Black Shuck
Get Your Hands off My Woman
Growing on Me
I Believe in a Thing Called Love
Love Is Only a Feeling
Givin' Up
Stuck in a Rut
Friday Night
Love on the Rocks with No Ice
Holding My Own
In 2003, there was absolutely nothing to suggest that guitar-worshipping, catsuit-wearing glam rock could permeate the mainstream, but The Darkness’ debut album Permission To Land saw them all but wipe their collective arse with the memo.
A genre for the dreamers and the underdogs, this stuff just isn’t supposed to cross over. Voted the Greatest Song of the Century by Classic Rock readers in 2020, I Believe In A Thing Called Love has rightly cemented itself in rock’s perennial furniture – and we’re all still struggling to nail those rapid chorus lyrics after a few bevvies.
The anthemic Growing On Me isn’t far behind either. With its heavily distorted bluster and bite, Black Shuck is one of the all-time great album openers. Permission To Land’s finest compliment is that it plays more like a greatest hits than the startling introduction of an unknown quantity.
It speaks volumes that Justin Hawkins has said that winning three BRIT Awards – and closing the show in a blaze of pyrotechnics – on the back of Permission To Land is his proudest moment. Save for climate breakdown or nuclear Armageddon, we’ll still be celebrating these songs in 2103.
Every week, Album of the Week Club listens to and discusses the album in question, votes on how good it is, and publishes our findings, with the aim of giving people reliable reviews and the wider rock community the chance to contribute.
Other albums released in July 2003
- Frail Words Collapse - As I Lay Dying
- Hot Damn! - Every Time I Die
- Live - Our Lady Peace
- Time Will Tell - Robert Cray
- You Come Before You - Poison the Well
- Diamond Dave - David Lee Roth
- Yes Remixes - Yes
- Season for Assault - 8 Foot Sativa
- Greatest Hits Live 2003 - April Wine
- Transformer – Bruce Kulick
- It's All in Your Head - Eve 6
- Special One - Cheap Trick
- Strays - Jane's Addiction
- Three Days Grace - Three Days Grace
- Tribe - Queensrÿche
- Killing Joke - Killing Joke
- Down upon the Suwannee River - Little Feat
- War at the Warfield - Slayer
What they said...
"This week, for the first time, the Top 10 singles on the Billboard charts are all hip-hop and R&B. By comparison, rock is middle-aged. It has lost its youthful swagger and instead acquired the sheepish vanity that comes with expanding waistlines and thinning hair. Perhaps it was inevitable, but if a mid-life crisis is in the cards, I can’t think of a more entertaining one than the Darkness." (Pitchfork)
"Songs such as Get Your Hands Off My Woman and Givin' Up display industrial-strength riffs, vigorous hammer-on guitar solos and a rhythm section that swings like a wrecking ball. Ballads such as Love Is Only a Feeling are rendered with gusto undreamed by metal parodists like Satanicide. Permission to Land is the first retro-metal album that's worth more than a momentary chuckle. Eighties hard rock is alive and well in the hands of the Darkness." (Rolling Stone)
"I’ve heard better Happy Meal-metal bands from Saudi Arabia. Nobody’s expecting Too Fast for Love or Pyromania, this is rawk for girls of both sexes, fine, but even by those standards this is a dismal failure. There is not one solo that matches anything on Generation Terrorists, not a single riff that’d cut it on Electric, and the closest thing to a memorable song here sounds like the anorexic cousin of Urge Overkill’s Sister Havana, with an even worse (90s-style) production." (Stylus)
What you said...
Brian Carr: The only track I recall hearing from the debut album from The Darkness was I Believe in a Thing Called Love. The sound of the music was pretty great, but the vocals made me wonder if the whole thing was a joke. Upon listening to the full album for the first time this evening, I guess it’s just his way of singing. The guitar playing is great, but the vocals are too ridiculous for me to even make it through the album.
Marike Elzinga: Absolutely smashing! Not one bad song on this album, though Black Shuck, Love is Only a Feeling and Love On The Rocks are the ones that stand out. Saw them touring this album in Amsterdam in february 2004 and it was a brilliant show as well. The drummer (Ed Graham at the time) puked his way through the gig but he still managed to rip it somehow.
Gary Claydon: One of those bands that were in the right place at the right time. The early noughties rock and metal scene was a bit grim, a little bit up itself. The Darkness were a crazy splash of colour against the greyness, like a Jackson Pollock on the side of a battleship.
It's hard to dislike The Darkness, though plenty of people don't seem to have the same difficulty. They have an endearing silliness and flamboyance about them that channels the lighter side of '70s glam rock but add a hard rock edge and swagger. Permission To Land was still a surprising monster of a hit, though.
