LORDI (FINNISH MONSTERS) BOEKEN

Finnish Monsters of Rock Conquer Eurovision 2006

The horrific metal-masked rock-thrashing Lordi band from Finland has emerged without competition to win the finals of Eurovision 2006 in Athens.

Lordi meaning “The Lord” have pulled off a smashing victory in a performance in Athens that both bemused and amused viewers. European viewers voted for their song “Hard Rock Hallelujah” to earn them 292 points from telephone voters in 38 countries .

Lordi’s monster masks, armour and jets of flame had attracted widespread attention even before the opening of the contest – yet many thought they were too outlandish to win.

Though some Finns have protested their Eurovision entry, even asking the president to intervene, Lordi was a real people’s choice: their hit got more than 42% of the votes cast by televoting in the Finnish final.

The band members wore scary masks, which they refused to take off, and the lead singer – also called Lordi – wielded a chain-saw.

Their song Hard Rock Hallelujah is a radical departure from the folk songs, catchy pop and ballads usually associated with the Eurovision song contest.

The Finns left Dima Bilan from Russia far behind, with 248 points and the second place with his “Never Let You Go”. The Russian performance featured a ballerina emerging from a grand piano.

Bosnia-Herzegovina was in third place with 229 points going to the group Hari Mata Hari singing the melodic “Layla.”

Before the show the favourite performer was Swedish Carola, who entered the contest in 1983 and won in 1991.

Influenced by the American hard rock band Kiss and its lead singer Gene Simmons, the Finnish band has not escaped allegations of links with Satanism. Rumours have been fuelled by the group’s refusal to give television interviews, to take off their masks or reveal their real names.

Hailing from Arctic Lapland, Lordi became a phenomenon in Finland with a platinum-selling debut album, Get Heavy, in 2002. Their compilation album The Monster Show has been released in more than 20 countries.