Tokyo Warhearts – Children of Bodom (1999)
Lineup-
Alexi Laiho: Lead guitar, vocals
Alexander Kuoppola: Rhythm guitar
Henkka Blacksmith: Bass guitar
Janne Warman: Keyboards
Jaska Raatikainen: Drums
Tokyo Warhearts is a live recording of Children of Bodom's Club Citta performance in Tokyo
on July 10-11th, 1999, shortly after their sophomore album, Hatebreeder, was released. The intro
starts off with an instrumental version of Crockett's Theme (originally performed by Jan Hammer),
and then opens with Silent Night, Bodom Night.
The album sounds excellent, and many of the songs sound like tweaked versions of the
studio recordings. The keyboards are more noticeable than on the Hatebreeder albums, and add a
new level of depth to the songs featuring them, Towards Dead End and Bed of Razors being the
most notable examples. Drumming is spot on, and there is also a mini drum solo before the
beginning of Deadnight Warrior. Guitars are typically in line, although there are some issues with
the intro to Warheart. The bass guitar doesn't seem picked as precisely as in the studio recording,
and there a measure around the twenty second mark that doesn't seem quite right. Apart from
this, the songs are reproduced accurately, and in some case, improved.
Some more notable events are the War of Razors, a solo battle between Alexi and Janne
after Bed of Razors, and the new introduction to Touch Like Angel of Death, adopted from The Rock.
Also, I find one Japanese man's scream just after the first second of War of Razors to be quite
humorous. The atmosphere at the beginning of Downfall is unrivaled on the rest of the album, the
audience responds quite nicely to the opening keyboards and the opening riff.
In summary, Tokyo Warhearts gives an idea of what a typical Children of Bodom
performance during the Hatebreeder tour may have been like, and serves as a worthy introduction
to the band for first time listeners.
Tracklist-
1. Intro (1:25)
2. Silent Night, Bodom Night (3:23)
3. Lake Bodom (4:08)
4. Warheart (4:07)
5. Bed of Razors (4:35)
6. War of Razors (2:10)
7. Deadnight Warrior (3:32)
8. Hatebreeder (4:30)
9. Touch Like Angel of Death (5:53)
10. Downfall (4:47)
11. Towards Dead End (6:10)
12. No Commands (Stone cover, Vinyl Collector's release only, 4:47)
