SINGLE REVIEW | THE DARKNESS – I HATE MYSELF by Georgina Daniels

When December rolls around in the UK, the airwaves are hijacked by festive jingles, leaving listeners praying for a shred of sanity after the umpteenth play of ‘Last Christmas’. Enter The Darkness with their new single, ‘I Hate Myself‘ – a gloriously tongue-in-cheek anthem that feels like a collective cry of relief for those sick of tinsel-draped tunes.

The Silly-Suffolk-born band have reached a point where they have little left to prove. With a 17-date UK tour just announced and their eighth album on the horizon, this single is a swaggering testament to their enduring power as they strut confidently into 2025.

In just over three minutes, the song tears through a punchy and chaotic lament for lost love. Justin Hawkins’ soaring refrain, “I hate myself so you don’t have to,” rises and falls over an old-school rock ‘n’ roll beat. Catchy riffs and a nearly minute-long guitar solo pay unmistakable homage to 1970s arena rock, delivering an infectious, foot-tapping tune.

This theatrical rock sound is loaded with attitude, cheek, and self-loathing – sentiments listeners are sure to relate to. It’s the perfect break-up song for when drowning in sad ballads no longer cuts it.More intriguingly, this is not the kind of song you expect to drop in December. It feels like a deliberate act of defiance against the regularly scheduled Christmas cheer. There are no Santa hats or reindeer headbands in sight, which is a massive relief, and it’s precisely this refusal to conform that makes The Darkness so great.

Since their breakthrough at the dawn of the millennium, they’ve done things their way, never compromised, and secured their place as a cult favorite for thousands of fans across the globe.They make music you can rely on when you need something that doesn’t take itself too seriously but still sounds undeniably great. ‘I Hate Myself’, comical as it is, delivers a swaggering quality reminiscent of legends like David Bowie, Queen, and Status Quo. It’s cheeky, infectious, and utterly The Darkness.

Their upcoming album, Dreams On Toast, is set to unleash in March 2025. If ‘I Hate Myself’ is any indication, it promises to be a hit. For those who can’t wait, the other recently released single, ‘The Longest Kiss‘, is well worth a listen.

For all the tour details –https://www.thedarknesslive.com/