The Darkness Live Review 2016

The Darkness | Live Review & Photos | Irving Plaza | New York, NY | May 2, 2016

by • May 10, 2016

The Darkness.

The Darkness Live Review

The Darkness

The Darkness are a truly fun band to watch.  Lights, sound, volume, dry ice, rock and roll posing, nipples, boots, hair, leaping from the drum riser, flirting with the audience, sharp stage banter, more fog, more lights, hip thrusts, dry humping the guitar – This was a totally enjoyable experience of sight and sound.

The Darkness live at Irving Plaza

The Darkness live at Irving Plaza

But what does it all mean?

Break down of parts:

The main focus of the performance is on Alexander the Large playing Nigel Tufnel in a show about Queen being fronted by Johnny Rotten.  Johnny Rotten refuses to perform so Iggy Pop is cast.  On his way he meets Mick Jagger who rants on and on about Justin Hawkins.  Justin Hawkins is the singer and second guitarist in The Darkness, and when he walks on stage he tells you that he was the one singing all along.  Everything else was made up in your head.

But is he serious?

David St. Hubbins: It’s such a fine line between stupid, and uh…

Nigel Tufnel: Clever.

David St. Hubbins: Yeah, and clever.

There is one of two possibilities here.  One is that The Darkness is a very clever band.  They are skilled musicians.  The singer has a falsetto that makes opera singers jealous.  The Darkness is a parody of glam rock, overt sexuality, 1970’s fashion, arena sized penises, and stadium sized performances.  Or they are skilled musicians who have jumped the shark from clever to. . .

The Darkness performs at Irving Plaza

Justin Hawkins of The Darkness performs at Irving Plaza

I have often posited that the entire cast of MTV’s Jersey Shore were actually Shakespearian actors playing their roles with such acumen no one could tell that the whole thing was a put-on.  Most people disagree with that theory.  The Darkness does not push such an extreme, but it is difficult to know – are the people in the audience in on the parody?  Is this a parody at all?  Are there people in the audience seeing the performance as high-art kitsch?  Are they in on the joke?  Are there others in the audience who think that rock stars have huge bulges between their legs and that life is lived by the motto, Live to Ride. Ride to Live?  Sex-drugs-rock-and-roll.  It is all here.

And the truth is, I don’t know.

The Darkness Live Review

The Darkness Live Review

Let us dig deeper.

The number one downloaded The Darkness song is, “I Believe In A Thing Called Love”

The song opens,

“Can’t explain all the feelings that you’re making me feel
My heart’s in overdrive and you’re behind the steering wheel”

Well established theme for rock and roll, and it rhymes.

Zeppelin, Who, Bowie, Scorpions.

“Touching you, touching me
touching you, god you’re touching me
I believe in a thing called love
Just listen to the rhythm of my heart
There’s a chance we could make it now
We’ll be rocking ’til the sun goes down
I believe in a thing called love
Ooh!”

Standard rock fare.

Another The Darkness song, aptly named, “Get Your Hands Off My Woman” offers:

“Get your hands off my woman motherfucker
Get your hands off my woman motherfucker
Octoped, you’ve got six hands too many
And you can’t keep them to yourself
You’re too fat and too old to marry
So they left you on the shelf
I’ve got no right to lay claim to her frame
But you soiled my obsession
You cunt.
Get your hands off my woman motherfucker
Get your hands off my woman motherfucker
Get your hands off my woman motherfucker
Get your hands off my woman motherfucker
Ow!
Get your hands off my woman motherfucker
Get your hands off my woman motherfucker”

Heartfelt, but perhaps the train is beginning to run off of the rails.

The Darkness

The Darkness performs at Irving Plaza

Much like The Jersey Shore, The Darkness isn’t burdened with self-awareness.  And perhaps that lets us enjoy the music for what it is.

I have a friend whose father was a hard working guy.  I think he did road work for the county.  You might think of him as a “Real ‘Merican.”   A long time ago (college years long time ago) I was at my friend’s house chatting with his father.  We somehow got onto the subject of movies.  I suggested that I liked movies that had some meaning and some bite.  My friend’s father offered that he didn’t need nobody trying to give him any message – he liked movies that just made him laugh.  When I asked why, he said that if he wanted someone to give him a depressing “message” or if he wanted someone to tell him how to think, he would just go to work.  Funny movies, sports, and a beer.  Steak for dinner is value added.  (I must add that now, as a working man with a family, bills, mortgage, family size car, and college tuition payments, Bill Murray is my hero.  It was easy to be an art shit-head back when I was living in my parent’s house.)

So this bring us back to The Darkness.

The Darkness offers us one of two options.

One, their performance is tongue-in-cheek and worthy of Oscar Wilde.

Or, two, the Darkness and their audience believe that life is to be enjoyed to the fullest – with all of the sports, comedy, steak, and beer you can handle.

And the truth is – I think that both options are just as valid.

And I really did enjoy their performance.

This one goes to eleven.

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The Darkness Live Review 2016 and Photos by Douglass Dresher.

Doug Dresher

Doug Igoto.

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