Nothing’s quite as it seems with The Darkness. Their most famous hit remains I Believe In A Thing Called Love, a glam rock falsetto classic that sent itself up — with lead singer Justin Hawkins’s vocals and a madcap sci-fi video featuring aliens and monsters.
True to form, Easter Is Cancelled, the band’s 10-track sixth album, is a conceptual record with tongue firmly in cheek. It’s designed to be listened to from start to finish: each song telling a self-contained story that’s also part of the album’s whole.
The opening track, Rock and Roll Deserves To Die, denounces modern, formulaic rock ’n’ roll as a betrayal of its forebears. It’s not as fun as I Believe In A Thing Called Love but it’s more complex — a bit prog rock here, that falsetto echo here. The chorus — “Rock and roll, your time has finally come/I am afraid you must die” — is bolstered by thrashing guitar.
The title track is a head-banging rock song ... on crucifixion. Heavy Metal Lover features heavy metal ranting and slow rock ’n’ roll. The record is experimental but solidified by mature musical arrangement — and fans will love its two fingers up to convention.
