The images of globally acclaimed rock photographer, Jeremy Saffer take center stage at LA’s Exhibit A Gallery when a very special gallery event, “Idol Worship: The Detournements of Jeremy Saffer” will open today, on April 13th, 2024. This unique show, will showcase Saffer’s iconic photographs in a brand new way as his images serve as the canvas for over 30 of the world’s best multi-media artists. Continue reading
Tag Archives: Ville Valo
Ville Valo Announces Final Neon Noir World Tour
Ville Valo (HIM) has just announced a world tour to close off the cycle of his latest album Neon Noir. The live dates will span Europe, the Antipodes, Canada, the US, and South America. Further to this, the artist intimates a coming reincarnation from his current musical persona. Keep reading for live listings and more.
As the artist formerly known as HIM now reveals, these are more than mere upcoming appearances. Not only will they mark the end of Neon Noir’s touring cycle. They will also herald the end of Ville Valo’s latest reincarnation. He says:
“The idea behind VV and Neon Noir was to symbolically finish what HIM started, and after the bangs and whimpers at the Royal Albert Hall it’s time to reshuffle the pieces of the puzzle once again and give Herbert West a shout.” As for what might come next, well – that’s a mystery, for now. “I had no expectations whatsoever when releasing music under the banner of VV, so I’ve been quite shocked to see people still find my kind of racket enjoyable, warts and all. Touring has been way less painful than I dared to hope, and as we say in Finland, it fits my arse like a glove. A mourning glove from a bygone era.”
Hot on the heels of a rapturously-received Neon Noir tour (read our review here: and a current US run with Black Veil Brides comes a new slew of dates which will include the return of legendary, Valo-curated New Year’s bash Helldone Festival on 31st Decembert. It will also see VV making a historic, headlining appearance at one of the most prestigious and revered music venues in the world: London’s Royal Albert Hall on 10th May 2024.
VV / NEON NOIR TOUR 2023/2024
with special guest Eivør and support from Zetra
December 31 2023 Helldone Festival, Helsinki FI (Tavastia Club)
March 13 2024 Auckland, NZ (The Powerstation)
March 15 2024 Melbourne, AU (Northcote Theatre)
March 16 2024 Sydney, AU (Metro)
March 17 2024 Brisbane, AU (Tivoli)
April 04 2024 Athens, GR (Fuzz Club)
April 05 2024 Thessaloniki, GR (Principal Club Theater)
April 06 2024 Sofia, BG (Joy Station)
April 08 2024 Bucharest, RO (Sala Palatului)
April 09 2024 Belgrade, RS (Dom Omladine)
April 11 2024 Ljubljana, SI (Cvetlicarna)
April 12 2024 Bratislava, SK (MMC)
April 13 2024 Katowice, PL (MCK)
April 15 2024 Vilnius, LT(Compensa)
April 16 2024 Riga, LV (Palladium)
April 17 2024 Tallinn, EE (Helitehas)
April 19 2024 Oulu, FI (Tullisali)
April 20b2024 Seinäjoki, FI (Rytmikorjaamo)
April 21 2024 Jyväskylä, FI (Lutakko)
April 23 2024 Tampere, FI (Pakkahuone)
April 24 2024 Turku, FI (Logomo)
April 25 2024 Turku-Stockholm, FI (M/S Viking Grace)
April 26 2024 Gothenburg, SE (Pustervik)
April 28 2024 Oslo, NO (Rockefeller)
April 29 2024 Stockholm, SE (Berns)
April 30 2024 Copenhagen, DK (Amager Bio)
May 02 2024 Bremen, DE (Aladin)
May 03 2024 Leipzig, DE (Haus Auensee)
May 04 2024 Wiesbaden, DE (Schlachthof)
May 05 2024 Brussels, BE (A.B.)
May 07 2024 Tilburg, NL (013)
May 10 2024 London, UK (Royal Albert Hall)
Tickets for the VV/Neon Noir tour go on general sale on Friday September 15th at 10am (BST).
