HIM is a Finnish alternative rock band from Helsinki, currently consisting of vocalist Ville Valo, guitarist Mikko Lindström, bassist Mikko Paananen, keyboardist Janne Puurtinen and drummer Mika Karppinen.

Formed in 1991 as His Infernal Majesty and later shortened to HIM, the group released the seven-track demo tape Witches and Other Night Fears in 1992. This was followed by their 1997 debut album release Greatest Love Songs Vol. 666, which included covers of Chris Isaak’s Wicked Game and Blue Öyster Cult’s (Don’t Fear) The Reaper, although it was 1999’s Razorblade Romance that first got them mainstream attention. As well as doing well in their native Finland, the album was a big hit in Germany, reaching number one on the album chart and producing the chart-topping single Join Me in Death, as well as the Top 20 hits Right Here in My Arms and Gone With the Sin.

The group’s third album Deep Shadows and Brilliant Highlights was another hit, producing the singles Heartache Every Moment, In Joy and Sorrow, Pretending and Close to the Flame, while their fourth release Love Metal saw them hit the Top 20 in the UK with the single The Funeral of Hearts. They also gained notable popularity in the US after being promoted heavily by the MTV presenter Bam Margera.

The group’s fourth and fifth studio albums – Dark Light and Venus Doom – saw the group cement their place as international stars, with both releases charting inside the Top 20 in the US and producing the international hit singles Wings of a Butterfly (which reached number ten in the UK), Killing Loneliness, In Joy and Sorrow/Pretending and The Kiss of Dawn.

HIM’s latest album, Screamworks: Love in Theory and Practice, Chapters 1–13, was released in February 2010. It has spawned the singles Heartkiller and Scared to Death to date.