Global pop superstar Ed Sheeran has joined The Darkness at London's Roundhouse for a live rendition of Love Is Only A Feeling.
Sheeran played the guitar and sang a duet on the track with The Darkness frontman Justin Hawkins in a dizzying display of star power. Sheeran also opened the show as the surprise support act. The show was part of The Darkness' ongoing celebrations of their breakthrough album Permission To Land on which Love Is Only A Feeling appears.
The show the video originates from took place on December 9. The Sheeran appearance while surprising to most rock fans, is not highly surprising to those who follow The Darkness intently, with the band having served as the opening act for Sheeran on the UK leg of the Divide tour. The nature of their connection is reportedly Sheeran's fandom for The Darkness, with Blabbermouth reporting that Sheeran told the Roundhouse crowd as much revealing that he "bought a copy of when he was 13 years old", and stating "it was always my ambition to be onstage with them one day." He jokingly asked the audience to "check me out on MySpace" before adding: "I hope you like it… If you don't, it's only 30 minutes."
The Darkness will commemorate the 20th anniversary of their breakthrough full-length Permission To Land by playing the record in full down under in February.
Commenting in a press release circulated alongside the tour announcement, frontman Justin Hawkins states "When Permission to Land landed twenty short years ago, we were bathed in shock and awe. As if by magic, rock wasn’t dead! Fun wasn’t banned! And spandex was almost acceptable again… Well, guess what? Twenty years on, the same rules apply. So please squeeze yourselves into those inappropriate leggings, back-comb your mullet, splash on a big handful of attitude, and come celebrate with us! We promise everything, and we deliver every time. Bring on the next twenty!”
The Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane dates are branded the Let There Be Rock Tour and will feature the classic debut album which delivered iconic songs such as I Believe in A Thing Called Love and Love Is Only A Feeling performed live, in its entirety, for fans plus a string of album B-sides and rarities.
Igniting the mainstream rock scene like a meteor of sonic brilliance back in the early 2000s, The Darkness, known for their trademark falsetto, spandex, guitar riffs and extravagant mind-blowing live shows will be supported by one of Australia’s finest in rock, You Am I with their phenomenal The Majesty of Tap Spinal Tap tribute show plus Aussie gems DZ Deathrays, Cry Club, DJ’s Eleven & Denim coming along for the ride.
To further celebrate the 20th anniversary The Darkness the band also announced Permission To Land...Again.
Available in a few different formats, Permission to Land... Again packages together everything a fan of the British rockers could hope for, providing a never-before-seen-or-heard experience.
Highlighted by a 4CD/1 DVD package including the full original album, rare B-sides, bonus unreleased demos, as well as live albums from their iconic shows at London’s Astoria (2003), Knebworth (in support of Robbie Williams in 2003) and Wembley Arena (2004) and a 5LP version that mirrors the 4 CD tracklisting, Permission To Land...Again breathes new life into a modern classic.
Footage of the Knebworth and Astoria shows are captured on the DVD, as well as the music videos for their hit singles including I Believe In A Thing Called Love, Get Your Hands Off My Woman, Christmas Time (Don’t Let The Bells End) and more. There is also a History Of The Darkness documentary plus various behind-the-scenes footage and outtakes from the Permission To Land.
The original 1LP vinyl, which has long been out of print since the original pressing in 2003, has now been made available to purchase once again, alongside a new special blue/black marbled limited edition colour variant.
Permission To Land...Again will be released on October 6th via Warner Music. All formats are available for pre-order now via Maniacs.
Having further polished their eternal rock stardom alongside Guns N’ Roses at BST Hyde Park last week, The Darkness are heading out on a world tour starting in the USA in October and rolling into Europe in November. UK & Ireland dates have just been announced starting on 2nd December in Belfast, with further shows in Dublin, Norwich, Norwich, London, Glasgow, Manchester, Bristol and Nottingham, before the tour concludes on December 16th in Wolverhampton. Full tour dates and tickets can be found HERE
The shows promise to be a grand spectacle with the band playing the foot-stomping, guitar-wailing, groove-making masterpiece album in full, alongside a ‘Best Of The Rest’ set, stuffed to the gills with all the hits and fan favourites from their six subsequent studio albums.
Listen to Permission To Land