While the vocals might be the focal point, it's Dan Hawkins' guitar that carries the album. There is plenty of meaty, sub-DC, riffage and tasty soloing on the likes of Stuck In A Rut (which is the best track here and bears a passing resemblance to So She's Leaving by Canadian rockers The Trews to my ears), Black Shuck and Love On The Rocks With No Ice to make you forget the garbage of Friday Night and I Believe In a Thing Called Love.
Lyrically it's mildly amusing even if it does stray into seaside postcard territory at times (but seeing as these guys hail from Lowestoft, that's understandable!). The most divisive thing about The Darkness is, of course, Justin Hawkins' vocals. When he reins things in a bit the guy is decent enough. Trouble is, he isn't inclined to rein things in very often which can lead to the odd fingernails-on-blackboard moments. OTT is very much Justin's M.O., which is part of what makes him such an engaging and entertaining frontman live.
In the end, I reckon The Darkness (and Permission To Land) are best taken at face value. No use scratching away at the surface because much of what they do is fairly superficial. The band's fans would probably rail at that - after all, these fuckers won an Ivor Novello Award for songwriting! But strip away the silliness (ie Justin) and what have you got? I suppose there's a point of reference in the Stone Gods interlude, a band that were capable, solid and produced a decent album but had little, if anything, to make them stand out from the crowd, just a bit forgettable. That's not something you could ever say about The Darkness.
Chris Elliott: Where do you start with the Darkness? Listening today, it's okay... strong singles and the rest is harmless enough.
The Darkness always reminded me of 70's UK glam (more Sweet, Slade than Bowie or Bolan). Fun pop rock singles - bright colours - appear on TV at any hour - Granny's' favourite eccentric. The only thing missing was a Chinn and Chapman track.
Their appeal at the time was a throwback alternative to the po-faced grey metal that took (takes) itself seriously - the singles were fun - they had a chorus. They were also of the moment - a brief flash of glitter that didn't really have anywhere to go (unlike Chinn and Chapman they couldn't knock out pop-rock songs at will).
It's hardly going to enter the lists of essential albums - but equally sometimes music should be throwaway and fun for a brief moment
![The Darkness - Get Your Hands Off My Woman (Official Music Video) [HD] - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/hI9eVW4cTR8/maxresdefault.jpg)
Mark Veitch: Great album, they were never quite this good again. Anyone who needed to question if they were serious or a parody must have a limited knowledge of the genre. Still an excellent live band and a shame they couldn’t maintain the level of success they attained with this album. The brightest stars and all that.
Nigel Taylor: Not just one of the best British rock albums of all time, but one of the best debut albums ever made.
Seriously, it's up there with the likes of Appetite for Destruction, Welcome To Hell, Black Sabbath etc as it did change the game and brought great music with a sense of fun back into the limelight. Not a single bad moment on the album with every track being absolute gold. God bless The Darkness!
Greg Schwepe: I suggested The Darkness's Permission To Land for this week’s review because I like it when we pick albums that will elicit responses from those who might like and those who dislike the album and band. I usually stay away from reading the comments until my review is done so it doesn’t look like I “cheated from someone else’s homework” with my take on an album. But when I initially popped onto the page to see what album was selected, one of a first few comments was a “puke” emoji. Mission accomplished! Had a good laugh as right off the bat we got an opinion. And in our little corner of the internet our review group is able to providing differing thoughts on an album with only a smattering of snark!
It seems I had read about Permission To Land before I had actually heard anything from it. The gist of the article was probably “new British band like a cross between AC/DC and Queen and lead singer that uses falsetto at times which might steer people either way on the band.” Hmmm, I immediately thought “Sounds like someone I should check out.” And here we are…
Black Shuck comes charging out of the gate with its riff-heavy intro and four-on-the-floor drumming. By the time the vocals come in and we hear Justin Hawkins for the first time, I’m already a fan. Fast chugging rock that makes you reach for the volume knob. And speaking of Hawkins' vocals, over the history of rock and roll there have been hundreds of vocalists with unique stylings, so Hawkins “here and there falsetto” is nothing new. You simply decide whether you can stick around for it or not. I choose the former. But the first few listens did I wonder at times? Yes.
Get Your Hands Off My Woman continues with frantic guitar and a bigger dose of Hawkins falsetto. What I start to find that I like about The Darkness is their sense of humour. The title seems rather sophomoric, but the lyrics have a witty take about them without being too cheesy. They don’t take themselves too seriously.
I Believe In A Thing Called Love continues with a big rave-up and more over-the-top guitars and vocals. But hey, that’s The Darkness in a nutshell. Something about two guys in a band that play Les Pauls through Marshalls. Kudos to the guitar on this album.
Stuck In A Rut and Love On The Rocks With No Ice bring about more straight-ahead rock. And by this point you’re in for the rest of album or you’ve bailed.
I can totally see how The Darkness evoke a “like’em or not” vibe. I like them because they bring swagger and attitude to some fun rock. And do I like it that Justin Hawkins has a wee bit of David Lee Roth about him? Sure!
