Greatest Lovesongs Vol. 666

Overview

Four singles were released from the album: "When Love and Death Embrace", which reached #9 on the Finnish chart, "Your Sweet Six Six Six", which reached #7 on the Finnish chart also, "Wicked Game", and "It's All Tears (Drown in This Love)". Greatest Lovesongs Vol. 666 reached #4 on the Finnish album chart and #50 on the German album chart. The album has been certified Platinum by the Finnish music chart. Upon its US release in 2005, the album peaked at number 31 on the Top Heatseekers Chart.

After track 9, on both versions of the album, there is a series of untitled hidden tracks (numbers 10 - 66) that fill 666 megabytes, although only track 66 contains music: the outro from the version of "The Heartless" released on the 666 Ways to Love EP (which, naturally, starts 6 minutes into the track). On the U.S. re-issue (due to Jimmy Franks Recording Company's extensive editing), the disc ended up being 664 megabytes in size and 66:04 in length.

In the second verse of "It's All Tears (Drown In This Love)," the woman heard screaming at the beginning of the EP version of "The Heartless" can be heard on the left channel.

The cover of "(Don't Fear) The Reaper" is actually a demo recording. When the band first put the album together, they found the material that they had recorded for it only came to 32 minutes. They recalled liking the demo they recorded for the song, so they put it on the end of the record (on the Finnish release). As the song is 6 and a half minutes long, this resulted in the album being as long as was originally planned.

Sounds and Themes

The album's overall sound is heavily rooted in traditional gothic metal and gothic rock, featuring down-tuned and highly distorted guitars while maintaining dark, haunting atmospheres throughout, on top of what would become Ville Valo’s trademark lyrics of dramatic laments of love and death. The conceptual theme of the album is 666; the album is 66 minutes and 6 seconds long, contains 66 tracks and fills up 666 megabytes. Although sometimes perceived to have Satan-worshiping references, Valo has stated that the album was not to be perceived as such; these references are meant to symbolize the "darker" side of love.

The album has been described as “…unveil[ing] its signature "love metal" sound to stunning effect. A potent combination of The Sisters of Mercy-inspired goth and blistering hard rock mixed with a glam look and overtly romantic lyrics[…]front man Ville Valo's deep croon and charismatic presence are showcased throughout the album”

In comparison to future releases, Greatest Lovesongs Vol. 666 would eventually garner a reputation for being HIM's darkest and heaviest album to date, and has been recognized as such by critics and fans alike.

Track listing

All songs are composed by Ville Valo, except where noted.

Personnel