Justin Hawkins: After The Darkness

A Look at the Current Activities of the English Singer/Songwriter

Jul 30, 2008

After leaving The Darkness for rehab, Justin Hawkins is back and better than ever. Ahead is a look at the activities and bands the hard rock falsetto king is now heading.

Justin Hawkins is probably most well-known as the lead singer of British hard rock/glam rock band The Darkness, where he utilized an impressive falsetto and a powerful rock voice. However, in 2006 he checked into a rehab clinic, which forced the band to break up. Two years later, Hawkins is clean and making music like never before. Between an upcoming solo album, two now-defunct bands, and a brand new band that starts touring in August, Hawkins is once again proving to the world that he is capable of rocking out.

Justin Hawkins' first solo project began even before he left The Darkness. In 2005, he released the EP This Town Ain't Big Enough For Both Of Us (after the Sparks song of the same name, which he covered) under the name British Whale. The EP contains two songs—he later remixed The Darkness' song “Girlfriend” and wrote the unofficial World Cup single “England”—but British Whale shows that Hawkins' talent extends beyond the realm of hard rock. The band took a much lighter approach to music than The Darkness, and Hawkins made good use of keyboard effects that propelled British Whale into synth-pop territory. This poppy, upbeat sound is fairly unusual for Hawkins, but it makes the music interesting to listen to, even three years later.

In 2007, Hawkins rekindled his solo career through via MySpace. In late March, he announced an upcoming solo album entitled Panther, and he presented four songs: “You Can't Hurt Me Anymore”, “I've Met Jesus”, “Whichever”, and “Gay in the 80's”. These songs brought Hawkins back to a hard rock base, although they still see evolution in his playing style as well as the addition of synthesized instruments. Unfortunately, these songs have since been removed from the Internet as Hawkins told fans in a blog post, “You'll just have to wait.” No further details about Panther have since been revealed.

Hawkins Triumphantly Returns With Hot Leg

Earlier this year, Hawkins announced the birth of a new band: Hot Leg. This band goes back to a traditional hard rock style, with guitar-heavy songs that feature as many solos as possible. Interestingly, Hawkins is not the only vocalist in the band. All the members of Hot Leg sing their songs, whether they are backing or singing verses. The band features Hawkins on lead guitar, Pete Rinaldi on rhythm guitar, Samuel Stokes on bass, and Darby Todd on drums, with all members of the band vocalizing.

Hot Leg's first song, “Heroes”, premiered early this summer and is available for download through the band's blog. Their second song, “Trojan Guitar”, was posted last week and is due to be a single later this summer. “Trojan Guitar” is one part of what the band calls a “multi-pronged music assault”, with the other parts including an album to be released in October and the 'Hands Up Who Loves Hot Leg?'tour which begins August 6th and spans the UK (a US tour has not yet been announced). What will happen next is unknown, but with Justin Hawkins at the wheel, it is highly probable that it will rock.

The copyright of the article Justin Hawkins: After The Darkness in Modern Rock Music is owned by James Blake. Permission to republish Justin Hawkins: After The Darkness in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.