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EXPLAINED: The darkness | Rare Historical Photos

"I remember listening to it and freaking out – I couldn't believe how authentic it sounded." How The Darkness created the ultimate modern power ballad

The Darkness frontman Justin Hawkins looks back at how he and his bandmates created a “power ballad for the age” – and a breath of fresh air in an era when rock wasn’t exactly in fashion

Louder

"In 2026, there's no better celebration of all that's heroic and daft and delightful about hard rock than The Darkness." The Darkness in Auckland, New Zealand - live review

At the end of the year, The Darkness will headline the O2 in London: This week, we caught up with them at a venue 1/20th of the size in New Zealand

Louder

"Once you're comfortable in this space, don't overthink it, just enjoy it." A new recording studio at a historic English school has been named after Justin Hawkins

The Darkness frontman attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the opening of The Justin Hawkins Recording Studio

Louder

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"There are people who are almost tainted by their knowledge of music. It's almost like they know too much": How we got over ourselves and learned to love The Darkness

On October 7, 2003, The Darkness released their debut album Permission To Land. Many were resistant to its obvious charms, including us

Louder

"When I'm peeling the sprouts, it's nice to hear Cannibal Corpse or Obituary just to maintain a bit of edge": Justin Hawkins on Christmas, being back in arenas, supporting Iron Maiden, brother Dan being a rock star, Yungblud and more

The Darkness frontman Justin Hawkins is currently on the road with his Justin Hawkins’ Rides Again... Again! tour

Louder

"I was naked in the vocal booth. At first, I did it as an experiment to see if it would help, then it became a tradition": The story of the spandex-clad classic that launched its creators into the stratosphere

Recorded on 9/11 and once voted the Greatest Song Of The Twenty-first Century So Far, I Believe In A Thing Called Love could have been a hit in any decade

Louder

The Darkness reveal how they 'blagged’ their Christmas hit

The Darkness penned their Christmas classic Christmas Time (Don’t Let The Bells End) after a drunken night out.

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“A lot of the floor plan for any Darkness gig is amps. We don’t use simulators because we’re a real band making proper noise”: Why Justin Hawkins and The Darkness like to rock the old-fashioned way

And he reckons their next album could be their answer to Exile On Main St.

MusicRadar

“He wanted it to sound tinny, so he literally put the mic in a tin. That’s the way he would chase ideas”: When Justin Hawkins and The Darkness teamed up with Queen’s eccentric producer, strange things happened with champagne buckets, panpipes and more

They took a One Way Ticket To Hell... And Back

MusicRadar

Watch The Darkness treat commuters at London St Pancras station to a surprise live performance

Justin and Dan Hawkins of The Darkness performed Christmas songs and some of their hits at London train station

Metal Hammer

“A couple of Ace’s people were furious. I got cornered by a couple who were asking if I had a problem”: Justin Hawkins on his run-in with Ace Frehley – who saw the funny side to their ‘spat’

The Darkness frontman felt a good-natured tirade had landed him in hot water

Guitar World

Yungblud slams 'bitter' rock star critics of Ozzy Osbourne tribute at VMAs

Yungblud has fired back after The Darkness stars Justin and Dan Hawkins criticised his Ozzy Osbourne tribute at the MTV VMAs last month.

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"It's like watching David Hasselhoff": Justin Hawkins backs brother Dan's criticism of "poseur" Yungblud's Ozzy tribute

The Darkness frontman Justin Hawkins explains why "musicians of a certain age" feel "irked" by Yungblud

Metal Hammer

“Makes me sick how people jump on this to further their own careers”: The Darkness’ Dan Hawkins blasts Yungblud, Steven Tyler and Joe Perry for their VMAs Ozzy Osbourne tribute

Yungblud led an all-star cast of music greats for a medley of Prince of Darkness classics – but Hawkins wasn’t impressed

Guitar World

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The Darkness' Dan Hawkins brands Ozzy Osbourne MTV VMAs tribute 'another nail in the coffin for rock 'n' roll'

Dan Hawkins has hit out at those involved in the Ozzy Osbourne tribute at the MTV Video Music Awards.

Metal Hammer

"Makes me sick how people jump on this sh*t to further their own careers": The Darkness guitarist Dan Hawkins slams MTV Ozzy tribute

MTV's tribute to the late Ozzy Osbourne featured Steven Tyler and Joe Perry of Aerosmith, Nuno Bettencourt and Yungblud

Louder

The sound of glorious pandemonium: Two nights with The Darkness in Ireland

The Darkness frontman Justin Hawkins and writer Pat Carty worked together as apprentice joiners in the 1990s: 30 years on, we put them together again

Louder

“We recorded with him, but the song was demoted to a bonus track. I’ve had to add him to the list of people who’ll never speak to me again”: Dan Hawkins hates how The Darkness treated Ian Anderson

Guitarist says one of the worst days of his life came when a song featuring the Jethro Tull leader was dropped from their 2012 comeback album

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MusicRadar

"Bringing a long-awaited rock 'n' roll flair to the world of soundbars": Marshall’s Heston 120 packs the latest tech into the style signature of its classic amp heads

It’s so retro that The Darkness have been resurrected to help roll it out

Louder

"Expect glorious spectacles of foot-stomping, guitar-wailing and face-melting, high-octane joy. Tell your mates. Tell your mum." The Darkness announce North American tour in typically low-key fashion

America, Canada, brace yourselves for a "rock 'n' roll rampage" from the Hawkins brothers

Guitar World

“That was the first time I’d ever listened to one and gone, ‘What is that? I want to learn how to do that’”: Justin Hawkins is known for his rock chops – but a soul and reggae legend inspired him to break the rules

The Darkness singer on how Johnny Nash inspired him to broaden his musical horizon

BANG Premier

The Darkness' wardrobe assistant helped them with bizarre hangover cute to get through gigs

The Darkness guitarist Dan Hawkins has revealed why their wardrobe assistant had to "deploy two ice cubes directly into the eyes" during their earlier career.

Louder

“It’s getting ridiculous. We’re the last men standing, unless some new wave of rock comes along…” The rise, fall and resurrection of The Darkness, the band on a mission to save rock

As their new album Dreams On Toast proves, The Darkness are everything rock’n’roll should be in 2025

Louder

“Justin Hawkins has got a crazy brain. He kept giving me all of these great lines”: How The Darkness persuaded a Hollywood A-lister to appear on their new album

When The Darkness call, Hollywood picks up the phone

The Independent UK

The Darkness’s Justin Hawkins: ‘People saw our new music video and assumed I was back on drugs’

THE SATURDAY INTERVIEW: Once one of the biggest bands on the planet, The Darkness are back with a new album and a change of direction. Justin Hawkins talks to Kate Solomon about why he thinks the music industry has never taken them seriously, how he no longer writes songs to…

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