{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2023}} {{Infobox album | name = Darkfighter | type = studio | cover = Rival Sons - Darkfighter.png | alt = | artist = Rival Sons | released = {{start date|2023|06|02}} | recorded = | studio = | genre = <!-- Please source genres --> | length = 39:35 | label = Atlantic | producer = Dave Cobb | prev_title = Feral Roots | prev_year = 2019 | next_title = Lightbringer | next_year = 2023 | misc = {{Singles | name = Darkfighter | type = studio | single1 = Nobody Wants to Die | single1date = October 14, 2022 | single2 = Bird in the Hand | single2date = March 10, 2023 }} }} '''''Darkfighter''''' is the seventh studio album by American band Rival Sons, released on June 2, 2023, through Atlantic Records. It was produced by Dave Cobb and preceded by the singles "Nobody Wants to Die"<ref name="BM">{{cite web|url=https://blabbermouth.net/news/rival-sons-announces-darkfighter-album-share-nobody-wants-to-die-music-video|title=Rival Sons Announce ''Darkfighter'' Album, Share 'Nobody Wants to Die' Music Video|website=Blabbermouth.net|date=October 14, 2022|access-date=June 6, 2023}}</ref> and "Bird in the Hand".<ref name="UG">{{cite web|url=https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/upcoming_releases/rival_sons_have_a_new_single_out_named_bird_in_the_hand_announce_the_darkfighter_tour_in_north_america.html|title=Rival Sons Have a New Single Out Named 'Bird in the Hand,' Announce 'The Darkfighter Tour' in North America|website=Ultimate Guitar|date=March 10, 2023|access-date=June 6, 2023}}</ref> It was originally scheduled for release on March 10<ref name="BM"/> before being delayed. The band toured North America in support of the album from May to June 2023.<ref name="UG"/> The album will be followed by ''Lightbringer'', set for release on October 20, 2023.<ref name="MI"/>
==Background== Vocalist Jay Buchanan stated the album "represents the cultural mitosis of isolation, the pandemic, and the national fabric of the U.S. getting looser and looser".<ref name="BM"/>
==Critical reception== {{Music ratings | rev1 = ''Classic Rock'' | rev1score = {{Rating|4|5}}<ref name="CR">{{cite magazine|url=https://www.loudersound.com/reviews/rival-sons-darkfighter-album-review|title=Rival Sons are sharper, deeper and more intense than ever on seventh album ''Darkfighter''|magazine=Classic Rock|via=Loudersound|last=Everley|first=Dave|date=June 2, 2023|access-date=June 6, 2023}}</ref> | rev2 = ''Metal Injection'' | rev2score = 7.5/10<ref name="MI">{{cite web|url=https://metalinjection.net/reviews/album-review-rival-sons-darkfighter|title=Album Review: Rival Sons ''Darkfighter''|website=Metal Injection|last=Bowar|first=Chad|date=June 3, 2023|access-date=June 6, 2023}}</ref> }} Dave Everley of ''Classic Rock'' called it "not so much the sound of a reinvention as that of a band recalibrated and revitalised", as Rival Sons "sound simultaneously sharper, deeper and more intense". Everley remarked that it has a "fat-free eight tracks" and is "a great album" on which the band "have emerged stronger than ever".<ref name="CR"/> Chad Bowar of ''Metal Injection'' wrote that Rival Sons have "balanced focused, straightforward songs with longer, more complex compositions" throughout their career, which carries over to ''Darkfighter'', which also contains "numerous radio-ready bangers" like "Bird in the Hand". Bowar concluded that ''Darkfighter'' "mostly lives up to the hype" and several songs "should become staples of their set list".<ref name="MI"/>
==Track listing== {{Track listing | headline = ''Darkfighter'' track listing
| title1 = Mirrors | length1 = 5:01 | title2 = Nobody Wants to Die | length2 = 3:42 | title3 = Bird in the Hand | length3 = 4:28 | title4 = Bright Light | length4 = 4:33 | title5 = Rapture | length5 = 4:24 | title6 = Guillotine | length6 = 5:05 | title7 = Horses Breath | length7 = 6:04 | title8 = Darkside | length8 = 6:18
| total_length = 39:35 }}
==Charts== {| class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center;" |+ Chart performance for ''Darkfighter'' ! scope="col"| Chart (2023) ! scope="col"| Peak<br />position |- {{album chart|Austria|29|artist=Rival Sons|album=Darkfighter|rowheader=true|access-date=June 14, 2023}} |- {{album chart|Flanders|69|artist=Rival Sons|album=Darkfighter|rowheader=true|access-date=June 11, 2023}} |- {{album chart|Wallonia|23|artist=Rival Sons|album=Darkfighter|rowheader=true|access-date=June 11, 2023}} |- {{album chart|Finland|37|artist=Rival Sons|album=Darkfighter|rowheader=true|access-date=June 10, 2023}} |- {{album chart|France|59|M|url=http://snepmusique.com/les-tops/le-top-de-la-semaine/top-albums/?semaine=23?&annee=2023&categorie=Top%20Albums|title=Top Albums (Week 23, 2023)|publisher=Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique|artist=Rival Sons|album=Darkfighter|rowheader=true|access-date=June 12, 2023}} |- {{album chart|Germany|15|id=518769|artist=Rival Sons|album=Darkfighter|rowheader=true|access-date=June 9, 2023}} |- {{album chart|Norway|23|artist=Rival Sons|album=Darkfighter|rowheader=true|access-date=June 10, 2023}} |- {{album chart|Scotland|7|date=20230609|rowheader=true|access-date=June 10, 2023}} |- {{album chart|Switzerland|10|artist=Rival Sons|album=Darkfighter|rowheader=true|access-date=June 11, 2023}} |- {{album chart|UK2|30|date=20230609|rowheader=true|access-date=June 9, 2023}} |- {{album chart|UKRock|2|date=20230609|rowheader=true|access-date=June 10, 2023}} |- {{album chart|BillboardHeatseekers|9|artist=Rival Sons|rowheader=true|access-date=June 12, 2023}} |- {{album chart|BillboardAlbumSales|36|artist=Rival Sons|rowheader=true|access-date=June 12, 2023}} |}
==References== {{reflist}}
{{Rival Sons}}
{{Authority control}}
Category:2023 albums Category:Albums produced by Dave Cobb Category:Atlantic Records albums Category:Rival Sons albums