I first heard The 69 Eyes in 2005, back when I was obsessed with the band HIM and decided to learn about Finland and popular Finnish music. When I first heard this band, I thought they were cheesy and boring. I listened to a few songs and promptly forgot about them for a couple of years.
Then in 2007, I went to a Cradle of Filth concert (this is quickly becoming an embarrassing music confessional), and The 69 Eyes were opening for them. I rolled my eyes when they came on stage and quickly sat down in a corner of the Roseland theater, arms crossed, for their set. Turns out, I was so wrong about them! The 69 Eyes blew me away with their performance. Their sound was so clean and clear. I had expected that the sound on their albums was overproduced, like The Doors for example, but their live sound was exactly like their recording. They also had great stage presence, and were all around impressive.
Their albums recorded between 1997 to 2007 are really the highlight of their career in my opinion. I love all six albums from that era, which is really saying something about the quality of the band! Not all bands can boast a decade of consistent work. The previous albums don't do much for me, as they are a bit too glam metal and machismo. I also, so far, don't like their two most recent albums, though I couldn't give you a logical reason at this point. I suppose that they just sound too commercial for my taste.
Perhaps the reason I love that '97-'07 period so much is because of the heavy influence Sisters of Mercy had on their music. Some of their songs really do sound like they could have been on a Sister's album, partly because of Jyrki 69's vocal style. I also, obviously, love the darkly romantic themes.
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