Review CHILDREN OF BODOM ‘The Final Show in Helsinki Ice Hall 2019’

Look who is back. Santa Claus? Maybe. The Reaper? Yes!

It was three years ago that Alexi Laiho passed away far too early at the age of 39. A thing that for sure remains is the music Laiho brought to the plate, making Children Of Bodom to one of the most respected melodic death metal bands in the world. The band though showed already some signs of disintegration during 2019 with a last show Children Of Bodom played on December 15^th, 2019 in Helsinki, Finland.

This concert was recorded which in hindsight was a good decision. It was the conclusion of a successful career and three years later, the concert will be available to fans of well-crafted melodic death metal in various formats.

The setlist of the night featured songs from the debut and everything between then and the last studio album ‘Hexed’. A total of 18 songs has been played that night, tunes like the furious ‘Shovel Knockout’, the raging ‘Are You Dead?’ and the aggressive ‘Hate Crew Deathroll’ including the iconic keyboard parts.

Soundwise the live album comes in good quality and with the necessary live feeling although things sound pretty straight. And that fans reacted euphorically has to do with the great songs, but also the special background of this concert. That this concert will go down in history of the final show of Children Of Bodom was obvious to everybody at Jähalli that night. That it would be the final show of Alexi Laiho thought was something, nobody had in mind. The latter gives the live album a special importance as it also could be seen as a final homage to a band that made history.

‘The Final Show in Helsinki Ice Hall 2019’ is an album that should find a spot in each metal collection. Not only does it include powerful live version of band classics. It is also the final chapter of a band that still belongs to the main metal acts hailing from Finland. Horns up and R.I.P. Alexi.