Inspired by and named after local band The Enemy’s debut album, made-in-Coventry musical We’ll Live And Die In These Towns is showing at the city’s Belgrade Theatre this month. What’s On found out more from The Enemy’s frontman - and the show’s musical director - Tom Clarke.

In 2007, British indie rock band The Enemy released their debut album, We’ll Live And Die In These Towns. The record went to number one in the British album charts in its first week of release and was given platinum certification the following year.
 
Eleven years on and the album that stole the hearts of the nation with its adrenaline-rush energy and working-class poetry has inspired a gritty and compelling new musical drama.
 
Based on an ancient Hindu tale - The Bagavad Gita - the new musical, named after the album, comes from the pen of acclaimed Coventry writer Geoff Thompson. It’s being helmed by the Belgrade Theatre’s Artistic Director, Hamish Glen.

“If you came into this with an ego, you’d leave with a deflated one because Geoff and Hamish are both so supremely talented,” says Tom Clarke, The Enemy’s frontman, who’s acting as the show’s musical director.               

“To watch Hamish work is addictive, and Geoff’s script is genius. Geoff makes the seamless transition from script into lyrical content and back out again. Hamish is just an absolute powerhouse of a director. He’ll say four words that completely change the dynamic and enrich the acting. It’s amazing to watch.”

The musical tells the story of a young rock musician named Argy, who sits on the cusp of the big time, only to suffer a crisis of confidence hours before the biggest performance of his life in a huge homecoming concert. His manager, unable to convince him to sing, sends him away to revisit his past and decide his future. So Argy walks the streets of his home town, visiting family and friends in a bid to make sense of his feelings and find a way forward.

“It’s a really heartfelt story,” says Tom. “I cried in auditions the first time I saw it being acted. I don’t think I’ve cried in front of adults who are total strangers, ever. I was literally sat next to Geoff in auditions sobbing in some of the scenes. I was sat there thinking, ‘This is absolutely brilliant, they couldn’t act this out any differently or any better’.

“When Geoff first approached me and said, ‘We’re doing this and I'd like you to be involved as musical director’, I read the script and it could’ve gone either way, I was so scared. I could’ve quite easily passed it off and said, ‘No, get someone who’s done this before’. I agreed to do it on the proviso that if I was rubbish at it, they would sack me in week one. I got through week one without being sacked, so I can’t be that bad at it!”

Although Argy isn’t based on Tom, the character is certainly one to whom The Enemy’s frontman can relate: “The fact that Argy suffers with anxiety and panic attacks is something I completely relate to. I’ve always suffered with huge anxiety, and I used to deal with it by drinking. Last year I finally spoke to a professional about how to exist in the world without being absolutely terrified of life. The journey that Argy goes on, I’ve been there and I really get it. It’s quite cathartic seeing it acted out in front of you.

“I can’t think of anywhere better to do this show than the Belgrade. Geoff is a Coventry writer, and our debut album was made in Coventry. The Belgrade is such an amazing place. I played a gig there years ago with the band that I was playing in before The Enemy. The theatre was a staple of Coventry for decades before I even existed. Hamish is an absolute Coventry legend, and I think with the three of us together, it wouldn't have been right for the production to be shown anywhere else.”

Following The Enemy’s split in 2016, Tom opened Coventry’s newest music venue, The Empire.
 
“It’s nice to have a music venue back in the city, and it’s nice to be the driving force behind it. It’s established now and is running itself. A lot of what we do is student and club night-orientated, and that effectively funds keeping a music venue in the city. Phil and Dave, the main directors, do a superb job, and I don’t need to be down there every night anymore. I was mopping up sick and blood at one point, though - it was an interesting experience!"

Tom has also been working hard on his debut solo album.

“I got probably about a third of the way through recording the solo album, all acoustic with no drums, and then had a conversation with my bandmate. We’ve decided that we’re going to do it full band, so it’s back to the drawing board on that. We’re going to record the album over the next year. It’s really exciting!”

So could we ever see an Enemy reunion?
 
“We’re all on okay terms, we don’t hate each other’s guts. We’d done it for a decade, and  like with any creative endeavour, music should be challenging - but it had stopped being challenging and it had stopped being fun. The industry was finding it increasingly hard to find a place for us - there wasn’t a place for us on radio. When you’re up against all that, you kind of think, ‘Well, you know what, maybe the universe is trying to tell me something here and maybe we should go and try different things’. I wouldn’t rule out a reunion one day, but I doubt you’ll see it in the immediate or near future.

“If ever the opportunity presents itself again to be part of another musical, I’ve already said to Hamish that if it’s something I would be right for, I'm in! It’s a yes before he’s even told me what it is!"

We’ll Live And Die In These Towns shows at Coventry’s Belgrade Theatre on selected dates until Saturday 20 October.