By: Robert Cavuoto
The Darkness is set to release their fourth CD, Last Of Our Kind on June 1st.
Anticipation for this long awaited CD is building, fans expect the band will be getting back to their true form with a heavier, edgier, and nastier sounding CD than their 2012 release, Hot Cakes, which portrayed a softer side to the band.
The band is back on track and ready to thrill their fans with a follow-up world tour as well. The band consists of Justin Hawkins on vocals/guitars, Dan Hawkins on guitars/backing vocals, and Frankie Poullain on bass.
A new, yet to be named, drummer will be replacing Eddie Graham who left the band last year under mysterious circumstances which have yet to be revealed!
The Darkness are skilled masters at songwriting, going beyond the thunderous riffs or the catchy hooks; each song is laced with intricate guitar fills and nuances that bring each song to life.
Combine that with Justin’s falsetto voice and lyrics that strike a perfect balance of double entendres with tongue & cheek humor.
When it all comes together… its explosive!
Fans may even be a little surprised to hear Justin sings in natural voice on two new aggressive tracks; “Open Fire” and “Hammer and Tong.”
I caught up with guitarist, Dan Hawkins, to talk about the band’s tumultuous past, how they overcame being slagged in the press by their peers, and their killer new CD that will certainly make people’s head spin!
******
Robert Cavuoto: I feel Last of Our Kind is a return to band’s true form. This CD is more in line with the Permission to Land and One Way Ticket as it’s gritty, edgy, and far more aggressive than Hot Cakes with its lovelorn songs. What’s your take?
Dan Hawkins: I agree, Hot Cakes had more angry songs they just didn’t make it on to the CD. That’s just the way it goes sometimes [Laughing]. But, with this CD every song was built from the riff upwards.
Robert: With Hot Cakes I often wondered if the band was maturing and getting away from the sex, drugs, and drinking connotations?
Dan Hawkins: We should be getting more mature but I think we are getting gnarlier in our old age [Laughing]. The main reason was that we wanted to be more of songwriters.
Robert: One of my favorite aspects of the band is that the songs go beyond the thunderous riff or the catchy vocal hooks; each song is laced with intricate guitar fills and nuances that bring each song to life with their own underlining melody.
Dan Hawkins: That’s an interesting question; we tend to demo the whole song very early in the process. Sometimes we would work on all those intricacies, before we even finished the vocals. We may have a verse idea and a song title, but don’t have a chorus. So, we would abandon trying to finish the song lyrically and vocally and focus on the guitars. That’s where those intricacies come in. We used that time to work on the backing tracks as a band.
Robert: You wrote Last of Our Kind on an exotic island – what was the decision for that and how did it impact the writing?
Dan Hawkins: To be honest, doing that allowed us to focus. We all have families and busy schedules and sometimes need to go where you are unreachable.
For some of the writing we were on a remote island just off the west coast of Ireland, called Valentia.
We hung out there and wreaked havoc while soaking in the medieval vibes. Not much has changed there in thousands of years. It’s truly an amazing and awe inspiring place.
Robert: I can only guess that the first single “Barbarian” was written on that island?
Dan Hawkins: Yeah, a lot of the invasion stuff on the CD was written there like “Roaring Waters” and “Last of our Kind.” Many of those islands in the area were invaded and conquered many times. Maybe that where the battle theme came from on this CD?
Robert: How did the band’s “hiatus” and reunion affect the writing chemistry between you and Justin?
Dan Hawkins: Yes, hiatus [Laughing]! Sometimes things have to get to the worst point before you can rebuild things. Quite often you get it right the second time.
We are getting on great and the band is so important to us know, it always meant more to me than anyone else [Laughing]. We value our time together and the fun times we have had traveling the world. Its enable us to have the best job in the world.
Robert: It’s no secret that band struggled with its addictions and demons, do you find that you and Justin are a better songwriting team sober or under the influence?
Dan Hawkins: Actually and sadly we never wrote or rehearsed under the influence, we were always extremely sober. It was every other second of every day outside of that which was the problem! [Laughing] And that’s actually the truth!
