The Darkness made a welcome return Stateside with the first stop of their Motorheart Tour at The Observatory North Park in San Diego.
It has been approximately two years since The Darkness has played a live show in America. Just as many other musical acts did, they had their plans dashed in 2020 after the COVID-19 pandemic caused the cancellation of so many tours and festivals. The Darkness was ready to embark on their ironically named Easter is Cancelled Tour to support their 2019 album of the same name, when it all came crashing down. But that was all ancient history now.
Opening for The Darkness on this tour is the Nashville-based rock band The Dead Deads. These ladies rock, and are a very pleasant surprise for those that made it in at showtime. The Dead Deads are McQueen on drums, Daisy on bass, and Meta on guitar. They are truly a power trio, that rock. They have a great sound and should not be missed. The Dead Deads are surely on the up and are worth supporting. The Dead Deads name their list of influences as Cage the Elephant and The Killers, Failure, Bjork, Led Zeppelin, Blue Oyster Cult, NOFX, Pavement, Pink Floyd, Queen, Weezer, Helmet, Cream, Beck, and The Pixies.
But this night was a celebration, The Darkness was loose in America again. It was obvious that from the energy of the fans gathered at The Observatory, everyone there was very excited to see the band again. They were desperate to get a taste of their mash-up of classic rock, glam, and camp, set to big power chords melodic guitar solos, and falsetto vocals. The night wasn’t without its awkward moments, with the band arriving in America literally the day before, as well as the crowd realizing that they were actually at a rock show again. It took a few songs for most of the crowd to get into the vibe Justin Hawkins and the rest of the band was putting into the American ether. At one point Justin instructed the willing crowd on a call-and-response the band is used to hearing in Europe when Justin recites the prose from the intro to the song “Barbarian.” Once the ice had been broken, the band and the crowd got their sea legs and a great time was had by all.
Justin Hawkins is truly a wonder. It is as if someone rolled up Freddie Mercury, Marc Bolan, David Bowie, and Robert Plant, put them in a blender, and out popped Justin Hawkins with his English rockstar pedigree in hand. As you watch them perform, it is obvious that Justin is a showman with his own style of energy, guitar skills, footwork, preening, and vocal acuity. The entire band performed a tight, hard-driving set that had many bouncing, dancing, and banging their heads. Every band member, the aforementioned Justin Hawkins vocalist and guitarist, Dan Hawkins guitar, bass player Frankie Poullain, and Rufus Taylor on drums, were radiating effusive smiles and having fun. It was obvious to everyone in attendance, that the band and fans were happy to be back performing and enjoying the music. San Diego was treated to a joyous “the boys are back” party. From the opening notes of the first song to the encore and the performance of the track that started them on their way to rock stardom “I Believe in a Thing Called Love,” the band tore the roof off The Observatory and let The Darkness in.
The Darkness has a great sense of humor in the British tradition as evidenced by their music videos, album covers, lyrics, song titles. They know just the right amount of camp to bring to the mix without going Spinal Tap and becoming a parody of themselves.
If you want to go to a great rock show, The Darkness delivers. See them before the Motorheart tour heads back to Europe in May.
THE DARKNESS
Website Facebook Twitter
