| Darkfighter | |
| Type: | studio |
| Cover: | Rival Sons - Darkfighter.png |
| Artist: | Rival Sons |
| Length: | 39:35 |
| Label: | Atlantic |
| Producer: | Dave Cobb |
| Prev Title: | Feral Roots |
| Prev Year: | 2019 |
| Next Title: | Lightbringer |
| Next Year: | 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"[1] and "Bird in the Hand".[2] It was originally scheduled for release on March 10[1] before being delayed. The band toured North America in support of the album from May to June 2023.[2] The album will be followed by Lightbringer, set for release on October 20, 2023.
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".[1]
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". 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".