THE DARKNESS (UK)

The Darkness is a refreshing example of a band that just can't care less even if somebody thinks that "laughing stock" is its middle name. The Darkness spells S-H-O-W, and if your mission is to entertain, you can't shun falsetto singing any more that you can avoid pompous, 80's style guitar solos. The Darkness is here to spread the gospel of rock'n'roll that comes straight from the heart — and straight from the balls.

Back in the late 1990's, in Lowestoft, England, the Hawkins brothers Dan and Justin had a band called Empire. When one night Dan, the guitarist, heard his brother Justin, the then keyboardist, sing Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody in a karaoke bar, he did not hesitate an instant to give the axe to Empire's vocalist and to make his brother the new frontman. Before soon, Empire had to give way to The Darkness, whose debut album Permission to Land (2003) went straight to number two on the British album chart on its release week.

There are many bands that have been said to prove the reports of the death of rock'n'roll to be greatly exaggerated, but The Darkness wipes the floor with them all. The essential ingredients of its killer formula are Dan Hawkins' guitar riffs that pay homage to Thin Lizzy and AC/DC, and Justin Hawkins' hilarious, glass-shattering falsetto voice. Last year's One Way Ticket to Hell... and Back is another step on the band’s pursuit for the perfect rock album. Even if the records are brilliant, it is The Darkness' live charm that leaves absolutely nothing to hope for. Rock'n'roll is not dead, it just... wears a leotard.

www.thedarknessrock.com

< back