He's from Stone, the pioneers of thrash metal in Finland.

Roope Latvala was one of Laiho's childhood idols/influences through Stone and I believe the first Randy Rhoads guitar Alexi Laiho bought in this teens and became known for (this guitar was later stolen) was bought from some Espoo/Helsinki music shop. This particular guitar you can see in old Bodom clips (Black Jackson Randy Rhoads with yellow stripes) was the very same guitar Jiri Jalkanen from Stone used to own, but later sold, and Jiri was the second guitarist of Stone while Roope Latvala was the "lead guitarist", or this is I how I perceived it. This is at least how I remember reading things.

I never considered Roope technically any "lesser" to Laiho, he after all, was perhaps the master and Laiho was the apprentice, even if some may find this a bit debatable position to take, but in my opinion if one listens Roope's material starting from Stone, Latvala Bros and stuff recorded with Sinergy. Latvala was a beast of a guitarist (and probably still is)

It is sad to hear the falling out Bodom/Laiho had with Latvala in 2015 and he felt "backstabbed", perhaps rightly so, but surely the death of Laiho was absolutely more tragic news for me too. I was listening some of the old Sinergy stuff lately, especially Beware the Heavens, and it amazes me how technically solid stuff this material is despite released in 1999. Especially considering how young Laiho was. While many people praise Laiho as some guitar hero, I always felt he was a very productive composer who released absolutely huge amount of material with consistent quality (even though I personally never even gave Bodom much listen after HCDR, but I gravitated towards more traditional Death Metal/Black Metal type of stuff at that point too)

I got into metal long after COB's early 2000s heyday, but their first few albums are very good. It's a sad loss for metal.

Having just listened to most of their discography again in the last few days, I would say Hexed is comparable in quality to HoB, perhaps even better.



This has been said a few times now, so I think it's important to note that technical virtuosity is one of those characteristics that tends to manifest early or never. The people who seem like prodigies when younger are the ones who spent often half a dozen hours or more a day for years at a young age assiduously improving their chops, so they've already practiced thousands and thousands of hours by the time they're in their mid-late teens and starting bands. It's quite rare to see someone who is very limited starting in their late teens or early 20s become a virtuoso years later. Most do improve a bit over time, but not dramatically. You occasionally get the exception like Glen Tipton or Mark Tremonti who are noticeably better on later albums than they were on early ones, but it's unusual.

Nice reading you guys about Roope.
nice long jam from 2001 here of both guys with their Jacksons :

Another notable display of Roope's skills is the guest solo on Amon Amarth's Twilight of the Thunder God, which is a really tight scale run that not many guitarists are able to nail

Children of Bodom were never my thing, but it's still tragic. He was an amazing guitarist and I remember how much those first two albums meant to people when they first came out.

The Mozart of metal, in music and in life/end.

About a year ago I posted here in a thread about Bodom breaking up and Alexi forming "Bodom After Midnight" and giving all copyright/royalties to "Children of Bodom"

That seemed extremely weird and unrational move to me, why would he give up rights to his "own band" so to speak?

Also it seems a bit suspect to me that why did he release his biography/autobiography in Finnish (titled Alexi Laiho – Kitara, kaaos & kontrolli) just at 40 years old in 2020?

I personally do not know what is the case, but considering the above mentioned facts, maybe Alexi knew that his time was short.

Janne Wirman commented last week the break-up of Bodom in Helsingin Sanomat saying:

Google translate:
“There were insurmountable things coming from Alexi that happened (that lead to the break-up of Children of Bodom). I promised Alexi that I will never talk about those things publicly,” says keyboardist Wirman.

It's just upsetting to see that. I recently got back into COB and I'm not lying, but after I had a good look at Alexi in the last few years, I thought he looked really ill from all the years of trashing themselves on the road, and I did honestly think to myself, "shit, I wonder how long this guy is going to live? he looks as crook as a dog". Well, turns out the question was answered not long after, which is incredibly sad. I really looked up to him in my teenage years, the guy was an absolute beast of a player with talent dripping off of him. I have never heard or seen another guitarist or musician with his distinct feel, chops, writing style, riff and lyric style, his whole thing was original.

