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Wearing
skin-tight cutaway trousers and matching spandex top, Darkness frontman
Justin Hawkins prances across the stage like a show pony in a dressage
contest.
| 'Oooh,
I think the stalls are a bit louder than the balcony,' says
Justin Hawkins. It seems as if we really have strayed into panto-land..." |
As
he raises both hands for a thumbs-up salute, the packed Hammersmith
Apollo crowd responds immediately. A sea of thumbs fills the air.
Described
as 'joke rock' by some of the music press, and allegedly dubbed
'cabaret' by MotorheadÂ’s Lemmy, there are some who donÂ’t
know how to take these retro cock-rockers.
But
as the band launch into a kick-ass rendition of Black Shuck,
you know there's more to this combo than silly costumes and rock
clichés.
Sure,
the high-fiving between Hawkins and his guitarist brother Dan mid-riff
in Growing on Me is obviously choreographed.
Yeah, thereÂ’s something comical about the impossibly wide playing
stance of bassist Frankie Poullain, replete in headscarf and 'tache.
But
last night no one in Hammersmith was complaining.
panto-land
Despite
a few cancelled gigs on this tour due to a strained voice, Hawkin's
famous falsetto seemed in fine form as he asked for lighters to
be held aloft for Love is Only a Feeling.
 Later,
he refutes the cancer scare rumours which made the papers, then
makes a joke about the recent groping allegations against filmstar-turned-politico
Arnold Schwarzenegger.
ItÂ’s an appropriate intro for their Get Your Hands Offa
My Woman Motherf.
To
wind down the track, Hawkins initiates a call and response of ‘motherf'
with the audience: 'Oooh, I think the stalls are a bit louder
than the balcony,' he says. We really have strayed into panto-land.
Next
it's a cover of Radiohead's Street Spirit. The two bands
couldnÂ’t be more different yet the rendition is almost as poignant
as Yorke and Co.'s original.
'Friday
Night' rocks as does recent number one single I Believe in
a Thing Called Love.
The
band leave the stage to rapturous applause, leaving the standard
wait for an encore.
white
catsuit
Dan Hawkins returns first, and under three blue spotlights he begins
to play impressively in front of a mini-wall of Marshall stacks.
 Next,
goth drummer Ed Graham creeps back behind his kit as Poullain gets
back behind his bass.
Finally,
the stage lights go up as Hawkins senior reappears, now wearing
a cape over yet another white catsuit.
Now
the band launch into 'Givin' Up', a song about heroin addiction.
In his shiny white suit, the skag-themed lyrics don't seem to fit
Hawkins. But it's still a great tune.
Love
On The Rocks makes the perfect finale before a karate kid pose
from Justin, a band group hug and then the exit. JustinÂ’s the
last to leave the stage, still cantering like a colt.
canny
showmen
There's
no doubt The Darkness are talented musicians and canny showmen.
Like most metallers, there's a tendency when playing live to halt
melodies for unnecessary stretches of 'see-how-fast-I-can-riff'
solos which don't push songs forward. But it's a matter of taste.
The long-haired rockers who'd turned out in force would no doubt
disagree with me.
Pantomime?
Maybe. But if the Darkness wonder where their fans are, the answer
last night was obvious: 'they're behind you' - all the way.
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