Aria van Weye 
The first time I ever heard of Ville Valo was years back when I was a 19 year old university student. I was at a LAN with my ex boyfriend and my mates and I remember someone handing me the whole discography for HIM. The first song I heard was ‘Poison Girl’ and this led me to develop my undying love and devotion to all things VV/Him related…. 20 years later and my love and devotion has not faded, if anything it has grown. I know that anything Ville Valo releases was going to be a banger, but let me tell you, even after years of being a fan, I was shocked to see myself falling in love with his music all over again with the release of ‘Neon Noir’. This album is pure genius talent and there is not one song that I did not fall in love with. It’s not often you get an album where you love every single track, and yet VV has once again managed to the impossible with his new offering ‘Neon Noir’.
The 12 track album is moody, dark and perfectly lyrical. Many people have compared his work to HIM, but hello, he wrote HIM’s music, so it makes sense that his debut solo album would contain the elements of old school HIM. However, for the avid VV fans, you can definitely see the different sound that is VV. His songs although similar to Him, still create a unique sound that is purely VV. VV has said in previous interviews, that he wrote and composed each element of the song, from drums, guitar, keyboard, vocals and lyrics.
And boy can you tell the man has talent. It was a pleasant surprise to see that he added the songs from Gothic Fennica to the album. Each song on the album carries on perfectly to the next. It’s one of those albums you can just put on and sink into its striking beauty. His vocal talents remain amazing, and although there is not much screamo action, the distinct change from crooning to dark and heartbreaking perfection is seen in each song. If you want a heartstopping love metal album, VV delivers with gothic swag.
SONGS TO CHECK OUT:
Our favourite songs on the album are Neon Noir, Heartful of Ghosts and Vertigo Eyes
Check out Neon Noir here!
