HIM

HIM (sometimes typeset H.I.M.) is a Finnish rock band from Helsinki, formed in 1991 by vocalist Ville Valo, guitarist Mikko Lindström, and bassist Mikko Paananen. The band was originally called "His Infernal Majesty", but later changed their name.

The band released their first full-length studio album, Greatest Love Songs Vol. 666, on November 20, 1997. It featured covers of Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game" and Blue Öyster Cult's "(Don't Fear) The Reaper".

After gaining popularity in Europe, particularly in their homeland, HIM released its second album in 1999, titled Razorblade Romance. This is when the band's popularity began to rise, their single "Join Me in Death" from the album reached #1 on the German music charts, selling over 500,000 of this single in two months. Join Me in Death was used as the soundtrack of European version of sci-fi movie 'The 13th Floor', thus making it more popular worldwide.

Following this German success they released two more Germany only singles from this album; "Right Here in My Arms" and "Gone With the Sin", which reached #20 and #19 on the charts respectively. Around this time they were also becoming better known in other parts of Europe, such as the United Kingdom. The album itself reached #1 in both Germany and their native Finland.

On April 14, 2003, HIM released Love Metal. This was the first album that did not feature singer/songwriter Ville Valo on the cover. Instead, it featured a gold heartagram, the band's well-known logo. "The Funeral of Hearts" was the first single and their first high appearance on the United Kingdom charts at #14, it also hit #3 in Germany. It was followed by "Buried Alive By Love" and "The Sacrament". (The Sacrament was recently used as the ending for the anime film Highlander: The Search for Vengeance.)

Around the time of the Love Metal album, the group became more well-known in the US and internationally when professional skateboarder and TV personality Bam Margera began using the band's heartagram logo and promoting them extensively on his MTV series Viva La Bam. Margera produced their video for "Buried Alive By Love", which featured a guest appearance from Natural Born Killers actress Juliette Lewis. They played at Download Festival in 2003 on the second stage with The Hellacopters; the following year they would go on to headline the same stage.

HIM's fifth studio album, 2005's Dark Light, became the band's full breakthrough in the US, debuting in the top 20 of the Billboard Top 200 and spawning two major rock hits, "Wings of a Butterfly" and "Killing Loneliness", both of which have accompanying videos. Kat Von D appears in the video for "Killing Loneliness" tattooing the eyes Ville Valo has on his back as well as throughout in small glimpses of foreshadowing.

Venus Doom was released on September 17 2007. The song "Passion's Killing Floor" is on the Transformers soundtrack. On June 9th 2009, HIM announced in a phone interview with Euro-Rock Radio that they will be recording their new album in August 2009 with producer Matt Squire in Los Angeles, California. The album is scheduled to be released in early 2010.