On his latest YouTube video, The Darkness’ Justin Hawkins shared his thoughts on The Killers’ new song and Brandon Flowers’ words about the album.

The Killers recently released ‘Your Side Of Town,’ which was supposed to be released as a song from their next album until the frontman Flowers earlier revealed that he would not release the album. Flowers explained that the reason is the style of the album didn’t feel like the band’s music. He also clarified that the audience and the fans would not hear that kind of music from them again.

Hawkins expressed his thoughts on The Killers frontman’s statement. While listening to ‘Your Side Of Town,’ the frontman said:

“I really respect Brandon Flowers, and I love that they’ve done this unashamedly kind of 80s-sounding, or could almost be a Stock Aitken Waterman production, couldn’t it?”

He added:

“It’s properly New Order, Depeche Mode, late 80s.”

After the song ended, he shared his thoughts on the song:

“Okay, well. I mean, I don’t think it’s sort of the song that gets under my skin immediately but I just really think that the aesthetic is so well observed. It’s a really brilliant piece of mid 80s, mid to late 80s, synthesizer lead pop rock. It’s just really well done, I think.”

He then praised Flowers for his words about the album and mentioned understanding why he stopped making it:

“Big fan of The Killers, and I really appreciated Brandon’s words about a new phase of his sort of artistic career. And I can see why he lost enthusiasm for this project because they have moved on from this, really, and it does sound of its time. It does sound of that time.”

The Killers frontman told that making music that resembles the album ‘Pressure Machine’ makes him feel more fulfilled, and though he is as proud of ‘Hot Fuss,’ he is not 20 anymore and that he is ‘thinking about the next phase’ of his life.

See the video below.

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In his recent YouTube video, the Darkness frontman Justin Hawkins shared his opinions on The 1975’s Matty Healy’s recent stage act.

During their headlining set at Good Vibes, Healy spoke against the Malaysian government’s anti-LGBTQ laws. In an act of solidarity, he also kissed bassist Ross MacDonald onstage. Their set was cut short, and the authorities ordered the cancellation of the following days of the festival.

In the video, Hawkins said:

“So what is the right thing to do? Is it to refuse to perform in any countries that have policies you disagree with? Some people say that it isn’t fair on the fans, or do you console activists in those countries before you perform there to see how best to align with them the way that it’s actually helpful?”

The frontman addressed the misunderstanding and backed Healy. He said:

“I don’t think there’s unanimously- there’s no way to please everybody in these situations anyway, obviously. But obviously, there was a spare-of-the-moment thing and the criticism, they aimed at Matty, and he’s just being performative and doesn’t care, but I don’t think you can argue that he doesn’t care- he obviously cares. He was furious. He was really angry about it. That’s obvious.”

Asked whether people would criticise another celebrity, like Beyonce, if they had done the same thing, Hawkins said it’s hard to imagine Beyonce doing it. After the comment, he added:

“I feel like [The 1975] are really determined to create a much more artsy aesthetic around the gig itself. It’s not just cashing, it’s more like an expression of… It’s something else. They are not operating within the norms of musical premators if you book a gig, you find the most cost-efficient way of doing it, and you take as much money as possible because you don’t know how long you can be up to do that for.”

Even though, according to Hawkins, how the band achieves success doesn’t seem like a budget-friendly thing, he still admires them. He continued:

“That isn’t how The 1975 do things. That’s actually one of the reasons why they’ve been such an enduringly successful band. I haven’t been around that long. They’re f*cking at the top all the time. People are always talking about the stuff they do. This is the number one example of that. But it doesn’t seem like a business strategy. It can be really costly endeavor.”

He topped it off with a question and added:

“But it has raised awareness about something he obviously cares about. Is it bad to keep your mouth shut, though, and not say anything? You get a bit less grief, but you’d be allowed in places like that, you’d be allowed. I don’t know. It just would make your life a little bit easier, I suppose.”

The 1975 frontman has done similar acts in their earlier performances as well. During their show in Dubai in 2019, though the United Arab Emirates has strict anti-LGBTQ laws that punish homosexuality with up to 10 years in prison, Healy intentionally broke the law and kissed a male fan who reportedly screamed ‘marry me’ before the kiss.

