HIM are to today's teenagers what the Cure meant to legions of overdramatic, over-hairsprayed misery chicks in the 1980s. Helmed by frontman Ville Valo -- a willowy figure who's generous with the eyeliner and the gothic intrigue -- the Finnish band has specialized in songs for vampiric lovers and graveyard aficionados since the mid-1990s. But while its swooning U.S. debut,
Dark Light, can venture into sub-Hot Topic
self-parody ("We hide behind the crimson door/While the summer is killed by the fall"), its copious hooks make even the blackest heart melt. In fact, touchstones include VAST or the Cult -- especially since
Light's piano and synths chill like creeping death underneath churning power chords.
Show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets are $24; call 314-726-6161 for more information.
