HIM was a Finnish gothic rock band from Helsinki. First formed in 1991 by vocalist Ville Valo and bassist Mikko "Mige" Paananen under the name His Infernal Majesty, the band broke up after only a few years, only to be reformed in 1995 by Valo and guitarist Mikko "Linde" Lindström. After being rejoined by Mige, as well as keyboardist Antto Melasniemi and drummer Juhana "Pätkä" Rantala, the band, now called HIM, released its debut album Greatest Lovesongs Vol. 666 in 1997. In 2000, now with drummer Mika "Gas Lipstick" Karppinen and keyboardist Juska Salminen, the band released Razorblade Romance, which reached the number one spot in Finland, Austria and Germany. The first single "Join Me in Death" also charted at number one in Finland and Germany, eventually going platinum and gold, respectively. Following the addition of Janne "Burton" Puurtinen on keyboards, HIM released Deep Shadows and Brilliant Highlights (2001) and Love Metal (2003). Both cracked the top ten in several countries and allowed the band to tour in the United Kingdom and the United States for the first time.
Moonsorrow is a Finnish pagan metal band formed in Helsinki in 1995. Musically, the band incorporates elements of black metal and folk metal in their sound. The band call their sound "epic heathen metal" and try to distance themselves from the term "Viking metal". They have distanced themselves from other folk metal bands, emphasising that their music is pagan and spiritual and is challenging for its listeners, rather than happy or danceable. The band members have varying levels of pagan belief but they draw on pagan spirituality for lyrics and inspiration.
Kataklysm is a Canadian death metal band. They have released fourteen studio albums, one EP and two DVDs as of 2020. Kataklysm won their first Juno Award for best album of the year in the "heavy metal" category for their 2015 album Of Ghosts and Gods.
Deep Shadows and Brilliant Highlights is the third studio album by Finnish gothic rock band HIM, released 27 August 2001. The album was produced by Kevin Shirley, T. T. Oksala and HIM. The record had a troubled production, which lasted approximately eleven months. The prolonged recording process was partially due outside influences within the music industry hoping to repeat the success of HIM's previous album. As a result, Deep Shadows and Brilliant Highlights features a sleeker and more pop-oriented sound. It is the first HIM album to feature keyboardist Janne "Burton" Puurtinen.
Tarja Soile Susanna Turunen-Cabuli, known professionally as Tarja Turunen or simply Tarja, is a Finnish heavy metal singer, best known as the former lead vocalist of Nightwish.
Omnium Gatherum is a six-piece melodic death metal band from Finland, founded in the autumn of 1996. Although the band mainly follows the path of the melodic death metal genre, much of their work shows strong influences from progressive metal, especially their later albums. Their music is influenced by Gothenburg-style bands such as At the Gates, In Flames, Dissection, Dark Tranquillity, but also Iron Maiden, Death, Anathema and Megadeth among others.
Mikko Henrik Julius Paananen, better known as Mige, is a Finnish musician, best known as the bassist and founding member of the gothic rock band HIM. Born to an artistic family, Mige attended the Sibelius Upper Secondary School of music and dance, when he first formed HIM with Ville Valo. The band broke up after Mige began his national military service, but they reformed in 1995. HIM would go on to release eight studio albums and become one of the most commercially successful Finnish bands of all time. The band announced their retirement in March 2017, and played their final show on New Year's Eve 2017.
Pedro Henrique "Kiko" Loureiro is a Brazilian guitarist. He has been a member of several heavy metal bands, including Angra and Megadeth.
Mikko Viljami "Linde" Lindström is a Finnish musician, best known as the guitarist for the gothic rock band HIM. Influenced by the likes of Black Sabbath and Steve Vai, Lindström began playing guitar at age ten, joining the band Aurora in his teenage years, where he met Ville Valo. In 1995, the two reformed Valo's previous band HIM, which would go on to release eight studio albums and become one of the most commercially successful Finnish bands of all time, and the first to receive a gold record in the United States. In 2017, the band announced their plans to retire following a farewell tour, and played their final show on New Year's Eve 2017.
