It's been a busy week for former HIM frontman Ville Valo. After teasing that something new might be on the way via his 'Heartagram' Instagram account at the end of last week, he confirmed on Tuesday that brand new music would be coming from his VV project this Friday, April 8. Now, the Finnish singer-songwriter has confirmed that VV's debut studio album, Neon Noir, will land in early 2023.
"Artistically speaking the main difference between HIM and VV is the extra line in the Heartagram, but what an exquisite line it is!" jokes the singer. "It’s the Mamas and the Papas dressed up as Metallica on their way to a Halloween bash at the Studio 54, and now who wouldn't want to witness that?"
Ville has also revealed that he'll be hitting the road for an extensive run of dates across Europe, the United Kingdom and the United States early next year, marking the first serious run of touring Ville has embarked on since the demise of HIM in late 2017.
It's a flurry of activity for an artist who has stayed relatively out of the public eye in the last couple of years, with 2020 EP Gothica Fennica Vol. 1 serving as the last piece of music to feature Ville during the 'pandemic era'. With new single Loveletting arriving on Friday, it seems like the frontman is finally ready to properly kick off the next chapter of his career, five years after HIM called it quits once and for all.
"The tickle just wasn’t there anymore,” Ville explained to Metal Hammer in 2017 when discussing the end of the band that he made his name with. “When we came back and did Tears On Tape in 2013, we’d been having some tough times – with the labels, blah blah, all the stuff bands go through. But a band has to be strong, and the friendship has to be strong so you can concentrate on the essentials like drinking beer and shaking your bum.”
No doubt plenty of bums will be shaking when Ville hits the road once more in 2023. Check out the full list of dates below. Tickets go on sale April 11 at 10:00AM CET (Europe) and April 15 at 10:00AM local time (US).
Ville Valo VV tour dates 2023
Jan 13: Helsinki Tavastia, France
Feb 14: Warsaw Proxima, Poland
Feb 15: Krakow Kwadrat, Poland
Feb 16: Prague Lucerna Music Bar, Czech Republic
Feb 17: Berlin Huxley's, Germany
Feb 18: Hamburg Fabrik, Germany
Feb 20: Amsterdam Paradiso, Netherlands
Feb 21: Frankfurt Batschkapp, Germany
Feb 22: Zurich Komplex, Switzerland
Feb 24: Barcelona Razzmatazz, Spain
Feb 25: Madrid La Riviera, Spain
Feb 26: Lisbon Cineteatro Capitolio, Portugal
Feb 27: Porto Hard Club, Portugal
Mar 02: Milan Alcatraz, Italy
Mar 03: Munich Backstage Werk, Germany
Mar 04: Budapest Barba Negra, Hungary
Mar 05: Vienna Arena, Austria
Mar 07: Esch-sur-Alzette Rockhal, Luxemburg
Mar 08: Cologne LMH, Germany
Mar 09: Paris Le Trabendo, France
Mar 10: Bristol O2 Academy, UK
Mar 11: Nottingham Rock City, UK
Mar 13: Glasgow Garage, UK
Mar 14: Manchester O2 Ritz, UK
Mar 15: London O2 Forum Kentish Town, UK
Apr 01: Philadelphia Theatre of the Living Arts, PA
Apr 02: Boston Big Night Live, MA
Apr 04: Pittsburgh Roxian Theater, PA
Apr 05: Cleveland House of Blues, OH
Apr 06: Detroit St. Andrews Hall, MI
Apr 08: Cincinnati Bogarts, OH
Apr 09: Chicago House of Blues, IL
Apr 11: Minneapolis Varsity Theater, MN
Apr 13: Denver Summit Music Hall, CO
Apr 14: Salt Lake City The Depot, UT
Apr 16: Sacramento Ace of Spades, CA
Apr 17: San Francisco The Fillmore, CA
Apr 18: Los Angeles Belasco, CA
Apr 21: Las Vegas House of Blues, NV
Apr 22: San Diego House of Blues, CA
Apr 23: Phoenix Van Buren, AZ
Apr 25: Dallas House of Blues, TX
Apr 26: San Antonio Aztec Theater, TX
Apr 27: Houston House of Blues, TX
Apr 28: New Orleans House of Blues, LA
Apr 30: Orlando House of Blues, FL
May 01: Ft. Lauderdale Revolution. FL
May 03: Atlanta Buckhead Theatre, GA
May 04: Nashville Brooklyn Bowl, TN
May 05: Charlotte Underground, NC
May 07: Silver Spring The Fillmore, MD
May 08: New York Irving Plaza, NY
