The Darkness

The Darkness burst out of Norfolk, En gland, in 2003 with a party-hearty anthem called "I Believe in a Thing Called Love," a slightly retro barn burner full of huge-ass guitars and Justin Hawkins' Tiny Tim-worthy falsetto shrieks. Like many turn-of-the-century hard-rock revivalists, this British quartet is immersed in the one-two punch of AC/DC and early Queen, but Permission to Land is no irony-damaged novelty. Songs such as "Get Your Hands Off My Woman" and "Givin' Up" display industrial-strength riffs, vigorous hammer-on guitar solos, and a rhythm section that swings like a wrecking ball. (ROB KEMP)

From 2004's The New Rolling Stone Album Guide