HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Children of Bodom was a Finnish
melodic death metal Melodic death metal (also referred to as melodeath) is a subgenre of death metal that employs highly melodic guitar riffs, often borrowing from traditional heavy metal (including New Wave of British Heavy Metal). The genre features the heavines ...
band from
Espoo Espoo (, ; sv, Esbo) is a city and municipality in the region of Uusimaa in the Republic of Finland. It is located on the northern shore of the Gulf of Finland, bordering the cities of Helsinki, Vantaa, Kirkkonummi, Vihti and Nurmijärvi ...
. Formed in 1993 as Inearthed, the final line-up of the group upon their split in 2019 consisted of Alexi Laiho (lead guitar, lead vocals),
Jaska Raatikainen Jaska Raatikainen (born 18 July 1979) is a Finnish musician, he is best known as the former drummer and co-founder of the melodic death metal band Children of Bodom from 1993 until his departure in 2019. He is currently in the project called Me ...
(drums),
Henkka Seppälä Henri "Henkka T. Blacksmith" Seppälä (Born 7 June 1980), is the former bassist of the Finnish metal band Children of Bodom from 1995 to 2019. He is also responsible for backing vocals both in studio and live. He is currently the bassist for t ...
(bass),
Janne Wirman Janne Viljami "Warman" Wirman (born 26 April 1979) is a Finnish musician; he is the former keyboardist for the Finnish metal band Children of Bodom from 1997 to 2019 and currently collaborating with Warmen. Biography 150px, left, Wirman in 20 ...
(keyboard), and Daniel Freyberg (rhythm guitar). The band released ten studio albums, two live albums, two EPs, two compilation albums and one DVD. The band's third studio album, ''
Follow the Reaper ''Follow the Reaper'' is the third studio album by Finnish melodic death metal band Children of Bodom, released in Finland in October 2000 by Spinefarm Records and in 2001 internationally by Nuclear Blast Records. The album is the first to u ...
'', was their first album to receive a
gold certification Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...
in Finland, and subsequent studio albums acquired the same status. Their next four albums debuted at
number one Number One most commonly refers to: * 1 (number) Number One, No. 1, or #1 may also refer to: Music Albums * ''Number 1'' (Big Bang album), and the title song * ''No. 1'' (BoA album), and the title song * ''No.1'' (EP), by CLC * ''n.1 ...
on the
Finnish album charts The Official Finnish Charts ( fi, Suomen virallinen lista; sv, Finlands officiella lista) are national record charts in Finland compiled and published by Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. The name ''Suomen virallinen lista/Finlands officiell ...
, and have also seen chart positions on the United States ''Billboard'' 200. They are one of Finland's best selling artists of all time with more than 250,000 records sold there alone. In 2019, Children of Bodom held their last concert in Helsinki named A Chapter Called Children of Bodom, before disbanding the band. Laiho and Freyberg carried on as Bodom After Midnight in 2020. Laiho, who was one of the founding members of Children of Bodom as well as the only main songwriter, died on 29 December 2020.


History


Formation and early years (1993–1996)

Children of Bodom was formed in 1993 by guitarist Alexi "Wildchild" Laiho and drummer
Jaska Raatikainen Jaska Raatikainen (born 18 July 1979) is a Finnish musician, he is best known as the former drummer and co-founder of the melodic death metal band Children of Bodom from 1993 until his departure in 2019. He is currently in the project called Me ...
under the name of Inearthed. They had known each other since early childhood and had shared an interest in heavy metal, especially
death metal Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, feat ...
groups, such as
Dissection Dissection (from Latin ' "to cut to pieces"; also called anatomization) is the dismembering of the body of a deceased animal or plant to study its anatomical structure. Autopsy is used in pathology and forensic medicine to determine the cause o ...
, Entombed,
Cannibal Corpse Cannibal Corpse is an American death metal band formed in Buffalo, New York in 1988, now based out of Tampa, Florida. The band has released fifteen studio albums, two box sets, four video albums, and two live albums. The band has had little radi ...
,
Autopsy An autopsy (post-mortem examination, obduction, necropsy, or autopsia cadaverum) is a surgical procedure that consists of a thorough examination of a corpse by dissection to determine the cause, mode, and manner of death or to evaluate any di ...
, and
Obituary An obituary ( obit for short) is an article about a recently deceased person. Newspapers often publish obituaries as news articles. Although obituaries tend to focus on positive aspects of the subject's life, this is not always the case. Ac ...
and classic metal groups such as
Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...
,
Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Despite an innovative and pioneering body of work in th ...
,
Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...
,
Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...
, Dio, and
Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...
. Bassist Samuli Miettinen completed the initial line-up of the band. Inearthed recorded its first
demo Demo, usually short for demonstration, may refer to: Music and film *Demo (music), a song typically recorded for reference rather than release * ''Demo'' (Behind Crimson Eyes), a 2004 recording by the band Behind Crimson Eyes * ''Demo'' (Deafhea ...
, ''Implosion of Heaven'', during August of the same year. Samuli was the main composer of the band's lyrics for the two years that he took part in Inearthed, but his family moved to the
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
in 1995, making it impossible for him to remain in the band. His last contributions to Inearthed were the lyrics of the songs from their second demo, ''Ubiquitous Absence of Remission'' which was the first time they worked with producer Anssi Kippo at Astia-studios (Lappeenranta, Finland). In this demo, keyboards were incorporated into the band's songs for the first time. In order to achieve this, both Laiho and Raatikainen played the keyboards separately and subsequently mixed the recorded track with the other instruments. Laiho, who had previously only composed the melodies of the songs, assumed the role of the band's lyricist. At the time, Raatikainen played
French horn The French horn (since the 1930s known simply as the horn in professional music circles) is a brass instrument made of tubing wrapped into a coil with a flared bell. The double horn in F/B (technically a variety of German horn) is the horn most ...
in a local big band, and during a rehearsal, he met
Alexander Kuoppala Alexander Kuoppala (born 11 April 1974) is a Finnish musician. He was the rhythm guitarist for the Finnish heavy metal band Children of Bodom from 1995 to 2003. He played on their albums '' Something Wild'', '' Hatebreeder'', ''Follow the Reape ...
, a
trumpet The trumpet is a brass instrument commonly used in classical and jazz ensembles. The trumpet group ranges from the piccolo trumpet—with the highest register in the brass family—to the bass trumpet, pitched one octave below the standard ...
player and also a proficient guitarist. Shortly after the recording of their second demo, Kuoppala was invited to join Inearthed as a rhythm guitarist. The bassist chosen to replace Samuli was Henkka "Blacksmith" Seppälä, whom Laiho and Raatikainen had previously known from school. Apart from playing the bass, Seppälä also often doubles as the band's backing vocalist. Also, the band recruited a musician to specialize on keyboards, whose name was Jani Pirisjoki. Both joined Inearthed in early 1996. With this new line-up, Inearthed proceeded to record their third demo, titled ''Shining''. This demo did not impress record labels any more than the previous ones had, and none took interest in the band. Despite their efforts, their music got little exposure and managed only to play at local events. As a last resort, the band decided to record an independent, self-funded album. Laiho wanted to make use of the keyboards more effectively, but Pirisjoki was not attending rehearsals. Thus, he was fired and replaced by a friend of Raatikainen's, a jazz pianist named Janne "Warman" Wirman. Wirman was the component which was previously missing from Inearthed. His presence allowed the band to assume the style which would later characterize Children of Bodom. With Wirman, the band successfully recorded their first album in 1997. Their debut, ''Something Wild'', was supposed to be released by a small Belgian label, Shiver Records, but second vocalist Sami Tenetz (from
Thy Serpent Thy Serpent is a Finnish black metal band from Espoo. It started out as a solo project by Sami Tenetz in 1992. A full lineup was acquired in 1995. History After two demos, he signed a record deal with Spinefarm Records. Azhemin, Agathon and ...
) acquired a copy of their album through the hands of Kuoppala. They both worked for the same company at the time. Shortly after Inearthed signed this contract,
Spinefarm Records Spinefarm Records is a Finnish independent record label focusing mainly on heavy metal artists. It is a subsidiary of Universal Music Group. History Spinefarm Records was originally founded in 1990 by Riku Pääkkönen as a mail-order distrib ...
' boss became interested in signing them for a country-wide release. The latter deal was much more attractive to 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. The band was required to create a new name to sign up to Spinefarm Records. The contract with Shiver records had already been signed under the name of Inearthed. The answer to that problem came as the members looked for good names in their local phone book. When they stumbled upon Lake Bodom, they realized that it was a name with impact and one which had an interesting story behind it. A long list of possible names involving the word Bodom was then made, and they settled with Children of Bodom. The band's name is derived from the Lake Bodom murders.


