Reviewed by Loris Bergagna

Artist: The Darkness
Album: Hot Cakes
Label: Canary Dwarf/ Play It Again Sam/ Wind-Up
Release Date: 20 August 2012

Tracklist:
1- Every Inch Of You
2- Nothin’s Gonna Stop Us
3- With A Woman
4- Keep Me Hangin’ On
5- Living Each Day Blind
6- Everybody Have A Good Time
7- She’s Just A Girl, Eddie
8- Forbidden Love
9- Concrete
10- Street Spirit (Fade Out)
11- Love Is Not The Answer

Deluxe Edition Bonus Tracks
12- I Can’t Believe It’s Not Love (Demo)
13- Love Is Not The Answer (Demo)
14- Pat Pong Ladies (Demo Mix)
15- Cannonball (Long Version – feat. Ian Anderson)

“Hot Cakes” is the third studio album recorded by The Darkness and the first after their comeback, in 2011, with the original line-up.

This release has three hit singles: “Nothin’s Gonna Stop Us”, “Every Inch Of You” and “Everybody Have A Good Time”.
“Nothin’s Gonna Stop Us” is a really nice up-tempo with a chorus sung in falsetto, “Every Inch Of You” is supported by a classic AC/DCish riff and contains some funny lyrics, “Everybody Have a Good Time” is a good rock piece. This album is in pure The Darkness style: classic hard rock riffs, guitar solos, catchy choruses, falsetto singing, funny lyrics, in the shadow of their masterpiece “Permission To Land” but with some more sophisticated arrangments like they added to “One Way Ticket To Hell….and Back”.
The cover of “Street Spirit”, a Radiohead classic, is interesting but not so convincing. Tracks like “With a Woman”, “Keep Me Hangin’ On”, “Love Is Not The Answer” and “Concrete” hit the post every single time you listen to them. A sort of “jewel” of this recording is cointaned in the Deluxe Edition of the album: Cannonball, with the presence of the legendary Mr. Ian Anderson’s flute (Jethro Tull’s leader and mainman). In conclusion this is the good ol’ classic rock album that everyone would expect from these guys. Well done!

RATING: 8/10

Band Members:
Justin Hawkins: Vocals, Guitar
Dan Hawkins: Guitar
Frankie Poullain: Bass
Ed Graham: Drums

Website: http://www.theactualdarkness.com
Youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/user/TheActualDarkness?feature=watch
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedarknessofficial