Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Buyit Soon, Venus Doom, September 24, 2007
Ok, so let me get this straight(after reading reviews on this and previous HIM CDs): This band has 'sold out' because:
(A)they are signed to an American label after 8 years as a band(with the 2005 'Dark Light' album) and you no longer have to pay 4x the price for one of their CDs as an import.
(B)they are getting played on American radio.
(C)they are the first band from Finland to go Gold in America
or
(D)all of the above?
I honestly don't understand the sell out remarks. All I know is that this band makes good interesting emotional music. So what's the problem? None, in my opinion. Well, just one: their CD booklets aren't that interesting. ha
I think the new CD is great. The biggest difference that I noticed compared to thier previous 'sell out'(yes, sarcasm) Dark Light is that there are less keyboards on this new CD and -brace yourself- guitar solos! The riffs are memorable and Ville Valo sings in all the styles you would expect him to. None of the songs remind you of anything off of Dark Light. There's no real toe tappers on here like 'Rip Out The Wings of a Butterfly" and you really need to listen more intently with the new CD. I only wish there were more than 9 songs on it. Oddly, the 10-minute "Sleepwalking Past Hope" is the least interesting song on the CD to me.
I think anyone reviewing this CD needs to listen to it at least half a dozen times before any attempt at a review is made. Each HIM CD I buy I usually have to listen to over and over to really get into because this band sounds like no other band that I listen to and that makes for a truly unique band. You know instantly who it is even if you've never heard the song before. I like bands like that. If you like their other stuff, then this one will be no different in my opinion. If you like the single 'Kiss of Dawn' then that's all you really need to know in deciding to buy this CD. I was hoping for more keyboards after listening to it, because they have a really weird keyboard sound on all of thier CDs, but it's still great. They toned down the haunted house/phantom of the opera type keyboards(as I call it) this time around. Maybe that's why everyone is saying 'sell out' cos they sound closer to a more traditional rock band. Nevertheless... great CD.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
I'm still in love..., October 3, 2007
It seems that a band can't ever do anything new without being labeled a sell-out. And those spouting such epithets are often those who have no experience whatsoever in playing or writing music.
I've noticed that after many years of working in retail establishments that sell CDs, a lot of people are like sheep. They find one band they like, cling to it, and then search out other bands that sound just like it. I have never understood this. I don't want all of my music to sound alike; what would be the fun in that? Honestly, I can't think of a particular band that really reminds me of HIM. They are, in my opinion, an entity unto themselves. I love the variety of HIM's music over the course of their career, and COMMERCIAL SUCCESS DOES NOT MAKE YOU A SELL-OUT. It makes you a hard worker. Sheesh. And honestly, do you people think that Ville Valo would ever conform to what a record label wanted just for the sake of selling albums? Come on! That guy has never conformed a day in his life, and he isn't about to start now.
I loved this album. I've loved all of HIM's albums since I discovered them a mere two years ago - I'm surprised I didn't know of them sooner, as my husband is half Finnish. Anyway, the album is very guitar heavy, owing to the fact that when they started to record the album, Burton (keyboards) was home with a new baby. And you know what? The heavy guitar works. The riffs are great - Linde (lead guitar) really gets to show off on this album. Ville's vocals are brilliant - really, when are they not? - and the overall sound is tight and speaks to the band's many years together.
This album is dark and a bit gritty (in a good way), and different from what I expected. There are no tender love songs here, no sweet words, mostly just desolation, grief, and anger. Mmmm. My inner goth girl loves it. I enjoy the more sophisticated structure of the songs, especially changing time signatures in the course of a single song (example: "Bleed Well"). And having a song completely in 3/4 time ("Cyanide Sun") is daring - I've been told by people in the music industry that you can't have a hit in 3/4 time. Riiiight.
Writing songs is hard. Making a living in music is harder. (I know both of these things from personal experience.) I respect anyone who can do it, and HIM does it well. People can cry "sell-out" all they want - it's a free country - but my opinion is that the band is excellent at what they do, and the rest of the world is finally starting to notice.
End of story.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Another Solid Effort, September 25, 2007
After coming to the realization that no other album would ever top the masterpiece "Razorblade Romance", I've been able to thoroughly enjoy each album HIM has put out since. The band's last several albums seem to stick with a similar style, and "Venus Doom" does that for the most part but also brings in a few fresh things. Prior to the album's release, vocalist Ville Valo described this latest effort as a combination between Metallica and My Bloody Valentine. I've never listened to much MBV, so I can't compare the 2. But you won't hear much Metallica sounding stuff on this, with the exception of a few cool guitar solos from Linde that remind me of something Kirk Hammet would play in the "Master Of Puppets" days. The whole album is full of great guitar work actually. Ville also uses a lot more of his deep vocals this time around, and they sound really good on songs like "Kiss Of Dawn", but they felt a little forced on the title track. "Passions Killing Floor" and "Bleed Well" are your typical fast-paced HIM tunes, but "Sleepwalking Past Hope" is a unique epic that clocks in around 10 minutes, and is one of my favorites on the album. "Song Or Suicide" is only about a minute and a half long, with a nice acoustic guitar melody which is usually uncommon on HIM's albums. Overall, this album is what you'd come to expect from HIM, but they did manage to throw in several surprises that you could appriciate. Aside from a few guitar solos, I wouldn't compare this album much with Metallica, but I definitely hear some influence of Type O Negative in several areas.
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