''Something Wild'' and ''Hatebreeder'' (1996–2000)

'' Something Wild'' was produced, recorded and mixed by Anssi Kippo and Children of Bodom at Astia-studios (Lappeenranta, Finland). In an attempt to promote their band, they opened a show for
Dimmu Borgir Dimmu Borgir () is a Norwegian symphonic black metal band from Jessheim, formed in 1993. The name is derived from Dimmuborgir, a volcanic formation in Iceland, the name of which means "dark cities" or "dark castles/fortresses" in Icelandic, ...
in 1997. Their success was such that a representative from the
Nuclear Blast Nuclear Blast is a record label and mail order record distributor with subsidiaries in Germany, the United States and Brazil. The label was founded in 1987 by Markus Staiger in Germany. Originally releasing hardcore punk records, the label mov ...
label approached them with a contract for a European release, a deal which started on the subsequent year. ''Something Wild'' was released in late 1997 in Finland and in 1998 worldwide. In early 1998, for promotional purposes, the band recorded a
music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
of the song "Deadnight Warrior". The video was directed by Mika Lindberg and had a slim budget of €1000. It made use of simple scenery, which consisted essentially of an outdoors location after a snowstorm. The band played for a couple of hours at night, with an average temperature of minus fifteen degrees Celsius. Although Laiho is very critical of all of the music he has written, he notes that he dislikes ''Something Wild'' the most of all of his albums. When recording this album, Laiho had tried to mimic the style of one of his idols,
Yngwie Malmsteen Yngwie Johan Malmsteen ( ; born Lars Johan Yngve Lannerbäck, 30 June 1963) is a Swedish guitarist. He first became known in the 1980s for his neoclassical playing style in heavy metal, and has released 22 studio albums in a career spanning ov ...
, which is why ''Something Wild'' is considered one of the most technical albums Children of Bodom have produced. Despite this, he still considers it to be their "most important" record, as it "put them on the map." Children of Bodom's first European tour began in February 1998. They played with bands such as
Hypocrisy Hypocrisy is the practice of engaging in the same behavior or activity for which one criticizes another or the practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one's own behavior does not conform. In moral psychology, it is the ...
(at such festivals as Under the Black Sun),
The Kovenant The Kovenant is a Norwegian industrial metal band from Hamar. The band originally formed as a symphonic black metal act known as Covenant in 1993, but in 1999 were forced to change their name to The Kovenant due to a dispute with a Swedish elect ...
and Agathodaimon, but suffered from the absence of Wirman, who was concentrating on finishing his studies. He was replaced by pianist
Erna Siikavirta Erna Inari Kaarina Siikavirta (born 8 October 1977) is a Finnish keyboard player. She is best known as a member of the rock band Lordi, which she joined in 1997 under the stage name Enary. She left the band in 2005, at the request of the other mem ...
for the duration of the tour. Months later, the band recorded two new songs again at Astia-studios with producer Anssi Kippo, titled "Towards Dead End" and "Children of Bodom". The latter was included in a compilation by Spinefarm Records, which after being released remained on the top of Finnish charts for eight consecutive weeks. In late August, the band played the song "Forevermore" live for the first time during a show in Russia. This song was later renamed "Downfall". Their second European tour occurred in September of that same year, but once more Wirman was not able to perform with them. Laiho's then-girlfriend
Kimberly Goss Kimberly Goss is an American singer and keyboardist, best known as frontwoman and co-founder of the Finnish metal band Sinergy. Early life Goss was born in Los Angeles, California, to a Korean father and a German mother who worked as a jazz si ...
(from
Sinergy Sinergy was a Finnish/Swedish Heavy metal music, heavy metal band started in 1997 by American musician Kimberly Goss. The idea for a "balls-out female-fronted metal band" was first formed when Kimberly Goss of Dimmu Borgir met Jesper Strömbla ...
and formerly of
Dimmu Borgir Dimmu Borgir () is a Norwegian symphonic black metal band from Jessheim, formed in 1993. The name is derived from Dimmuborgir, a volcanic formation in Iceland, the name of which means "dark cities" or "dark castles/fortresses" in Icelandic, ...
,
Ancient Ancient history is a time period from the History of writing, beginning of writing and recorded human history to as far as late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the Sumerian language, Sumerian c ...
and Therion) assumed the keyboards this time. By the end of the tour, Kimberly invited Laiho to join Sinergy, which at the time was still in its early stages. The second album, ''
Hatebreeder ''Hatebreeder'' is the second studio album by Finnish melodic death metal band Children of Bodom. The "Deluxe Edition" was released in 2005 with bonus material. It was also re-released in 2008. Reception In 2005, ''Hatebreeder'' was ranked ...
'', was recorded between the end of 1998 and the beginning of 1999 by Anssi Kippo at Astia-studios (Lappeenranta, Finland). It was originally titled ''Towards Dead End'', but while in studio the members of the band opted for the current title. To create anticipation in Finland, the '"Downfall" single was released two weeks prior to the album's release. It was accompanied by a new music video, once more directed by Mika Lindberg. ''Hatebreeder'' ultimately topped the charts in many European countries. In July 1999, the success of the " Downfall" single and ''Hatebreeder'' allowed Children of Bodom to schedule three concerts in Japan with Sinergy and
In Flames In Flames is a Swedish heavy metal band, formed by guitarist Jesper Strömblad in Gothenburg in 1990. Alongside At the Gates and Dark Tranquillity, In Flames pioneered the genres known as Swedish death metal and melodic death metal. During t ...
. During two of these concerts, the live album '' Tokyo Warhearts'' was recorded. In it the band managed to seamlessly reproduce and at times improve on their songs. At their request, no
overdub Overdubbing (also known as layering) is a technique used in audio recording in which audio tracks that have been pre-recorded are then played back and monitored, while simultaneously recording new, doubled, or augmented tracks onto one or more av ...
s were used on the recording of the concert.