The band also has been banned from performing in Malaysia due to the frontman’s actions.

See the video below.

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The Darkness frontman Justin Hawkins recently shared his insights on the Miranda Lambert incident in a video he shared on his YouTube channel.

During one of Lambert’s shows, a listener attempted to take ‘selfies’ but was scolded for not watching her performance. The singer stopped the concert to address the individual for paying attention to her phone rather than the show. A fan shared a video of the moment on Twitter, which garnered both negative and positive responses towards Lambert.

Hawkins responded to a social media video where an individual expressed their own opinions about the incident. The frontman showed his support for the country singer and said:

“Yeah, it’s her stage, it’s her microphone. I’m on Miranda’s side with this, I’ve not seen anything that’s dissuaded me from my initial point of view, which is, ‘Yeah, good for you, girl. Go for it, nice one.'”

He added:

“You give people like that microphones for a reason. You want to hear what they say, you want to hear what they feel. I’m sorry, guys, I’m firmly on Miranda’s side. Don’t be rude, there’s no excuse for it. I don’t think Miranda was even rude, I think she was actually just saying, ‘I’m pissed off,’ she’s expressing an actual sentiment. It’s lovely stuff.”

The listener shared the two pictures she and her friends were trying to take during the show with the description:

“These are the 2 pictures we were taking when Miranda Lambert stopped her concert and told us to sit down and not take selfies.”

The listener received criticism from many people for not enjoying the moment, distracting the singer, and choosing to take pictures during a song that was about a divorce.

See the video and the details about the incident down below.

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Darkness frontman Justin Hawkins published a Q&A video on his YouTube channel, talking about the band’s tour schedule, their song ‘I Believe in A Thing Called Love,’ the band members’ songwriting habits, and so on. One of the questions was if Darkness would ever join Download or Glastonbury, and Justin explained why the chances of them joining Glastonbury is slim:

“I would be shocked and startled if Glastonbury ever book us again. There’s a little bit of history there which I’m not proud of. I said some stuff I shouldn’t have said back in the days about some individuals connected with the organization of Glastonbury. Regrettable times… In retaliation, I think some stuff that was said about us was slightly regrettable as well. So I wouldn’t hold my breath for a Glastonbury slot.”

However, Hawkins mentioned that there is a higher possibility with Download:

“But Download, we do it sometimes. When did we last do it? I think two years ago or something like that. I don’t know, maybe it’s coming around again. [I] bumped into Andy Copping who does Download and he’s just really lovely bloke. So, you never know.”

Justin talked about the ‘regrettable times’ he had with the Glastonbury Festival promoters in a separate video. He told that in 2003, The Darkness had a last-minute-organized performance at the festival, and the crowd loved it:

“In 2003, The Darkness played at Glastonbury, but it was the year when we were exploding, and I don’t think anyone really saw us coming. So, there wasn’t actually a slot for us but Glastonbury very kindly created a new slot early in the morning. I think we played about 10 am on the main stage. A few people said to me afterwards that the first thing they heard that day while still in their tents was me screaming at them. It was a brilliant moment for us[…]”

He carried on by saying that Glastonbury came up to the group next year, but it was too little too late since The Darkness was already booked, and this made some of the individuals representing the organization frustrated:

“The Darkness ended up being a UK festival headline proposition, and we had already negotiated and agreed with Reading Festival to headline that. Very late in the day, Glastonbury came and asked us to headline their festival. We would never have done it regardless of the money – but perhaps the money that Glastonbury offered was less than we were going to be paid for doing Reading. And also they asked us too late. I think because of the money side of it, Michael Eavis – or someone speaking on behalf of Michael Eavis – might have said in a newspaper that we were mercenary for expected so much cash to do a gig.”

Justin also mentioned that he should have behaved differently, rather than making remarks about the representatives, and he would like to attend Glastonbury Festival again in the future:

“What I should have said in response to that was that we had a arrangement in place already that we were not going to turn our back on unless the money was phenomenal – it’s just business. Instead, I chose to make some really unsavoury remarks and I do regret that. Because of the things that I said back then, I very much doubt whether we will ever get booked to play at Glastonbury again.”

