Children of Bodom

Children of Bodom's symbol is the Grim Reaper, and they often refer to themselves as the Hate Crew. Gothic rock, Siouxsie and the Banshees. Roope successfully finished the world tour and took part in the recording of the Trashed, Lost & Strungout single. Ever since then, he has been playing regularly with Children of Bodom and seems to have assumed a permanent position in the line-up that will record the band's upcoming album. The Cure, Join the Dots: B-Sides and Rarities 1978-2001 (15). This formation was introduced in Moscow on the 16th of August. 2. Alexi's bandmate from Sinergy, Roope Latvala (founding member of Stone, one of the bands which started the heavy metal movement in Finland) then replaced him as a session player, until a more permanent solution could be found. The Cure, Join the Dots: B-Sides and Rarities 1978-2001 (13).

This tour had many sold-out concerts and was a defining point in their career, but it was also accompanied by an unexpected annoucement: Alexander decided to quit the band for personal reasons, giving no warning and right in the middle of the tour. 1. With their rapidly increasing success, Children of Bodom recorded another album, and their first complete world tour began in 2003 and lasted until late 2004. Given that the group had just recently released a four-disc set of b-sides, the amount of non-album material the band possesses appears to be rather high. The band gave this album the name of Follow the Reaper and recording sessions took place between August and September of 2000; the album saw a worldwide release in early 2001. Inspired by Elvis Costello's reissues, other albums ("Faith", "Seventeen Seconds" and "Pornography") are planned in the series. The band wrote eight new songs for the album, and while on the studio, decided to add an extra track, which was hastly composed and whose lyrics were improvised by Alexi; that track would eventually receive the name of Kissing the Shadows. In 2004, a reissue of Three Imaginary Boys was released, with a second bonus disc of unreleased material, demos, live tracks etc.

For their next release, the band decided to make use of Peter Tägtgren's Abyss studio in Sweden, instead of the Finnish ASTIA studio from Anssi Kippo, in which they had recorded all of their previous releases, including the demos from IneartheD. The show was hosted by Marilyn Manson. With only two albums recorded previously, the band managed to play a technically flawless concert, seamlessly reproducing and at times improving on their songs. In the event, many artists ranging from AFI to Blink 182 covered various Cure songs as a tribute to the band. In one of these shows, the album Tokyo Warhearts was recorded. The Cure have been made 2004's MTV Icon. In late 1999, Children of Bodom was finally able to tour with Janne on the keyboards. The success of the Downfall single and of the Hatebreeder album allowed them to make three shows in Japan with the veterans from In Flames and with Sinergy. The album also received a generally positive reaction with some critics rating it as the group's best since Disintegration.

The band showcased the song Towards Dead End for the first time during this tour. The album The Cure made a top ten debut on both sides of the Atlantic in July 2004 and debuted in the top 30 in Australia. Alexi's then-girlfriend Kimberly Goss (from Sinergy and ex-Dimmu Borgir and Therion) played with them this time around. They also appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. Their second tour happened in September of the same year, but once more Janne was not able to play with them. To promote this album, the band headlined the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival on May 2. He was replaced by Erna Siikavirta - a female pianist who is a friend of the band's and who curently plays with the teatrical band Lordi - for the duration of the tour. The Cure released their first eponymous album on iam records on June 28, 2004.

They played together with Hypocrisy and a few other bands such as Covenant and Agathodaimon, but suffered from the absence of Janne, who was busy finishing his studies. This album peaked at #106 on the Billboard 200 album charts. Children of Bodom's first tour happened in February of 1998. The set includes seventy Cure songs, some previously unreleased, and a 76-page full-colour book of photographs, history and quotes, packaged in a hard cover. The video directed by Mika Lindberg had a slim budget of €1000, but managed to convey the band's style well through the use of simple scenery, in which they play at night, in the cold. In 2004 The Cure released a new four-disc boxed set on Fiction Records titled Join the Dots: B-Sides and Rarities, 1978-2001 (The Fiction Years). Something Wild was officially released in November of 1997, and for promotional purposes the band recoeded a music video of the song Deadnight Warrior. In the spring of 2003, The Cure signed to iam Records.

However, their success was such that the Nuclear Blast label approached them with a contract for an European release; the deal started in the following year. These performances were relased as the Trilogy DVD in 2003. With the intention of promoting the upcoming release of Something Wild, the band opened one of the shows from the black metal band Dimmu Borgir. In 2002 they continued recording, and also headlined twelve major music festivals, in addition to playing several three-hour concerts during which they performed the albums Pornography, Disintegration and Bloodflowers in their entirety in Berlin. In late 2004, Finnish police arrested the survivor, who is the main suspect of commiting the crime. In 2001 The Cure left Fiction and released their Greatest Hits album. The murders have remained one of the most widely-discussed cases in Scandinavian history and remained unsolved for more than fourty years. The band also embarked on the nine-month Dream Tour, attended by over one million people worldwide.