Check out our interview with Ville Valo:
INTERVIEW: Ville Valo on His Solo Project VV, The End of HIM, and a Discussion of “Neon Noir”
In addition, VV announces a headline run in South America and Mexico, taking in the following dates:
October 26 2023 Bogota, CO (Auditorio Mayor)
October 28 2023 Lima, PE (Centro de Convenciones Teatro Leguia)
October 30 2023 Santiago – Región Metropolitana, CL (Blondie)
November 01 2023 Sao Paolo, BR (Carioca Club)
November 04 2023 Toluca, MX (Hell and Heaven Festival)
November 06 2023 Monterrey, MX (Showcenter Complex)
November 08 2023 Guadalajara, MX (Teatro Diana)
US fans can also catch VV on tour with Black Veil Brides at the following shows:
Sept 12 – St. Petersburg, FL – Jannus Live
Sept 14 – Myrtle Beach, SC – House of Blues
Sept 15 – Baltimore, MD – Rams Head Live
Sept 16 – Niagara Falls, NY – The Rapids Theater
Sept 17 – Toronto, ON – HISTORY
Sept 19 – Montreal, QC – MTELUS
Sept 20 – Hampton Beach, NH – Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom
Sept 22 – Wallingford, CT – Dome at Toyota Oakdale Theater
Sept 23 – Bethlehem, PA – Wind Creek Event Center
Sept 24 – Montclair, NJ – The Wellmont Theater
Sept 25 – Huntington, NY – The Paramount
Sept 27 – Grand Rapids, MI – GLC Live at 20 Monroe
Sept 28 – Gary, IN – Hard Rock Casino Northern Indiana
Sept 29 – Columbus, OH – KEMBA Live!
Sept 30 – Indianapolis, IN – Egyptian Room at Old National Centre
Oct 01 – Chesterfield, MO – The Factory
Oct 03 – Austin, TX – ACL Live
Oct 05 – Tulsa, OK – Tulsa Theater
Oct 06 – Omaha, NE – Steelhouse Omaha
Oct 07 – Madison, WI – The Sylvee
Oct 09 – Winnipeg, MB – Burton Cummings Theatre
Oct 11 – Edmonton, AB – Edmonton Convention Centre
Oct 12 – Calgary, AB – Grey Eagle Event Centre
Oct 14 – Vancouver, BC – Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre
Oct 15 – Spokane, WA – The Podium
Oct 16 – Seattle, WA – Paramount Theatre
Oct 18 – Garden City, ID – Revolution Concert House
Oct 19 – Wheatland, CA – Hard Rock Live
Oct 20 – Riverside, CA – Riverside Municipal Auditorium
Oct 21 – Ventura, CA – Ventura Theatre
Oct 22 – San Diego, CA – SOMA
Tickets for all shows are available at: https://bnds.us/1gvnb7
Neon Noir is out now via Spinefarm Records.
More about Ville Valo:
And so ends a new beginning. Nine short months have passed since Neon Noir cast its goth-inflected enchantments on the world. As a record it was more than twelve wrought-iron statements of intent. It marked a triumphant return of Ville Valo to the live stage, and the ensuing seasons have seen His Infernal Majesty summoning a long dormant worldwide flock with a bold new testament to his rare ability to craft timeless melodies that speak powerfully to matters of the heart.
But while VV’s glorious second act has already seen its share of brilliant highlights, it now emerges that some of its brightest moments are yet to come. More importantly, it has been announced that they will not shine forever.
Follow Ville Valo:
https://www.instagram.com/heartagram/
https://youtube.com/@heartagram
FESTIVAL REVIEW: Sick New World Festival Live at Las Vegas Fairgrounds
Some people told me I was crazy when I decided I was going to go to the Sick New World Fest, a debut Metal and Rock Festival in Las Vegas. In the month of May. I hate to sound like a boomer and complain about the heat in Las Vegas, which is an actual desert, but the bottom line is I knew in advance it was going to be hot as hell, and it certainly lived up to that prediction. That being said, I was really excited to come to the festival enjoy a day with my metal community, meet new friends, and see some incredible bands; some I had never seen ever, and some I had not seen in a long time.
FESTIVAL PREVIEW: Sick New World Fest in 2023 Announces Set Times for This Weekend – ft. System Of A Down, Korn, Deftones, Incubus, Evanescence, Turnstile, Chevelle, Coal Chamber, Flyleaf, Mr. Bungle and More
System Of A Down, Incubus, Korn, Evanescence and Deftones will headline Sick New World Festival this weekend, a new music festival featuring some of the biggest names in Nu-Metal, Goth Rock, Industrial Metal, and some modern bands as well! Among the dozens of bands on the bill, it will mark the reunions of both Flyleaf with Lacey Sturm and Coal Chamber. Other bands are promising some surprise sets as well as Ice-T’s Body Count might be joined by Ice’s daughter, Chanel Nicole! Tickets are totally sold-out, but you can join the wait list at this link here. The event will be held on Saturday, May 13, 2023 at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds in Las Vegas, Nevada. Check out the stage spits and set times below!