Still can't believe he is gone, I couldn't believe it when I logged on. It doesn't even seem real even now to be honest, he is one of those cool rockstar metal guys that was meant to live til old age doing this shit. Was it actually confirmed that some doctor told him he only had ten years to live, ten years ago?

Anyone know why he painted his nails? What did it represent, if anything?

it was very trendy in the late 90's (here in finland at least) among the sort of angsty metal teenager crowd to do black nails, hair dye, eyeliner etc - pretty sure there's no particular statement behind it beyond that

No doubt. For all the reasons you mentioned. Plus the lyrics. He always claimed they were related to this or that accident or disease. But clearly there was something else going on. And in that official statement they admitted as much when they mentioned that he died of long-term health issues--the very thing he spend years denying. But it's right there in his lyrics and actions.

Honestly dudes, I am betting it was some kind of terminal cancer or organ failure? what do you think.

Absolutely! I might add that 2 days before announcing the COB split up (nov. 2, 2019) , they released the official video for the Hexed album title track. It might all have been planned that way. Hexed is their last "single". As a title and as a song, if we look at the lyrics, it speaks for itself. Then the album end with "Soon Departed"... I do not count Knuckleduster, written years ago.

Then there's this weird and short hidden track at the end. He seems to mess with riffs used in previous/old songs ? Lyrics :

I did my time
My dear partner in crime
Vile days are in these questions
Don't tell no more confessions

It was me (Remember when)
It was me (Then I'll do it again)
My enemy (My yesterday)

All in all, it also seems weird to start a new band and get ready to start touring again at the same time.

I wouldn't say suspect. The very first statement that the former members of Children of Bodom made when Laiho's passing was made public included this: "Laiho had suffered from long-term health issues during his last years."

Like many have stated, Alexi Laiho didn't seem to have good health, and his former bandmates actually stated that he was struggling with health issues. Laiho himself probably knew that his condition could worsen and that he might end up passing away sooner rather than later. Writing his autobiography and giving up the rights to CoB's music to his former bandmates might have been things he wanted to make sure he did before passing.

Even almost a week later, this is still so weird to me. I went back and blasted Follow the Reaper like three times in a row. What a fun fucking album. Man, this sucks.

Wow, just seeing this now. This is very unexpected and sad news. One of those musicians it feels very weird to hear about passing away. Still enjoy Hatebreeder and Follow the Reaper every now and then. Saw them live a few times and could always expect a very fun show. Definitely a very talented guitar player and high energy performer who certainly left his mark on the genre. RIP Alexi

The thing is that Alexi continously denied having any sort of severe health issues. Even just a year before his death in an interview with Finnish Soundi magazine, Alexi said that all the rumors of his ill health on the internet are just social media babbling without any sort of truth to them and he is in perfect health. Alexi looked almost anorexic, so people naturally thought that something was wrong.

Google translate from the Soundi interview (with some minor corrections):

There can be many reasons why he could have lied about his health. Maybe it was a pride/shame thing. He might have had issues he didn't feel comfortable talking about, or maybe he thought it would make him look weak. Drug addictions, anorexia, psychological health issues. There are many things that people tend to hide. I don't want to speculate too much on this. I do not claim to know any better than him or people who were actually close to him. But his former bandmates claiming he was battling with long term health issues, the fact that he actually looked sick, and the fact that... you know... he just passed away at 41... might tend to prove that he was not as healthy as he wanted people to think he was. Or maybe he wasn't sick at all and he died in an accident. Either way, this is very sad. 41 is no age to go.

Can we not start making up bullshit that directly contradicts what his friends and family are saying?

Imagine if someone of his status and skill had announced he had a terminal condition. Literally everything he did or said from the moment of that announcement would be viewed from that lens. Every conversation, band interaction, interview, record deal would be colored by that knowledge, probably for the worse. He clearly just wanted to live his life normally, despite knowing he had a time limit. That's super admirable.

I've been going through CoB music since his passing and, wow- these first albums were just something else. I really checked out of CoB for a while, and coming back to them has been a super refreshing experience.

