Marci Hawkins Reviews:

This was a pretty exciting gig for me, the boys playing in my town?! I had to get tickets! Recently saw Whitesnake in Bournemouth and while it was great, the traveling is a pain, so just turning up and going home right away was a very nice change.

This was the third time I had seen the boys, the first was during their last tour back in 2006 at the NEC. Sat pretty far back and to the side was kinda disappointing, but not bad for a first gig. I kept up to date on all things TD during the 5 year gap, from loving Hot Leg and Stone Gods (What ever did happen to album 2?) and hunting down rare tracks/live versions etc.

As with everyone, I was ecstatic when they reformed, and swore I would go to as many shows as possible. I was always disappointed I never got to see Frankie on stage. So when I heard they would be playing 3 warm up shows in small venues, I jumped at the chance and trekked all the way to London for what was an unforgettable gig.

First up was Crown Jewel Defense, whose drummer and bassist passed me in the line outside many a time and I thought they were roadies. Sorry Lads! Got quite the shock when the roadies picked up instruments and began playing them…

My friend Karl had been to the gig in Brighton and said the lead singer used five different guitars for five songs, alright for some! They kept the crowd entertained pretty well. Some great foot tapping/head nodding american stadium rock songs. They had stage presence and sounded rather tight, i’d pay some money to see them again. I was expecting them to be Max Raptor bad, who now always remind me of a silent crowd who then all sing along to “My Sharona” as soon as they have left the stage.

Might i add that the support for 2006 (The Ark) turned out to be one of my favorite bands, so the pretty constant mention of Foxy Shazam by Justin got me excited but the quick YouTube search didn’t fill me with hope, pretty average songs and weird videos… But oh how I was wrong!

You MUST go see Foxy Shazam live,I imagine their pre-show rituals involve snorting cocaine and caffeine. Before I knew what was going on, the front of the stage was being swarmed by press as the lead singer, Eric, rolled across the stage and threw the mic and himself around the stage.

I admit, I didn’t pay much attention to the songs, I was too busy trying not to miss anything any of the band members were doing, pretty surreal to see a trumpet player dive between the lead guitarists legs and turn your head to see the keyboardist playing with his feet while standing on his instrument. But the tour de force has to be Eric leapfrogging onto the shoulders of the soloing lead guitarist. I can’t begin to imagine how many guitars they’ve knackered getting that right.

Was pretty damn amusing seeing the press trying to keep up with him to take a picture.

But The Darkness were the main reason I was here, and they did not disappoint. Granted I didn’t think it was as good as the London show (thanks to the crowd, which Justin picked up on half way through: “Why don’t we have some fucking fun?”)

There was a touching moment where the two brothers and Frankie played side by side, it’s so great to see them enjoying themselves once again, long may it last.

Opening with Arrival (what else?!) and kicking straight into Black Shuck, the first few songs seemed to fly by with little crowd interaction. Though saying that, there were some throw backs to yester-year that were alarmingly missing from the earlier shows, things like “Gimmie a D!… Gimmie an “Arkness!” and thumbs!

That continued to the costumes. Dan looked out of place without his Thin Lizzy t-shirt and no cat suit for Justin! Good thing Dan changed for the encore, as did Justin various times throughout the gig to reveal some famous cat suits. These little things made the gig for me, the little nods to the older darklings complete with Best Of Me solo behind the head.

My only gripe was the dry ice. Got used a bit too much, which I think Justin agreed with as he hurried off to the side to tell someone he couldn’t see his pedal. We lost the band at one point… Eric would have broken his neck if he had a dry ice machine.

Justin sang a beautiful solo acoustic rendition of Holding My Own proving, if it was needed, that along with balls out rock, he can write and perform a timeless ballad. Tie Your Mother Down would have been a very very nice surprise if I hadn’t seen it already days before 🙁 Hearing that they would be back next year was the icing on the cake. See you next time boys, say hi to the chick rocking out and having a great time, like she always does at your shows.

More photos are on the Galleries page. 

