Justin Hawkins has premiered the video for I Hate Myself, the new single from East Anglian rock scamps The Darkness, on his celebrated Justin Hawkins Rides Again YouTube channel, and it's fair to say that it's an unusual clip.
The one-shot video finds Hawkins toying with gender roles, appearing as a chain-smoking, world-weary, emotionally troubled diva with a penchant for plastic surgery.
"What I was trying to get was somebody so filled with regret, remorse and self-loathing that they'll slowly kill themselves, and also do a load of work to their face," says Hawkins. "The character is desperate to change their appearance, desperate to just get it over."
"I think we wanted to do something unique and we wanted to make a bit more of a statement," adds video director Simon Emmett. "I think that what we've done is quite brave and honest in a way. I think it's away from what you'd expect, and I think it says a lot more about current culture and social media."
"It's so ridiculously weird," opines guitarist Dan Hawkins, "and so at odds with the music – not necessarily the lyrics – that the weirdness level is off the charts, completely off the charts, which is great."
I Hate Myself comes from The Darkness's upcoming eighth studio album Dreams On Toast, which will be released on March 28 and is the follow-up to 2021's Motorheart.
The Darkness will celebrate the release of the album with a UK tour. The run of 18 dates starts with a pair of shows at Ipswich's Regent's Theatre on March 6 and 7 and climaxes at London's Wembley Arena on March 29. Support comes from Northern Irish rock trio Ash.
The Darkness 2025 UK Tour
06 Mar: Ipswich Regent’s Theatre*
07 Mar: Ipswich Regent’s Theatre*
08 Mar: Oxford New Theatre*
09 Mar: Swansea Arena
11 Mar: Guildford G Live*
12 Mar: Hull Connexin Arena
14 Mar: Liverpool Guild Of Students*
15 Mar: Wolverhampton Civic Hall
17 Mar: York Barbican*
18 Mar: Edinburgh Usher Hall
20 Mar: Glasgow Royal Concert Hall
21 Mar: Newcastle O2 City Hall*
22 Mar: Manchester O2 Apollo*
24 Mar: Bristol Beacon Theatre*
25 Mar: Portsmouth Guildhall*
27 Mar: Leicester De Montford Hall*
28 Mar: Cambridge Corn Exchange*
29 Mar: London OVO Arena Wembley
* = Sold out
Tickets are on sale now.
