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When the best selling daily tabloid in Britain announced The Darkness was reforming mixed emotions doesn’t do justice to how I felt.

Having been in on the band from the start – when they drove a battered little van across the motorways of Britain and conducted interviews on mobile phones with anyone who would listen – the rushonrock staff have always retained a special place in our hearts for the band which made the music we love mainstream listening once more. Read the rest of this entry »

One of the live highlights of 2010 should be fast-rising 80s-style rock crew The Crave and the band are in the studio this week putting the finishing touches to their debut album.

You might have seen the boys backing Justin Hawkins’ Hot Leg (where are they now…) and Buckcherry last year and they’ll be back on the road throughout this year.

One of those dates includes a previously unscheduled stop in Newcastle at Legends and we’ll be finding out all about it later this week. Read the rest of this entry »

Still no word on whether Justin made it out of his tunnel last night but if this just happens to be his last interview for a while then it’s a belter. Fresh from The Brits and with a new record to peddle, the former Darkness hero was his usual ebullient self as he talked awards, homosexuality and the value of rock icons Def Leppard and Whitesnake. You can pick up a copy of Red Light Fever now and Hot Leg play Newcastle’s o2 Academy on Friday March 6.  Read the rest of this entry »

rushonrock can exclusively reveal that Justin Hawkins was tonight lost in a tunnel somewhere in the south of England.

His last words before he entered the unidentified passage were: “This could get hairy.” Moments later he disappeared – just 24 hours after vanishing from the Brits’ after-show party. Read the rest of this entry »

With their new record hitting the mark and a headline tour inked in for March we thought it was about time we jumped right back on the Hot Leg bandwagon and main man Justin agreed. We’re taking his call after he’s hob-knobbed with pop’s glitterati at this week’s Brits and you can read the exclusive interview later this week.

But if you like your metal thrashy and thought-provoking we’ll be all over Megadeth’s Newcastle show this week when Dave Mustaine and co. roll into town with the equally excellent Testament. Read the rest of this entry »

The rushonrock postbag might have been lighter than Axl Rose’s workload this week but what we lack in quantity we can certainly make up for in terms of quality.

Yes it might be cold but this week it’s all about getting Hot. Hot Leg. And we’re rubbing our inner thighs with excitement after listening to Hawkins and his new band rip their way through a short and impossibly sweet debut album. Read the rest of this entry »

Even back in the day it required a giant leap of faith for me to fully believe in Justin Hawkins.

And after everything he’s done down the years – good and bad – I still find myself questioning whether the high-pitched one deserves my support.

But however far Hawkins falls he has an incredible knack of picking himself right back up again. And it’s impossible not to like one of the most amiable frontmen in rock.

I remember coming across The Darkness sometime in 2002 and still own the promo copy of Get Your Hands Off My Woman. But I’m not sure why.

You see I just wasn’t convinced that this gang of retro rockers was anything more than a 21st Century Spinal Tap.

They’d begged, borrowed and stolen just about everything that was good about the 70s glam scene and the 80s hair metal movement and moulded it into one ridiculous recipe for what I imagined would be impending disaster.

I loved the style but I just couldn’t buy into the concept. I wanted to embrace some fantastic tunes but the four piece initially came across as feckless frauds.

Even when I watched The Darkness support Def Leppard at Newcastle City Hall some months later they still weren’t doing it for me. Justin looked like he could be a consummate rock performer and yet his stage presence verged on the pantomime.

Right there, right then I was ready to write them off.

But a sweaty gig played out in front of a capacity crowd at Newcastle University changed everything. Here, in their natural environment, Hawkins and co. controlled the crowd, set the tone and created a sublime mood. It was one of the most sensational gigs I’ve ever seen.

From that point onwards I, like thousands of others up and down the country, began to believe in a thing called The Darkness. For a year or so they were simply unstoppable and Justin was the charismatic catalyst.

Then came the fall – even more rapid than the rise. As Justin admitted to rushonrock earlier this year the band just weren’t ready for Arena shows and global domination. The various band members were pulling in different directions and their second album was a shocker. It all fell apart and I wished I’d trusted my instincts. I wondered why I’d ever liked The Darkness at all.

But I did. And I liked Justin. A lot. So imagine my horror when, after reading some frankly disturbing stories about his private life I saw him popping up on some horrible Eurovision show, prostituting his obvious talent in the most disappointing manner possible.

