While the combination of Lady Gaga and Brit glam rockers the Darkness may seem like an unlikely pairing, that’s exactly what fans will get to experience on the upcoming European leg of Lady Gaga’s tour.

Ms. Gaga hand-picked the Darkness to open her shows and the respect seems to be mutual with Justin Hawkins, lead singer of the Darkness, singing her praises: “I've been living with my Lady Gaga secret for many moons and it's such a relief to be able to tell folk at last. I was beginning to go insane,” he said. “She is the best pop star of the 21st century bar none and we're honored to have been selected. 2012 has been the most brilliant of years so far, and it's about to get even more magnificent!"

Magnificent indeed, as has been most of the past year for the band who reunited in 2011 and are currently working on their third disc with the first track ‘Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us’ hitting airwaves in February. With Hawkins starring in a Super Bowl commercial and the band quickly selling out their first U.S. tour run in years, it seems somewhat fitting that the next step would be sharing a stage with Gaga.

The Darkness will join Gaga in August with dates running through September. Before then fans can catch the Darkness in Australia, where they’ll be playing for the first time in six years. They'll also be making several festival stops across the U.S. from Rock on the Range in Columbus, Ohio, to Rocklahoma in Pryor, Okla.

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