In 2000, the world was given a beautiful gift that called itself The Darkness. This English rock band takes all of the fun and energy of glam rock and hair metal and combines it with their unique sense of humor and Justin Hawkins’ soaring vocals. It all comes together to form an almost overwhelming band.
They leave behind all of the ego and megalomania that can be associated with rock and roll and keep all of the fun, the excitement, and the music. With their torso bearing catsuits, eyeliner, and the bassist’s afro watching them is like a blast from the past. And I, on February 1st, got to experience them first hand.
At the end of his tour with them Alice Cooper was once quoted as saying that even though he had been touring with them for months he still couldn’t tell whether or not they were serious. This statement is not surprising at all once you actually begin to watch them. Their high energy songs paired with flamboyant outfits and ridiculously high vocal parts can sound silly, but it’s that joking attitude that make them so interesting.
From the minute they walked out on stage the entire audience was captivated. They were playing at the Summit Music Hall which made it an extremely intimate performance and nobody stood still the entire time. The band was dead on and they played every song perfectly and with such incredible energy. All of the energy and passion that is on the record translates to their live shows tenfold.
Usually during concerts people begin to lose energy and stop dancing, especially when the band begins to play their more obscure songs, but there was no slowing down with The Darkness. Their energy was high throughout the show and the audience kept right up with them, especially when Justin got onto his brother Dan’s shoulders and walked through the audience while still playing guitar. And when the band played the first few notes to their biggest hit, “I Believe In A Thing Called Love,” everybody in the audience went completely crazy. Beer was spilling everywhere and about twenty people were crowd surfing.
Justin’s wry sense of humor between songs and ridiculous falsetto vocals, combined with Dan Hawkins’ clean, precise guitar and the deep bass and drums creates a near perfect band and an all around good time.
Everybody has a good time when they see the Darkness even if they don’t know the songs. They are enigmatic and fun. For the small admission price they are the best live band that you could see.