Ok, I thought. I really was right about the man all those years. He is a performer but he’s no rocker. And I never believed I’d speak or talk to him again.

Of course Hawkins is the master of reinvention. And last weekend he was on an X-Factor panel featuring Philip Schofield and some bird out of Coronation Street discussing the pros and cons of this series’ star performers.

Why? Because he’s always been a big personality, always been a big talent and these days he’s even back to doing what he does best – rocking.

And while all those Eurovision nightmares came flooding back I couldn’t help but chuckle at the fact that this skinny, cheeky, screeching rock star was back on mainstream telly and still wearing a bandana. More importantly he was able to plug one of the best songs you’ll hear all year.

And that’s why I can’t get enough of Justin Hawkins. It’s his songs. Whatever else you might say about the guy he can still write a brilliant tune and I’ve Met Jesus is one of his best yet. Maybe I’m still not fully convinced. But these days I’m halfway there (livin’ on a prayer..).

Simon Rushworth

Christ this is good! If there’s one single we just can’t get enough of right now it’s the spanking new three-minute romp by the heavenly Hot Leg.

I’ve Met Jesus is out on Monday and it’s everything you’d expect from Justin Hawkins tackling a true biblical legend. Religious reverence, respect for the true believers and a bloody good riff to boot.

Now Hawkins has form when it comes to releasing Christmas crackers and if this isn’t likely to cause the quite the commercial stir that Don’t Let The Bells End  did all those years ago it definitely deserves to. The second single off Hot Leg’s debut album Red Light Fever – due for release in February – is the luxury Mince Pie of festive tunes.

I’ve Met Jesus sounded great at Newcastle City Hall last month and it’ll sound even better as you sit around the fire with your granny sipping mulled wine in two weeks’ time. Maybe.

@ Newcastle City Hall, November 17 2008

When Extreme last toured the UK Justin Hawkins was an impressionable kid dreaming of super stardom and developing one of the most outrageous warbles in rock. In the 13 years since Gary, Nuno and the boys pitched up on this side of The Pond the former Darkness singer has lived that dream, endured a nightmare and picked himself up to perform again. Thank God.

The world of music would be a poorer place without the happy-go-lucky Hawkins and his natural talent for coaxing something out of even the most sceptical of crowds. New band Hot Leg might be knee deep in 80s hair metal nostalgia – all tight jeans, garish basketball boots, neck scarves and head bands – but they kick ass. At one point Justin joked the quartet had to give their music away because nobody buys it. But that won’t be the case for long.

Next month’s single I Met Jesus might actually cost money but on this evidence it’s a price worth paying. In the thick of a set showcasing more contrived guitar solos than an Yngwie Malmsteen master class this was the song which, more than any other, finally convinced former Darkness fans to become Hot Leg converts.

As ever Hawkins is hugely entertaining and fair play to the lad – he wasn’t ever tempted to dip into that hit-laden back catalogue. It would be easy to give Hot Leg the cold shoulder. But you’ll be kicking yourself if you do.

And so to Extreme. Wow. rushonrock has been privileged to witness a slew of classic comeback gigs in 2008 from White Lion at The Cluny to Whitesnake in Glasgow and Def Leppard at a dingy little hole in Islington to Metallica at Leeds. But this show by Boston’s finest was, without doubt, the highlight of a landmark year for live music.

Those of us who caught Nuno with Satellite Party arrived at the City Hall safe in the knowledge that the boy could still play – albeit in checked brown slacks which wouldn’t have looked out of place on Rupert the Bear. But what about Gary Cherone? During Extreme’s chart-busting heyday he boasted some of the finest pipes in rock and the pressure was on to revive former glories.

Well Cherone did more than that. Right from the start his range was stunning and on new single Star it was easy to remember just why Eddie Van Halen hand picked him to front one of the biggest acts in the world. Decadence Dance gave Cherone the chance to blow away the cobwebs and a killer version Monster maintained the momentum.

So back to Mr Bettencourt. In a different era you could imagine the proud Portuguese tucked away in the back streets of Lisbon perfecting the art of Fado – the traditional guitar style which has become the heart and soul of his colourful home nation. Watching Nuno sat on his stool with only his semi-acoustic friend for company it was if the rock god had been transformed into a folk hero.

