lukretion The decadent title chosen for The 69 Eyes’ sixth album – Paris Kills – captures well the essence of the music it contains: glossy and romantic goth ‘n’ roll that even vampires would fall in love with. In many ways, Paris Kills is the natural evolution of the two albums that preceded it, as the Finns continue their ascension to the summit of the then-popular Love Metal genre, shedding away the edgier, noisier and heavier aspects of their sound in favour of the same mellow and poised gothic allure their countrymen HIM and Sentenced were showcasing in those years.

The new songs have a direct and simple structure, usually consisting of subdued verses tightly woven around catchy hooks on the choruses. The guitars chug away and the bass pulsates in the background, giving the music a dense and groovy backbone, with plenty of space for the keyboards and vocals. Played by producer Johnny Lee Michaels, the keyboards are fairly prominent here, and rely on both subtle electronic loops and warmer organ-drenched sounds. Jyrki’s vocals are the other dominant aspect of the music. His croon is low and ominous, but also alluring and seductive – a perfect black gothic vampire at the mic. The main vocal lines are beautifully complemented by vivid rock-n-roll backing vocals that inject good energy into the music.

The template works a charm and it’s hard to find a fault with textbook-perfect goth anthems such as “Crashing High”, “Dance d’Amour” or “Betty Blue” (all launched as singles) or many of the other songs included here. I also enjoy how the album seems to enter a more experimental phase towards its mid-section, as tracks such as “Grey”, “Radical”, and “Stigmata” usher in electro-industrial vibes and an overall more sinister mood. It’s a welcome digression from the love-drenched goth decadence of the rest of the record, which would have otherwise been too homogeneous to retain interest from start to finish.

Paris Kills will eventually go platinum and is still considered The 69 Eyes’ crowning achievement by some. Personally, I prefer the two albums that preceded it, Wasting the Dawn and Blessed Be: they may be rawer but they are also more inspired and genuine compared to the material included here. In fact, the biggest problem I have with Paris Kills is that is sounds a tad too tame and predictable, as if, by perfecting their formula to its ultimate level, the Finns might have somewhat lost that sacred flame of artistry that burns instead so vividly in their less-perfect, but more earnest previous records.

Kev Rowland ‘The Helsinki Vampires’ have been at it for more than twenty years now, and no prizes at all for guessing that this is their tenth album. What we have here is goth metal, but much more in the vein of The Cult and even Billy Idol than Fields of the Nephilim or the mighty Type O Negative. This is pop mixed with melodic rock, dirty guitars and gothic vocals and the result is something that is well-suited to radio fodder and maybe that is the point? There is no real depth to the music, no real passion, almost as if playing their trade down this musical path for so long even they are bored of it. Now I know that these guys have sold a great many records, and I am sure that this will do well for them, but it’s not for me. Need less to say I get really annoyed myself when I find that the odd song such as “I Know What You Did Last Summer” has something indefinable going for it. Maybe they’re like Nickelback – no serious metalhead will admit to enjoying their songs but many of us have some stashed somewhere and just won’t admit it… This really is an album that you need to hear before purchasing.