British rock band The Darkness took over the world with a megahit single "I Believe in a Thing Called Love" that made the album Permission to Land quadruple platinum and won them three Brit Awards.
Extensive touring landed them in Chicago several times and, now, has them returning with a new album, Last of Our Kind. The new music has lead singer Justin Hawkins performing the same vocal acrobats that made him famous in the first place. We called overseas to catch a glimpse of The Darkness and learned some interesting things about the front man.
Windy City Times: Hi, Justin. Where in the world are you calling me from?
Justin Hawkins: I'm in Switzerland at a Thai restaurant.
WCT: I saw the band at Metro in Chicago not too long ago.
JH: Ah, yes the Metro. There are some great venues in Chicago. There is one called Double Door that we played at as well. We have great crowds there and we love the town.
WCT: How was making the new album, Last of Our Kind?
JH: It was great. We recorded it on a little island off of Ireland. My brother produced it. We are not a major label band anymore, so it is all hands on deck. Everybody mucks in.
We are not working with big producers or record labels. We just find a nice place and do it on the cheek really. We trust each other so it is a really nice experience. That comes across in our music with confidence. We are definitely feeling good about ourselves at the moment.
WCT: The Last of Our Kind video seems to celebrate diversity of different people.
JH: Somebody told me it looks like a Gap advertisement, which is what we were going for so I was really pleased with that. We thought about putting the word "Gap" in there at one point, but that might have been a bit too far.
We have superfans that are known as The Darkness Army. They are very proactive and will go fight for us in chat rooms. They will vote for us on poles on music based sites. We invited those guys to be in the video. Our fan base has always had a lot of diversity. We did try to celebrate that so they are involved in the video, apart from the swimwear model. I don't think she had ever heard of us.
WCT: I noticed her standoffishness.
JH: She seemed a bit nonplused by my dancing.
WCT: Is it hard to sing live songs like that, with a wide range going into falsetto?
JH: For me, falsetto and the high notes are really comfortable. I have more problems in the mid-range. What I have to do is be very careful of what I eat. I can't have anything spicy or milky. I am vegan, anyway.
When I am on tour I have all of the responsibility. I can't show up and not be able to hit those notes. From the day I leave the house until the moment I get back my bus is a like a traveling health spa!
I really have to look after myself. I have to warm up before the shows and make sure my larynx is functioning properly.
WCT: For the first track, "Barbarian," is that a sample of someone speaking?
JH: We were recording it at my brother's house and I did the vocals there. We invited his grounds man to make a dramatic monologue. He is very much into amateur dramatics and has a Nordic accent. It does sound like someone from an old Viking film.
WCT: You have been changing styles even since Chicago, I noticed.
JH: Last time I was in Chicago, I had a moustache. I have quite short hair now as well. It is constantly evolving. I am having my teeth fixed, which is big news for me. I have felt so much of my life feeling that I didn't want to open my mouth because it looks like an abandoned graveyard in there. Especially having a job where opening your mouth is essential when having to hit high notes. Now I am sorting it out with into a year of having braces and I am loving it. I am getting a lot of compliments. That is my next step, a Hollywood smile!
WCT: Do you have a favorite tattoo?
JH: You know when see a gang member from LA and they have a tattoo over their stomach that says where they are from? Mine says "Lowestoft," which is a seaside town in England that I grew up in. I also have the faces of Queen tattooed on my left hand. Freddie Mercury is my middle finger, obviously. It is taken from the Hot Space album, which Queen and their fans agree it is not their best album but I love it because it has Andy Warhol pop artwork and that is rendered on my hand.
WCT: You seem in touch with your androgynous side, with David Bowie and Queen influencing your style. Is that accurate?
JH: Androgyny has been thrust on me a little bit. I don't think I have had much of a choice. While growing up my mother was quite open about the fact that she wished I were a girl [laughs]! I have always been aware of that. It is just a thing. I don't think I do manly or full on womanly. I am somewhere in between.
WCT: Rock group Foxy Shazam opened for you last time in Chicago.
JH: Oddly enough, I am in the restaurant with Eric Nally [Foxy Shazam's the lead singer] right now.
WCT: Tell him I love his guest vocals on the new Macklemore song "Downtown."
JH: It is awesome. He is getting some notice now. He was taken for granted but it is time someone supported this artist. He's a lovely guy and one of my best friends.
WCT: What is the difference between your U.S. fans versus the U.K. fans?
JH: In the United States, they are much quicker in realizing what we are trying to do. In England, the culture can be too cool for school. They sometime worry about what other people would think of them and not appreciate what we are doing. When we broke through in England we are able to do high profile festivals so we do feel special there. American audiences seem more liberated. They seem much more keen to let their hair down and their mullets fly!
The Blast of Our Kind Tour hits the House of Blues, 329 N. Dearborn St., on Oct. 20.
See the light of The Darkness at www.theactualdarkness.com .