Rise to popularity: ''Follow the Reaper'' and ''Hate Crew Deathroll'' (2000–2004)

For their next release, Children of Bodom decided to make use of
Peter Tägtgren Alf Peter Tägtgren (born 3 June 1970) is a Swedish musician, multi-instrumentalist, and record producer. He is the founder, main songwriter, lead vocalist, and guitarist of death metal band Hypocrisy as well as the industrial metal band Pa ...
's Abyss studio in Sweden instead of the Finnish Astia-studio from Anssi Kippo where they had recorded all of their previous releases including the demos from Inearthed. The band wrote eight songs for the album. While in the studio, they decided to include an extra track that was hastily composed and featured lyrics improvised by Laiho; that track would eventually receive the name of "Kissing the Shadows". The band gave the album the name of ''
Follow the Reaper ''Follow the Reaper'' is the third studio album by Finnish melodic death metal band Children of Bodom, released in Finland in October 2000 by Spinefarm Records and in 2001 internationally by Nuclear Blast Records. The album is the first to u ...
'' and recording sessions took place between August and September 2000; the album saw a worldwide release in late 2000. A music video for " Everytime I Die" was recorded by the Finnish director Tuukka Temonen shortly after. In February 2002, Children of Bodom began writing songs for their upcoming album, titled ''
Hate Crew Deathroll ''Hate Crew Deathroll'' is the fourth studio album by the Finnish melodic death metal band Children of Bodom, released in 2003 under the Century Media label. And this is also the final Children of Bodom album to be recorded with all five origina ...
''. They returned to Astia-studio (Lappeenranta, Finland) to work with producer Anssi Kippo again. The session ensued during the months of August and September, and the album was released January 2003 in Finland. It remained on the top of the Finnish charts for a total of three weeks and subsequently became the band's first gold album. Eventually, all of the band's albums reached this status and ''Follow the Reaper'' reached platinum. On 3 January 2003, the Finnish Metal Music Awards were held at
Tavastia Club The Tavastia Club ( fi, Tavastia-klubi) is a popular rock music club in Helsinki, Finland. The house is owned by Hämäläis-Osakunta, one of the student nations at the University of Helsinki, but since 1991 the club has been operated by a privat ...
in Helsinki. Voting was open to all the metal fans and was presented through the various media outlets that were working with the event's organizers. Children of Bodom was awarded Finnish Band of the Year. Children of Bodom's first world tour began in 2003 and lasted until late 2004. The tour had many sold-out concerts and marked the consolidation of the band in
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
, but was also accompanied by an unexpected announcement: Kuoppala decided to quit Children of Bodom for personal reasons right in the middle of the tour without giving previous warning. In an interview, when Laiho was asked why Kuoppala left the band, he stated that "Well, I try to be careful about what I say about him because there is no bad blood between us. He told me that he just got sick of touring and the whole band/rock 'n roll lifestyle living in hotels and tour buses and stuff. For me it was really weird because he was always the one who was SO into it! He was a die hard rock 'n roller and suddenly he made a quick 180 turn in his whole life. This whole situation involves a new girlfriend."
Griffin The griffin, griffon, or gryphon (Ancient Greek: , ''gryps''; Classical Latin: ''grȳps'' or ''grȳpus''; Late Latin, Late and Medieval Latin: ''gryphes'', ''grypho'' etc.; Old French: ''griffon'') is a legendary creature with the body, tail ...
's guitarist Kai Nergaard was invited by Laiho to replace Kuoppala, but did not accept the offer. Thus, Alexi's bandmate from Sinergy,
Roope Latvala Roope Juhani Latvala (born 25 June 1970) is a Finnish guitarist, best known as the former rhythm guitarist for the band Children of Bodom from 2003 to 2015 and the co-lead electric guitarist for Sinergy. He was also one of the founding members ...
(founding member of
Stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...
, one of the bands which started the heavy metal movement in Finland) assumed the guitars as a session player, until a more permanent solution could be found. This formation was introduced in
Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...
on 16 August.


Breakthrough with ''Are You Dead Yet?'' (2004–2007)

