A deeper look at the grooves pressed into Last Of Our Kind by The Darkness.
I know I’m a punk and therefore my taste in music has a holier than thou flavor by default, but we all have our guilty pleasures. My greatest guilty pleasure is the music of The Darkness – and there are several reasons I’ve come to love The Darkness over the years. They are the perfect soundtrack for the gym (punks can be healthy too, you know), they write some truly great songs, they have some catchy-ass hooks and they put on a killer live show. So basically, these are the reasons for liking any band.
The Darkness has had a strange and tumultuous career, skyrocketing to stardom with their debut album, Permission to Land, and were the single greatest power source behind the glam metal revival of the early 2000s. The band sort of disappeared after their sophomore album, One Way Ticket to Hell and Back, which left people wondering if the metal shtick they created truly could have been so fragile. Even so, however, The Darkness returned with original members, more focused than ever and committed to rocking whoever is willing to listen.
It was going to be an uphill battle from the start: they will always be known for their earlier hits and honestly, some people had abandoned the metal train many years ago. But the band has been carrying on, pushing harder than ever, sticking to their guns and doing so remarkably well. Last of Our Kind is their latest effort and, for all intents and purposes, does what the band knows how to do and does it well in a more stripped-back form. The hooks, the riffs, the guitar-heavy tracks and the juvenile approach to romance are all here and, as a surprise, we even get some vocal dues by bassist Frankie Poullain. Last of Our Kind is filled with some instant favorites like “Barbarians,†the title track and “Roaring Waters†which absolutely command some head-bobbing. When you pick up this record (and I know you will), make sure to check out one of the nifty green vinyl records which are still available if you know where to look.
A great album and definitely an overlooked gem from last year. It truly makes you wonder, have we been underestimating this band all along? [OLLIE OTTOMAN]
Arist:
http://thedarkness.co.uk/
https://www.facebook.com/thedarknessofficial
https://twitter.com/thedarkness
Album:
The vinyl edition of Last Of Our Kind is out now. Buy it here on Amazon. http://www.amazon.com/Last-Our-Kind-Darkness/dp/B00TXZM29U/ref=sr_1_1_twi_lp__2?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1456515894&sr=1-1&keywords=the+darkness