CONCERT REVIEW: Ville Valo – Kælan Mikla Live at Saint Andrew’s Hall
HIM (aka His Infernal Majesty) is one of the biggest, most successful bands to come out of Finland. Love Metal is not only the name of their fourth full-length album, but it is a genre of music they invented. So, it is fair to say many were dismayed when these Finnish fellas broke up six years ago. Yet hope was rekindled when frontman Ville Valo (aka VV) announced his debut solo album in 2022. Neon Noir (Heartagram Records, read our review here) was released earlier this year and has received high praise. Now the man is on the road again sharing his new tunes and some HIM classics on his headlining world tour. Valo brought his romantic rock to Detroit and blessed Saint Andrew’s Hall with his presence. The Live Nation venue was a perfect pit stop for this tour since it is a premiere music site that caters well to hot and flashy rock bands. Our local baseball team, The Detroit Tigers, had their opening day the same evening as Valo’s big show so the streets of the city were bustling and full of hubbub. That energy spilled into the beloved hall and made the night a colorful experience.
INTERVIEW: Ville Valo on His Solo Project VV, The End of HIM, and a Discussion of “Neon Noir”
Ghost Cult’s Duncan Evans chatted with music legend Ville Valo (ex-HIM) about his debut solo album – “Neon Noir” under his new project VV under his own label Heartagram Records. Ville discussed the end of HIM and finding new inspiration to start his solo career. In addition to revealing his creative process, Ville discussed creating the new album on his own, his return to touring as well as major festival plans, and much more!
ALBUM REVIEW: VV (Ville Valo) – Neon Noir
Following the 2017 death of HIM and a brief hiatus, Ville Valo debuted his solo project VV in the spring of 2020. After surviving on drip-feeding of singles over the past few years, romantics and vampires everywhere can finally rejoice as we’ve been given a feast in Valo’s first full-length record in a decade, Neon Noir (Spinefarm).
System Of A Down, Korn, Deftones, Incubus, Evanescence, Turnstile, Chevelle, Coal Chamber, Flyleaf, Mr. Bungle and More are Booked for Sick New World Fest in 2023
System Of A Down, Incubus, Korn, Evanescence and Deftones will headline Sick New World Festival, a new music festival in 2023 featuring some of the biggest names in nu-metal. Among the dozens of bands on the bill, it will mark the reunions of both Flyleaf with lacey Sturm and Coal Chamber. The event will be held on Saturday, May 13, 2023 at the Las Vegas Festival Grounds in Las Vegas, Nevada. This was the site of the recent When We Were Young Festival, that was forced to cancel one day of the fest due to high winds.
Ville Valo (VV) of HIM Releases a New Single “The Foreverlost”
Finnish Gothic Metal pioneer, Ville Valo (VV) of HIM, will release his debut solo album, Neon Noir, on January 13th via Heartagram Records, distributed by UMG/ Spinefarm. Pre-orders are, at last, live at the link below. The previously announced world tour is quickly selling out. Now he has released a new single, “Ville Valo (VV) of HIM Releases a New Single “The Foreverlost” – which you can stream now!
Roadrunner United Release Celebrating The Iconic Label to See a Rerelease in 2023
Roadrunner United was a project organized by iconic hard rock record label Roadrunner Records to celebrate its 25th anniversary, culminating in the U.S. Billboard Top 200, UK Albums, and Australian ARIA Albums-charting original The All Star Sessions. Four “team captains” (Slipknot’s Joey Jordison (RIP), Machine Head’s Robb Flynn, Fear Factory’s Dino Cazares, and Trivium’s Matthew K. Heafy) were chosen to lead 57 artists from 45 past and present Roadrunner bands. On December 15, 2005, a concert celebrating the project, album, and anniversary took place at the Nokia Theater in New York City. That star-studded event featured multiple musicians, both past and present, from Roadrunner bands — as well as musicians that did not originally perform on the All-Star Sessions album. Now that album is getting a release in 2023 on multiple formats. Watch the live performance video of “The End (Live)” featuring Fear Factory’s Dino Cazares, and Trivium’s Matthew K. Heafy – right now!