A few hours before their triumphant return at Download Festival, we managed to chat to Dan Hawkins and Ed Graham from The Darkness. The band talked about their return, the new album and plans for the rest of the year.
-The return's been getting a huge reaction. Are you surprised or pleased by it?
Dan: Yeah, it's great. It's nice for people to be interested really, after all this time. You never know what to expect. It's been nothing but positive vibes so far.
Ed: We've had fans and people asking us to get back together ever since we split up.
Dan: The internet reaction has been phenomenal really, from the Download forums to our own forums.There just seems to be quite a buzz about us, which is weird really. We've been around, and not around, I suppose, for some time. To be a buzz band, at a festival, is quite weird.
-There was a lot of buzz on the Stone Gods forums when things went quiet. Was it frustrating not being able to say anything?
Dan: Yeah, very frustrating really. It was pretty tough, the same for Justin with his project. It's one of those things, really.
-When did you actually decided to get back together?
Dan: Well, I rebuilt my friendship with Justin first, and things followed on from there.
I think once we became friends again, it was always going to happen. It was only a matter of time. I think we would've worked together, because that's what we've always done all our lives.
We've played music together, been in bands together, so it would've happened again. So, why not make it The Darkness?
-Was that something you were missing then, even with the other projects?
Dan: I think so, yeah. I loved Stone Gods but, you know what? My place is playing three chords really well, not a s***-load of solos.
-Was there any animosity with Richie and Toby?
Ed: Richie just sent me a message today saying good luck.
Dan: Yeah, both of them actually.
Ed: There is a bit of animosity with me and Toby because he owes me a load of money!
Dan: From my side, it's very unusual. Bands split up all the time, and every person will tell you that they've been in a million bands before they were in that one.
They always end badly, it's very rare that you come out of it still being good friends, which I am with Stone Gods. So, I'm really happy about that.
-The Darkness' second album wasn't as commercially successful as the first. Can we expect a return to the rawer style of Permission To Land, for the new album?
Dan: Yeah, I think so. It's not about commercial success. It is more raw and more of a band record, but not so that we can sell records.
We didn't look at the two albums and say that one was more successful, so we'll do that. It's just what we do, you know? It feels right to just get back to basics really.
-You've played some new songs during your warm-up shows. How has the reaction been to them?
Ed: Not too bad, so far.
Dan: It's been good, there's been some videos on YouTube after the first show. Fans are deciding on what they like best.
It's been difficult trying to pick a favourite, because we only want to play one today. We don't want to bore people with stuff they don't know. It's tough enough as it at a festival, so it's been really hard to pick a winner but we have.
-Is it going to be a mix between the first two albums, then, and just the one new song?
Dan: Yeah, just the one new song. It's a Greatest Hits set, essentially, if you can have one from two albums.
-Can everyone expect a fairly extravagant set in terms of the stage for this show?
Dan: I think it'll be a classic Darkness show, you know? We're always working on our stage craft.
I think by the time we became absolutely f****** massive, we left ourselves with nowhere to go. Our first big show was so outrages, we couldn't take it anywhere.
Back in the day, we used to go on in jeans and t-shirts, and by the end of the show Justin would be wearing a giant f****** tiara or whatever.
So, we're working on that kind of stage show, rather than arriving in something big. You'll see what I mean.
-Most people may have thought that it was a bit of an overnight success for The Darkness, whereas you actually did hone your craft a lot. Was it hard working your way up over the years to get to that stage?
Dan: We'd pretty much given up on ever making a living out of it. That's what The Darkness was about.
When Justin and I started the band, we could've had a pick of the best musicians in London, we knew all the available people. But, what we did was decide to choose our two best mates.
The whole ethos was that we're going to do stuff that we enjoy, because who gives a fuck anymore? We'd basically given up on it, and then look what happened. There's a lesson to be learned there.
-Do you think that's a vital part of the band's appeal, that you don't take it so seriously that it becomes a joke itself?
Dan: Totally, yeah. I think we'll always be underdogs to some extent. It suits us that way. Today should be a lot of fun.
-What are the plans for the rest of the year then?
Dan: We just announced a November tour, which our fans will be very happy about.
That covers the UK, and follows on into December into Ireland, which is great. Ireland was always great to us.
The new album, we've almost finished it and it should be out early next year. So, plenty to look forward to for Darkness fans.
Female First - Alistair McGeorge
Tagged in The Darkness Dan Hawkins