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Oct 01, 2019 Web Exclusive By Michael James Hall

During the long summer of 2003 The Darkness had their moment-an unfashionable hair metal band with stadium-ready songs, a hilariously great frontman in the shape of Justin Hawkins, and a legit rock guitar god in his brother Dan Hawkins. The hits kept coming, their debut album Permission to Land going five times platinum in the UK. They won over the indie kids. They rushed the mainstream. They were a phenomenon. But obviously a fleeting one—the festivals booking them into shoddy headline slots for the summer of ‘04 and the half-empty arenas of the tour that followed would confirm that.

And yet. After addiction issues, disbandment, the temporary departure of Justin Hawkins and many years of rebuilding their fan base from the ground up, The Darkness just refuse to lay down and die. This is their first concept album, which appears to follow a loose narrative regarding the death and rebirth of ROCK. It’s absolutely ridiculous. “Heavy Metal Lover” may be the funniest, most addictive glam metal stomp of the year (“you’re so metal I’m afraid you’ll rust”) while “How Can I Lose Your Love” hints at the addictive candy rush of their heyday.

Hawkins’ lyrics are still brilliantly well observed, (“I wish the course of love went smoother/You’ve bitten off more than you can chew/I hope my heart was a tasty hors d’oeuvres”) tongue planted so firmly in cheek that one would expect a speech defect; the riffs are still chunky, the celebratory nature of the band somehow rediscovered. It’s not a great record by any means but it’s a hell of a lot of fun and should serve as a grand excuse to get them out on the road again and into a live setting where their exciting silliness excels. (www.thedarknesslive.com)

Author rating: 5.5/10