"The Darkness" Love em or hate em?

tornandfrayed · Post by **tornandfrayed** » Monday May 31, 2004

I have a theory that people either love "the Darkness" or hate them. I think most musicians have heard of them unless they live under a rock. So what is your opinion?

I personally think they are a very fun band and I enjoy the CD quite a bit.

The falsetto thing was a little tough at first but I guess I got use to it.

Either way these guys are hugely popular, why do you think that is? They seem to be a sort of phenomenom. You have to admit they are different then what we have been hearing for the last 10 years or so.

What other bands have achieved this kind of press lateyl?

And if the Darkness played at Peter C's do you think the place would be packed? Even though they don't play covers....

J Michaels · Post by **J Michaels** » Monday May 31, 2004

The first time I saw their video for "I Believe in a Thing Called Love" I about shit myself laughing - they seemed SO cheesy, and the singer's style was so out there. But I REALLY like them now. I've checked out their other songs, and sometimes the falsetto singing is a bit much, but they write some really good hooks and catchy tunes, that are fun, singalong songs that still kick ass - something that we haven't really seen in a long time.

Personally, I love the fact that The DARKNESS (note the spelling

) and Jet are out there playing classic, guitar-hook driven rock and not whining about how their parents didn't love them enough and how they hate their lives. If I hear one more Aron Lewis / Staind song or Linkin Park song about how terrible their lives are I'm gonna scream! Like Vince Neil said - everybody knows that life sucks - I don't wanna hear a song about how your life sucks - rock and roll was always an escape from all of that. Why the record and radio companies decided to market nothing but angst and hate and depression I'll never know. There's always a place for that, cuz sometimes that's how you feel, and a good aggressive angry song is a much needed release. But for that to pretty much be the ONLY hard rock coming out (as it was for several years) pretty much sucks.
I hope we see more hook-laden hard rock like The Darkness coming out.

Victor Synn · Post by **Victor Synn** » Monday May 31, 2004

First of all, I love The Darkness. They're doing a good job of bringing 70's/80s glam back into the mainstream, so I got to give them respect for that, seeing as how the industry seems to be more in tune for bringing out flash-in-the-pan bands that sing one or two songs of angst, then disappear. It's just a breath of fresh air to have an album that's not only catchy, but doesn't have all the heavy lyric content. Music is supposed to be about fun too.

Would The Darkness do ok at Peter C's? Definately. You'd probably fire code the bar in less than 30 minutes. Keep in mind that when they played in Pittsburgh at what used to be called The Rock Jungle, they sold out tickets in a couple days. And that was a fairly large club. They'd do pretty well in any club in this area.

RobTheDrummer · Post by **RobTheDrummer** » Monday May 31, 2004

I think they are great, but I still can't figure out if they are a parody or if they are serious...I mean "Power Falsetto"? Know one knows. But I like it. lol

Banned · Post by **Banned** » Monday May 31, 2004

I love 'em!

There's a lot of wit in that band, both subtle and not-so-subtle. I think they take their craftsmanship seriously, but aren't afraid to have fun doing it. Who else writes a song about their dog destroying the world? Not to mention that tender, sensitive ballad about whacking off . . .

bassist_25 · Post by **bassist_25** » Monday May 31, 2004

I think their popularity is based more on kitsch than anything else. That's not to say they suck or anything. They definatley have hooks. I just don't think they'll go down in history as a "classic" band.

I do like "Cold Hard Bitch" by Jet, though.

Unfortunatley, Glam Metal, and Garage Rock has been done before. I wish Rock music would quit recylcing everything and come out with something new and innovating.

tonefight · Post by **tonefight** » Monday May 31, 2004

I prefer Jet over the Darkness, Jet seems a little more real although its kinda rehashed in style its good in your face rock.

