Albums: Razorblade Romance, Love Metal, Dark Light

There are multiple artists with this name 1) HIM, a gothic metal band from Finland. 2) HiM, a solo project put together in 1995 by Doug Scharin (drummer for June of 44, Rex, and Codeine). 1) Formed in 1991 by vocalist Ville Valo, guitarist Mikko Lindström (Linde), and bassist Mikko Paananen(Mige).

Today the band consists of the previously named as well as a drummer Mika Karppinen(Gas) and a keyboardist Janne Puurtinen(Burton). The name HIM was originally an abbreviation for "His Infernal Majesty", but was changed to the initials to avoid confusion with the occult. Also, the Finnish people were rarely able to actually pronounce the name correctly.

The name "HIM" later caused confusion when touring in the US, because of another band using the same name (read below at 2)). For this reason, the band was -jokingly - for some time known as "HER" in the States, and even more jokingly HIM&Her in Germany. he EP, '666 Ways to Love: Prologue' (1996) was their EP released only in Finland and only 1,000 were produced making it worth up to $700 and has been sold on ebay for more.

HIM's first full length album 'Greatest Lovesongs Vol. 666' (1997) gained European fame due to the success of the cover of Wicked Game the album also featured a popular cover of (Don't Fear) The Reaper. HIM's second release, 'Razorblade Romance' (2000) was a success in Europe as well as in America due to the singles "Gone With the Sin" and "Join Me in Death" (the single was named "Join Me", to avoid interpretations of the track encouraging suicide).

Initially Razorblade Romance was released under the pen-name "HER" in America as the name HIM was already copyrighted. After purchasing the rights to the name, Razorblade Romance was re-pressed under the name HIM. For their third album, HIM released, 'Deep Shadows and Brilliant Highlights' (2001), spawning the popular singles "In Joy and Sorrow", "Pretending" and "Heartache Every Moment" 'Love Metal', HIM's fourth album, was released in 2003 in Europe but was not released in the US until 2005.

It featured the hit singles "Buried Alive by Love", "The Sacrament" and "Funeral of Hearts". The entire album was played, track by track, live in Hamburg in 2003. This show is known as "Live Metal", and can be obtained on several bootlegs both on DVD and CD.

Their fifth album, 'Dark Light' (2005) features the hit singles "Wings of a Butterfly", "Killing Loneliness" and "Under the Rose". It was the first Finnish album to sell to gold in the US. HIM's latest album, 'Venus Doom' was released officially around the world 14-18 September 2007, but was leaked a few weeks earlier on P2P networks.

The video for the main single on the album, "Kiss Of Dawn", was shown on british Scuzz TV on August 10. The album also features HIM's longest track to date; "Sleepwalking Past Hope", which is 10 minutes and 3 seconds long. Additionally, the band has released three compilation albums; 'And Love Said No' (2004) and 'Uneasy Listening Vol.1' (2006) & 'Uneasy Listening Vol.2' (2007).

It is also worth mentioning that all of their albums and singles (not the EP) has been released in multiple versions, with various bonus tracks and special edition covers, etc. HIM uses a widely famous logo called the 'heartagram', which is a pentagram crossed with a heart. It's also been said that Valo designed it as he waited for his friends to bring over beer on his 20th birthday and was inspired by this Finnish private hospital logo.

The symbol represents the balance between love and hate, life and death, dark and light, good and evil and sometimes love and death. Because of this logo they have been wrongly labeled as satanic. Valo originally wanted to make several symbols, like Led Zeppelin did, but realised he didn't have the drawing talent to pen them, nor the memory to remember them.

Bam Margera has legal licensing rights to this logo in America, which he acquired off Valo. The two have been friends since Margera saw the band perform in Finland, and was let in backstage by the band. He has directed a number of HIM videos, including Buried Alive by Love, where the actress and rockstar Juliette Lewis also appears.

Valo has also appeared in episodes of Margera's TV show called Viva la Bam, and the CKY videos. Margera has used HIM's music for nearly all of his projects, including the feature film Haggard In 2001 Mikko Lindström, Mikko Paananen, and Ville Valo had a side project called Daniel Lioneye. Ville Valo was using a covername Bil Bao and his face was covered in their video for "Never Been In Love (Till the Day I Die".

This bands hit called "The King of Rock'n Roll" is a theme song of Viva la Bam. Official site: www.heartagram.com 2) The Band are the following people: * Doug Scharin - drums, percussion, fender rhodes, tapes, loops, etc. * Phil Spirito - bass * Curtis Harvey - six string bass * Christian Dautresme - guitar, vocals HiM if you don't know by now, is the side project of rex/June of '44 drummer Doug Scharin.

"Chill and Peel" is the follow up to his debut "Egg" (Southern) which was released earlier this year. Recorded once again at rexville in Brooklyn, NY "Chill and Peel" features three tracks. "Pony", is a Roots Reggae influenced diddy about a child's trip to a horse farm and features Christian Dautresme on guitar and vocals and Phil Spirito of rex on bass.

The second track titled "Second Star Green" is a journey into the domain of post rock (a genre Doug was born into) and features rex guitarist Curtis Harvey on six string bass and Phil Spirito on four string bass. The last track "Black Shadow In The Year Of The Rat" is an ode to Hip Hop which will appear on an upcoming post rock compilation entitled "It Takes A Nation Of Millions Now Living Will Never Die To Hold Us Back."

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