And of course Extreme’s biggest hit owes everything to a guitar hook straight from Bettencourt’s southern European roots. More Than Words may have morphed into Stairway To Heaven for one tantalising moment but after that delightful false dawn the band’s signature tune was delivered with tear-jerking aplomb.

Get The Funk Out preceded a mixed bag of an encore but by now nobody cared. This was a party which looked set to run and run – with Hot Leg clapping along from the balcony like kids in a sweetshop. And did we mention the lead singer of rising punk rock stars Dirty Rock And Roll sang every word to Hole Hearted with the glazed look of a 14-year-old girl? It was just one of those nights.

Here at rushonrock we like to remember Justin Hawkins as a fresh-faced hair metal God in his pomp rock prime, playing to a sell-out crowd at Newcastle University’s sweaty underbelly of a live venue. And it seems the old boy hasn’t really changed. With new band Hot Leg ready to give Extreme a run for their money at Newcastle City Hall next month we caught up with Mr Darkness himself.

rushonrock: When did you decide to put Hot Leg together and was there ever any doubt about the type of band it would be?

Justin Hawkins: The decision about what kind of band we were going to be was never an issue. We’ve been working on the album for a while now and it was always going to be a straight rock record. It’s always been my thing and I won’t change. Finding the right guys to do my thing with has been a challenge. I found our drummer Darby in January. He’s inhumanly good and he recommended Sam and he, in turn, recommended Pete. Everybody’s got the same sense of humour, everybody’s into the same kind of thing and it’s been really lovely.

rushonrock: Has there been obvious scepticism in the wake of your comeback?

JH: I think even if I’d stayed in The Darkness the scepticism would have been there. It’s not something that I worry about. It just becomes your duty to silence it. You show people how good you really are and do the biggest and best shows you possibly can. Hot Leg is sweatier and more fun and I’m loving it. But for a band like The Darkness to get to arena level – that was the natural conclusion. Along the way the best work we did was in the smaller venues where we could really connect with the audiences. The big stuff is a lot harder to pull off and we never really nailed the big arena shows. If you went to see Bon Jovi they would deliver the perfect arena concert. In The Darkness we couldn’t quite do that.   

rushonrock: The scepticism apart has the rock world otherwise welcomed you back with open arms?

JH: Overall it’s been really positive. I’ve been quite surprised in fact. Everybody told me I’d get a real slating when I returned with Hot Leg and that would have been totally expected. So absolutely everything positive that I see or read is a total bonus. There’s no bitterness. The new material is the strongest that I’ve ever written and everyone is excited to be playing the songs live. We can’t afford to get bogged down in what people might think of me or my past. That would really deflect from the Hot Leg experience – four men rocking as hard as possible. We’ll be doing proper rock shows. There are bands in the world who seem to be having fun to amuse themselves – we’re having fun to entertain our fans.

rushonrock: How excited are you to have the chance to tour with Extreme?

JH: Pete our guitar player is having kittens. They’re one of his favourite bands of all time. Before we nabbed the support slot we saw that they’d reformed and they were going to tour the UK. We said just imagine if we got that gig? And we did! We’re totally over the moon about it. Nuno is one of the best guitarists in the world and I’m really keen to see how he works and lives his life. He’s such a talented guy and a great role model.

rushonrock: Is there any way The Darkness could have continued?

JH: Creativity, or a lack of it, is the main reason I quit. Everyone just assumes I took lots of drugs and jacked it in. In fact I knew the second record wasn’t as creative as the first. The Darkness had run its course and I had run my course with The Darkness. Had my brother not been in the band I would have quit sooner.

rushonrock: Talking of Dan are you still close and what do you think of Stone Gods?

JH: I love my brother dearly and I think the Stone Gods’ record is an awesome album. My brother co-produced it and I’m really proud of what he’s done. He’s a very talented musician and I’m glad those talents have been acknowledged.

rushonrock: So do you see Hot Leg outlasting The Darkness?

JH: Lasting a little bit longer than The Darkness is inevitably what will happen. The problem with my old band was that a lot of people were pulling in too many different directions and the whole thing just snapped. Hot Leg won’t suffer from the same thing at all. It’s not about me and a cat suit – it’s a much more focused unit. In terms of longevity I don’t think there’s an end in sight. It’s a very exciting time for me.