Same here. Definitely pioneers in the early days.

Why are you getting worked up? I basically said the same thing you just said.

I personally would not/haven't trusted any "official" announcements with Children of Bodom, at least since 2015 after Latvala was kicked out. The official message was something like "We departed in good spirits", and roughly few years later a Finnish newspaper releases article called "Roope Latvala - Backstabbed Man" where Roope says very bitter things about Alexi, CoB and how he was treated and has been basically just drinking beer since they split-up and haven't even touched his guitar. Then Alexi's own biography tells a totally different story what lead to the kicking out of Roope.

Seems there is/has been lots of stuff in the background and it really is hard to tell what was and is the real situation. Officially everything was always fine and there's nothing to worry about.

My introduction into CoB was Hate Crew Death Roll, which until today is my favourite of theirs. Several of their later records, most notably Hexed and Halo of Blood, are killer records as well. Their first few records are great but don’t hit the same notes for me as they seem to do for others in this thread.

Absolutely shite news: I was looking forward to Bodom after Midnight and how much of the magic resided with just Alexi. 41 is too young.

In only 7 days time, metal lost two great metal bands (Iced Earth after the Jon Schaffer debacle too). This better be it for this year.

I was surprised by this.. Like many others I got into CoB as a teenager (back in 2008) - and Hatebreeder is my absolute fav album with CoB. I always loved his Metal-Mozart playstyle and he'll def be missed, even if I havent cared about CoB after Blooddrunk (which was also one of the first records I ever bought).

R.I.P Alexi Laiho.

Cranked Follow the Reaper while walking this morning. The First four are pretty close in quality for me.

Always great live. I liked the interplay with him and the keyboardist. It was funny as it was like Wirman wasn't really even paying attention, he walked off to the side of the stage, to get a drink or something, in the middle of the song when he wasn't playing. Just nonchalantly strolls back over and just rips into some ripping keys. A shitload of fun. RIP Alexi.

Damn. These last two weeks have been a double whammy on that end

My friends got heavily into COB when I was in high school, and I always liked them, too. Some of them even have different-colored COBHC tattoos. I never did quite get that far into it, but I always respected the hell out of Alexi's playing, and enjoyed seeing them live. I knew he had been in poor health for a while, but it was still rough to hear. We were all looking forward to Bodom After Midnight shenanigans, for sure. RIP!

I don't know if I'd put the passing of Laiho on the same level as "Schaffer being a fascist dick who took part in a violent insurrection to keep a ex-president in place after a legitimate electoral victory by his opponent", though. Seems a bit disrespectful to the memory of Laiho.

Same, well ive been playing the entire discography for the last ten days, been very enjoyable, still haven't changed my mind about Relentless Reckless Forever it still sounds average compared to their other stuff, it was only the last couple of days I played Something Wild and Hatebreeder, Something Wild - the whole damn album is flawless, and there's some killer anthems on Hatebreeder, made me realise theres much more to that album than just Downfall! Warheart, Silent Night Bodom Night, Hatebreeder and Children of Bodom the songs are brilliant

I've been doing the same. I've come to realize that Are You Dead Yet is a hell of a lot better than I felt it was when it came out, it's actually a really good album. I'm also enjoying Hexed a lot more too, a lot of it reminds me of Hate Crew, if not maybe an in between that and Are You Dead Yet? Mostly a solid discography. I still haven't given a huge amount of attention to: Blooddrunk, Relentless, Reckless and I Worship Chaos.

Great band. Really sad to hear about his passing. I always enjoyed their work. I saw them a little over a year ago and Alexi looked very thin and unwell. Little did I realize that he was possibly dying. I had noticed that Bodom After Midnight was slated to perform at the Tuska and Summer Breeze Festival this summer. So this news came as a shock to me. I understand he didn't look healthy, but I figured he was took young to be dying.

I gave the COB discography another thorough listen and I must say that I enjoyed everything up to Are You Dead Yet, yes I said it. That album gets knocked for being their mainstream hit album, but you can't deny the songs are there. Next In Line, Trashed Lost and Strungout, In Your Face, AYDY, Living Deadbeat are all good tracks. Halo Of Blood and Hexed are both very strong albums. I think after Hate Crew Deathroll the fanbase grew up and got over them, they went on to different or harder stuff. Relentless Reckless Forever, Blooddrunk and I Worship Chaos are albums that have 2-3 really good tracks the rest is average to filler. But that's me.