There was a lone survivor, who has lived a relatively normal life afterwards. This album was widely seen as the third in a trilogy including Pornography and Disintegration. The story of the Lake Bodom murders goes as follows: on the night of June the 4th of 1960, three teenagers were murdered while on a camping trip to the lake. The Grammy-nominated album Bloodflowers was released in 2000. A long list of possible names involving the word Bodom was then made, and they settled with Children of Bodom. The Cure also contributed to the soundtrack album for The X-Files: Fight the Future as well as For the Masses, a Depeche Mode tribute album. When they stumbled upon Lake Bodom, they realised it was a name with impact; one which had an interesting story behind it. In 1996 The Cure released the album Wild Mood Swings, and in 1998 Smith appeared as himself on the animated TV show South Park.

The answer to that problem came as the bandmen looked for good names in their local phone book. Boris Williams (drums) left the band, and was replaced by Jason Cooper (formerly with My Life Story), and Roger O'Donnell rejoined. For the band to be able to sign with Spinefarm Records, they were forced to change their name, since the contract with the Belgian label had already been signed under the name of IneartheD. During 1994, Lol Tolhurst sued Robert Smith and Fiction Records over royalties payments, also claiming joint ownership of the name "The Cure" with Smith; after a long legal battle Tolhurst eventually lost. The later deal was much more interesting for the band, since the Belgian label was offering them close to no help, to the point where they would have to distribute and sell the album themselves. Porl Thompson (guitar) left the band once more during 1993 to play with Robert Plant and Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin. Their debut - Something Wild - was supposed to be released by a small Belgian label, but Sami Tenetz (from Thy Serpent) got hold of a copy of their album through the hands of Alexander shortly after IneartheD signed this contract, and sent it to Spinefarm Records' boss, who immediately got interested in signing them for a country-wide release. The EP has since become an extremely sought after item, copies exchanging hands for approaching £100.

Janne was the component that was missing for IneartheD to assume the style that would later characterize Children of Bodom. With him, the band successfully recorded their first album in the year of 1997 and got a professional deal from it. Entitled Lost Wishes, the proceeds from the four track cassette tape went to charity. So he was fired from the band - albeit not in a hostile manner - and a friend of Jaska's, a talented pianist called Janne "Warman" Wirman, assumed the position of keyboard player. As a promotional exercise with the Our Price music chain in the UK, a limited edition EP was released consisting of instrumental outtakes from the Wish sessions. Alexi wanted to make use of the keyboards more effectively this time around, and Pirisjoki just wasn't fit for the task anymore. The Cure also embarked on the "Wish Tour" and released the live albums Show and Paris. As a last resort, the band decided to record an independent album, funding all of the production costs themselves, a daring move considering that none of them had much money to begin with. "Mixed Up" was followed in 1992 by the album Wish, which went straight to #1 in the UK and to #2 in the US.

It was a harsh time, in which - despite all of their efforts - their music got no exposure and they only managed to play at small events. In 1990 The Cure released a collection of remixes called Mixed Up, a collection which was roundly panned by both critics and fans (Smith says that he expected this, but decided to release the collection anyway). This new demo didn't impress record labels much more than the previous ones had, and no label took interest in the young Finnish band. This tour featured some of the band's longest ever shows; their final gig at Wembley Arena (announced By Robert as "probably our last show") lasted over three and a half hours. With this new line-up, IneartheD recorded their third demo, named Shining. The Cure embarked on the "Prayer" tour. The person chosen for that role was Jani Pirisjoki. In 1989 they released the album Disintegration, which became their highest-charting album to date at #3 and featured four Top 20 singles ("Lullaby", "Fascination Street", "Pictures of You", and "Lovesong"). Shortly before the release, Tolhurst left permanently, leaving Smith as the only remaining founding member of The Cure.

For some time, Alexi and Jaska played and recorded the keyboard sections of IneartheD's songs separately and later mixed the keyboard track with the other instruments, but in 1996 they felt the need of adding a musician to specialize in keyboards. In 1988 the band history Ten Imaginary Years was released, and Lol Tolhurst, though he had not yet left the band, was replaced by Roger O'Donnell. When the band was about to record their second demo, Alexander was invited to join them and soon became an active member of the band. In 1987 The Cure released the double album Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me, and embarked on the "Kissing Tour.". Jaska played a French horn in a local big band at the time, and one day - during rehearsal - he met Alexander Kuoppala, who was a trumpet player and also a good guitarist. Throughout 1986 Lol Tolhurst's alcohol consumption was interfering with his ability to perform, and Roger O'Donnell was frequently called upon to stand in for him. From then on, Henkka also started doubling as the band's backing vocalist. The album's title was taken from a line in the song "Killing an Arab." This release was accompanied by a video version called Staring at the Sea and by another tour, as well as a live concert film called The Cure In Orange.

