HIM's frontman Ville Valo has confirmed that the band are going to split at the end of 2017, Gigwise reveals.
The surprising news of the Love Metal stars retiring was announced on the band's Facebook page, and has left fans in tatters.
Of the decision Valo said: "After quarter of a century of Love and Metal intertwined we sincerely feel HIM has run its unnatural course and adieus must be said in order to make way for sights, scents and sounds yet unexplored. We completed the pattern, solved the puzzle and turned the key. Thank you."
The post also praised the band: "Over the course of eight studio albums, HIM captured the hearts and minds of fans across the globe, drawn by their irresistible and inimitable style.
"Under the banner of their Heartagram logo – a potent symbol encapsulating the juxtaposition of the light and dark, the fierce and forlorn, and the evil and love found in their music – HIM filled venues and crashed charts the world over, collecting numerous awards, gracing countless magazine covers and becoming the first Finnish act to achieve Gold status in the USA."
Fans of HIM are a die-hard bunch and their band's merch was particularly popular throughout the noughties when goth/metal and emo music was dominating the mainstream. HIM created the majority of their back catalogue during this time.
There are those who stuck with them beyond the height of their popularity, supporting them in this decade that has seen them relase only two albums and have their original drummer Gas Lipstick leave in 2015.
But fortunately the split isn't overly abrupt and HIM will embark on a Russia, Europe and the UK, with US. The tour is split between a short summer (June/July) and a winter jaunt (November/December). The Roundhouse will be their last ever show so expect emotions to be pretty high.
