METALLIAN - Hanoi Rocks

Bangkok Rocks, - Saigon Shakes - 1980 - Johanna
Oriental Beat - 1981 - Johanna
Self Destruction Blues - 1982 - Johanna
Back To Mystery City - 1983 - Lick
All Those Wasted Years - 1984 - Lick
Two Steps from The Move - 1984 - CBS
Rock 'n' Roll Divorce - 1986 - Rawpower
Dead By Xmas - 1986 - Raw Power
Twelve Shots On The Rocks - 2002 - JVC
Another Hostile Takeover - 2005 - Demolition
Street Poetry - 2007 - Wolfgang

Members

Vocals

Pelle Miljoona Oy, Nymphomaniacs, Solo, Jerusalem Slim, Demolition 23, Hanoi Rocks Revisited>>MICHAEL MONROE [MATTI FAGERHOLM]>>Solo, Jerusalem Slim, Demolition 23, Hanoi Rocks Revisited, Solo

Guitar

Pelle Miljoona Oy, Briard, Nymphomaniacs, Urban Dogs, Cherry Bombz, Shooting Gallery, Hanoi Rocks Revisited, The Real Mccoy Band>>ANDY McCOY [ANTII HULKKO]>>Urban Dogs, Cherry Bombz, Shooting Gallery, Hanoi Rocks Revisited, The Real Mccoy Band - Briard>>Nasty Suicide>>Cheap 'N' Nasty, Cherry Bombz

Bass

Babblers, Pelle Miljoona Oy>>Sam Yaffa>>Chaingang, Jet Boy, Mad Juana, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, New York Dolls, Demolition 23, Murphy's Law, Solo

Drum

Warzawa, Warheads, Holiday Inn, Nymphomaniacs>>Gyp Casino [Jesper Spore]>>Road Rats, Rolene, Alligator Wine, Gyp Casino & His Honest Brats - Thin Red Line, Fuck Pigs, Dark, Demon Preacher>>Razzle Dingley [Nick Dingley] - London SS, The Clash, Generation X, Cowboys International>>Terry Chines>>Cherry Bombz, Black Sabbath – Canpaza Gypsys, Snakegod, The 69 Eyes, Siunattu Hulluus>>LACU [KARI LAHTINEN]>>The 69 Eyes, Popeda, Siunattu Hulluus, Crashdiet

History & Biography

The original Finnish sleaze/R&B/hard rock band Hanoi Rocks was formed in 1980 by, among others, Michael Monroe and Nasty Suicides. Hanoi Rock sported a distinctive look probably influenced by Aerosmith and New York Dolls. The band made a move to Stockholm (Casino was the sole Swede in the band) in October of 1981 and began an influential recording career. Hanoi Rocks would later influence bands as diverse as Guns 'N Roses, Bangkok Babes and The Quireboys. The band's biggest fan-base was England where the band is still routinely cited as an influence. The band moved to London in the autumn of 1982.

Oriental Beat featured Mrs. McCoy on the cover.

Members offended Twisted Sister by calling them ugly prompting the Americans to invite them to a fight. The fight never happened and the groups reconciled with a Hanoi Rocks' apology. The band garnered the attention of CBS in 1984 and made the jump to a major label. Sadly, later that year, Razzle Dingley was killed while being driven to purchase alcohol by an allegedly-drunk Vince Neil, the singer of Motley Crue. Hanoi Rocks was in the USA at the time waiting to go on tour. Vince Neil would do community time as a result.

Although Terry Chimes would replace Razzle, Yaffa quit the band and would soon garner a major deal of his own with Jetboy. Interestingly Chimes would join Black Sabbath in 1987 for the Eternal Idol's tour.

The band would die following an internal implosion although several members went on to play together in various bands. Monroe would try his hand at several new bands none of which would really last.

In March 2001 Johanna Records released a four-CD box set. McCoy and Monroe would try to cash in on the past, when they reunited in 2001 under the Hanoi Rocks Revisited name. The band would insist the project is not a reunion despite playing live. In 2002, however, the band officially reunited. The only original members left were Michael and Andy. New music was released in the summer of 2003. Original HR guitarist Nasty Suicide made a guest appearance at the bands New Year's Eve show in Turku, Finland in 2003. The band also lost recent guitarist Costello due to family issues. In other news, Andy McCoy was in trouble with the law and facing assault charges. Bassist Timpa left Hanoi Rocks in order to spend time with his family in late 2004. The band signed to Demolition Records in mid-2005. The band's first release on the label was Another Hostile Takeover which was issued earlier in Sweden. When Swedish rockers Easy Action reunited for a one-off show on December 16th, 2005 in Kalmar, Sweden Hanoi Rocks appeared as the opening act. A new single, entitled Fashion, was released in Europe on The 16th of May, 2007 and in Japan on the 21st of June. The band was recording a new album. The group picked Street Poetry as the title for its new album, which was due on September 5th, 2007 through WolfGang Records. The group overcame Him, Nightwish, Amorphis, Sonata Arctica and Apocalyptica in late 2007 to win the first Radio Rock Finlandia award.

Following a 2-CD compilation called This One's For Rock'n'Roll - The Best Of Hanoi Rocks 1980 - 2008, a UK tour and a Japanese tour the band was throwing in the towel in 2009. Andy McCoy was touring his native Finland in November, 2009 with his new solo group, The Real Mccoy Band. The band released a Japanese compilation called Ripped Off: Odd Tracks And Demos featuring 27 tracks of rare B-sides and demo recordings from the band's '80s days. Hanoi Rocks’ final show on April 12, 2009 at Tavastia in Helsinki, Finland was issued on DVD in November as Buried Alive. It hit the number one position in the Finnish music DVD charts. Following the disbandment of Hanoi Rocks Michael Monroe formed his own band with bassist Sami Yaffa who has played with Hanoi Rocks, New York Dolls and Joan Jett & The Blackhearts and guitarist Ginger of The Wildhearts. Monroe was performing select shows in the US in March.

Michael Monroe celebrated his sixtieth birthday at the Helsinki Ice Hall on September 23 2022. The original line-up of Hanoi Rocks (Andy McCoy, Sami Yaffa, Nasty Suicide, Gyp Casino and Monroe) reunited on stage for the first time since 1982 for the event. Opening the event was Monroe’s own Demolition 23, which last climbed the stage in 1995. Motley Crue members and Hanoi Rock musicians got into a verbal argument with Nikki Sixx of the American band dismissing the assertions as Monroe trying to sell a new book. Oddly, the parties would kiss and make up after Monroe would write the Americans a letter that he would pass on through Joe Elliott of Def Leppard in 2023. Monroe would asset he wanted to wipe the slate clean and so he wrote a letter asking for bygones be bygones! Monroe then drove to a concert of Motley Crue to give hugs and make friends again.

Hanoi Rocks had a 40th-Anniversary ‘Redux’ edition of its 1982 record Oriental Beat in 2023. The record was re-mixed by Petri Majuri. The original mix was done by Peter Wooliscroft who had worked with OMD, Yes and others. Michael Monroe, along with his former Hanoi Rocks band-mate Sami Yaffa, announced four European shows to celebrate the 40th Anniversary of the Hanoi Rocks album, Two Steps From The Move of 1984, in late 2024. The album was released through CBS originally. The band was playing the album in its entirety with the second half of the show featuring a best of set from all eras of Michael Monroe. Michael broke his ribs at Planet Rockstock and solo gigs for Finland were cancelled in late 2024.

Reviews

Interviews

Hanoi Rocks