Screamworks: Love in Theory and Practice

The producer was Matt Squire, whose earlier work included The Used, Taking Back Sunday and Panic! at the Disco. Over three months he and the band rearranged much of the material and rehearsed more than they ever had, then went into The Lair Studio in Los Angeles in August 2009; NRG Studios in North Hollywood was also used. This is the first HIM album Ville Valo worked on completely sober after his time in rehab, which is part of why the band rehearsed as much as they did. He said at the time that he had set out to prove everything he could do with it, and has looked back on that intention since. As the full title's "Chapters 1-13" says, it is built of thirteen songs. It charted in fifteen countries and reached number one in Finland, and in the United States it entered the Billboard 200 at number eight. The running order here is the original release's as printed; the player on this page carries the deluxe edition, which adds three live recordings from Helldone.