Hot Leg frontman Justin Hawkins at Birmingham's Academy 2.

Hot Leg
Academy 2, Bimingham
By James Watkins

A few short years ago, Justin Hawkins’ The Darkness were set fair to become one of the biggest bands in the world.

The spandex-clad rockers were on their way to world domination as they swept all before them on their way to the top.

But then, just as they hit their stride, they imploded. Hawkins endured an ignominious fall from grace amid a blur of sex, drugs and rock’n’roll.

Now he’s back under a new guise and hoping to pick up where he left off. His new band, Hot Leg, are determined to storm the charts and achieve the sort of Brit Award-crunching success that The Darkness enjoyed.

Last night, they showed at Birmingham’s Academy 2 that they have a more than reasonable chance of succeeding before a packed venue.

This was Hot Leg’s second tour in nine months and they set the Academy jumping from the off with a fine mix of infectious riffs and power chords, matched with Hawkins’ incredible larynx.

Hot Leg will no doubt have a tough journey ahead if they are to match the unlikely success of the ill-fated Darkness, but the signs are positive.
Hawkins and co belted out an array of album tracks including Whichever Way You Wanna Give It and Cocktails, all greeted with rapturous applause.

Thankfully, Hot Leg are not The Darkness Mk II. They have an identity of their own and with no spandex leotards in sight, fans were happy leaving last night having just caught a glimpse of a band that might soon be filling the nation’s stadiums and arenas.