 

This was the first time I’d seen The Darkness since the One Way Ticket tour hit Glasgow way back in 2006, so after five years of anticipation I was somewhat excited going to the gig in the first place. Unfortunately I missed all but the last song of Crown Jewel Defense and therefore I don’t think it would be fair to pass any comment on their performance, and I’ll try not to spoil too much of the set list from The Darkness (partially as my memory is terrible!).

As the title suggests the gig was in the O2 Academy which can of occasion be a bit of an annoying venue, mainly as the sound can be problematic, but there were no real problems tonight. Anyway, back to the actual events… Foxy Shazam were the first band I saw and I am already a fan and knew what to expect from them live. They did not disappoint, Eric was rolling about all over the stage and the rest of the guys were equally as watchable. I especially recommend trying to keep an eye on every member of the band, as you never know when one of them is going to do something spectacular, for example keyboards being played by Sky. They played mainly songs from their 2010 album Foxy Shazam, one from the album Introducing and their most recent song I Like It, which I believe is the 21^st Centuries equivalent of Baby Got Back… minus the rapping element (which makes it better really!). Anyway, I thoroughly recommend going to see Foxy Shazam, or if you are going to a Darkness gig throughout the tour turn up early enough to see them.

Now to the main event, The Darkness came on and went straight into Black Shuck, suddenly the place was bouncing! Ed was caged like some wild drumming beast. The guys sounded every bit as good as I remember and had all the stage presence and charisma from the old days. These are things that a lot of bands are severely lacking just now (in my opinion), and this is one reason why it’s fantastic that the guys are back.  The guys played all the songs from Permission to Land, a couple from One Way Ticket to Hell (And Back), some b-sides sneaked their way in to the set list. There were a couple of new songs to wet our appetites for new releases from the band, a couple of special covers and indeed an early festive offering (no prizes for guessing which song it was). In every single song Justin’s vocals were absolutely spot on; his voice has remained as powerful as it has always been. The guitar parts and indeed all the instrumental bits were every bit as good and powerful as I remember (from the good ole days!). These elements all combined perfectly to have me bouncing about and screaming along to every lyric (that I knew, admittedly I did not know the new songs!).

The between song banter was back and evident throughout the interactions with the crowd were fantastic. One such interaction came before the song that most people would know the band for (were they not a fan of the band) where Justin referred to its recent use on the X Factor and dedicated it to a series of people, eventually deciding to dedicate it to all of us who had turned up! He also played about with the riff to that song, commenting along the lines of “don’t you just hate it when a band comes back and re-does the song they are most famous for?” There were further interactions (including dedicating a song to Frankie’s Mum, who happened to be in the crowd), but I won’t go into them all; partially as I can’t remember them all! There were the usual couple of costume changes from Justin, which adds to the occasion. I swear he was wearing the cat suit from Get Your Hands off My Woman, or at least a very convincing replica at one stage during the gig (which appeared to glow in the dark… I may need to question my pre-gig drinking if this was part of my imagination!). There was some dismay on my part when Dan was Thin Lizzy t-shirtless during the initial phases of the gig; this was remedied for the encore. I was a little surprised that there was pyrotechnics in the gig, just given that it was in a mid-sized venue and because it was the comeback gigs. I just thought it would be a back to basics approach, however they added to the spectacle and magnificence of the occasion and I suppose they also reminded everyone of what The Darkness offered in the past. It is also opportunity to add to the fun of it all. There was also a crowd walkthrough from Justin during the final song of the evening… in which a large amount of people rushed to touch him (in a non seedy way I assume), although in this walkthrough Justin had a shoe stolen! He continued to finish the song shoe-less and I’m sure the shoe in question is either on ebay as we speak, or in someone’s room… unless they did the right thing and returned it!

I absolutely loved this gig, it had everything for me: it reminded me of the classics, providing me the chance to scream along to them again, had a couple of covers to maintain interest and a couple of new songs to show us what is still to come. The Darkness are still one of the top live bands around, if not THE top and certainly would entertain everyone, I would have thought. There is humour, charisma and most importantly great songs in abundance. The gig had all the elements I love; sweat, bouncing about and great songs that I love. It was the first gig in about 4 years where I woke up the next morning with no voice, and I love that! I can’t wait to hear the future releases from the guys and hopefully they will play Glasgow again at some stage next year… I will certainly be there if they are! I would suggest if there is a gig near you and there is still tickets left for the Every Inch tour, you get your arses into gear and get down there! If you have got a ticket enjoy your gig, I’m positive you will. Hopefully it won’t be another 5 and a half years before The Darkness grace Glasgow again!