After finishing the world tour with Latvala – who then assumed a permanent position in the band's line-up – Children of Bodom proceeded to record and release the EP ''
Trashed, Lost & Strungout ''Trashed, Lost & Strungout'' is a single and an EP released by the Finnish melodic death metal band Children of Bodom on Spinefarm Records. It was released on 25 October 2004. Unlike most EPs, it was released on CD and DVD. The CD includes 3 ...
'' and the single "In Your Face", which contained songs from their upcoming album and a parody cover of " Oops!... I Did It Again" by
Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...
. In late 2005, the album '' Are You Dead Yet?'' was released, featuring a style different from what had been presented by the band on its previous works. Simpler and heavier guitar
riff A riff is a repeated chord progression or refrain in music (also known as an ostinato figure in classical music); it is a pattern, or melody, often played by the rhythm section instruments or solo instrument, that forms the basis or accompani ...
s were incorporated into Children of Bodom's sound, as well as elements from
industrial music Industrial music is a genre of music that draws on harsh, mechanical, transgressive or provocative sounds and themes. AllMusic defines industrial music as the "most abrasive and aggressive fusion of rock and electronic music" that was "initiall ...
. Reactions from fans to the release were varied; however, the album remains the band's most commercially successful. It was awarded gold status in Finland and reached first place on the Finnish charts, 16th in Germany, 16 in Sweden and 17 in Japan. The next release of the band was a DVD-single for the song "In Your Face", which included the music video, backstage footage from the band and a live recording of the song "Sixpounder" at Wacken Open Air festival in 2004. In June, Children of Bodom was in front of 120,000 spectators, one of their biggest concerts, on the last concert of the
Böhse Onkelz Böhse Onkelz (), sensational spelling of ''böse Onkel'' (German for "evil uncles") is a German rock band formed in Frankfurt in 1980. The band reunited in 2014. Despite mass-media criticism concerning their past as skinheads, several of their ...
. The DVD of the concert, called
Vaya Con Tioz ''Vaya Con Tioz'' is the seventh live album and sixth concert film by German rock band Böhse Onkelz. The festival film was recorded during their farewell show "Vaya Con Tioz" from 17 to 18 June 2005 at the Eurospeedway Lausitz, Germany. Accord ...
, includes Children of Bodom's performance of "Everytime I Die". Children of Bodom's
live Live may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Live!'' (2007 film), 2007 American film * ''Live'' (2014 film), a 2014 Japanese film *'' ''Live'' (Apocalyptica DVD) Music *Live (band), American alternative rock band * List of albums ...
DVD '' Chaos Ridden Years - Stockholm Knockout Live'' was released on 5 December 2006. It contains a recording of a live concert performed on 5 February 2006 in
Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
, Sweden, with over 90 minutes of live footage. "Chaos Ridden Years" refers to a documentary featuring interviews with band members about the history of the band and footage of the band on tour. It also contains every
music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...
Children of Bodom has made, except for "Needled 24/7". Guitarist Alexi Laiho was voted world's best guitarist of 2006 by
Metal Hammer ''Metal Hammer'' is a heavy metal music magazine and website founded in 1983, published in the United Kingdom by Future, with other language editions available in numerous other countries. ''Metal Hammer'' features news, reviews and long-form ...
magazine. In June 2006, the band embarked on one of their biggest tours: The Unholy Alliance tour, playing alongside
Slayer Slayer was an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California. The band was formed in 1981 by guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical style ...
,
Lamb of God Lamb of God ( el, Ἀμνὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ, Amnòs toû Theoû; la, Agnus Dei, ) is a title for Jesus that appears in the Gospel of John. It appears at John 1:29, where John the Baptist sees Jesus and exclaims, "Behold the Lamb of God wh ...
,
Mastodon A mastodon ( 'breast' + 'tooth') is any proboscidean belonging to the extinct genus ''Mammut'' (family Mammutidae). Mastodons inhabited North and Central America during the late Miocene or late Pliocene up to their extinction at the end of th ...
,
In Flames In Flames is a Swedish heavy metal band, formed by guitarist Jesper Strömblad in Gothenburg in 1990. Alongside At the Gates and Dark Tranquillity, In Flames pioneered the genres known as Swedish death metal and melodic death metal. During t ...
and
Thine Eyes Bleed Thine Eyes Bleed is a Canadian melodic death metal band from London, Ontario. History Thine Eyes Bleed took part in a US tour in 2004. They released their first album '' In the Wake of Separation'' in 2005. Johnny Araya's brother Tom Araya is t ...
. The bands toured the US through June and July, and Europe through October and November. On 31 January 2007, Laiho slid down the lane at a bowling alley after accidentally stepping over the foul line. He slammed hard into the wall, breaking his left shoulder. This rendered him unable to play guitar for six weeks. Due to this incident, Children of Bodom was forced to cancel their first 2007 tours, and a festival that they were slated to headline. On 31 March 2007, the band's website released information on Laiho's condition stating that while Laiho's injury will never fully heal, it no longer affects his ability to play the guitar. The same notice also stated that the band had already written some songs for a new album and would start recording sometime later in 2007.


''Blooddrunk'' and ''Relentless Reckless Forever'' (2007–2012)

