HIM's Ville Valo on Losing Sami & Shaping Goth Metal

0:00On April 30th, Ville Valo from the band Him is marking their 30th anniversary by opening up about the roots of their sound. He pins the whole melancholy vibe that made them goth metal stars on the death of his dog, Sammy, when he was just 6 years old. That furry friend was like a brother, and losing him sparked his first real taste of darkness. The band kicked off back in school days when Ville teamed up with basses Maj and guitarist Lynn for something morbid and new. They drew heavy inspiration from Black Sabbath's debut album, but another big influence was Chris Isaac's Moody Krune and Gothic Twing, that led them straight to covering Isaac's hit, Wicked Game, after Ville caught it on the wilded hard soundtrack. He grabbed the record from the library, and he and Lynn jammed out the riffs right there. It helped shape their unique style early on. In Finland's metal scene, him hit big fast, but some media lumped him in with Norway's wild black metal crowd amid all the church burnings and scandals.

1:00Ville had to set the record straight on TV, stressing their heart on fire romance over any real darkness. He laughed off the black metal seriousness, calling him more like light Satan vibes compared to guys taking it way too far. It's a fun look back at how they carved their path without the extreme edge. That's the story for today. Music News Today, Driven by AI.