What do you do when your front man leaves the band? If you’re Dan Hawkins, Ed Graham and Richie Edwards, you rearrange your lineup, recruit a friend to fill the gap, change your approach and soldier on. After the departure of Justin Hawkins, the remaining members of The Darkness regrouped to form Stone Gods — former bassist Edwards took over lead vocal and guitar duties, while band friend Toby Macfarlaine stepped in on bass.

The results? A band that’s harder, heavier, and a heck of a lot rowdier. Like fellow hard rockers Wolfmother, Airbourne and Jet, the members of Stone Gods aren’t afraid to wear their influences on their sleeves (AC/DC, Judas Priest, Thin Lizzy and Def Leppard, to name a few). The emphasis is on tight rhythms and harmonies, as well as some understated guitar work that nonetheless produces some juicy riffs. Edwards makes a surprisingly capable frontman — his raspy voice and energetic delivery cuts through even the most thunderous tunes and still manages to be suitable for the occasional acoustic interlude. Both can be sampled at the group’s MySpace page, while U.K. residents can get their hands on the band’s first EP starting February 25. A full-length debut album should follow some time this summer.