From October to December 2007, Children of Bodom recorded their sixth studio album, titled ''
Blooddrunk ''Blooddrunk'' is the sixth studio album by Finnish melodic death metal band Children of Bodom, released on 7 April 2008 through Spinefarm Records. The album includes a re-recorded version single for "Tie My Rope". Various editions feature o ...
'', which was released on 15 April 2008. The album contained 10 songs including a cover of "Ghost Riders in the Sky". Children of Bodom was featured on the
Gigantour Gigantour was a sporadically organised traveling heavy metal music festival organized by Dave Mustaine of Megadeth. The tour was founded in 2005 with dates across North America (see also Gigantour 2005), and the 2006 and 2007 line-ups also t ...
2008 North American tour with
Megadeth Megadeth is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by vocalist/guitarist Dave Mustaine. Known for their technically complex guitar work and musicianship, Megadeth is one of the "big four" of American thrash metal along wit ...
,
In Flames In Flames is a Swedish heavy metal band, formed by guitarist Jesper Strömblad in Gothenburg in 1990. Alongside At the Gates and Dark Tranquillity, In Flames pioneered the genres known as Swedish death metal and melodic death metal. During t ...
,
Job for a Cowboy Job for a Cowboy is an American death metal band from Glendale, Arizona. Formed in 2003, the band's debut album ''Genesis'' was released in 2007, peaking at No. 54 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 and selling 13,000 copies in its first we ...
and
High on Fire High on Fire is an American heavy metal band from Oakland, California, that was formed in 1999. Matt Pike, the band's frontman and founder, also plays guitar for doom metal band Sleep. High on Fire won the 2019 Grammy Award for Best Metal Per ...
. Children of Bodom was one of the first bands to be confirmed for
Wacken Open Air Wacken Open Air (, abbreviated as W:O:A) is a rock music, rock music festival, held annually since 1990 on the first weekend of August in the village of Wacken, Schleswig-Holstein, Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany. Almost all styles and su ...
2008, where they performed alongside many bands including
Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...
,
Sonata Arctica Sonata Arctica is a Finnish power metal band from the town of Kemi, Finland. Created as a hard rock band named Tricky Beans, they later changed to Tricky Means and finally to Sonata Arctica, when they shifted to power metal. The current lineup ...
and
Avantasia Avantasia is a German supergroup metal opera project created by Tobias Sammet, vocalist of the band Edguy. It has been characterized as a rock opera, as it features the contributions of various vocalists and musicians and it consists of concept ...
. Children of Bodom played at Donington Download on 15 June, playing a mixture of old and new songs. On 8 March 2008, Children of Bodom did their first UK signing event at the
Zavvi Zavvi is an online retailer of entertainment products, including Blu-rays, collectables, homeware and toys. Originally a physical retailer, the brand has been online only since it was bought from administration by The Hut Group in 2009. History ...
music shop in Oxford Street, London. They signed copies of their new single "Blooddrunk" in CD, 7 inch and 12 inch vinyls, only 666 copies of the 12 inch vinyls have been made. On 26 June 2008, Children of Bodom played their first show in Auckland, New Zealand with support from local scene acts Dawn of Azazel and Subtract at the Transmission Room. In 2008, Children of Bodom's first three studio albums, as well as ''Tokyo Warhearts'', were remastered and re-released with bonus tracks. In September and October 2008, the band toured the U.S. supporting ''
Blooddrunk ''Blooddrunk'' is the sixth studio album by Finnish melodic death metal band Children of Bodom, released on 7 April 2008 through Spinefarm Records. The album includes a re-recorded version single for "Tie My Rope". Various editions feature o ...
'' with support from The Black Dahlia Murder and
Between the Buried and Me Between the Buried and Me, often abbreviated as BTBAM, is an American progressive metal band from Raleigh, North Carolina. Formed in 2000, the band consists of Tommy Giles Rogers Jr. (lead vocals, keyboards), Paul Waggoner (lead guitar, backing ...
. Testament also made a special guest appearance in the main support slot at the tour's New York City date. In November and December 2008, the band toured in Europe supporting Slipknot and
Machine Head A machine head (also referred to as a tuning machine, tuner, or gear head) is a geared apparatus for tuning stringed musical instruments by adjusting string tension. Machine heads are used on mandolins, guitars, double basses and others, and ar ...
. From late January to early March 2009, the band also co-headlined the European tour with
Cannibal Corpse Cannibal Corpse is an American death metal band formed in Buffalo, New York in 1988, now based out of Tampa, Florida. The band has released fifteen studio albums, two box sets, four video albums, and two live albums. The band has had little radi ...
with Diablo opening for them. On 2 April 2009, Children of Bodom embarked on the No Fear Energy Tour headlined by
Lamb of God Lamb of God ( el, Ἀμνὸς τοῦ Θεοῦ, Amnòs toû Theoû; la, Agnus Dei, ) is a title for Jesus that appears in the Gospel of John. It appears at John 1:29, where John the Baptist sees Jesus and exclaims, "Behold the Lamb of God wh ...
with main support from
As I Lay Dying ''As I Lay Dying'' is a 1930 Southern Gothic novel by American author William Faulkner. Faulkner's fifth novel, it is consistently ranked among the best novels of 20th-century literature.The New Lifetime Reading Plan: The Classical Guide to Wor ...
and themselves, and rotating opening slots with
God Forbid God Forbid is an American heavy metal band formed in East Brunswick, New Jersey in 1996. History Early career (1999-2004) Building up a following in the late 1990s by touring with bands such as GWAR, Nile, Cradle of Filth and Candiria, God Fo ...
and
Municipal Waste Municipal solid waste (MSW), commonly known as trash or garbage in the United States and rubbish in Britain, is a waste type consisting of everyday items that are discarded by the public. "Garbage" can also refer specifically to food waste, ...
, but dropped off the tour a week before it was finished following a serious injury Alexi sustained after falling from the top bunk of his tour bus on 26 April 2009, after the show in Palladium Ballroom, Dallas, Texas. In addition to the injury, on 8 May 2009, at
Roseland Ballroom The Roseland Ballroom was a multipurpose hall, in a converted ice skating rink, with a colorful ballroom dancing pedigree, in New York City's theater district, on West 52nd Street in Manhattan. The venue, according to its website, accommodated ...
in
New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...
, Alexi and Children of Bodom were forced to quit playing after a few of their songs because of Alexi's previous injury. Laiho originally planned to continue touring despite his injury but was forced to cancel last six dates when any efforts to alleviate the pain failed. All summer festival dates went down as planned and were unaffected by Alexi's injury. In February 2009, Children of Bodom hinted at plans to release a
cover album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
titled '' Skeletons in the Closet'', which was released on 23 September 2009. They also admitted to being "lazy" when it comes to practicing and talked about plans to have more songs on future albums. The band embarked on a tour of South America and Mexico in September 2009. Support for the trek came from
Amorphis Amorphis is a Finnish heavy metal band founded by Jan Rechberger, Tomi Koivusaari, and Esa Holopainen in 1990. Initially, the band was a death metal act, but on later albums they evolved into playing other genres, including progressive metal, an ...
. Also in September and October 2009, the band returned to North America to headline a massive month-long tour. On most dates support on the trek came from The Black Dahlia Murder and
Skeletonwitch Skeletonwitch is an American metal band from Athens, Ohio, formed in 2003. The band currently consists of lead guitarist Nate Garnette, rhythm guitarist Scott Hedrick, bassist Evan Linger, and vocalist Adam Clemans. Original vocalist Chance Gar ...
. Austrian Death Machine and
Holy Grail The Holy Grail (french: Saint Graal, br, Graal Santel, cy, Greal Sanctaidd, kw, Gral) is a treasure that serves as an important motif in Arthurian literature. Various traditions describe the Holy Grail as a cup, dish, or stone with miracul ...
made a special guest appearance in the main support slot at the tour's second Pomona, California date. On October 18, 2009, four days after the band's North American tour finale in Honolulu, Hawaii they performed at Japan's
Loudpark Festival The was a heavy metal festival held annually at Saitama Super Arena in Saitama City or Makuhari Messe in Chiba City, Japan. It was one of the biggest heavy metal festivals in Japan. The festival has featured both Japanese and international p ...
along with
Megadeth Megadeth is an American thrash metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1983 by vocalist/guitarist Dave Mustaine. Known for their technically complex guitar work and musicianship, Megadeth is one of the "big four" of American thrash metal along wit ...
,
Judas Priest Judas Priest are an English heavy metal band formed in Birmingham in 1969. They have sold over 50 million albums and are frequently ranked as one of the greatest metal bands of all time. Despite an innovative and pioneering body of work in th ...
,
Slayer Slayer was an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California. The band was formed in 1981 by guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical style ...
,
Anthrax Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium ''Bacillus anthracis''. It can occur in four forms: skin, lungs, intestinal, and injection. Symptom onset occurs between one day and more than two months after the infection is contracted. The sk ...
,
Rob Zombie Rob Zombie (born Robert Bartleh Cummings; January 12, 1965) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, filmmaker, and voice actor. His music and lyrics are notable for their horror and sci-fi themes, and his live shows have be ...
and
Arch Enemy Arch Enemy is a Swedish melodic death metal band, originally a supergroup from Halmstad, formed in 1995. Its members were in bands such as Carcass, Armageddon, Carnage, Mercyful Fate, Spiritual Beggars, The Agonist, Nevermore, and Eucharist. ...
. In the six days following their performance at the Loudpark Festival, they held three shows in Hong Kong, Taiwan and China respectively. They finished their two-month September to October tour in Moscow, Russia. This concluded their year and a half long Blooddrunk World Tour. '' Skeletons in the Closet'' is a
cover album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...
released on 22 September 2009. It features covers released on versions of previous albums but also includes four new tracks. Covered artists include
Suicidal Tendencies Suicidal Tendencies is an American crossover thrash band formed in 1980 in Venice in Los Angeles, California by vocalist Mike Muir. Muir is the only remaining original member of the band. Along with D.R.I., Corrosion of Conformity, and Stormtr ...
,
Britney Spears Britney Jean Spears (born December 2, 1981) is an American singer. Often referred to as the " Princess of Pop", she is credited with influencing the revival of teen pop during the late 1990s and early 2000s. After appearing in stage productio ...
,
Alice Cooper Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guillot ...
,
Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...
,
Slayer Slayer was an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California. The band was formed in 1981 by guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical style ...
,
Andrew WK Andrew Fetterly Wilkes-Krier (born May 9, 1979), known professionally as Andrew W.K., is an American conceptual performance artist, rock singer, multi-instrumentalist, record producer and actor. Raised in Michigan, Wilkes-Krier began his mus ...
,
Billy Idol William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), known professionally as Billy Idol, is a British-American singer, songwriter, and musician. He first achieved fame in the 1970s emerging from the London punk rock scene as the lead singer o ...
and
Scorpions Scorpions are predatory arachnids of the order Scorpiones. They have eight legs, and are easily recognized by a pair of grasping pincers and a narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward curve over the back and always end ...
Children of Bodom featured a contest to promote their new album in which anyone could win prizes featuring an ESP/LTD M-53 electric guitar, the band's entire back catalog, and ''Skeletons in the Closet.'' The contest ran from 25 August to 21 September 2009. The winners were announced 28 September 2009.


