Idolator

I love the first Darkness album, though I recognize you may not. But either way, it's been hard not to feel a little embarrassed for Justin Hawkins, who quit the band as a way of maintaining his sobriety, launched a number of ill-conceived musical flops (solo album, World Cup song, failed Eurovision entry), and is now all-but-forgotten in America. Which is why you might approach his new project, Hot Leg, with some trepidation. Fear not! Or, at least, only fear for 1:17 of the song "Trojan Guitar," at which point a ridiculous but wholly appropriate voice snottily parodies Britpop. After a long solo, it goes all-acoustic, with Hawkins deploying every register of his voice, and when the band crashes back in, well, it got me. The breadth here is wider than mere glam-metal, and though that should be horrifying, it seems to work. [YouTube]

- Police are looking into whether singer James Blunt committed a "foot-and-run" in Los Angeles earlier this week. Finally, some street cred.[Reuters]
- Darkness singer Justin Hawkins is hoping for a shot in this year's Eurovision contest; alas, even a long-haired spandexpert known for riding as stuffed white tiger may not be up to the event's flamboyant standards. [Mirror.co.uk]
- The Craptain has landed: Jay Kay is retiring from the music industry. [NME]

In a long, sad interview with Britian's The Sun, Darkness lead singer Justin Hawkins—a man who looks like a spider from Mars, and sings like a banshee who just stepped on a tack—announces that he's quitting the band. Apparently, Hawkins spent more than £150,000 on coke over the last few years (that's $278,219 in American money), and after a trip to rehab, he's afraid that staying in the group may cause a relapse: More »

- Jay-Z's got 99 tour dates on his water-awareness tour, and New York ain't one. [Billboard]
- Keane cancel three big shows due to "exhaustion." Oddly, that's the exact same condition that affects 9 out of every 10 Keane fans. [Click Music]
- The Darkness' Justin Hawkins has entered the same rehab clinic as Pete Doherty. For some reason, we think the NME might give this some press coverage. [Virgin.net]