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Review: The Darkness, Bristol Beacon – ‘Very vocal, very sarcastic’
Who would have thought the main theme for the night would be a 50 year old man soiling himself onstage?
Well, maybe that’s not so far-fetched at a Darkness gig…
The Darkness bring the rock ’n roll fun to the Beacon as they celebrate the forthcoming release of album Dreams On Toast – their eight studio album, which may be a surprise to some.
is needed now More than ever
But not the hardcore fans, for whom this is eagerly awaited, and who are out in force for this wild live show.
This crowd packs in early to catch The Darkness’s very special support, Ash. A band with a career held in equal esteem, that has punk rock anthems for days.
A headline act in support, with a short set to fill, means exciting times, as you know it’ll be all bangers. They open with Gold Finger: case closed! Shining Light in the Beacon is apt and sounds delicious, Tim Wheeler’s soft vocal on a bed of pop/rock perfection a dream. A huge hit back in the day, it still sounds fresh.
Mark Hamilton has his bass down low and his familiar triangular poses with Wheeler all smiles and screeching guitar-hero solos. Ash are no-nonsense rock’n’roll, but not afraid to surprise with a cover of Jump in Line by Harry Belafonte, turning it from Calypso to Ramones-esque mash up.
Girl From Mars follows; it has to, it’s a necessity, a gift from the rock gods for us all to sing. Wheeler breaks a string and doesn’t even blink as they smash straight into Burn Baby Burn to finish. I’d be more than happy if I’d stumbled upon a new band to adore, and I’m jealous of anyone who gets to hear these songs for the first time.
The stage backing is unveiled, the smoke is pumped in, the giant screens are fired up with the vivid red Darkness logo. Precious fans protect their space as if they own the spot they stand, and maybe they do after spending £65 on a black hoody?
The band run onto stage and get underway with new album opener Rock’ n’ Roll Party Cowboy which is a big boisterous number that kicks down the door straight away.
Frontman Justin Hawkins is all in white with glittery cowboy party boots, which are quickly removed due to a greasy Beacon floor. They give us two of the best early doors from Permission to Land with STD anthem Growing On Me followed by Get Your Hands Off My Woman where “the voice” is high and crazily good considering recent illness. Just how high can he reach!
Hawkins treats us to a headstand in front of the drum kit in which he claps his legs in time to the drums: Still Nifty at 50.
Hawkins is very vocal, very sarcastic, and very happy to sell you a Lanyard with a QR Code with bonus new material. His apprehension of wearing all white and shitting himself became an ongoing 90-minute joke, with the Bristol crowd bating him to do so for the whole set.
I bump into Bristol’s finest band, Mould, who seem to be having a great time as are the rest of the crowd, lofting their devil horns and locking into any call and response Justin asks of them.
The classic Love Is Only a Feeling is a standing-on-a-cliff, wind-blowing-through-long-hair rock anthem, stopped and restarted to get fans to stop filming and be present, to jump up and down and rock out instead.
Barbarians is a little baffling, but fun. Drummer turns singer for My Only as we are treated to a montage of pictures of him and his dog which we’re left hoping is still alive,
With the 90-minute joke still ongoing, the set ramps up. Friday Night is pure high-pitched pop fun before, you guessed it… I Believe in a Thing Called Love closes the set. The crowd suitably adorns terrible high-pitched voices and jumps around like it’s 2004.
New single I Hate Myself closes the set for real and is a real earworm. The Darkness for Pyramid Stage at Glastonbury, surely?
All images: Matt Barnes
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