You can watch the whole video below.

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Justin Hawkins had an interview with Planet Rock to talk about The Darkness’ debut album ‘Permission to Land’ on its 20th anniversary. When Hawkins was asked whether the band members thought of an alternative if the group didn’t work out, he said:

“The Darkness was always going to work out. Because even if it’s a pop band, that’s it, that’s okay. I think that’s what actually made it successful really. the fact that we were not going to compromise, even if we were just playing in the pubs for the rest of our lives, that’s what we were going to do.”

He continued by saying that their persistence reflected their authenticity, and that’s what people saw in The Darkness:

“That was always the plan from day one. We don’t listen to anybody else, we don’t play anything that’s cool, we just play the stuff we love. And that’s what comes across, it’s not something you can simulate, posture, and make people believe, and this is real. I think this is why it took off because people could feel the integrity of it.”

Regarding the 20th anniversary of ‘Permission to Land,’ Justin said:

“It’s a real milestone, we’re all shocked to still be alive, and witness this glorious day.”

Watch the full interview below.

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In a new episode of his YouTube series, the Darkness’ Justin Hawkins shared his thoughts on Rick Astley’s Glastonbury performance of the Smiths’ ‘There Is a Light That Never Goes Out’ on June 24.

The rocker expressed his admiration for Astley’s show and his interaction with the crowd:

“Check out that response. I mean, the crowd is doing it all for him, and he’s still in there. He could easily just hold the microphone out and just let them take it, but he’s not. He’s just leading them. This is a proper performance by a real frontman. Decades of experience, and he knows what he is having fun with it, and people love him. I’m one of the people that love him.”

In the later parts of the video, Hawkins reflected on how impressive the performance was for him:

“That’s just f*cking staggering. It’s so good that I mean if anything from Glastonbury’s footage that I’ve seen comes anywhere near that, it just doesn’t. Let’s face it. That’s a hell of a moment.”

The vocalist also praised the band, the Blossoms, who took the stage with Astley, as he said:

“So well played, and it’s not easy to do this. The Smith sounds simple, Indian, fey, and light, but it’s difficult to do it right, and they’ve done it just exactly the way you want to hear. It’s fantastic.”

The ‘Never Gonna Give You Up’ singer had performed the Smiths covers with the Blossoms again in several shows in 2021. During his Glastonbury setlist, he also sang a rendition of AC/DC’s ‘Highway To Hell’ while playing the drums, Harry Styles’ chart-topping track, ‘As It Was,’ and the classics from his catalog.

Below, you can watch the singer’s show and Hawkins’ reaction.

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In his new Youtube video, Darkness frontman Justin Hawkins discussed The Beatles’ new upcoming AI-assisted song.

For the AI-generated Beatles song, John Lennon’s voice was extracted from one of the old demos he had recorded and is set to come out later this year. In his video, Hawkins talked about the upcoming song’s scary side.

The frontman, starting with the good side of AI, said the following:

“I suppose the good side is that sonically it gives you options when you have a historical recording. The scary side would be if you then extracted that vocals and then told the computer to create the accompaniment for it, then… I don’t know.”

Hawkins is not fond of the idea of ‘robots’ creating music, and he made his view on the matter quite clear. He said:

“I don’t know; if you’re asking an autonomous, sentient robot to write you a song in the style of The Beatles, we lost. We have lost. Especially when there are members of The Beatles like Sir Paul McCartney still living, it’s not something you want to see.

And then, presumably, it would mean that you could do that with all of The Beatles’ music. You could actually just go for the entire catalog, extract the vocals on every single song The Beatles ever recorded, and then get a computer to put some… That’s how horrible that would be.”

Similarly, Paul McCartney thinks that using AI to revive his vocals is scary but, at the same time, exciting too.

Sean Taro Ono Lennon, son of Lennon, later revealed the song to be not wholly ‘made by AI,’ but instead only had the vocals cleaned up to remove any noise:

“I think people are deeply misunderstanding this story. The AI did nothing but clean the noise off of my dad’s vocal track. That’s all. Nothing else. The song was a demo Dad had recorded, and the other Beatles finished it off.”

See the entire video down below.

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