Return to form with ''Halo of Blood'' (2010–2014)

After the ''Blooddrunk'' tour ended, Children of Bodom started recording their new album. During the recording of the drum tracks there was a small tornado and the power was cut out. Consequently, the recording was delayed until after their tour with
Black Label Society Black Label Society is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1998 by guitarist/singer Zakk Wylde. To date, the band has released eleven studio albums, two live albums, two compilation albums, one EP, and three vid ...
. Children of Bodom released some information to ''Metal Hammer'' magazine about new album tracks. The three tracks they released were titled "Pussyfoot Miss Suicide", "Ugly", and "Was It Worth It?" In November the band announced "The Ugly World Tour 2011" which would run from March–May 2011 and would feature dates around Europe. Opening Acts were Ensiferum,
Machinae Supremacy Machinae Supremacy is a Swedish/Finnish band that combines modern Heavy metal music, heavy metal, power metal and alternative rock with chiptunes. Self-defined as "SID metal", many of their songs use a SidStation that features the MOS Technology ...
and
Amon Amarth Amon Amarth () is a Swedish melodic death metal band from Tumba, formed in 1992. The band takes its name from the Sindarin name of Mount Doom, a volcano in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth. Their lyrics mostly deal with Viking mythology and hi ...
(UK only). On 24 November, it was announced that the title of the album would be '' Relentless Reckless Forever''. The album was released on 8 March 2011. A music video for "Was It Worth It?" was produced, featuring skateboarder Chris Cole as well as noted pro skaters Jamie Thomas, Garrett Hill and Tom Asta. "Was It Worth It?" was released as a downloadable track for the video game '' Guitar Hero: Warriors of Rock'' in February 2011. '' Halo of Blood'' is the band's eighth studio album. It was released on 6 June in Europe, 10 June in the United Kingdom and on 11 June in North America. The
Mayhem Festival The Mayhem Festival was a touring Heavy metal music, heavy metal festival that took place during the summer. The inaugural season took place in 2008; the festival later became an annual event across the United States. Most years also included a ...
tour alongside
Rob Zombie Rob Zombie (born Robert Bartleh Cummings; January 12, 1965) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, filmmaker, and voice actor. His music and lyrics are notable for their horror and sci-fi themes, and his live shows have be ...
,
Mastodon A mastodon ( 'breast' + 'tooth') is any proboscidean belonging to the extinct genus ''Mammut'' (family Mammutidae). Mastodons inhabited North and Central America during the late Miocene or late Pliocene up to their extinction at the end of th ...
and
Amon Amarth Amon Amarth () is a Swedish melodic death metal band from Tumba, formed in 1992. The band takes its name from the Sindarin name of Mount Doom, a volcano in J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth. Their lyrics mostly deal with Viking mythology and hi ...
was also announced on 18 March 2013. Music journalist Neil Kelly of ''
PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, fi ...
'' said in praise of the album, "Death metal could very well re-enter mainstream consciousness through Halo of Blood, the most accessible Children of Bodom release yet." In May 2014, the band toured eastern Australia, visiting
Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...
,
Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
and
Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
with
Eye of the Enemy Eye of the Enemy are a death metal band from Melbourne, Australia.Damon Jackson. "Eye of the Enemy", ''Heavy Music Magazine'', Issue 11, 2014 The band formed in 2006 and has since released an EP and three full-length albums, the latest of whic ...
as support, along with Orpheus Omega in Melbourne, and Emergency Gate in Brisbane and Sydney.


''I Worship Chaos'', ''Hexed'' and final show (2014–2019)

On 7 April 2015, the band announced that they have begun working on the follow-up of '' Halo of Blood''. On 29 May 2015, the band announced on their Facebook page that Roope Latvala is no longer part of Children of Bodom with the new album to be recorded as a four-piece for the first time. However, the band later updated that Latvala's part in the band will be filled in by Antti Wirman, keyboardist Janne Wirman's younger brother for live commitments until the end of the year; he debuted with the band in a private live show in Helsinki. In a later interview with Wirman, he stated that his brother would not join the band permanently. On 8 June 2015, the album title was announced as '' I Worship Chaos'' and was released through Nuclear Blast on 2 October 2015. On 19 January 2016, the band announced the addition of Daniel Freyberg on guitar. He would make his live debut with them in Tampa, Florida on 9 February. In an interview with Noizr Zine, taken on September 14, 2017, Children of Bodom's keyboardist
Janne Wirman Janne Viljami "Warman" Wirman (born 26 April 1979) is a Finnish musician; he is the former keyboardist for the Finnish metal band Children of Bodom from 1997 to 2019 and currently collaborating with Warmen. Biography 150px, left, Wirman in 20 ...
answering to the question about the band's plans to start working on a new album with "the same production team" (Mikko Karmila and Mika Jussila) after '20 Years Down & Dirty' tour ends, said the following: "Yes, I think we are. And we're going to record it in our warehouse." In November 2017, Bassist Henkka Seppälä discussed in an interview that the band have half an album's worth of material written for the next album. They began to start recording the new album in March 2018. In August 2018, Seppälä stated in an interview with TotalRock Radio that the album will be released in early 2019. In November 2018, the band revealed that the album would be called ''
Hexed ''Hexed'' is a 1993 American black comedy film starring Arye Gross, Claudia Christian, Adrienne Shelly, and R. Lee Ermey, and written and directed by Alan Spencer, best known as the creator of the satirical TV series ''Sledge Hammer!'' The film ...
''. It was released on 8 March 2019. On November 1, 2019, it was announced that Children of Bodom would play their final show with the line-up at the time on December 15. The gig, dubbed "A Chapter Called Children of Bodom", took place at the
Helsinki Ice Hall Helsinki Ice Hall ( fi, Helsingin jäähalli, sv, Helsingfors ishall) is an indoor arena located in Helsinki, Finland. The arena has a seating capacity of 8,200. History Helsinki Ice Hall has been the home arena of HIFK of Liiga since its cons ...
, Finland. The statement said: It was later reported that the main reason for the departures was that Raatikainen, Seppälä and Wirman could no longer find a shared viewpoint with Laiho. Laiho and Freyberg found a new bassist and a new drummer according to
Helsingin Sanomat ''Helsingin Sanomat'', abbreviated ''HS'' and colloquially known as , is the largest subscription newspaper in Finland and the Nordic countries, owned by Sanoma. Except after certain holidays, it is published daily. Its name derives from that of ...
. According to Finnish music zine Soundi, Laiho could not use the band's name without permission from his former bandmates.


