HIM - Dark Light

Sun 8th Jan, 2006 in Music Reviews

HIM (which stands for His Infernal Majesty) are the so-hot-right-now metal/gothic-rock band from Finland who have infiltrated the scene with their melodic, dark love ballads.

But if you haven’t heard their music yet, you’re probably at least familiar with their “heartagram” symbol. The heartagram is most famously seen on pro-skateboarder, Bam Margera and his show, Viva La Bam, a show that the band has made several cameo appearances on. But beside their heartfelt gothic ballads and eye-catching band logo, they also have a very good-looking vocalist, Ville Hermanni Valo... and with a killer combination like that, they are a band that can do no wrong.

Dark Light is the band’s fifth album release, the prelude to 2003’s Love Metal, which broke them into the mainstream market in America. So it is fair to say that Dark Light is their most anticipated release to date. But somehow Dark Light is a little more difficult to get into than Love Metal. It still has its definitive HIM moments, but it’s a little more self-conscious than their previous releases. Although it would be unfair to blame it on the slick production values, but this album, compared to their predecessors, is somehow just not as dark.

Having said that, there are still a few standout tracks. Vampire Heart is the best song on the album, and displays the same presence as their debut album’s Greatest Lovesongs Vol. 666’s first track, Your Sweet Six, Six, Six. Both Under The Rose and Rip Out The Wings Of A Butterfly are essential melodic gothic ballads, and Killing Loneliness is a poppy love song that is reminiscent of gothic heroes, Sisters Of Mercy. In fact, as an album, Dark Light has more standout tracks, than many of their contemporaries have on one album. HIM fans are going to love this album. Oldschool fans may be a little disappointed. Dark Light is the type of album that, if you don’t fall in love with it instantly, it will certainly grow on you. There was a discrepancy over what genre HIM should be classified as in the US. The term “gothic rock” conjures up too many negative connotations for the Americans. To which Valo has responded that the band should be labelled as “Love Metal”. If HIM are classified as “metal”, then it’s definitely, “baby-metal”, but if this band is going to encourage a new generation of kids to ‘love metal’, then that’s good enough for me. HIM are touring Australia in March 2006.