In memory of Alexi Laiho: Three new reviews of three interesting Children of Bodom records!

Children of Bodom - Tokyo Warhearts (1999)

Even Godzilla Approves of This

Children of Bodom's first live album Tokyo Warhearts was and still is quite difficult to find these days but has always had an excellent reputation. For once, this great reputation is fully justified. Naysayers might criticize the cheesy cover artwork, the idea to release a live record after only two regular studio albums and the short length of less than forty-five minutes. But you know what, naysayers are always whining, so you can happily ignore those complaints, purchase this hidden gem and let the music put a big smile upon your face.

There are numerous things to be praised about this album. First of all, the sound is raw but detailed which means that all the instruments sound organic, the interactions between the band and the crowd can be fully understood and even the fans have a few shining moments in form of frenetic applause, loud cheers and a few odd screams by drunk metalheads that will make you feel empathic.

Secondly, the set list has excellent flow and varies from atmospheric instrumental tunes such as ''War of Razors'' over short and brutal tracks like ''Deadnight Warrior'' and more elaborate atmospheric songs with interesting shifts and changes such as ''Touch Like Angel of Death''. In addition to this, many of these old tunes, except for unquestionable classics such as the playful ''Silent Night, Bodom Night'' and the ferocious ''Downfall'', have rarely been played or recorded in concert since then.

Thirdly, the charisma, chemistry and energy of the band is second to none. The band sounds technically impressive yet has an image of youthful party people and this turns out to be a perfectly balanced mixture. Fans of more sophisticated melodic death metal fans will appreciate this record just as much as the shaggy dude next door who is coming home from work on a Friday night and simply wants to blast some energizing music while drinking some beer. 

The only obvious downside truly is that this record is still somewhat difficult to find. But you know what, this live record is worth being tracked down as it's easily one of Children of Bodom's greatest releases and has aged particularly well. As you can see in the cover artwork, even Godzilla approves of this and my childhood hero can't possibly be wrong. These days, spinning this excellent live record certainly helps remembering guitar wizard and lead singer Alexi Laiho who left our world much too soon.

Final rating: 90%

Children of Bodom - Chaos Ridden Years - Stockholm Knockout Live (2006)

Discovery Lesson for Broke Teenagers

Even though Children of Bodom was one of the first metal bands I discovered upon exploring this type of music, I hesitated purchasing a record for a long period of time as a teenager. That was due to a limited budget of course but also because I liked the band's more melodic tunes with extended guitar solos and playful keyboard passages but didn't appreciate the band's rawer tracks that favoured speed over emotions. Nevertheless, I wanted to explore the group further and since no decent compilation was available back in the days, the most obvious choice was this live album available for a reduced price only a short period after its initial release. 

Chaos Ridden Years - Stockholm Knockout Live confirmed my initial thoughts back then. The record's melodic songs work very well in concert. ''Living Dead Beat'' starts the release on an atmospheric, cinematic and progressive note. ''Silent Night, Bodom Night'' has an excellent combination of guitar and keyboard solos and summarizes the band's strength perfectly in only three and a half concise minutes.

Other tracks didn't impress me that much. ''Bodom After Midnight / Bodom Beach Terror'' overstays its welcome and is missing charismatic melodies and clever songwriting. ''In Your Face'' is a song that was perhaps a little bit too aggressive for me when I was a teenager who was slowly getting into more extreme metal genres.

The instrumental tunes are technically stunning but honestly overstay their welcome. ''Deadbeats I'' is a drum solon that drags on for almost five minutes which is something that might be tolerable coming from a particularly skillful progressive metal band but doesn't manage to entertain from start to finish coming from a melodic death metal group. ''Clash of the Booze Brothers'' goes even further and is nearly eight minutes long. When most of your songs are built upon the duels between guitar and keyboard passages, you don't need an additional instrumental song that offers more of the same. The short guitar solo in form of ''Latvala'' certainly isn't essential but blends in better as a brief gimmick in that regard.

This live release however also has its strong sides. The communication between the band and the crowd is energetic and entertaining. The set list is balanced enough to cover all phases of the Finnish melodic death metal quintet up to that point. The band plays numerous brief jams that honour popular metal songs from Judas Priest's ''Breaking the Law'' to Dio's ''Holy Diver'' which can be heard in the great closer ''Downfall'' for instance. 

In retrospective, Children of Bodom's Chaos Ridden Years - Stockholm Knockout Live isn't an excellent introduction to the band but a decent live album for faithful and occasional fans. I have attended and appreciated two of the band's concerts later on and it's a shame that no proper live album has been released in recent years. With that being said, the group's greatest live album will al;ways remain Tokyo Warhearts due to its atmosphere, energy and passion from the band and the crowd. If I had to suggest an album to discover Children of Bodom to newcomers, I would either go for the aforementioned excellent live record Tokyo Warhearts that summarizes the band's early years perfectly or for the compilation Holiday at Lake Bodom (15 Years of Wasted Youth) that covers almost the band's entire career. In times like these, exploring or rediscovering one of the most influential metal bands of the past twenty-five years is certainly an excellent idea. May guitar wizard, lead singer and front man Alexi Laiho rest in peace.

Final rating: 70%

Children of Bodom - Skeletons in the Closet (2009)

Party All the Time

Children of Bodom has always been a band that has covered a wide variety of tunes from pop over punk to metal for fun. The amazing thing about these cool, entertaining and powerful anthems is that they remind of the great original tracks while also being performed in the band's very own charismatic style. The tight rhythm section, excellent melodic guitar play and playful keyboard sections shine in every song and the charismatic rough vocals that live and breathe rock 'n' roll lifestyle like few others are the cherry atop the cake.

The eighteen songs presented on this compilation offer sixty-six minutes of unrelenting, unpretentious and unapologetic entertainment. My personal highlight is the passionate take on Billy Idol's punk rock anthem ''Rebel Yell'' that has the grit that the original tune was lacking in my opinion. Despite being a huge Iron Maiden fan who will always prefer the original version, I really like how Children of Bodom managed to make the speedy, melodic and gritty ''Aces High'' sound like one of their own tunes. The tongue-in-cheek cover of Britney Spears' ''Oops!... I Did It Again'' should put a big smile upon your face if you aren't dead inside and proves how great even an average overrated pop tune that received way too much airplay back in the days can sound when given an energizing treatment.

Obviously, not all cover songs work perfectly in Children of Bodom's melodic death metal style. Trust's ''Antisocial'' for instance sounds much better in Anthrax's thrash metal style than with an overdose of playful keyboard sounds and odd rhythm changes. The attempt to cover King Diamond's ''Waiting'' is quite useless because nobody can quite imitate, modify or replace the charismatic vocals that make the original tune so atmospheric and unique. 

Still, the majority of cover songs on Skeletons in the Closet are executed with energy, passion and respect and even the less convincing tunes are at least entertaining. Children of Bodom have released at least nine more cover songs after this release that deserve to be listened to as well and might one day make it unto another compilation. This release here might not have much depth to be honest but it's a perfect record to spin at a rock or metal party while honouring late guitar wizard and charismatic lead singer Alexi Laiho. Rest in peace!

Final rating: 75%