Darkness at Noon
Their riffs are bigger than Jesus, their singer Freddie Mercury and Robert Plant reborn, and their videos mate pterodactyls with UFOs. They’re the Darkness, bitch! “TCB” caught up with bassist Frankie Poullain outside Washington, D.C., where the London lads’ 9:30 Club show sold out in 37 seconds. Their Stubb’s gig Tuesday broke similar speed barriers in selling out.
TCB: Are you surprised at your success in the U.S?
Frankie Poullain: No, not really. Maybe surprised it hasn’t gone quicker, to be honest.
TCB: Tell us a good tour story about our mutual friends from Austin, Young Heart Attack.
FP: Oh my God, it’s all very hazy, that tour. I don’t want to cop out, but I can’t think of anything at the moment. But they’re great guys, and of course the lovely lady, too.
TCB: Do people take the band more seriously now you’re selling out shows and selling lots of albums? FP: Definitely. People on the street, they don’t particularly listen to the snooty, dismissive comments and the jargon – all this irony or post-irony, mock-seriousness, whatever it is. They don’t listen to that stuff. They listen to tunes.
This article appears in April 9 • 2004.