After buying Permission To Land I bought every one of their releases (or 'saved as favourite' in streaming services) to this point. Again, a fun band that can rock out and put you in a good mood. And isn’t that what we all like? 8 out of 10 on this one for me.
Mark Herrington: The Darkness are good fun , with great humorous lyrics. They are better as a singles band, for the sugary rush of humour and the Marmite nature of Justin Hawkins vocals. That’s where I struggle over a whole album.
Some great songs on Permission to Land, but a little too much Justin Hawkins all in one go for me. Hawkins' band with bassist Richie Edwards singing, Stone Gods, are much more listenable for 50 minutes or so. An average score.
Mike Canoe: Permission to Land by The Darkness is an outrageously over-the-top and fun album that came out at a time when there may have been plenty of good music but it wasn't all that fun. It was a callback to a hallowed time of celebrated excess while ably succeeding in not sounding like retro rock just for the sake of it.
Justin Hawkins has a glorious set of pipes and he's not afraid to use them and his bandmates confidently back him up. The band weaves plenty of humour into their lyrics and there are several moments of "Did he just say what I think he did?" A strange compliment but Hawkins is a maestro when it comes to weaving profanity throughout the rest of the lyrics.
This is a great "come for.../stay for..." album. Come for the hits like I Believe in a Thing Called Love and Get Your Hands off My Woman, stay for the excellent tell-off song Stuck in a Rut, the power pop gold of Friday Night, and the absolutely devastating Love on the Rocks with No Ice. Givin' Up may be the best drug anthem since Guns 'n' Roses' Mr. Brownstone and Love Is Only a Feeling is the power ballad for the new millennium.
Yeah, I kinda love it.
Adam Ranger: The Darkness – and this album when it was released – were like Marmite. Lots of people hating it, lots loving it. People weren't sure if they were real or a parody like Steel Panther (incidentally I saw Steel Panther support the Darkness during their major first headline tour).
I am firmly in the 'love them' camp. This album has three great hits. I Believe In A Thing Called Love, Growing On Me and the wonderful power ballad Love Is Only a Feeling. But the rest of the album is just as good. Black Shuck, Friday Night. Get Your Hands Off My Woman... glorious, serious rock. No parody or a joke band. Yes, there is humour and fun in big dollops, but this is a proper old-school rock album
Dale Munday: Pitched somewhere between parody and reverence, The Darkness blatantly showed their love for Lizzy, AC/DC and Queen. I think the important thing is that they were excellent in doing so.
I saw them live at the time of the release of this album and can vouch for that. Justin Hawkins, regardless of whether you like his voice or not, is the consummate frontman. Flamboyant doesn't really cover it. This type of rock was so against the grain at that time it gave music a good kick up the arse
Philip Qvist: I remember when I first saw their Growing On Me video on MTV in mid-2003 and thinking that this had to be a joke. I mean the guy's falsetto singing was pure Bee Gees, all while prancing around in a jumpsuit.
Still, I was interested enough to see what else Justin and Dan Hawkins and the rest had to offer because the musicianship was there. So once uber hit I Believe In A Thing Called Love came out, I went out and bought Permission To Land and I can't say I was disappointed.
Black Shuck is a great way to start off things, the comical (in a good way) Get Your Hands Off My Woman grabbed my attention, while Love Is Only A Feeling is probably my favourite track on the record. Things taper off a bit after that (or were the vocals getting a bit too much?), but I still like it enough for it to be a regular on my playlist.
That all said, The Darkness and this album has "polarising" written all over them – in bright flashing letters in large font. I liked their follow-up album as well, but after that the novelty wore off, and I have never bothered to listen to any of their other stuff. Joke act or not, I like this album - it's not essential but it's still fun.
John Davidson: I didn't get The Darkness when they landed in the charts with the surprise Christmas song I Believe In A Thing Called Love. The music seemed straight-up good, but Hawkins' singing and visual performance screamed parody. Was this some Spinal Tap thing or just a playful party rock album fronted by an eccentric?
It turns out that it was the latter, and while I have warmed somewhat to the idea in the years since I first sat bewildered in front of my TV watching a jumpsuit-clad Bee Gee look/soundalike writhe about on the screen it's still not for me. I wouldn't switch off if a song came on the radio/TV, but it's never going to be something I play for my listening pleasure.
Thing Called Love has grown on me, and a few of the album tracks aren't bad, but in general I find Justin Hawkin's falsetto deeply unappealing. It's a pity as the lyrics are often clever, insightful and imbued with a savage humour.
I'm going to give The Stone Gods a listen. Burn The Witch was a decent song but I've never heard the full album.
Shayne Ashby: The straight man's Queen and the gay man's AC/DC. Such a killer album and they have plenty of others just as good. Do it better live too.
Final score: 7.70 (75 votes cast, total score 578)
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