The Darkness have announced their eighth studio album, Dreams on Toast, arriving in March 2025 via Cooking Vinyl. The lead single “The Longest Kiss” is out now.
The three-minute nugget is a love letter to ’70s pop rock a la Queen, Electric Light Orchestra, and Wings. Frontman Justin Hawkins puts the full range of his voice to use on the melodic number, which features prominent piano and stylish guitar licks.
“Misty Orchards! That’s not my porn name, that’s the kind of scenery that I love,” remarked Hawkins of the track in the album press release. “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. I was bleary eyed and locked in an unending embrace with my (mid)life partner. Weird that I can still sing, but that’s a testament to the resilience of humans, especially lead singers.”
Regarding the musical accompaniment, Hawkins added: “The music …