Rock 'n' roll is a dangerous business. Beyond all of the electrical equipment and pyrotechnics, the pure power of melody has been known to test the limits of the human body. Justin Hawkins of the Darkness and his left hamstring are (miraculously) living proof — and Van Halen's David Lee Roth is to blame.
"Jump" has been out since December of 1983 and its lyrical content is still posing a hazard of influence after all these years. Hawkins took that nonchalant "might as well" to heart and is currently facing the consequences, having recently sustained an injury while attempting to emulate Roth's signature move onstage.
"Me and my brother [Dan Hawkins] try to run, even when we're on tour," he told Classic Rock [via NME]. "But I haven't been able to do anything for a while because I did a David Lee Roth-style split jump and fucked up the hamstring in my left leg."
Hawkins added, "It was a great jump, with my legs over my head, but when I landed I went, 'Uh oh'."
Apparently, the Darkness bandleader added another rock injury to his arsenal by jumping onto a balcony when the band were touring their latest album, 2021's Motorheart, in Australia.
"It didn't have the sort of lip I'm used to, so I ended up falling in a bit sideways and broke a rib," he said. "So at the moment I'm limping and I find it difficult to breathe. But apart from that, I'm in tremendous shape."
Let this — and recent tour postponements and cancellations from the likes of Sunny Day Real Estate, Jane's Addiction and Rage Against the Machine due to injuries — be a cautionary tale. Even for us plebs, it's winter and it's slippery out there! Best consult a doctor before attempting any kind of Van Halen-related exercise.
"Jump" has been out since December of 1983 and its lyrical content is still posing a hazard of influence after all these years. Hawkins took that nonchalant "might as well" to heart and is currently facing the consequences, having recently sustained an injury while attempting to emulate Roth's signature move onstage.
"Me and my brother [Dan Hawkins] try to run, even when we're on tour," he told Classic Rock [via NME]. "But I haven't been able to do anything for a while because I did a David Lee Roth-style split jump and fucked up the hamstring in my left leg."
Hawkins added, "It was a great jump, with my legs over my head, but when I landed I went, 'Uh oh'."
Apparently, the Darkness bandleader added another rock injury to his arsenal by jumping onto a balcony when the band were touring their latest album, 2021's Motorheart, in Australia.
"It didn't have the sort of lip I'm used to, so I ended up falling in a bit sideways and broke a rib," he said. "So at the moment I'm limping and I find it difficult to breathe. But apart from that, I'm in tremendous shape."
Let this — and recent tour postponements and cancellations from the likes of Sunny Day Real Estate, Jane's Addiction and Rage Against the Machine due to injuries — be a cautionary tale. Even for us plebs, it's winter and it's slippery out there! Best consult a doctor before attempting any kind of Van Halen-related exercise.