Bodom After Midnight and death of Alexi Laiho (2020–2021)

In 2020, Laiho decided to carry on with Freyberg in their new band Bodom After Midnight. Joining them were bassist Mitja Toivonen (ex- Santa Cruz), drummer Waltteri Väyrynen (
Paradise Lost ''Paradise Lost'' is an epic poem in blank verse by the 17th-century English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The first version, published in 1667, consists of ten books with over ten thousand lines of verse (poetry), verse. A second edition fo ...
) and touring keyboardist Lauri Salomaa. The band made a live debut on 23 October 2020 in Seinäjoki, Finland with two more shows at Tavastia in Helsinki, Finland, where the band played an hour-long set of Children of Bodom songs. On 4 January 2021, it was announced that Alexi Laiho had died in late December 2020 from health complications at the age of 41. Bodom After Midnight was in the process of working on its full-length debut album, and before his death, recorded three songs and shot a music video, which were announced to be released posthumously. On 10 February, the band announced the release of an EP titled '' Paint the Sky with Blood'', which was released on 23 April 2021. The 3-song EP features the final recordings by Laiho, consisting of two original songs and a
Dissection Dissection (from Latin ' "to cut to pieces"; also called anatomization) is the dismembering of the body of a deceased animal or plant to study its anatomical structure. Autopsy is used in pathology and forensic medicine to determine the cause o ...
cover. Guitarist Daniel Freyberg stated that there would be no more releases: "There was no more songs written. That was all the songs, all the riffs Alexi ever presented us. So there's no leftovers." In an April 2021 interview with ''
Loudwire ''Loudwire'' is an American online media magazine that covers news of hard rock and heavy metal artists. It is owned by media and entertainment business Townsquare Media. Since its launch in August of 2011, ''Loudwire'' has secured exclusive ...
'', Freyberg stated that Bodom After Midnight would not continue without Laiho: "Unfortunately, Bodom After Midnight as an active band is pretty much going to be buried with Alexi. We don't really feel comfortable using the name Bodom without Alexi, because it's so connected to him." Their song "Paint the Sky With Blood" was elected by ''
Loudwire ''Loudwire'' is an American online media magazine that covers news of hard rock and heavy metal artists. It is owned by media and entertainment business Townsquare Media. Since its launch in August of 2011, ''Loudwire'' has secured exclusive ...
'' as the 8th best metal song of 2021.


Musical style and influences

Children of Bodom has been described usually as
melodic death metal Melodic death metal (also referred to as melodeath) is a subgenre of death metal that employs highly melodic guitar riffs, often borrowing from traditional heavy metal (including New Wave of British Heavy Metal). The genre features the heavines ...
and
power metal Power metal is a subgenre of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional heavy metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. Generally, power metal is characterized by a faster, lighter, and more uplifting sound, in contra ...
, combining the two genres together. Influences and inspirations to Children of Bodom were cited as a variety of artists such as
Anthrax Anthrax is an infection caused by the bacterium ''Bacillus anthracis''. It can occur in four forms: skin, lungs, intestinal, and injection. Symptom onset occurs between one day and more than two months after the infection is contracted. The sk ...
,
Cannibal Corpse Cannibal Corpse is an American death metal band formed in Buffalo, New York in 1988, now based out of Tampa, Florida. The band has released fifteen studio albums, two box sets, four video albums, and two live albums. The band has had little radi ...
,
Dimmu Borgir Dimmu Borgir () is a Norwegian symphonic black metal band from Jessheim, formed in 1993. The name is derived from Dimmuborgir, a volcanic formation in Iceland, the name of which means "dark cities" or "dark castles/fortresses" in Icelandic, ...
,
Dire Straits Dire Straits were a British rock band formed in London in 1977 by Mark Knopfler (lead vocals and lead guitar), David Knopfler (rhythm guitar and backing vocals), John Illsley (bass guitar and backing vocals) and Pick Withers (drums and percuss ...
, Entombed,
Paul Gilbert Paul Brandon Gilbert is an American hard rock and heavy metal guitarist. He is the co-founder of the band Mr. Big, and was also a member of Racer X, with whom he released several albums. In 1996, Gilbert launched a solo career, for which h ...
,
Guns N' Roses Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1985. When they signed to Geffen Records in 1986, the band comprised vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKa ...
,
Hypocrisy Hypocrisy is the practice of engaging in the same behavior or activity for which one criticizes another or the practice of claiming to have moral standards or beliefs to which one's own behavior does not conform. In moral psychology, it is the ...
,
Billy Idol William Michael Albert Broad (born 30 November 1955), known professionally as Billy Idol, is a British-American singer, songwriter, and musician. He first achieved fame in the 1970s emerging from the London punk rock scene as the lead singer o ...
,
In Flames In Flames is a Swedish heavy metal band, formed by guitarist Jesper Strömblad in Gothenburg in 1990. Alongside At the Gates and Dark Tranquillity, In Flames pioneered the genres known as Swedish death metal and melodic death metal. During t ...
,
Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...
,
Kreator Kreator is a German thrash metal band from Essen, formed in 1982. Their current lineup consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Miland "Mille" Petrozza, drummer Jürgen "Ventor" Reil, lead guitarist Sami Yli-Sirniö, and bassist Frédér ...
,
Yngwie Malmsteen Yngwie Johan Malmsteen ( ; born Lars Johan Yngve Lannerbäck, 30 June 1963) is a Swedish guitarist. He first became known in the 1980s for his neoclassical playing style in heavy metal, and has released 22 studio albums in a career spanning ov ...
,
Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...
,
Mötley Crüe Mötley Crüe is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1981. The group was founded by bassist Nikki Sixx, drummer Tommy Lee, lead guitarist Mick Mars and lead singer Vince Neil. Mötley Crüe has sold over 100 million albums ...
,
Nine Inch Nails Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN and stylized as NIИ, is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland in 1988. Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Trent Reznor was the only permanent member of the band ...
,
Obituary An obituary ( obit for short) is an article about a recently deceased person. Newspapers often publish obituaries as news articles. Although obituaries tend to focus on positive aspects of the subject's life, this is not always the case. Ac ...
,
Ozzy Osbourne John Michael "Ozzy" Osbourne (born 3 December 1948) is an English singer, songwriter, and television personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as the lead vocalist of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath, during which period he adop ...
,
Pantera Pantera () is an American heavy metal music, heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas formed in 1981, and currently comprised of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, and touring musicians Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante. The group's best-kn ...
,
Poison Poison is a chemical substance that has a detrimental effect to life. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figuratively, with a broa ...
, the
Ramones The Ramones were an American punk rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first true punk rock group. Despite achieving a limited commercial appeal in the United ...
,
Sepultura Sepultura (, "grave")Barcinski & Gomes 1999, page 17. is a Brazilian heavy metal band from Belo Horizonte. Formed in 1984 by brothers Max and Igor Cavalera,Barcinski & Gomes 1999, page 16. the band was a major force in the groove metal, thra ...
, the
Sex Pistols The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they were one of the most groundbreaking acts in the history of popular music. They were responsible for ...
,
Skid Row A skid row or skid road is an impoverished area, typically urban, in English-speaking North America whose inhabitants are mostly poor people " on the skids". This specifically refers to poor or homeless, considered disreputable, downtrodden or fo ...
,
Slayer Slayer was an American thrash metal band from Huntington Park, California. The band was formed in 1981 by guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, drummer Dave Lombardo and bassist/vocalist Tom Araya. Slayer's fast and aggressive musical style ...
,
Stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...
,
Suicidal Tendencies Suicidal Tendencies is an American crossover thrash band formed in 1980 in Venice in Los Angeles, California by vocalist Mike Muir. Muir is the only remaining original member of the band. Along with D.R.I., Corrosion of Conformity, and Stormtr ...
,
Twisted Sister Twisted Sister was an American heavy metal band originally from Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey, and later based on Long Island, New York. Their best-known songs include " We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock", both of which were associated with m ...
,
Steve Vai Steven Siro Vai (; born June 6, 1960) is an American guitarist, composer, songwriter, and producer. A three-time Grammy Award winner and fifteen-time nominee, Vai started his music career in 1978 at the age of eighteen as a transcriptionist for ...
and W.A.S.P. Laiho has been, according to
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
, "widely celebrated as one of the genre's most accomplished players",Alexi Laiho Biography
AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...
.
while the band has an "instantly recognizable sound".


