I’ve been a fan of Finnish ‘Love Metallers’ HIM since my early teens. It must’ve been one of my first un-adult accompanied gigs when I went to see them at Portsmouth Guildhall. Thanks to a brief sound problem (causing many over 18s to head straight to the bar) we managed to squeeze our way close to the front. Lead singer Ville Valo prowled the stage, cigarette in hand, rich baritone voice echoing the room like some untouchable rock God.

All the way home they were the only thing we could talk about. Did they wander about Portsmouth before the show? Had they stood where we were standing now? Years later, when I briefly moved to the city, walking past the Guildhall on a night out would still bring back happy memories.

‘Buried Alive By Love’ has to be my favourite song of HIM’s (and one that I used to have playing on repeat on the bus to college). It features the beautiful Juliette Lewis (of Natural Born Killers fame).

What are they up to now?

The band are releasing their eighth album ‘Tears On Tape’ on April 29th. They’re touring pretty constantly from April onwards. More info on their facebook here.

RC xx