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Finland's H.I.M. has been forced to change their name in the US if they want to release CDs in North America

Finnish rockers H.I.M. (His Infernal Majesty) have been forced to change their name if the group plans on releasing albums in North America, according to the band's official website, www.heartagram.com

In fact, H.I.M. has literally become HER, when the Finns were threatened with legal action from a Chicago-based outfit of similar name. The incident was prompted by the band's first single to U.S. radio, "Join Me," which as of now is under the name, HER.

"I'm about to get embattled with the evil HIM — from Finland," exclaimed frontman Doug Sharin of the Chicago act. "They're sort of a death metal band, but it's a little more glam — they have songs like "Love Affair 666" and "Join Me In Death" and all this shit. And they're apparently really big in Germany. Their HIM stands for His Infernal Majesty. I'm seriously opposed to it, man, and as far as I can make out, we had the name first." It's unclear at this moment if HER will revert back to H.I.M., as Sharin appears aggressive about keeping the band's name in their court. However, the members of H.I.M. have shot back at Sharin and company by saying this: "The 'evil HIM' have registered the name in Europe and Sharin & co won't be able to tour or release records here unless they change their attitude."

In similar news, H.I.M. are in pre-production for the follow-up to last year's Deep Shadow's And Brilliant Highlights opus. The as-yet-untitled album is set for release sometime early 2003, and is said to be in the spirit of Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, reports say. "The last record was for the girls, so this one will be for the guys," said frontman Ville Valo.

Currently, H.I.M. is signed to an unspecified U.S. label run by the Bloodhound Gang's Jimmy Pop. However, there seems to be no plans to release Deep Shadow's And Brilliant Highlights domestically unless "Join Me" garners significant attention.

Source: Digitalmetal