Thanks to Anthony for doing this for OI!  

‘I’m in a band with my brother and two best friends…’

A fact that seemed consigned to history, just a few short months ago. But in ‘Every Inch'( a show opener in the vein of  the Hot Leg Theme of yesteryore) that’s what’s stated quite firmly, along with the clear intention  to rock the fuck out of Britain’s last tiny crevice. This tiny legendary venue was already rocking – crowd entertained by Dark Stares, but just wanting TD badly and making sure it was known. The band were greeted with warm affection and glee – everyone there knew that this gig was going to be a bit special.  So intimate a gig couldn’t help but be so, and ‘Arrival’ always sets the nerve endings aglow. Also aglow were the neon bits on that first outfit (do you NEED to ask whose?).  I’m as used to a catsuit and skin tight as the next Darkling, but my word… lycra rocks. Is rocked, and copes admirably under the strain. Maximum support and comfort.

The set list is pretty common knowledge now, and there is a photo below.  Having ‘Love On The Rocks’ second was a bit of a surprise if you’re used to having it finish just about every gig you’ve been to – it’s made for long crowd walks, anthemic clapping and huge finales. Hell, whatever… this ain’t no tour gig to promote, please and persuade people to the Dark side. It’s warm up, practice, pleasure and a bit of playtime. No one really cares what happens in what order as long as it does. It’s still hard not to pinch yourself – it’s only been 4 gigs and 4 months since the Return.

If you wanted a classic Darkness gig to remember forever, this might well be the one. If you can have raw, polished rock, then we had it by the skipload. Despite the lack of real headbanging space, they rocked their hearts out, giving it everything they had. TD can play all of those songs standing on their heads. TD enjoying them to the max is something to witness. It must have been like this in the Barfly days… Confidence, belief, loving your own music enough to let it take over and showboat itself.

The crowd responded with the sort of adulation that’s born of a critically partisan attitude, not blind worship of a bunch of rock gods. They too knew their stuff, and knew what they wanted. They rocked and sang to the hits. Rocked and sang to the B-sides, which have a special place in Darkling hearts. ‘Concrete’, ‘Cannonball’ and ‘Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us’ have been accepted into the fold since June’s unveiling (or re-unveiling), but there were plenty of opinions and preferences about them. There was a slight break in the head banging for ‘Is It Just Me’, then they listened carefully to ‘Pat Pong’ whilst having a boogie, and gave it a great reception. I though that  it was the one they delivered with least confidence, myself, but it was a true TD track. Anyway, lyrics about ladyboys and having two sets of genitals have to be winners. After that, it was nonstop TD karaoke rock until the end, energy pouring from the band and crowd far faster than the sweat. Fee’s (of FeeTV on youtube) vocals were spot on, and I have to give billions of kudos points to the bloke down the other end for his superb ‘MoooootheerrrrrFUUUCCCKEEERRRR’. Brilliant.
There was banter, there were cockups, there was an encore practice. Ed showed the others up by being the only one remembering what came next. Justin’s second catsuit was a delight of gold glitter. Frankie back in black, as cool as ever. Dan down the other end where I couldn’t see him, but I could hear him loud and very clear.

Brian May attended, as did Webbie. Simon Price had a song dedicated to him. All of the Hot Leg boys were there, to my delight. Any Darkness gig is going to be fun, but this one is a rare and precious jewel to lay in the memory bank.

To set the scene – we were in a  long narrow room, with  stage on the long side. Monitors on the floor in front of the stage, which was about 2 feet high. Stage also narrow, so not much room for cavorting with overexuberant abandon  – and also very long, so band well spaced out. Just before TD came on, the monitors, which had been parallel to the stage, were rearranged at an angle, cutting down standing room at the front and also visibility for me, dammit – the stage seemed to curve a little so I had absolutely no view of Dan at all. Sorry, but no photos of him. There were also two very tall and wide professional photographers at the front who stayed for the whole gig, blocking views for a lot of us. There was also someone taking photos behind me, whom I now know more intimately from that angle than I care to remember. He needed to remember that other fans are not an inconvenience at a gig and should not be shoved out of the way or smacked on the head with a camera in the hope that they’ll move. Thank you, fuckwit. I hope all your photos were shit. 