Despite the slight age difference, they got along well and soon Hennka became the band's new bass player. Following this release and another world tour, the band released Standing on a Beach, a collection featuring all The Cure's singles and B-sides. In junior high, Alexi and Jaska got to know Henkka "Blacksmith" Seppälä, who was one year younger than them. In 1985 the new lineup released The Head on the Door which reached #7 in the UK and #59 on the American charts. Alexi, who previously only composed the melodies of the songs, assumed the role of the band's lyricist. Robert Smith later expressed his satisfaction with the reunited Cure, saying "we're a band again.". His last contribution to IneartheD were the lyirics of the songs from their second demo, Ubiguitous Absence of Remission. At the end of the tour, however, Anderson was fired and replaced by Boris Williams, and Thornalley was replaced by returnee Simon Gallup.

Samuli was the main composer of the band's lyrics for the two years he took part of IneartheD, but in 1995 his family moved to the USA and there was no way for him to continue in the band. The Cure then embarked on their "Top Tour" with Thompson, Anderson, and bassist Phil Thornalley on board. The band recorded its first demo - entitled Implosion of Heaven - on that same year. In 1984 The Cure released The Top, an album on which Smith played all the instruments except the drums (played by Andy Anderson) and the saxophone (played by returnee Porl Thompson). Having known each other since childhood and sharing the same interest for heavy/death metal bands such as Stone, Entombed and Obituary, they formed the original line-up of the band that would later become Children of Bodom together with bassist Samuli Miettinen. Reduced to the duo of Smith and Tolhurst, the Cure released four studio singles and their B-sides as the album Japanese Whispers. The singles from this period were uncharacteristically upbeat and accessible, though Smith would soon return to writing more melancholy (if not as somber) material. The band was founded in 1993 by guitarist Alexi "Wildchild" Laiho and drummer Jaska Raatikainen under the name of IneartheD. The same year, Smith also recorded and toured with Siouxsie and the Banshees, contributing his writing and playing skills on their Hyaena and Nocturne albums, as well as recording the Blue Sunshine album as The Glove (see above).

Children of Bodom is a Finnish band from the small town of Espoo which is one of the precursors of the melodic death metal style. In 1983 The Cure released two more singles, "The Walk" (UK #12) and "The Lovecats," which became the band's first UK top 10 single at #7. Waiting, by King Diamond. Smith says that he "doesn't even remember making a lot of Pornography" (2). Somebody Put Something In My Drink, by Ramones. After an altercation in a club between Smith and Simon Gallup, Gallup left the group and started another one called Fools Dance. Silent Scream, by Slayer. The release was followed by the "Fourteen Explicit Moments" tour, and by increasing problems among the members.

Shot In the Dark, by Ozzy Osbourne. Perhaps because of the rumours, Pornography became the band's first UK Top 10 album, hitting the charts at #9. K. In 1982 The Cure recorded Pornography, a bleak, nihilist offering that led to more rumours that Smith was suicidal. She Is Beautiful, by Andrew W. The band members' lives began to be marked by increasing drug use. Rebell Yell, by Billy Idol. Smith's increasing depression was embodied in the album, Faith, released in 1981.

No Commands, by Stone. In the next two years, I genuinely felt that I wasn't going to be alive for much longer, and I tried pretty hard to make this feeling come true" (1). Mass Hypnosis, by Sepultura. Now 21, Smith "didn't see that there was much point in continuing with life. Latomeri, by Klamydia. Carnage Visors was used as a "tour support" film for their "Picture Tour". Hellion, by W.A.S.P. In 1981 came the album Faith, which hit #14 on the UK charts, as well as an instrumental soundtrack for the film Carnage Visors (these were packaged together as a long-play cassette called Faith/Carnage Visors).

Don't Stop at the Top, by Scorpions. The Cure set out on their first world tour, at the end of which Matthieu Hartley left the band. Bed of Nails, by Alice Cooper. "A Forest" became the band's first UK hit single. Aces High, by Iron Maiden. In 1980 the 4-piece Cure released "Seventeen Seconds" which reached #20 on the UK charts. Trashed, Lost & Strungout (2004). Member Michael Dempsey left the band, and Simon Gallup (bass) and Matthieu Hartley (keyboards) joined.

