The Darkness " Dreams on Toast "-Wolverhampton Civic Hall

The Civic Hall was packed out as The Darkness, accompanied by Irish indie band, Ash, descends onto Wolves…

I remember Ash from the 1990’s but in all honesty I couldn’t tell you off the top of my head a single tune they’d produced right until their last song . . . and then I recalled the cheerleaders! Nonetheless the 3-piece, consisting of front man, guitarist, main writer and singer Tim Wheeler, bassist Mark Hamilton and drummer Rick McMurray who have been around for more than thirty years played a blinder of a set. Tonight was one mainly of nostalgia with the band taking most songs from their 1996 album 1977 and the later 2001 album Free All Angels, from which the cheerleader song, Burn, Baby, Burn, was taken. The Irish 3-piece got the evening underway with Goldfinger from 1977 (the album, not the date). With its elements of Nirvana this was a fairly gentle intro into the set. The band formed at a time when British pop music was going through changes as bands such as Oasis, The Verve and Suede were making their names all at the same time – a crowded place to be which may be why Ash perhaps didn’t get the recognition they deserved. As Goldfinger sets the scene, Mark Hamilton falls easily into his routine, one that has been seen by many people right from the bands origins; said routine being one of bone-bending contortion and hopping around like the proverbial cat on a hot tin roof. We stay with 1977 and Angel Interceptor which ramps up the energy levels just a bit. A snippet of good old-fashioned Brit-pop.

The band steps into the 21^st century with Orpheus, a slightly heavier slice of Brit-rock, and one of the band’s songs that featured in the hit movie, Shaun of the Dead. After Shining Light, and staying with dead things we got Braindead. Don’t ask me why, but the opening of this song almost had me humming Mongoloid by Devo! We detour back to 1977 and Kung Fu before coming bang up to date with the yet to be released single, Jump in the Line, due out on April 2^nd. On a lighter note, and as we get towards the end of the set, it’s Girl From Mars followed by the set closer and probably most popular song of the night, Burn, Baby, Burn – no cheerleaders on stage though for this one just a cheering crowd singing along. Were the crowd warmed up for The Darkness – I think so!

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From the Darkness cometh… Celebrating the forthcoming release of their new album, Dreams on Toast, due out the day after this show, the setlist featured half a dozen songs from it along with a fair selection from possibly the bands most popular album to date, Permission to Land, and a smattering of tunes from most of the albums released to date.

It’s kick-off time and the band had everyone’s permission to land on stage to the sound of Arrival by ABBA. We get underway with Rock and Roll Cowboy from the new album and the band are instantly in the rock groove, what a cracker for an opener. Screaming guitars right through it accompanied by the usual posing and posturing from Justin, even Dan got into the groove!

“Give me a D” – the fans respond. “Give me an Arkness” – the fans go wild, the man’s a nutcase, plain and simple.

Get Your Hands off my Woman followed and then Mortal Dread from the new album. Representative songs from two more albums followed; Motorheart and then Barbarian before the new album gets another nod with Walking Through Fire. The band just don’t know how to let up; while Justin leaps around the stage, Dan throws a few shapes, Frankie gets bent out of shape and Rufus doesn’t break any more snares – it’s relentless really.

Love is Only a Feeling gives the audience the chance to light up the mobile phone and hold them aloft but the relief is short-lived as Dreams on Toast delivers The Longest Kiss a little bit of Beatle-esque pop. A couple more songs bring us closer to the end of the set but not before a touch of disco pop in the form of Friday Night even though it was only Thursday!

No Darkness set could be considered to be complete without them celebrating Christmas Time, and the band delivered, as usual, even though it was just a partial rendition. Time for the last song, and guess what it was – you got it in one . . . I Believe in a Thing Called Love. This probably got the loudest cheer of the night as the sweaty fans headbanged along, did their best vocally and generally showed they’d had a fantastic evening.

A short recess was followed by the band introducing the audience to two more songs from Dreams on Toast; a bit of a ballad filled with Justin’s falsetto vocals for Weekend in Rome, and to finally close the lengthy show I Hate Myself, a total change of pace with it’s punky opening bars.

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