Dark Light is the fifth studio album by Finnish gothic rock band HIM. Released on 26 September 2005, HIM began recording the album in March 2005 at the Paramour Estate is Los Angeles with producer Tim Palmer, who had also mixed the band's previous album Love Metal. Dark Light also served as HIM's first worldwide release with Sire Records, with whom the band had signed with in September 2004. In Finland, however, the album was released under the band's own label Heartagram. Musically, Dark Light featured a more "polished" and "accessible" sound than previous albums, and was written as a cross between Black Sabbath and U2, also influenced by the work of composer Angelo Badalamenti.
Amoral was a Finnish heavy metal band from Helsinki, formed in 1997. They played technical, progressive, melodic, hard rock-oriented metal. The band's fourth album was an about-turn, replacing the dominance of quirky death metal with an exemplary display of riff-driven, heavy, yet melodic power groove and the occasional sing-along chorus. Amoral performed extensively in bars, clubs, festivals and other venues in Finland, Europe, Japan, China, Philippines and the US. The band split up in 2017 after 20 years together.
As Daylight Dies is the fourth studio album by American metalcore band Killswitch Engage. It was released on November 21, 2006 through Roadrunner Records. It was produced by the band's guitarists, Adam Dutkiewicz and Joel Stroetzel.
Venus Doom is the sixth studio album by Finnish gothic rock band HIM. The album was recorded at Finnvox Studios in Helsinki with producers Hiili Hiilesmaa and Tim Palmer, both whom had collaborated with the band on various occasions, and released on 14 September 2007. During the making of Venus Doom, HIM was struggling with the personal problems of their vocalist Ville Valo. Among other things, his alcohol abuse had worsened to the point that he suffered a nervous breakdown during the recording process, after which he was admitted to the Promises Rehabilitation Clinic in Malibu by HIM's manager Seppo Vesterinen. Musically the album has been described as HIM's heaviest and darkest album to date, with influences from bands such as My Dying Bride, Anathema and Paradise Lost. Much of the album's lyrical themes and heaviness were inspired by Valo's personal difficulties, including his break-up with fiancé Jonna Nygrén.
Ghost Brigade were a six-piece melodic death metal band from Finland, formed in 2005 and disbanding in 2020.
Across the Dark is the fourth studio album by Finnish melodic death metal band Insomnium. It was released on 7 September 2009 on Candlelight Records. The album features Jules Näveri from Profane Omen and Enemy of the Sun as guest vocalist and Aleksi Munter from Swallow the Sun as guest keyboardist. The album was chosen as "Album of the month September, 2009" by German online magazine Metal 1.
Ville Vänni is a Finnish musician. He was one of the guitarists of the melodic death metal band Insomnium. Although reports say he still currently writes and records with the band.
Insomnium is a Finnish melodic death metal band formed in Joensuu in 1997. The sound and lyrical themes of their music portray darkness, sorrow, loss, pain, and nature. Their music includes elements of progressive metal, black metal, folk metal, doom metal, and metalcore.
Shadows of the Dying Sun is the sixth studio album by Finnish melodic death metal band Insomnium. It was released in North America on April 29, 2014 via Century Media Records, and on April 25 in Finland, Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, the rest of Europe, as well as Australia and New Zealand on April 28. It is their first album with new guitarist Markus Vanhala after previous long-time guitarist Ville Vänni departed in 2011.
Rise of the Phoenix, is the seventh album by Finnish metal band Before the Dawn, released on 27 April 2012, and their last album before their split from 2013 to 2021. It is their second album released via Nuclear Blast Records, and unlike previous albums, does not include clean vocals. After the departure of Lars Eikind and Atte Palokangas (drums) in mid-2011, Tuomas started rehearsals with a new line-up consisting of lead guitarist Juho Räihä and new companions Pyry Hanski (bass) and Joonas Kauppinen (drums) to support Insomnium for the "One For Sorrow European Tour 2011", or as they called it "Rebirth Tour 2011" in November.
Anno 1696 is the ninth studio album by Finnish melodic death metal band Insomnium, released on 24 February 2023 via Century Media. Insomnium began working on the album shortly before the release of Argent Moon, in 2021, with the album originally planned to be released in 2022. Like their 2016 album Winter's Gate, the album is based on a short story by vocalist/bassist Niilo Sevänen, first hinted on October 24, 2022, less than two weeks before the album's official announcement. It is the final release to feature guitarist Jani Liimatainen.
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