Justin Hawkins Quits The Darkness?

Rock star Justin Hawkins has quit The Darkness, according to NME and The Sun.

It wasn’t possible to confirm at press time, but NME picked up the story at about noon on October 11st.

According to the Sun, Hawkins said he left the band because staying in it would hamper his recovery from a cocaine habit that’s cost him more than £150,000 in three years.

“I was consuming up to five grams a day which cost me £1,000 a week, sometimes more. I regularly used to stay up for four days at a time on coke and alcohol binges,” he reportedly told the paper.

It also quoted Hawkins as saying, “I became secretive, volatile and verbally abusive, a really unpleasant person to be around. There were lots of periods I don’t even remember, blackouts.”

The 31-year-old frontman, whose band shot to fame with the hit single “I Believe In A Thing Called Love” in 2002, said he decided to quit after entering London’s Priory Clinic for rehab in August.

“I’m not blaming the band for my problem – I am an addict. There are people who can be in bands and stay clean, but I’m not one of them,” he added.

“I feel like I’ve lost three years of my life. I’m only just coming to terms with what has happened because I was always off my face.”

All reports suggest The Darkness will now continue with a new frontman, while Hawkins plans to take more time out before beginning work on a solo album.

– John Gammon