Album Review: H.I.M. - XX: Two Decades Of Love Metal

'So Ville Valo and his Finnish crew have really been kicking for 20 years?', you ask, your voice slightly incredulous. Yes, in fact, they've been kicking for 20 years. Even though you probably stopped listening to their over-dramatic Euro-goth-rock after you graduated high school, H.I.M. have continued going from strength to strength, never tinkering too much with a formula of angst, goth-approved imagery (tears, blood, funerals, etc.) and hints of optimism.

XX: Two Decades Of Love Metal captures how successful H.I.M. have been at writing adolescent rock'n'roll for all those years. Most bands who write music targeted to young audiences sound totally contrived by the time most of their members reach their late-20s, but the tracks here taken from H.I.M.'s last studio effort Screamworks: Love In Theory And Practice show that Valo and his cohort have managed to retain a feeling of relevance and honesty. Previously unreleased track, opener Strange World, further proves that H.I.M. are in no danger of growing up. These guys are still hitting the same powering guitar riffs, well-placed keyboard flourishes and super-bombastic choruses that simultaneously make you want to dance and cry. 

It would have been nice to hear XX veer away from the studio records/hits, the Venus Doom and Razorblade Romance records get the biggest workout here. Especially when some of the remixes and covers the band recorded as part of their Uneasy Listening records are so good – their cover of Turbonegro's Rendezvous With Anus is absolutely essential H.I.M., as is their glammy reworking of Bad Brains' Sailin' On – but XX is still an excellent snapshot of the career of these goth rock Peter Pans.