In the wake of the Darkness' (fleeting) success, Freddie Mercury disciple Justin Hawkins appeared to receive the lion's share of the attention and credit -- often leaving his brother, guitarist Dan Hawkins, out in the cold. But it turns out that it was both of the brothers who had a hand in penning all of the tracks on the Darkness' two albums. So after the group's quick burnout, each brother launched his own post-Darkness outfit, Justin with Hot Leg, and Dan with Stone Gods. Enlisting the help of the Darkness' other two members at the time of their breakup -- bassist Richie Edwards (who also doubles as the group's lead singer) and drummer Ed Graham -- the Stone Gods unleashed their debut set, Silver Spoons and Broken Bones in 2008. There is little reminiscent of the Darkness' over-the-top bombast, as it appears to have been replaced with AC/DC-esque ruggedness -- especially detected in Edwards' vocals. This is especially evident by such standouts as the riff-heavy "Burn the Witch" (which opens with a guitar part reminiscent of the best-forgotten Sponge hit, "Plowed"), the ass-kicking/almost punk-ish "Don't Drink the Water," and the Angus Young/Malcolm Young-esque chord crunch of "You Brought a Knife to a Gunfight." Early in the Darkness' career, Dan Hawkins was constantly spotted sporting a Thin Lizzy shirt. And with Silver Spoons and Broken Bones, he finally gets to let his inner Lizzy out.
© Greg Prato /TiVo