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    15 Minutes with The Darkness

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    Falsetto bearing, skin-tight pants wearing, and what Spin Magazine described as a band that doesn’t do anything halfway, The Darkness takes the stage at The Newport tonight with support from Hell or Highwater. After a hiatus due to lead singer, Justin Hawkins’ battle with addiction as well as a tour last year, the band is back again in full force and seemingly better than ever. Having faced other health problems as well, the band runs their tour living a clean lifestyle sans booze and drugs. Before a show in Baltimore, I briefly spoke with drummer, Ed Graham, and was reminded how much cooler it would be to have an English accent.

    Briana Henry: How do you feel like the band has evolved over the years?

    Ed Graham: We weren’t always getting along, and there were problems with management. We played
    a lot in pubs and bars and then with the second album, we toured around the world twice. We went
    from the bar to the arena in quite a short time. But now, everyone’s healthy and not pissed at each other
    anymore.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=97IcMvkyw-Y

    BH: I listened to the band commentary on Spotify about your latest release” Hot Cakes” and it mentioned the writing process. How do you incorporate their lyrics to your drum parts?

    EG: On the album, the brothers (Justin and Dan) worked together. Dan would come to rehearsal with a
    piece of music and it would just evolve.

    Graham mentioned not knowing anything about the commentary about their latest release from Justin and Dan, and I promptly pointed him the right direction toward Spotify. All hail Spotify. Their latest release features some solid tracks including “Every Inch of You”, but their cover of Radiohead’s “Street Spirit (Fade Out)” is the track that sticks out the most, and is a favorite at their concerts. Graham also revealed The Darkness’ participation in festivals for later this year, but will most likely skip out on the Download Festival and as we know now, Rock on the Range.

    Tickets are still surprisingly available for $28 at www.promowestlive.com.

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    Briana Henry
    Briana Henryhttps://columbusunderground.com/
    Briana is an intern writer at Columbus Underground who writes concert and live music reviews and previews, local band spotlights, album reviews, and other featurettes related to the local music scene.
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