Lordi

Lordi is a Finnish hard rock band, formed in 1992 by the band's lead singer, songwriter and costume-designer, Mr. Lordi. The band is known for wearing monster masks and using pyrotechnics during concerts. They rose to domestic success in 2002 with their first single, "Would You Love a Monsterman?".

Lordi made history in 2006 by winning the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest with a then record 292 points, becoming the first Finnish performer to win the contest. Lordi was featured on the 2006 MTV Europe Music Awards in Copenhagen when the band's frontman, Mr. Lordi, presented the award for rock. They were also the closing act, playing their single "Hard Rock Hallelujah". They also performed onBritain's Making Your Mind Up for the Eurovision Song Contest. Lordi performed on the main stage at Ozzfest 2007 and later that year toured with Type O Negative and Twin Method until Halloween night.

Costumes

The monster masks and costumes the band use are made of foam latex. Mr. Lordi's mask was first cast glued together piece by piece. The other masks are solid helmets. It takes the other band members about 20 minutes to put their masks on, though it takes Mr. Lordi two to three hours to put on his. Mr. Lordi mentioned that their suits still have some original pieces from 1996. He has also said that the suits cost them "a few hundred euros". The masks and costumes of Lordi are all and always made by Mr. Lordi himself. As a professional make-up artist and sculptor, Mr. Lordi has the necessary knowledge to produce those things easily. The band members do each other's makeup. The band updates their outfits and masks for each new album.

The monster costumes are such an integral part of Lordi's publicity image that they refuse to be photographed or even interviewed without them, even if in some cases it leads to their own discomfort. Lordi has done interviews without their masks but the interviews are always filmed from the back so that their faces are not visible. Previously during interviews, Lordi members spoke only English to the cameras, not their native Finnish. In a brief segment on the BBC reporting about the band attending the Eurovision Song Contest 2006, they were shown lounging beside a pool in full sunlight, while wearing their costumes.

Lordi members have stated that their costumes were inspired by Kiss and the horror genre. Mr. Lordi himself has said that without Kiss, Lordi probably would not exist. The costumes have also drawn comparisons to the thrash metal group GWAR, who wear similar foam latex monster outfits, though their musical styles are quite different. Mr. Lordi has claimed in interviews that he had never heard of GWAR when he formed Lordi. In a recent interview Oderus Urungus of GWAR called Lordi "a kiddie version of GWAR" but felt that Lordi did not rip off GWAR, as both bands owed their image to earlier musicians like Kiss. He seems to have a tongue-in-cheek rivalry with Mr. Lordi, as he has stated his desire to "remove Mr. Lordi's mask and expose him as a silly human".

Mr. Lordi's mask was auctioned for more than 6000 euros. It was bought by a Finnish businessman, Vesa Keskinen, in an auction organised by YLE.

Band's music

Lordi's music is mainly hard rock combined with strong elements of heavy metal music. The band's horror-related albums, the monster costumes worn by all band members, and the horror elements of their performances are hallmarks of shock rock. The band was mostly influenced by KISS, but also by Alice Cooper and Twisted Sister.

Although the band is often perceived by the media as a heavy metal band due to their monster costumes, their musical style has more characteristics of the hard rock genre. Over the years, the band's musical style has taken a very varied direction between hard rock and metal, with the pattern seeming as though it changes between the two with every album released. Their debut album, Get Heavy, represented a large part of traditional hard rock music, but by the release of their The Monsterican Dream album in 2004, the band had shifted considerably toward heavier music and horror effects were prominently displayed. However, in their 2006 album The Arockalypse, Lordi shifted back toward hard rock, eschewing horror themes and special effects. Their 2008 studio album, Deadache, included more typical horror elements, leaning once again toward the heavier side of the spectrum. Babez For Breakfast saw the band once again shift back to the traditional hard rock elements, with an even greater exposure to the 1980s than the band's previous albums.

Some Songs