The Darkness!

[jamiejc]

Micheal Eavis " I think the ego's gone to his head a little bit - I think he's got a bit of a problem with this sudden rise to fame "

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/3585981.stm

Edited March 13, 2011 by jamiejc

[MEGABOWL]

I do find it a wierd dicotomy. It's like everyone need/wants to be seen as open minded and welcoming of all genres. But at the same time will badmouth anything that's just a bit of fun, and isn't "out there" enough to be deemed impressive or ironic enough to support, or popular enough with everyone to be seen as a fine thing to support.

They are a great band, fun live. Nothing more or less.

[Vieuphoria]

it's not about not likign the same stuff. It's just outright negativity for something that really that bad. It just seems to be major posturing. Some dickheads are fine, but others are not? Some Novelty acts are fine, but others are evil and wrong. It just seems a little forced and pointless really

[MEGABOWL]

I think all the negative comments are hillarious, especially considering all the positive comments emerging as soon as Beyonce was booked as the Pyramid headliner! If The Darkness had been booked in Beyonce's place with U2 and Coldplay i bet everyone would be saying it was a genius booking; that's the scale of Eavis nuthuggery on this forum!

But seriously, The Darkness are a really fun band and are great live. I'd love to see them play.

[MEGABOWL]

it's not about not likign the same stuff. It's just outright negativity for something that really that bad. It just seems to be major posturing. Some dickheads are fine, but others are not? Some Novelty acts are fine, but others are evil and wrong. It just seems a little forced and pointless really

[Mardy]

'Just a bit of harmless fun' is not a quality I want from my music, really. Novelty acts, whether it's the Darkness, Rolf, Right said Fred, Shakin' Stevens or a necrophiliac tribute act don't float my boat.

Clearly lots of people love this sort of stuff, but f**k that.

[Taikonaut]

Never even bothered listening to the second album but there were some great rock tunes on the first one. I'd love to sink a few ciders and have a good laugh and sing along to these. I couldn't care less about Hawkins alledged knobery.

[jimmyt]

Yes really.

Fair play to you! I have been wanting to see Kasabian for a while now. But this post just seems like someone boasting about going to see a band on a whim & then they happen to get big. I didn't see them when they headlined, but further youtube evidence suggests that they are a decent live act & I still maintain I would like to go watch them, drunk, & have a sing along, with my mates if they were willing. If not, ho hum, go see someone else.

If I had the choice of seeing Kasabian or The Darkness, well that's a no brainer. But what it has to do with my original post I'm not sure.

EDIT- Obviously it depends on who else was playing at the same time ie I would miss them for Friendly Fires (so far) on a slot in the late afternoon.

Edited March 13, 2011 by jimmyt

[robith]

A joke that massively got out of hand.

I saw them at Reading in 2003, and it was all very funny and hey a kind of a laugh.

One year later they were headlining. If I remember they opened with a 20 minute guitar solo. Or at least that's what I was told. After 5 minutes I thought "f**k this" and went to see Roots Manuva. Who was also a bit shit to be fair. All my mates returned back to our tents like they'd just got back from Nam. General consensus was it was a crime against humanity.

I think someone earlier made the point I feel - if you started nudge nudge wink wink isn't this a laugh, people aren't going to buy it when 6 months later you're then trying to present those same joke songs as serious artistry. But hey, I guess that's the drug cocaine!

I also don't get why people are bringing up Beyonce. I don't think it's totally incongruous that I enjoy a rnb pop act but do not enjoy a hair rock pastiche

[Bisque]

(I pick a band name I like who I've never heard of to see at every festival I go to)

[robith]

I saw Kasabian support the Cooper Temple Clause in 2003. They were first on the place was half full and everyone was laughing at them. Yer man was like "We'll show you, we're gonna be the biggest band in the world".

I remember taking a sticker so I could remember who they were to laugh at them in a couple of years time.

Whilst I can't really stand them, they did kind of show us eh?

[Wanderlei]

think you've just created a new version of Godwins Law where 'no matter how ridiculous the comparison, no matter how unrelated the thread and no matter how irrelevant she is to the subject at hand, someone on the Efestivals Glastonbury forum someone will mention Beyonce'

Beyonce > The Darkness as a Glastonbury headliner, by about 1000 miles

[J1mbo]

That who "Give us a D.... Give us an Arkness" was hilarious

However although I agree with the fact that they were very entertaining etc and then lost their way a bit. I don't think their second album is bad. I'd say it's a pretty great album. Just the egos attatched to it had inflated so far that it kinnda became a bit hard to take with a pinch of salt anymore.

They have potential to have a good comeback and keep going. But they won't be the stadium band they want to be any more. It'll be academy/smallish arenas. Which is fine for them because they'll put on a stadium show even in the smallest of pubs.

I do find it a wierd dicotomy. It's like everyone need/wants to be seen as open minded and welcoming of all genres. But at the same time will badmouth anything that's just a bit of fun, and isn't "out there" enough to be deemed impressive or ironic enough to support, or popular enough with everyone to be seen as a fine thing to support.

They are a great band, fun live. Nothing more or less.

Or...... A more popular and successful version?

[Gnomicide]

I don't hate The Darkness in a vain attempt to be cool. In fact, rather the opposite. I'm an unashamed fan of much of the cheesy big hair rawk that inspired them, which isn't cool at all. I'd still happily sit down and listen to Guns n' Roses, Skid Row, Aerosmith and Cinderella and accept the piss-take that inevitably brings upon myself.

I hate The Darkness because they essentially sold out on the music they claimed to love. They were clearly huga fans of acts like the ones I've mentioned and had the musical skill to match them, but instead of going full throttle 'who-care-if-no-one-takes-us-seriously' rock n' roll, they produced an album and stage show that seemed to be nothing but pastiche; it was like '80's Glam Rock - The Musical'.

I have some sympathy with them for doing this - their kind of rock music had it's brief spell of widespread popularity in the late eighties before being killed of dramatically by the emergence of Grunge in the early nineties when kids realised that they could enjoy rock music without the eyeliner and spandex trousers.

So The Darkness became the Motely Crue it was OK to like. When they sung about boobs or dragons it was all a big joke. So, y'know, you could still be a Take That fan and nobody would laugh at you for liking The Darkness. And this sold LOTS of records.

But the the tight pants, the tattoos, the filthy lyrics and the f**k-you attitude of American Rock is what made it attractive to millions teenagers everywhere in the first place. The whole point was dressing like a tit, and telling everybody else to piss off. Not winking at the crowd as if to say "this is all a bit silly isn't it?"

It was painful to watch other rock acts praise Justin and co for the genres rebirth as the band realised they'd utterly f**ked themselves out of any musical credibility whatsoever.

[Liam13th]

The Darkness to fill U2's slot if (His name shall not be mentioned)'s back goes again