Set List

Review by Robin Olssen

It’s been just over five years since I saw these guys at Annexet in Stockholm last time. This time the band were headlining the second of three days at the Getaway Rock Festival in Gävle. I drove up to Gävle (5 hour drive) with three of my friends and arrived the day before the concert. We set up our tent at the camping and drank a couple of beers. Later on the evening we watched Papa Roach and Bullet for my Valentine. Papa Roach wasn’t really my cup of tea, but I like some of Bullet for my Valentine’s songs, unfortunately most of “my songs” were dropped from their setlist! Next up: Alice Cooper. Unfortunately we decided NOT to see him(!) and headed back to the camping.
I woke up early the next day. The Darkness were to play 23:00 PM and i was counting down the hours  – “11 hours left… 7 hours left… 5 hours…” I left the camping about an hour before the show and got to the second row right in front of Justin. About 15 minutes before the were to play Joey DeMaio of Manowar entered the stage and confirmed that his band was to play the festival next year; I couldn’t care less – I wanted Darkness! The “Arrival” intro finally came on and the band appeared on stage at the end of the intro. Dan took his guitar and started to play the opening chords of “Bareback” while Justin was clapping along furiously. “Black Shuck” soon followed and it was around this time I was pushed forward to the front row due to the pressure – I didn’t mind at all!

Justin then took of his jacket and revealed a “Tre Kronor”-tshirt whilst having his usual stage banter: “Gimme a D! Gimme an Arkness!” Shortly afterwards the band started to play “Get Your Hands off My Woman”. During Dan’s solo Justin did a head stand in front of the bass drum. The first song off the bands second album was “One Way Ticket” which featured Frankie on a cowbell! The said song sounds, imo, much better this time around than it did in 2006. I had already heard the three new songs that the band had debuted a month or so earlier via YouTube. Of these songs “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us” were my least favourite, but after tonights performance this song really stuck to my head!

Justin introduced a “special man” – “Eddie Graham behind the drum set!” They then played “Love Is Only a Feeling”, complete with confetti rain. A few songs later it was time for the next two new songs: “Concrete” and “Cannonball”. Justin left the stage during the latter song and came back on with a catsuit complete with a tail. Both of these songs went down really well. Four songs from “Permission to Land” followed. The crowd went nuts when Justin started the opening riff to “I Believe in a Thing Called Love”. The band left the stage for about 30 seconds and then came on declaring that they were about to play their last song: “…and don’t forget next year Man of War is playing!” A ten minute version of “Love on the Rocks With No Ice” followed and then the concert was over. I went back to the camping and fell asleep one hour later with a smile on my face!
Setlist: Arrival (intro) / Bareback / Black Shuck / Growing on Me / Get Your Hands off My Woman / One Way Ticket / Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us / Love Is Only a Feeling / Friday Night / Is It Just Me? / Concrete / Cannonball / Stuck in a Rut / Givin’ Up / I Believe in a Thing Called Love / Love on the Rocks With No Ice

Months had passed since the last known sighting of either Stone Gods or Hot Leg. Years since the Mothership Darkness had crashed landed in a permanent-looking blaze.   But on a night in June 2011, the once impossible became reality.  Now that a little time has passed, the impact faded, and the tendency to scream has passed, the words to describe it might just flow. There is a lot I want to say, but I will try and keep it to the point!

It was a night that had been analysed and deconstructed a thousand times before the day had even dawned. What they’d play, wear, say, do… but really, did it matter? Surely all that was needed was for the faith to be rekindled? Waiting for that was tense.

