The Darkness have shared details of a new album called ‘Dreams On Toast’, as well as an upcoming UK tour. Find more details below, as well as the lead single ‘The Longest Kiss’.
‘Dreams On Toast’ will mark the eighth studio album from Justin Hawkins and co. and is set to arrive in March 2025 via Cooking Vinyl – pre-order it here.
It will mark the band’s first full-length album since they shared ‘Motorheart’ back in 2021, and according to the frontman, the new tracks were inspired by “ the life-changing music of the ages”.
“You know that thing when God’s breath tickles your soul and tells you to create? Yeah, makes me giggle too. But you can’t resist,” Hawkins said. “God might not be the power she once was, but say what you like about her, she knows damn well that what the world needs now, is rock sweet rock. And who are we, mere mortals of extraordinary ability, to argue with the divine?”
He continued: “So we knuckled down and thought really hard about the best of the best, the elite songs, the life-changing music of the ages. Then we popped out a dozen bangers before lunch. And these bangers we present to you here, wallowing in an aromatic aural ragu, served atop the charred remains of our envious contemporaries.”
Today (September 18), to celebrate the album announcement, the band have dropped the first preview of the release, the upbeat, ’70s-inspired lead single ‘The Longest Kiss’.
“Misty Orchards! That’s not my porn name, that’s the kind of scenery that I love. I awakened to such a vista in the delightful Scottish highland town of Nairn on the morning that inspiration for ‘The Longest Kiss’ lyric struck,” Hawkins said of the track.
“The music itself is a piano-led composition, the chorus of which my brother and I came up with after he’d taken a long time to empty his bladder during some impressive pub endurance. The verses were transposed from a song I’ve been working on for decades as part of a musical about the collapse of the Lowestoft fishing industry, called ‘The Collapse Of The Lowestoft Fishing Industry’. The musical isn’t finished yet. But ‘The Longest Kiss’ is. The results are astounding. We’re all very proud of this.”
As well as announcing the new album and lead single The Darkness have also unveiled news of a 2025 UK tour, which will mark their biggest headline shows in the UK in years.
17 dates have been shared as part of the run, starting with an opening night at Regent’s Theatre in Ipswich on March 7. From there, shows are lined up at Oxford, Hull, Liverpool, York, Edinburgh, Manchester and more throughout the remainder of the month.
The tour wraps up on March 29, when Hawkins and Co. will play at the OVO Arena Wembley in London. Support comes from Ash, who first supported The Darkness on their legendary ‘Permission To Land Tour’ over 20 years ago.
Tickets go on sale next Friday (September 27) and will be available here from 10am BST. Additionally, fans who pre-order ‘Dreams On Toast’ will have access to a pre-sale. Find all new tour dates below.
The Darkness’ 2025 UK tour dates are:
MARCH
7 – Ipswich, Regent’s Theatre
8 – Oxford, New Theatre
9 – Swansea, Arena
11 –Guildford, G Live
12 –Hull, Connexin Arena
14 – Liverpool, Guild Of Students
15 – Wolverhampton, Civic Hall
17 – York, Barbican
18 – Edinburgh, Usher Hall
20 – Glasgow, Royal Concert Hall
21 – Newcastle, O2 City Hall
22 – Manchester, O2 Apollo
24 – Bristol, Beacon Theatre
25 – Portsmouth, Guildhall
27 – Leicester, De Montford Hall
28 – Cambridge, Corn Exchange
29 – London, OVO Arena Wembley
Earlier this month, the band’s hit track ‘I Believe In A Thing Called Love’ shot to Number One after Taylor Swift was filmed enthusiastically singing it to boyfriend Travis Kelce.
Hawkins then posted a message to Swift and Kelce on TikTok, addressing his gratitude for the renewed love of the song.
“A few weeks ago my daughter and I went to see Taylor Swift at the stadium in Zurich and the hospitality they showed us was extraordinary. They put us in a lovely VIP area, I had Chris Rock on one side, Roger Federer on the other side, I was dad of the year,” he said.
Having learned that the footage went viral after receiving countless messages from fans, he continued to say it was “a really heart-warming moment for me, and my little girl can’t wait to tell her friends at school. So thanks Taylor, thanks Travis, thanks everybody who enjoys tennis, that’s a really lovely start to the day. Nice one guys.”