Someone else pointed out that some COB members may have known beforehand, and understood that it was in the best interest of the band to stop before Alexi's health condition deteriorated even more. Alexi may have known that his fate was sealed regardless and decided to proceed forward. Therefore he signed off the rights and name of the band to the members. It may have been his parting gift. Bodom After Midnight was meant to be as a bonus for the fans I suppose. 10 albums before 40 years old. One can't say they weren't a hard working band. Alexi leaves us with a large amount of work and that's his gift to us.

Yeah more to AYDY? than just the first few songs when you really listen as well, Trashed Lost and Strungout is amazing

AYDY and HCDR are my favorite COB albums, although I like them all. Never understood the hate for AYDY. Well, I guess it's because it doesn't feature lots of silly keyboards, which is its strength in my opinion. But, it's a fantastic album. As has been pointed out often, they've played many songs form that album on every tour. So Alexi and/or the fans know very well how good it is.

Been tough going listening through the Bodom catalogue. Not just the early stuff (due to nostalgia), but the later stuff too, cause to me it showed Alexi was still capable of writing great material. Hexed is strong near enough front to back (maybe a dip or two towards the end of the album) and is in a three way fight with Are You Dead Yet? and Halo of Blood as 'best of the rest' after the first four. I Worship Chaos gets a bit of stick, and whilst I do think it's the second worst album, I still like it a lot. I think there's some amazing solos - probably my favourite lead work he'd done since AYDY. "Morrigan" is a good example - it's just a really well composed, tasteful solo. The guitar / key duel at the end of "All for Nothing" is the real stand out though. Really emotive playing that hits a little harder given the current circumstances.

Have to stand up for Relentless Reckless Forever as well, as there's some quality songs on there. Still haven't entirely warmed to Blooddrunk though.

I do like I worship chaos. Can't exactly say why though, but I always enjoy listening to it. Reckless and AYDY are the weakest to me but they still have some bangers. And AYDY songs are usually stronger live than on the album. But really, to me, over the course of their career, I'd be hard pressed to name even five songs that I really don't like.

I basically wrote the band off completely upon release of Are You Dead Yet? with the exception of Halo Of Blood and never really gave the other albums the time of day. I'm realizing that even though the riffs and melodies weren't on the same level as the early albums, there's a lot of really great songwriting and energy. There's nothing that touches the albums that established them but it's not like they turned into In Flames or Arch Enemy.

Yeah that's what I gathered from listening to those ones. They're not nearly as driven by neo-classical melodies, but at the same time they're fun and catchy albums. They definitely did a good job evolving from their roots without completely abandoning them.

It's easier to look back, in hindsight, and appreciate the discography as a whole, especially considering how the band managed to release two more consensually appreciated albums later in their career with Halo of Blood and, to a lesser extent, Hexed. But at the time these records were coming out, it felt like a slow decline to the fans. And that's how I remember experiencing it. I was a huge fan of CoB back in 2004, and when Are You Dead Yet? came out, sure it was fun and it had very good moments, but it didn't stick with me quite as much as the first three. And than, three whole years later, they released Blooddrunk which was a huge disapointment. Wait another three years and they release an ablum that's even worst than Blooddrunk... Relentless Reckless Forever. Now imagine (or if you lived it, try to remember how you first experienced it) loving a band so much, and over the span of 9 years, a band you used to love released one okay album, and two mediocre ones. I'm pretty sure it's normal to give up on a band when this happened. I personnally never hated CoB, but I really wasn't expecting much from them after RRF. So when Halo of Blood came out 2 years later, I really wasn't interested in new CoB material. And I guess my experience is pretty similar to the experience of many other metalheads.

Now of course, looking back from 2021, fans can cherry-pick through the discography and say there were still solid tracks and a few solid albums after the classic era, but for fans who loved the earlier records, it just wasn't enough.