By Christopher David<\/p>\n
Every couple of years or so, someone in the popular music community makes the nonsensical claim that \u201crock is dead.\u201d To that end, The Darkness are a special kind of throwback. Arriving like an atom bomb on the hard rock scene in 2004 with the now classic Permission to Land<\/em>, the band faced a few years of tumult, member departures, and solo projects (as well as two more excellent albums) before delivering last year\u2019s stellar Last of Our Kind. <\/em>In support, the \u201cBack to the U.S.S.A.\u201d tour landed in Chicago on Wednesday to remind all in attendance that the spirit of glam rock is still alive and doing very well.<\/p>\n Offering their unique cocktail of the best elements in unrepentant \u201870s and \u201880s hard rock with a healthy dose of self-aware humor, the four-piece tore through classic tunes like \u201cGet Your Hands Off of My Woman\u201d and of course, \u201cI Believe In A Thing Called Love\u201d from their debut, which went over with stadium-style bombast; cuts like \u201cMudslide\u201d and \u201cBarbarians\u201d from last year\u2019s grossly underrated Last of Our Kind<\/em> fit beautifully as well. The Darkness is one of those rare bands who could build a set list from all four of their records and have everything sound like it could have come from any one of those records \u2013 in an entirely good way.<\/p>\n Lead singer\/guitarist Justin Hawkins, having long since abandoned the silver cape and flowing hair of the early 2000s, strutted the stage equal parts Mick Jagger and acrobat, doing handstands on the drum riser and leaping about with perfect glam rock aplomb, every bit the showman. The musical core of The Darkness\u2014drummer Rufus Taylor, bassist Frankie Poullain, and lead guitarist Dan Hawkins\u2014provided a solid foundation for Hawkins\u2019 nonstop stage antics, as well as offering strong harmonies throughout the night on tracks like \u201cRoaring Waters\u201d and \u201cLove Is Only A Feeling,\u201d which had the audience swaying its arms in classic arena fashion.\u00a0\u00a0 By the time the night ended with an encore of \u201cConcrete\u201d from 2012\u2019s Hot Cakes and \u201cLove On the Rocks With No Ice\u201d from the aforementioned debut, no one in the house could have claimed that they\u2019d seen anything but a wholly entertaining rock n\u2019 roll show from one of U.K.\u2019s finest. The Darkness is a band who knows exactly what they do best, calling to mind legacy acts like KISS and Cheap Trick, who have never focused on deconstructing their own sound, and hopefully never will. When it comes to chugging power chords and over-the-top hooks, it gets no better.<\/p>\n For more on The Darkness, click here<\/a><\/p>\n For photos from The Darkness at the House of Blues Chicago show, click here<\/a><\/p>\n