HIM: THE OFFICIAL STARTING POINTS REVIEW BUNDLE
Both 'Razorblade Romance' and 'Greatest Love Songs Vol. 666' are two of my favorite albums - with 'Razorblade Romance' managing to be one of my all-time top favorites. Both albums are in constant and wildly consistent rotation for me, and having them both in one convenient package sounds like a HIM fans' dream come true. It was a very smart marketing move for the people selling the combined albums, and the overall quality of both is deeply consistent.
The albums go together like puzzle pieces, with both feeling like essential rock albums despite being somewhat niche in a greater sense. These are two albums you simply cannot miss out on, and having them together is a gorgeous showcase of HIM's earliest polished projects on a larger scale.
GREATEST LOVE SONGS VOL. 666
SCORE: 100/100
March 19, 2025
Widely described as gothic rock, HIM's debut opened the doors for what would be classified as "love metal" by both the band themselves and fans of the band. HIM's electrifying, passionate, and dark style all crash into each other - leading to an almost undefinable mix of soundscapes littered throughout their impressive discography. It's a wildly impressive and awe-inspiring debut, a debut that makes a band instantly recognizable, leading them to praise and leading their second album into very impressive territories. When a band has their sound this mastered so early on in their career there can only be good ahead.
'Greatest Love Songs Vol. 666' is produced immaculately, with precise sound choices and stunning arrangements coming together into a much bigger picture. The band makes themselves known instantaneously, with the individual talents of the members coming through on the tracks while charismatic and dark frontman Ville Valo takes the steering wheel and brings the album to where it needed to be. He is the grounding element to the band - the element that makes the band as incredible as they are; without Valo, there is no HIM.
It's clear that the band already knew what they were doing at this point in their career. Their sound is down to a masterclass level despite this album being their official debut - the songs are polished and crisp, with new sounds flooding in and a huge amount of variety between the tracks. It's a heavier album than 'Razorblade Romance', making use of heavy guitar riffs and dark-tinged instrumentals that bring the album to sheer greatness. It's a stunning portrait of the band as a whole, with their style being showcased to the nines for the entire runtime of the LP.
The songs on 'Greatest Love Songs Vol. 666' are simply gorgeous. The compositions throughout the album are impressive and captivating - mixing heavy rock elements with sensual hooks and rhythms that are enchanting to listen to. It's the type of album to leave a person in a trance; it manages to be the perfect opening to their discography, showcasing the heavier edge to their music while the lighter side of their style still battles for dominance throughout.
Ville's vocal range makes the project that much more impressive, with his voice going from dark & deep to high and airy in mere seconds. His vocal performances make this album even more enjoyable, with it being clear that he was destined to be the frontman of the band with his voice alone; his image helped, but his voice is what really drove the band into the wonderful spot they were in. He has the melodies of each track wrapped around his finger, toying with each track until they are perfectly catered to the sound of the band.
HIM had their sound mastered by this point in time - but it was their image that was not yet fleshed out to its full potential. The growth of their image as well as the shift in their sound is what would make them even more mainstream, but this album does an excellent job at introducing the world to the band. Their heavier sound is wonderful to listen to - mixing light and dark & love and death into one intimate melting pot.
It's not often that a debut album is this striking - but when it does happen it's that much more impressive. The band works together incredibly well and it shows all throughout this album; their playing is cohesive and consistent in both style and quality, the individual members of the band all coming together to make something deeply impressive and highly enjoyable. The guitar in particular stands out by a long shot on this album, with the heavy, gritty riffs leading the album into the heavy and dark direction that it winds up being in.
The switches in the mid-end sections of some of the tracks make the album even more captivating, with the tracks hooking you in and making sure that your attention is kept all throughout the album. It's an impressive album that is comparable to 'Razorblade Romance' in quality - but they differ in style slightly due to this album feeling heavier in its compositions than their 1999 album release. The tracks don't drag from their length, and the entirety of the album is impressively consistent through and through. It's truly something worth marveling at, and it's clear that the band had infinite amount of promise from the very start.
RAZORBLADE ROMANCE:
SCORE: 100/100
March 5, 2025
HIM's second and most well known album manages to be both loving and melancholic all at the same time - with almost otherworldly qualities that you simply will not find from any other band, 'Razorblade Romance' is a passionate album that is full of feelings and heart within every track, it's a clearly fleshed out and worked on project that was polished until absolute perfection, and Ville Valo makes himself even more known as a stunning vocalist throughout the 42 minute runtime of the album.
Each track is just as stunning as the last - with gorgeous compositions and a masterful chemistry behind the members of the band, HIM made themselves even more known with 'Razorblade Romance'; an album that contains some of what may be considered their "signature" material and their sound being shown off to the max. It's not often that a band can create a new subgenre due to how striking their music is - but with HIM came love metal.
The album is both sultry and full of gothic elements that are enough to make the band instantaneously recognizable for their style and unavoidable charm. The overall sound of the album is completely off the charts and it is a divine example of some of the best rock sounds of the era that this album came from. The tracks are stunning and keep a consistent pace and style that makes the album deeply enjoyable and wholeheartedly gorgeous to listen to at every turn that it may have.
'Razorblade Romance' gets nearly half of its charm from how deeply stylized and downright stylish the album is as a whole. It's a stunning portrait of the band from the very minute the album kicks off, and it doesn't let up from it's shimmering sound for even a second; with even the slower songs adding the the beauty of an album that can snap between slow & sweet and dark & heavy in an instant.
The album truly covers all bases with each track being unique from the last while keeping a generalized sense of coherency throughout the project, and it's a stunning album where all of the songs are truly on the same level. It's near impossible to put one track against another, and it's a true experience of an album that feels like more than just an album - it feels as if you are being invited for a while longer to absorb the music, leaving you coming back for more at any given chance.
Never in my life have I heard an album with songs that make me feel anything quite like the ones presented on 'Razorblade Romance', and it's truly a timeless album that has held up magnificently well for being decades old. It's a truly gorgeous album with each twist and turn that it presents, with the tracks coming together into a much bigger picture that almost can not be topped.
It's a deeply emotional and loving album that will wrap you up in its gothic tenderness without letting you go - with moments of softness amongst the rough, 'Razorblade Romance' is easily one of the most stunning alternative-goth albums possible.
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