On the seventeenth day of the third month of 1975, Ma Hawkins presented the world with her first-born son. She couldn´t have known it, but the date had been a fairly auspicious one in musical history, giving us Nat “King” Cole, Josef Locke, Billy Corgan and Claire Grogan. And Caroline Corr and Steven Gately. Depending on who you believe, Justin was variously named for Justin Hayward of The Moody Blues, or a shirtmaker, or simply because his parents thought the monicker somehow ´exotic´. Born in Chertsey, at the age of six he achieved the 25 metre swimming certificate. It would have been more – perhaps as much as 75 metres – but due to his already gangly height his feet touched the bottom of the pool.

His earliest memory of school is taking part in a PE lesson in pants and vest having forgotten his sports kit. An apparent skidmark on his underwear prompted embarrassment, and in spite of his claim that it was not poop but rather motor oil from helping his father fix a car, his protests were as nothing to his peers´ puerile assumptions. He had little choice, therefore, but to hide the stain by putting the pants up his crack.

His PE teacher at Saxmundham Middle School, had an overbearing manner akin to that of a Suffolk Viking that scared Justin out of performing well at any sports, the sole exception being hockey. His prominent gums prompted school bullies to label him “Gummy”; they also stuck pins in him. One high point was a school trip to Derbyshire, where he had his first experience of Kendal Mint Cake. Another attempt at rest and relaxation did not end so well: claustrophobia caused Justin to kick a hole in the £100 tent his father Harry had pitched for him in their garden. He also suffered from acne and an allergic reaction to the antibiotics he was prescribed to treat it.

In 1989, the entire continent of North America was aware of Aerosmith but nobody in Lowestoft was. Everyone tries to find a band that nobody else likes and despite liking the biggest band in America, Hawkins became an outcast for liking Aerosmith. Some misplaced patriotism meant that DJs at local radio stations and school discos were more likely to play Scandinavian metal than American hard rock. Of course, back then there was far more crossover between the bands whose records you bought and the bands you saw live than there is now. Everyone has a band that is singularly precious to them; that they want to share with others but nevertheless don´t.

In the hope of creating a ´Hawkins Three´ to rival the Jackson Five their parents spared no expense on music tuition for Justin and Dan and their younger sister. Suzie quickly lost interest in the keyboards but Justin excelled on guitar and Dan mastered the drums before moving onto bass and then the six-string. Justin locked himself away and spent twice the required amount of time on his lessons and presently became incredibly proficient on the guitar. From that day on music became Justin´s refuge from the harsh realities of life in Lowestoft in the late ´80s and early ´90s. While some of us sweltered in shirt, tie and blazer in airless classrooms, Justin used the uniform-less confines of Kirkley High to express himself. Discovering all the joys of rock wear, he endeavoured to grow his hair and began to wear unfeasibly tight jeans.

Later he attained 7 GCSEs, and was part way through his ´A´ Levels when, as unlikely as it may seem, he decided to follow his dream to Huddersfield. He emerged twelve months later with a National Diploma in Music Technology, an unerring ability to write pop songs that stuck in your head – and a fondness for heavy rock flamboyance reawakened by a spell in a Deep Purple tribute band. He then followed brother Dan to the bright lights of London. Stints on both keyboards and guitar in bands with Dan followed, most notably in Empire, whose demo caught the ear of Sue Whitehouse, the rest, as cliché would have it, being history. The inspiration behind their name? Not the long-dead British one but rather the noted venue in Shepherd´s Bush!

Some time would elapse before Justin would find his calling and in the lean years that intervened he earned a living writing and performing jingles for advertisments. For in spite of having his life changed by Aerosmith at the formative age of fourteen – or was Steven Tyler´s life changed by Justin when he was financially enriched by Hawkins´ numerous purchases of their meisterwerk ´Pump´? – few would have predicted that in 2003 a heavy rock band would turn the UK music industry on its head with a multi-million selling debut album. Even his staunchest detractors will admit to his outstanding ability as a frontman, a new musical hero for an entire generation.

The Darkness were around before so-called ´classic rock´ become cool again; when it was, theirs was the bandwagon everyone wanted to jump and lo and behold they´re still with us now that the inevitable backlash has begun, as vitally important now as they ever were. Their songs are a collaboration with brother Dan, Justin likens them to ´journeys´. British Whale by contrast is about slapping people on the back of the head and shouting “fuck you”. It is music made with no compromises, 100% Justin – pure, unsullied silliness. The album features material deemed inappropriate for The Darkness that Justin felt it necessary to share with the good people of the UK. He trusts folk will enjoy it.