Max Raptor as support were more than equal to the impatient Darkling crowd, and got it bouncing and eager. Far better than a lot of supports, they deserved their slot and are worth watching in the future. However, this Norwich crowd was only there for one thing. To celebrate the four men on stage – fans, friends, family. The necessary interval was interminable, and by that time, the God of Rock must have been knocked off his perch by prayers. The realisation hit that it was really really definitely going to happen. Deep intakes of breath – not just mine. It was an emotional moment, shared by a good many around me. So many people at this gig had supported the Hawkins boys through the last 5 years, on stage and off. Read Frankie’s book, seen Ed play with KFB. Once Arrival began, there were a few hastily stifled sniffles – not now, this is not the time – but the damn tune has set Darkling spines tingling for years, and tonight it has a special extra overtone.

There’s no huge fanfare arrival. Just Ed, then Dan, then Frankie assuming the position for Bareback, then Justin striding on to complete the lineup. The reception nearly lifted the roof, and that was only the very beginning. No one had started singing yet, and everyone was just savouring the excitement, on both sides of the barrier. Finally, the irrevocable step was taken into real Darkness. No more wondering about Justin’s voice, the boys’ chemistry, how it will sound. For the rest of our time in that hot, sweaty, perfect atmosphere, we got our answers. It was everything we hoped and more. Fast, hard rock served up with skill and aplomb. Guitars sang, bass and drums thundered, and Justin… well. I don’t think his voice has ever sounded so completely under his control. Note after perfect hard high note glittered like crystal and just kept coming. It all seemed so bloody easy and effortless, and it couldn’t have gone any better. The crowd lapped it up. All the old trademarks were there. Guitar playing behind head, Thin Lizzy Tshirt, bandanna, crowd banter, acrobatic vocals for the crowd to copy – it was all there. We’ve not had black confetti before, though, and it’s still coming out of my boots…  Everything that nostalgia and expectation required was delivered.

The new songs were delivered with equal polish to eager ears. ‘Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us’ is a very old song that’s not been heard live since 2002, so I understand, but it fit perfectly with the rest of the material. Appropriate, too.  ‘Concrete’ was a grower, for me – perhaps I was listening too hard and went into a Darkling daze – I needed to hear that again. ‘Cannonball’, though, was an instant attention grabber with all the Darkness hooks latching onto brains. If these new ones are anything to go by, we’re all going to be rather stunned by the album. Out of breath and aurally blasted. Excellent!  It all ended triumphantly with ‘Love on the Rocks’, crowd walk a given. Everything was bang on, like there hadn’t been a 5 year gap, nothing had been forgotten.

There were no signs of nerves from anyone. Here, in Norwich, they were sure of support, but it was more of a tsunami than a wave. How could it possibly get any better? HOW?

Well… actually, it could. Still astounded by how very good TD are (better than before, in my opinion) I went to London 3 days later. Max Raptor again giving great rock service and much appreciated by the crowd. This is a much bigger venue, with much more press exposure. No nerves for me this time, anyway, and I’m not sure there was any need to worry much on Sunday, either.

The set was the same, the crowd jampacked with moving anywhere difficult. Less rough than Sunday, though.  Sunday’s gig was intimate and the atmosphere dripping with goodwill. This one isn’t as intimate, nor does it have the family feel, but everyone in that hall was rooting for the lads. It was less of a warmup gig than a tour show oddly separated from the rest of the dates. Warm WHAT up? Cold toes? The Darkness are on FIRE tonight and if it had gone on much longer there would have been no Shepherd’s Bush Empire left. This gig blew everyone away. Quite honestly, it was the best I’ve seen TD on stage. Lots of gigs I’ve been to have memories attached, little moments savoured, to make them special. But… what I saw on stage that night outdid everything. Tight, hard rocking band. The interaction, the sound, the lights, the naileddowndead execution of their music. The complete and utter joy of being there on stage together performing was plain to see, and that was worth every penny it itself. I listened hard to  ‘Concrete’ and decided that it is actually a better song than ‘Cannonball’, which is catchier, and both are TD in the extreme.

I am a Darkling, it’s true. I saw them a lot back in the last day, and saw as much Hot Leg, Stone Gods and KFB as I could manage. I can’t write this without some bias. However, I am not going to say that they were brilliant just because it was them. I’m going to say it because they were bloody brilliant.

To The Darkness – I salute you.