Blessed Be

So lascivious they’d make Andrew Eldritch or Peter Steele blush through their pasty-white cheeks, Finland’s (second) finest goth troubadours really came into their own on their fifth album. Initially a glam metal act in the mold of their countrymen Hanoi Rocks, in the late nineties they buddied up with HIM’s Ville Valo and moved in a more The Cult/Doors-ish direction. Deeply-intoned bad romances like “Gothic Girl” and “Brandon Lee” feature the kind of grandiose gestures you’d hope for from such a dramatic act. Not exactly the first to don the makeup but certainly amongst the best.