You're Better Off Dead! (2002). The next single "Boys Don't Cry" was a minor hit in the US, and Three Imaginary Boys was repackaged for sale there as Boys Don't Cry. Hate Me! (2000). In 1979, The Cure released the album Three Imaginary Boys and embarked on an extensive period of touring, during which they performed with various other iconic bands such as Joy Division and Siouxsie & the Banshees, leading eventually to a collaboration between Smith and Banshees member Steven Severin, released under the name The Glove. Downfall (1998). The Cure released their first single "Killing an Arab" to both acclaim and controversy; while the single's provocative title led to accusations of racism, the song is actually based on French existentialist Albert Camus' story The Stranger. The single was packaged with a sticker label that denied the racist connotations. Children of Bodom (1997). The B-Side to the single "Boys Don't Cry", "Do the Hansa" was The Cure's way of getting back at Hansa Records for not signing them.

Shining (Demo, 1996). A year later, following disagreements about the direction the group should take, the newly named The Cure were signed as a trio (minus Porl Thompson) by former Polydor records scout Chris Parry's new Fiction label (distributed by Polydor). Ubiquitous Absence of Remission (Demo, 1995). In 1977, The Easy Cure auditioned for Hansa Records and received a recording contract worth £1000. Implosion of Heaven (Demo, 1994). They began writing their own songs almost immediately, and quickly amassed both an impressive repertoire of original material and a growing following. Hate Crew Deathroll (2003). Wilfrid's Catholic Comprehensive School in Crawley, Sussex.

Follow the Reaper (2001). In 1976 Robert Smith, a 17-year-old student, formed The Easy Cure with classmates Michael Dempsey (bass), Lol Tolhurst (drums) and Porl Thompson (guitar) from St. Tokyo Warhearts (Live CD, 1999). The band is often considered as being part of the Gothic genre, possibly because of lead singer Robert Smith's image, but Smith rejects this, saying that he considers the band to be mainstream. Hatebreeder (1999). The Cure is a British rock band widely seen as one of the leading pioneers of the British alternative rock and post-punk scenes of the 1980s. Something Wild (1997). Jason Cooper (percussion; member 1995-present).

Samuli Miettinen - Bass. Perry Bamonte (keyboards, guitars; member 1990-present). Jani Pirisjoki - Keyboards. Roger O'Donnell (keyboards; member 1987-1990 & 1995-present). Alexander Kuoppala - Rhythm guitar. Boris Williams (percussion; member 1984-1994). Jaska Raatikainen - Drums. Andy Anderson (percussion; member 1983-1984).

Henkka Seppälä - 5-string bass. Phil Thornalley (bass guitar; member 1983-1984). Janne Viljami Wirman - Keyboards. Matthieu Hartley (keyboards; member 1979-1980). Roope Latvala - Rhythm guitar. Simon Gallup (bass guitar; member 1979-1982 & 1985-present). Alexi Laiho - Vocals, lead guitar. Michael Dempsey (bass guitar; member 1976-1979).

Lol Tolhurst (percussion, keyboards; member 1976-1989). Porl Thompson (guitars; member 1977-1978 & 1984-1992). Robert Smith (vocals, guitar, keyboards; member 1976-present). Trilogy.

Greatest Hits. Galore. The Cure Play Out. Picture Show.

The Cure in Orange. Standing on a Beach. "I want to be old" - demo from '77/'78. "Need Myself" - demo from '77/'78.

"Listen" - demo from '77/'78. "Meathook" - demo from '77/'78. "See the children" - demo from '77/'78. Join the Dots: B-Sides and Rarities, 1978-2001 (The Fiction Years) (2004) #106 US.

Greatest Hits (2001, compilation of singles 1978-2001/two new tracks) #33 UK, #58 US. Galore (1997, compilation of singles 1987-1997) #37 UK, #32 US. Show (1993, live) #29 UK, #42 US. Paris (1993, live) #118 US.

Mixed Up (1990, remixes) #8 UK, #14 US. Integration (boxed set). Entreat (1991) (songs from Distintegration live) #10 UK. Standing on a Beach (1986, singles compilation) #4 UK, #48 US.

Available only on cassette. Concert and Curiosity (1984), The Concert album with unreleased tracks on the b-side. Concert (1984, live) #26 UK. Happily Ever After (Seventeen Seconds and Faith together U.S.-only release).

Faith/Carnage Visors (1981), a special long-play cassette. Three Imaginary Boys (2CD Deluxe edition)(2004). The Cure (2004) #8 UK, #7 US