Melbourne/Naarm darkwave synthpop band, Dark Water, opened proceedings at the Metro Theatre in style. Their moody, atmospheric tunes certainly set the tone for an already packed-out room. Whilst it was a relatively short set they had the crowd engaged. I’m looking forward to seeing more of them in the future, for sure.
By the time Ville Valo and his band were ready to take the stage the sense of expectation and excitement in the audience was tangible. The revised Heartagram logo with the added double v felt like it was pulsating as we waited. Last month marked ten long years since we’ve had the pleasure of the Finnish musician on our shores, this time as a solo artist after decades of leading HIM, and it felt wonderful to welcome him back after so long away.
Having missed HIM at Perth Soundwave owing to misadventure, then falling ill just before the sideshow at the Metro in Sydney in 2014, I was hoping that my Valo curse would lift and I’d finally be able to experience VV live. Happily, I was spared a third strike. I do, however, feel at a slight disadvantage having not seen HIM live, so I share my thoughts on the old songs in that context.
When I interviewed VV back in January he spoke of wanting the live shows to be a blend of HIM material and his own, with his songwriting being the common link that would allow for them to work side by side. It seemed to me that he achieved exactly that, transitioning from his solo work to HIM classics and back in the most seamless fashion. Of course, the enthusiasm for the HIM catalogue was huge – a room full of joyous singalongs, dancing, and the requisite throwing of horns – but the tracks from ‘Neon Noir’ were met with equal enthusiasm, with the crowd taking over the vocals at times.
VV’s voice shows no signs of wear and tear. His impressive range, something around five octaves, was on full display, much to the delight of the devoted audience. The man hit some astonishing notes at both ends of the register and managed to elicit some goosebumps on the back of my neck more than once. The band was fantastic and a brilliant support to VV. As mentioned above, I never saw HIM live so I can only speak to my own opinion that they sounded incredible when they smashed out gems including “Right Here In My Arms”, “When Love and Death Embrace”, and “The Funeral of Hearts”, amongst others. It was a delight to hear “In Trenodia”, “The Foreverlost”, and the closer “Vertigo Eyes” live after so many plays of the album.
It’s obvious I had a great time, I think, but I’d like to mention the audience there tonight. There seemed to be a genuine desire to be there in the same room as VV and celebrate his music. I’ve been to enough gigs to have seen a different vibe in the room, and the folk tonight made it even more fun. I’d also like to give a shout-out to the multiple men around me who were proactive in assisting me when a very jolly lad who was clearly about 90% alcohol was a tad over-enthusiastic with his use of space. It’s not always easy to be a solo female at shows, so I very much appreciated knowing there were people actively looking out for others – and a particular thanks to the gent near me who offered me a space beside him to get me out of the line of fire. Audiences full of good eggs like tonight make it extra special.
FIVE STARS (OUT OF FIVE)
VV has one more show of his Australia/NZ tour. Catch him at the Tivoli in Brisbane tonight, Sunday 17 March. Tickets are available here.
