HIM

Finnish rockers HIM, were set to grace Melbourne with their only Victorian Soundwave sideshow at the iconic Hi-Fi bar.

Two hours before the band were due to perform, an army of people showcasing outrageous hair, torn jeans, and creepy contact lenses lined the footpath of Swanson Street. You could feel the energy and excitement from this crowd.

I realised at this gig, that HIM are more than simply a band to these people; they are a cult. To the HIM faithful, catching a glimpse of lead singer, Ville Valo, was more like seeing a religious leader than musician. The majority of the crowd were wearing t-shirts from past HIM events, like medals of honour.

Everywhere you looked the iconic heartagram logo, made famous by pro skateboarder Bam Margera, was in your face - whether on clothing, posters, or tattooed on people. I too got caught up in the excitement, and couldn’t wait to see the band.

Supporting this heavy weight group was Australian band, Ikon. They sounded good live, remaining musically tight as a group; but I found their overall performance boring.

The band members barely moved around onstage, and rarely made an attempt to involve the audience with their set. I also found the monotone vocals of McCarter dull and uninteresting. It seemed Ikon noticed the lack of audience enthusiasm for their set. They exited the stage hastily and gave no sign of a goodbye to the crowd.

They left looking disappointed and slightly embarrassed. Regardless of this lacklustre supporting act, the atmosphere was still electric. Chants for HIM rumbled through the Hi-Fi, as people began pushing in as close to the stage as humanly possible.

The white lights faded to darkness onstage, catching everyone’s attention. I can honestly say I have never heard screams like I did the moment lead vocals, Ville Valo, came onto the stage. I could feel my brain vibrating.

HIMs set was bold and loud from start to finish, opening with 'Like St. Valentine'. Considering HIM have only just released their new album, titled Screamworks: Love in Theory and Practice, it was no surprise that majority of the set list featured tracks from this release.

Songs like 'Scared to Death' and 'Heartkiller' still had the crowd screaming along, while some just watched their beloved band in awe.

Ville Valo’s live vocals were worth all the hype, sounding studio quality. Valo put on show his amazing ability to master his own sound, jumping from slow melodic tones, to loud in your face screams.

But one thing I did find strange, and which didn’t really impress me, was his stage persona. He seemed very uninterested with performing.

During instrumental solos, instead of entertaining the audience Valo would casually walk around, turning his back to the crowd while messing around with items on a small table behind him. Even more strange was that he kept walking off stage during the set, leaving his band alone. The one good thing about these vanishing acts, was that it clearly illustrated how tight the bassist, guitarist, drummer and keyboardist are.

When Valo left, the group had to play an improvised musical solo to fill time. Each member played along with the other’s instruments, and the sound was really impressive. But unfortunately this lack of stamina plagued HIMs set. At one point the entire band left the stage, because Valo said he needed a break, leaving dead air for five minutes.

Back to positive elements of the performance. The set was intelligently organised, with appropriate amount of loud and mellow tracks. Big hits of the night included classic HIM tracks 'Wicked Game', 'Right Here in My Arms' and 'Buried Alive by Love'.

Finishing with an encore featuring 'The Funeral Of Hearts', everyone in the audience seemed content with the performance. Throwing their hands in the air, jumping into each other and screaming “I love you” to Valo. I thought that they sounded amazing live, and really enjoyed their music and overall show.

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