of ebullience. The arrogant swagger of frontman Tom Clarke was reminiscent of a young Liam Gallagher, just before it all took off for Oasis in the 90s. It begs the question, will his band follow in their footsteps and achieve similar commercial acclaim? The answer, probably, is no. Oasis were a once-in-a-generation phenomenon and it’s hard to see The Enemy ever scaling those heights. But judging by the welcoming of a new plethera of songs from their upcoming album, Music For the People, with new single No More Tears raising a thunderous applause, it would seem that the future looks rosy for now. Such energy and passion only seems to come out of those few bands that really know their own identity and clearly The Enemy have great vision and confidence. No doubt a string of live dates across the country ahead of an appearance at this years V Festival at Weston Park, Staffordshire, will further add more followers to their already-growing fanbase. 03/04/09: Coventry Telegraph - The Enemy's Music For The People Reviewed By Alan Poole THESE days, in theory, you can meet all your musical requirements without ever having to step through the doors of what some of us still want to refer to as a record shop but, convenient as that might be, it would deny you one of life’s great pleasures. I spent an afternoon leafing through the CD racks of Head in Leamington this week, a treat slightly soured by the fact that it coincided with Arctic Monkeys hour on the store stereo. Here’s the band who are currently the accepted litmus test of cultural credibility (if you don’t like them, apparently, you don’t know what you’re talking about) but, in truth, are a morose, desperately mundane bunch whose pretensions and limitations are glaringly exposed when you are force-fed their album track by monotonous track. Compare and contrast The Enemy’s Music for the People – much anticipated follow-up to We’ll Live and Die in These Towns – which is due out on April 27 and will surely confirm the Coventry trio as the British band most likely to graduate to world class. That assessment, to be honest, is based on two in-car commutes along the M6 and A14, not the most relaxing of playback environments, and could well be coloured by parochial prejudice. But any fears that they would be unable to match the standards they set on their chart-topping debut are triumphantly blown away by ten gloriously diverse tracks (well, 11 actually, but we’ll come back to that). 1. Elephant Song: A howling feedback overture gives way to thunderous riff – not so much elephantine as mastodonic – reminiscent of Led Zep’s finest hour When The Levee Breaks. 2. No Times for Tears: The first single (released on April 13) opens with tinkling piano before developing into another irresistible anthem tailor-made for this summer’s stadium stint with Oasis. 3. 51st State: The sort of tuneful polemic that you might expect from Paul Weller on one of his good days. 4. Sing When You’re In Love: More delicate piano enriches a gem of restrained romanticism with a beautifully plaintive chorus. 5. Last Goodbye: An initially bleak acoustic ballad is lifted by a full strings onslaught and a soaring chorus with more than a hint of Bon Jovi (no, really). 6. Nation Of Checkout Girls: The subject matter and the feel of the song positively scream Pulp (never a bad thing!) 7. Be Somebody: Perhaps the track closest to We’ll Live And Die – clever, catchy, impeccably radio-friendly. 8. Don’t Break The Red Tape: a bluesy riff leads into a Jam-style chorus – the acceptable sound of anti-establishment angst. 9. Keep Losing: Similar in style to Last Goodbye and, for no reason you could rationalise, conjures up echoes of Richard Hawley. 10. Silver Spoon: Basically an extended psychedelic chorus that will inevitably invoke comparisons with Oasis’s Be Here Now period but will stir memories of Quicksilver Messenger Service for older listeners. Now all of the above, of course, is clumsy shorthand, at best hopelessly subjective, at worst downright misleading (it’s difficult, not to say criminally irresponsible, to compose a cogent critique when you’re negotiating the Catworth interchange) but the sheer quality of the album is beyond all reasonable debate. If we went in for such ratings, in fact, it would only surrender half a star because it comes complete with a hidden track, nearly four minutes after the unsuspecting listener had been fooled into thinking it was all done and dusted. The unlisted song is a delightful addition, a wistful scrap of one man and his piano crooning from Tom Clarke, but why confuse the customer by hiding it away? When you’ve polished off your all-day Full English at the local greasy spoon you don’t linger around for five minutes on the off-chance that the waitress has secreted an extra sausage behind the brown sauce. An album as rich and uplifting as Music for the People certainly doesn’t require such irksome affectations. 31/03/09: Birmingham Mail - Review: The Enemy, Birmingham Academy Mar 31 2009 Review by Alison Dayani, Birmingham Mail THERE were high expectations this Coventry trio would air new material on the eve of their second album next month. But with less than 55 minutes on stage, even the few new songs they threw in wasn’t enough to offset the disappointment. The Enemy got straight to it, setting a frenetic pace with hits Had Enough and Away From Here featuring relatively early on. There was barely any time for pleasantries or chit chat with the crowd as they raced through tracks, including well received new songs. Many looked more than surprised when within the hour the band was rounding off the encore with You’re Not Alone. They may have the gritty indie sound, but The Enemy need to learn a bit more showmanship before they reach the same heights as the big-hitters they have been supporting until now. VERDICT: 3/5 30/03/09: thisisnottingham.co.uk - Review: The Enemy, Rock City By:MATT HALFPENNY IT wouldn't be the same if you went to watch The Enemy and didn't have your feet trodden on, nor beer sprayed all over you. But the Coventry three-piece wouldn't have it any other way. Their music is all about having a good night out – and the Rock City crowd definitely did that. From first song to last, the feet were jumping and the crowd chanted along; the atmosphere was terrific. Lead singer Tom Clarke admitted the venue may not have been the biggest, but said those filling it were up there with the best. The Enemy seemed to enjoy the gig as much as their fans. Annoyingly, the band have launched this UK tour before releasing their second album, Music for the People, which is due out in April. There was a few new tracks but by and large it was tracks of the much-loved We'll Live and Die in These Towns that kept the punters happy. You're Not Alone was a just and rousing finale.
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