Tributes

In 2022, a restaurant
bar Bar or BAR may refer to: Food and drink * Bar (establishment), selling alcoholic beverages * Candy bar * Chocolate bar Science and technology * Bar (river morphology), a deposit of sediment * Bar (tropical cyclone), a layer of cloud * Bar (u ...
dedicated to the band called Bodom Bar & Sauna was opened in Espoo, located next to the
Niittykumpu metro station Niittykumpu (Finnish) or Ängskulla (Swedish) is an underground station on the western metro extension ( Länsimetro) of the Helsinki Metro The Helsinki Metro ( fi, Helsingin metro, sv, Helsingfors metro) is a rapid transit system serving Gre ...
. As the name suggests, the bar also includes a public sauna.


Band members

Final lineup * Alexi Laiho
lead guitar Lead guitar (also known as solo guitar) is a musical part for a guitar in which the guitarist plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs and chords within a song structure. The lead is the featur ...
,
lead vocals The lead vocalist in popular music is typically the member of a group or band whose voice is the most prominent melody in a performance where multiple voices may be heard. The lead singer sets their voice against the accompaniment parts of t ...
(1993–2019), bass (1993–1994, 1995–1996),
keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...
s (1993–1996, 2019),
rhythm guitar In music performances, rhythm guitar is a technique and role that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with other instruments from the rhythm section (e.g., drum kit, bass guitar ...
(1993–1996, 2003, 2015) (died 2020) *
Jaska Raatikainen Jaska Raatikainen (born 18 July 1979) is a Finnish musician, he is best known as the former drummer and co-founder of the melodic death metal band Children of Bodom from 1993 until his departure in 2019. He is currently in the project called Me ...
drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...
(1993–2019), keyboards (1993–1996) *
Henkka Seppälä Henri "Henkka T. Blacksmith" Seppälä (Born 7 June 1980), is the former bassist of the Finnish metal band Children of Bodom from 1995 to 2019. He is also responsible for backing vocals both in studio and live. He is currently the bassist for t ...
– bass,
backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are use ...
(1995–2019) *
Janne Wirman Janne Viljami "Warman" Wirman (born 26 April 1979) is a Finnish musician; he is the former keyboardist for the Finnish metal band Children of Bodom from 1997 to 2019 and currently collaborating with Warmen. Biography 150px, left, Wirman in 20 ...
– keyboards, backing vocals (1997–2019) * Daniel Freyberg – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2016–2019) Bodom After Midnight lineup (2020–2021) * Alexi Laiho – lead guitar, lead vocals (died 2020) * Daniel Freyberg – rhythm guitar, backing vocals * Mitja Toivonen – bass, backing vocals * Waltteri Väyrynen – drums * Lauri Salomaa – keyboards, backing vocals (live member) Former members * Samuli Miettinen – bass, backing vocals (1994–1995) * Jani Pirisjoki – keyboards, backing vocals (1994–1997), rhythm guitar (1994–1995) *
Alexander Kuoppala Alexander Kuoppala (born 11 April 1974) is a Finnish musician. He was the rhythm guitarist for the Finnish heavy metal band Children of Bodom from 1995 to 2003. He played on their albums '' Something Wild'', '' Hatebreeder'', ''Follow the Reape ...
– rhythm guitar, backing vocals (1995–2003) *
Roope Latvala Roope Juhani Latvala (born 25 June 1970) is a Finnish guitarist, best known as the former rhythm guitarist for the band Children of Bodom from 2003 to 2015 and the co-lead electric guitarist for Sinergy. He was also one of the founding members ...
– rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2004–2015; live member 2003–2004) Former live members *
Erna Siikavirta Erna Inari Kaarina Siikavirta (born 8 October 1977) is a Finnish keyboard player. She is best known as a member of the rock band Lordi, which she joined in 1997 under the stage name Enary. She left the band in 2005, at the request of the other mem ...
– keyboards (1998) *
Kimberly Goss Kimberly Goss is an American singer and keyboardist, best known as frontwoman and co-founder of the Finnish metal band Sinergy. Early life Goss was born in Los Angeles, California, to a Korean father and a German mother who worked as a jazz si ...
– keyboards, backing vocals (1998) * Netta Skog – accordion (guest 2015, 2016) * Antti Wirman – rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2015) Timeline


Discography

* '' Something Wild'' (1997) * ''
Hatebreeder ''Hatebreeder'' is the second studio album by Finnish melodic death metal band Children of Bodom. The "Deluxe Edition" was released in 2005 with bonus material. It was also re-released in 2008. Reception In 2005, ''Hatebreeder'' was ranked ...
'' (1999) * ''
Follow the Reaper ''Follow the Reaper'' is the third studio album by Finnish melodic death metal band Children of Bodom, released in Finland in October 2000 by Spinefarm Records and in 2001 internationally by Nuclear Blast Records. The album is the first to u ...
'' (2000) * ''
Hate Crew Deathroll ''Hate Crew Deathroll'' is the fourth studio album by the Finnish melodic death metal band Children of Bodom, released in 2003 under the Century Media label. And this is also the final Children of Bodom album to be recorded with all five origina ...
'' (2003) * '' Are You Dead Yet?'' (2005) * ''
Blooddrunk ''Blooddrunk'' is the sixth studio album by Finnish melodic death metal band Children of Bodom, released on 7 April 2008 through Spinefarm Records. The album includes a re-recorded version single for "Tie My Rope". Various editions feature o ...
'' (2008) * '' Relentless Reckless Forever'' (2011) * '' Halo of Blood'' (2013) * '' I Worship Chaos'' (2015) * ''
Hexed ''Hexed'' is a 1993 American black comedy film starring Arye Gross, Claudia Christian, Adrienne Shelly, and R. Lee Ermey, and written and directed by Alan Spencer, best known as the creator of the satirical TV series ''Sledge Hammer!'' The film ...
'' (2019)


See also

*
List of best-selling music artists in Finland These are the lists of the music artists that have the highest certified record sales in Finland (and/or sales explicitly confirmed by Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland in their database). The lists consist of albums and singles (vinyl, CD, d ...


References


External links

* {{Authority control 1993 establishments in Finland 2019 disestablishments in Finland Century Media Records artists Finnish melodic death metal musical groups Finnish power metal musical groups Musical groups established in 1993 Musical groups disestablished in 2019 Musical quintets Nuclear Blast artists