April · Post by **April** » Monday May 31, 2004

Can't decide if I love them or hate them. I hated them at first but they've grown on me to the point that I'm thinking about going to see them in Pittsburgh on the 14th. I've never been a big fan of 80's type glam, but something about it right now kinda interests me. kinda like a car wreck, you may not like what your seeing but ya have to look anyway. And you gotta respect that dude's vocal range, Not too many bands can get away with trying to cover that song (thing called love). I did hear the guy from Pop Shop cover it really well though.

wake up drumming · Post by **wake up drumming** » Tuesday Jun 01, 2004

Don't much care for the Darkness at all. It's all the flavor of the day thing all over again. It's really, really hard to take these guys seriously and that falsetto thing has to go!! It all seems produced and phony to me. However I do enjoy what I've heard from Jet. Seems more genuine and not faked, like they just like playing good rock n' roll, but that's just my opinion. Really, the music of the darkness is nothing different, just listen to old SWEET records, kinda sounds the exact same.

I do agree with J Michaels about the new trend of depressing music though. It's becoming hard to hear one more song about how daddy bumb-raped me and now life sucks! However, before the grunge, nu-metal movement it was hair metal; and after ten years people got tired of hearing songs about screwing groupies and taking drugs all while looking more like a groupie than a man. Nirvana brought "real-life" and real feelings back into music, and that isn't really a bad thing either. A nice medium would be cool but good luck finding one. That's why I'll listen to Buck Cherry's "Whiskey in the morning" and follow it up with Slayer's "Hell Awaits" (makes me feel like a drunken satanist!)

JayBird · Post by **JayBird** » Tuesday Jun 01, 2004

I bought the CD as soon as it came out. I myself think it's great. When I saw the video I thought to myself...There is the Freddy Mercury of our generation...love Queen. They are a fun 80's style hair metal band. I grew up on that music and I still find it enjoyable to this day.

songsmith · Post by **songsmith** » Tuesday Jun 01, 2004

My wife's more a fan of The DARKNESS than I am... I'm okay with them, I guess, but they don't get me lathery.I heard on the radio that Ozzy and Paul Stanley have both come out against them, saying that they're making fun of a good thing. I like Jet okay... Cold Hard Bitch is catchy, but I can hear like 5 other songs in there, and the chorus and verse sections sound pretty far apart to me. I'm in one of my phases where I don't listen to much radio, except for talk... it usually lasts for a month or two, then I have to hear music again. I'm rambling again... these long weekends'll kill ya!----->JMS

Sanctify · Post by **Sanctify** » Tuesday Jun 01, 2004

I love the darkness!!!! everytime my band practices I try to rip into that song... but the rest of the guys think the darkness is gay... a month or so ago they had an hour long special about the darkness on public television...

I think the whole thumbs up thing instead of the finger/metal horns is awsome... of course I still love metal horns... but the Darkness Rocks!!!

Greg
www.innergband.com

DMFJ03 · Post by **DMFJ03** » Tuesday Jun 01, 2004

The Darkness needs to be drug out into the street and shot.

Imgrimm01 · Post by **Imgrimm01** » Tuesday Jun 01, 2004

This type of NON sense is the cancer that eats away at legit music, These guys are helping to bring back music that wasn't good the first time around and supporting this crap will help no one but the label and the band and aren't the fat cat record companies wealthy enough?

Punkinhead · Post by **Punkinhead** » Tuesday Jun 01, 2004

i hate this band but find them humorous...

im not into Jet really either....but most of the stuff I check out is usually brutally heavy...

grimmbass · Post by **grimmbass** » Tuesday Jun 01, 2004

The DARKNESS, eh? I think we've seen this kind of faddish stuff before, and will again. I see it as benign and silly....kind of like a metal version of Bismark E. We'll laugh at it, they'll sell an album or two, and then they'll mercifully go away. A few points:

1. Nothing here that Def Leppard and Poison didn't do 10 years ago. And they were better at it.
2. The Darkness gets airplay on "college" and "alt" stations. Yeah, people see this as a joke.
3. The falsetto thing, in a word, sucks. It just does. The real 80's metal guys could do falsetto WELL (thank you Rob Halford!). I got acclimated to the way that William Hung sings too, but that doesn't make him good....it just makes us numb.

I don't hate the Darkness, I see them as funny. But this joke is getting old.