Album: Hot Leg, Red Light Fever, (Barbecue Rock)

Anyone expecting the post-rehab Justin Hawkins to be apologetic, acoustic, introspective and toned down is in for a shock.

Hot Leg, Hawkins’ new “Man Rock” quartet, are the Darkness-plus. From the hocus-pocus shrieking of opener “Chickens” to grandiose Steinman-esque closer “Kissing in the Wind”, ‘Red Light Fever’ is all about jubilant falsettos, crashing crescendos, and ludicrously layered arrangements. If something’s worth doing – as Hawkins knows better than anyone – it’s worth overdoing.

Pick of the album: Coming out of the closet: ‘Gay in the 80s’

independent.co.uk