The Libertines

Rowdy English pub rockers Towers of London blend the high-octane charge of Sex Pistols-era British punk, the hedonistic charm of '80s hair metal, and the tabloid-heavy antics of Oasis and the Libertines into a volatile shot of pure rock & roll debauchery. Formed in the late '90s in Liverpool, the group consists of lead vocalist Donny Tourette, guitarist Dirk Tourette, lead guitarist the Rev, bassist Tommy Brunette, and drummer Snell. The group inked a deal with TVT Records in 2005, releasing the hit singles "How Rude She Was," "Fuck It Up," "Air Guitar," and "On a Noose." Their full-length debut, Blood Sweat and Towers, arrived in the summer of 2006, followed by Fizzy Pop in 2008.

By distilling the sounds of Franz Ferdinand, the Clash, the Strokes, and the Libertines into a hybrid of swaggering indie rock and danceable neo-punk, Arctic Monkeys became one of the U.K.'s biggest bands of the new millennium. Their meteoric rise began in 2005, when the teenagers fielded offers from major labels and drew a sold-out crowd to the London Astoria, using little more than a self-released EP as bait. Several months later, Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not became the fastest-selling debut album in British history, entrenching Arctic Monkeys in the same circle as multi-platinum acts like Oasis and Blur.

Digitally remastered 20th Anniversary edition of the classic debut album from the Manchester quartet, originally released in 1989. Meshing simple, exceedingly catchy hooks with rhythmic beats, The Stones Roses led the UK's so-called Madchester scene straight into the U.S. with their eponymous debut. The Stone Roses achieved one of the most successful fusions of classic Pop songwriting and Acid House culture, and managed to snare fans from both genres. By the end of 1989, their debut landed on many Top Ten lists for that year. Though the band never realized the same triumphs on their second and final album, repercussions of their debut album's classic pop songwriting and bright riffs could be heard well into the next decade.

Brash, melodic, and imbued with a more-than-healthy sense of British rock tradition, the Fratellis and their debut album, Costello Music, come across almost like a caricature of bands like the Libertines, Dirty Pretty Things, and Arctic Monkeys – but at least it's a flattering one. The Fratellis take themselves a lot less seriously than some of the other laddish bands popular in the U.K. in the late 2000s, and emphasize hooks and fun rather than samey-sounding rock. Songs like "Baby Fratelli" and "The Gutterati" have a singalong simplicity, and it feels like the band puts as many "la la la"s and "ba da ba"s into each song as they can – and then try to cram in a few more. Costello Music's best tracks go even farther with the band's fun-only agenda; it's easy to hear why "Flathead" – which switches between grinding, aggressive verses and a downright giddy chorus with more of those "ba da bop a dah" hooks – was picked to soundtrack a fittingly day-glo, kinetic iPod TV commercial. The outstanding single "Chelsea Dagger" is just as vibrant, a swaggering glam rock nugget with pints-aloft choruses. "Henrietta"'s loopy catchiness owes a debt to vaudeville or musical comedy, and not just because Jon Fratelli sings "wa wa wa waaaahhh" along with the guitar solo; "For the Girl," meanwhile, has a melody so strong, it could've been a hit anytime between the '60s and the '90s.

Peter Doherty has unveiled his new band The Puta Madres and announced details of their debut album, which is set for release later this year. The latest record from the Libertines frontman is described as “a devastatingly intimate portrait of love, loss and being lost” and was recorded in a French fishing village across four consecutive days last summer.