No one would ever turn up drunk or high during the writing sessions – never in the history of The Darkness. It was during the non-working hours that were problematic.
Robert: You guys are notorious for writing songs filled with tongue and cheek humor – how important is it to inject humor into songs?
Dan Hawkins: It’s always important. We want to make honest music that we like. That’s just who we are; four characters. There is humor in AC/DC, Def Leppard and so on. It’s more of an acknowledgement to when you are doing something that’s ridiculous and loving it even more so because of it. It’s not like we are playing homage to an era like Steel Panther or anything. We like to have fun within the boundaries of what we do.
Robert: Speaking to that point, when The Darkness first came out you received a lot of shit about your sound and people tended to categorize you as a parody band. I never understood since all of these comments came from members of ’80s commercial hard rock bands who were doing the same thing.
Dan Hawkins: Yeah, it’s hilarious isn’t it! That’s been the story of our life. Quite often I think people mistrusted us then.
Just like with the Emperor’s New Clothes story, as we were so hyped by people who really didn’t know anything about us. So, when you have idiots saying, “This band was going to save rock ‘n roll”, we made sure to let them know about ir and said “Fuck off.” [Laughing] .
It’s fine line what we do, people either love it, hate it or just don’t get it. What made people change their minds was seeing us playing live It’s just some blokes playing their instruments better than anyone has ever played them before [Laughing].
Robert: So, what happened to drummer Eddie Graham? His departure has been a bit of a mystery, like a Spinal Tap moment?
Dan Hawkins: Yeah right, I read the bio too and it is a bit of a mystery, I’m waiting to read the next installment! That what happens when the lead singer writes the bio! [Laughing]. After I read it I was like, “Oh my God, are you seriously going to say that?” Eddie disappeared down a wormhole and we are thinking he went back to 2004. Who can blame him?
Robert: My favorite song on the new CD is “Open Fire,” it’s also the first time I can recall where Justin doesn’t sing in falsetto.
Dan Hawkins: I also think it’s one of the best tracks on the CD too! We have the very best singer, and we wanted to do more of what we did on the first CD which was to not give a flying fuck what people thought and what they think we are supposed to do.
To just play music that makes us smile and head bang. Who knows you might hear me signing a song on the next record…don’t hold your breath on that one [Laughing]. Maybe that can be the name of the song, “Don’t Hold Your Breath,” It could be a power ballad about kissing under water [Laughing].
Robert: When I saw you play in New York City, I couldn’t help but notice you and Justin’s arsenal of Gibson Les Paul’s, what got you hooked on them?
Dan Hawkins: My Dad was a keen guitarist, but never really had the time to play. He always had these Les Paul copies around the house. I think that’s what defined us when we played and what felt good when we played. It was just the norm for us to play. So, when you get older and have the choice of what guitar you like, we picked Les Pauls. When I think about guitars I think of Les Pauls, most people might think of Strats.
Robert: How many Les Pauls do you own?
Dan Hawkins: I had about 27 of them at one point. When I found out that I had that many, I was shocked, because I never played more than 5 or 6 of them. So, I got rid of them by giving them away, auctioning for charity, and even sold a few.
I then re-sculptured my collection because I’m not really a guitar collector. I look at my guitars as a tool and if the tool is not doing what I want it to do I have no emotional attachment to it and it goes straight out the window. I have about six and I think Justin has about the same.
Robert: What are the touring plans for the US?
Dan Hawkins: I can’t give out much now, but we will be doing a festival in the U.S. this summer and then look for us to tour the U.S. in September and October time frame. We love America.
I can remember when we put out the first CD and thought America will like us, and at that point nobody gave a shit. We find that natural high over there from the fans, so we love coming back.
Robert: Your live shows combine some improvisation mixed with solid technique. Tell me about striking that balance?
Dan Hawkins: That’s a good question; I personally try to have as little improvisation as possible. My solo are aren’t all that technical, as I’m more of punk rocker at heart.
Justin handles things different and incorporates a lot of improvisation. Maybe that’s how we keep it going. I provide the bedrock and he comes in and sort of dances around.
