"Rock and roll angels bring that Hard Rock Hallelujah..."
"Hard Rock Hallelujah" is a song by the Finnish heavy metal band Lordi, which won the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest with 292 points. It was also Finland's first placement in the top five. It was voted as the most popular Finnish Eurovision entry in the forty years the country has participated. "Hard Rock Hallelujah" was also released as a single in 2006, reaching the #1 spot in Finland and also peaking in the UK Top 40 at #25. The song preaches of the impending 'arockalypse', and that we should be ready for the day of 'rockoning'
Track Listings
Finnish edition
- Hard Rock Hallelujah (Euroviscous radio edit)
- Hard Rock Hallelujah (Album version)
- Mr. Killjoy (Previously unreleased track)
GSA edition
- Hard Rock Hallelujah (Euroviscous radio edit)
- Supermonstars (Anthem of the Phantoms)
GSA Special limited DualDisc edition
- Hard Rock Hallelujah (Euroviscous radio edit)
- Hard Rock Hallelujah (Album version)
- Mr. Killjoy (Previously unreleased track)
- Hard Rock Hallelujah (music video)
- Blood Red Sandman (music video)
- Devil Is A Loser (music video)
Music Videos
The video starts with a shy female hard rock fan walking through the corridors of a school, singing softly along to the song playing on her headset. She reaches an entrance to the gym, where she stands watching the cheerleaders practice. Suddenly, the lights flicker and go out, and a wind starts to blow. As the chorus starts to play, the doors to the gym are blown off of their hinges by Mr. Lordi, who enters and kills the now-screaming cheerleaders with a wave of his hands. There is a fiery flash, and the entire band appears in the centre of the gym, playing the song.
The fan is terrified, but approaches Mr. Lordi as he points to her, singing "[...] you will see the jokers soon'll be the new kings". He raises the dead cheerleaders as zombies, and they stand around the fan pumping their fists in the air along with the music. The end of the video shows the fan, now confident and unafraid, leading the zombies through the school halls as students run away. She stops and punches the air with her fist as the zombies rush around her towards a group of students who are trapped by the closed main doors.
The video was directed by Pete Riski. The fan is played by Leina Ogihara.
Another version was filmed specially for the Eurovision Song Contest 2007 opening, directed by Antti J. Jokinen. Video starts with titles: "Arctic Circle, Finland, Rovaniemi". A troll crawls through the snow mountains and frozen lakes, when the ice cracks up with the fountain of cold water. Mr. Lordi and the band play in a hut at the deep dark forest, and then they set the woods on fire with pyrotechnics. Lines of flame draw Lordi's symbol - the monster mask.
At Eurovision
As Finland had not qualified for the final in their previous attempts, the song was performed in the semi-final. Here, it was performed sixteenth, following Ukraine's Tina Karol with Show Me Your Love and preceding the Netherlands' Treble with Amambanda. At the close of voting, it had received 292 points, placing first in the 23-strong field and qualifying for the final. In the final, it was performed seventeenth, following Greece's Anna Vissi with Everything and preceding the Ukrainian entry. Having led the voting for most of the telecast, it ultimately received 292 points again, winning the competition, breaking the previous record (held by Ruslana with Wild Dances) for the highest points tally in Contest history as well as achieving the unusual feat of emulating its semi-final performance exactly.
Commentators were generally positive about the band and the song, with even the notoriously acerbic Terry Wogan seeing it as something of a good thing for the Contest.[citation needed]
It is the second Eurovision song with the word hallelujah in its title. The first one is Israel's Hallelujah, which got first place at the 1979 Eurovision Contest
Performance
The semifinal and final performances of "Hard Rock Hallelujah" at the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest were similar; the lead singer, Mr. Lordi, stated before the final that the only planned changes were that "We'll scream louder. And turn the amps up." The performance took place on a fairly bare Eurovision stage, with banks of video monitors in the back displaying abstract images of fire, and the band in their usual monster costumes. Mr. Lordi, the lead singer, performed the first verse while wearing a top hat with the flag of Finland on it; he also wielded a microphone, the handle of which was attached to the handle of a two-headed battle axe. During the final verse, while he was singing the lyric "Wings on my back / Got horns on my head", a set of large, bat-like wings unfolded from Mr. Lordi's back. During the whole performance, the band members remained relatively stationary, with the exception of guitarist Amen, who hopped back and forth energetically. Drummer Kita and keyboard player Awa generally remained behind their instruments, bassist OX stayed by his microphone, and Mr. Lordi wore very large platform shoes.
The song had frequent use of pyrotechnics, starting with flames bursting from the stage during the song's introduction, and bursts of sparks, particularly during the chorus. The final chorus of the song had an extended pyrotechnic display, with the whole stage covered in sparks, including jets shooting from the ends of the guitar and the bass as they were being played, and from the two-headed axe (now detached) that Mr. Lordi held up above his head.
The encore performance after they were announced the winners was much simpler, as the pyrotechnics were obviously not available and Mr. Lordi's wings did not unfurl.
On May 26th, 2006 the Guinness World Record of karaoke singing was broken when approximately 80,000 people gathered to sing "Hard Rock Hallelujah" in Helsinki, Finland to celebrate victory in Eurovision.
Lyrics
Hard Rock Hallelujah,
Hard Rock Hallelujah!
Hard Rock Hallelujah,
Hard Rock Hallelujah!
The saints are crippled,
On this sinner's night.
Lost are the lambs
With no guiding light.
The walls come down like thunder,
The rocks about to roll.
It's the Arockalypse,
Now bare your soul.
All we need is lightning,
With power and might,
Striking down the prophets of false.
As the moon is rising,
Give us the sign.
Now let us rise up in awe.
Rock 'n' roll angels bring thyn Hard Rock Hallelujah.
Demons and angels all in one have arrived.
Rock 'n' roll angels bring thyn Hard Rock Hallelujah.
In God's creation supernatural high.
The true believers,
Thou shall be saved.
Brothers and sisters,
Keep strong in the faith.
On the day of rockoning,
It's who dares' wins.
You will see the jokers soon'll be the new kings.
All we need is lightning,
With power and might,
Striking down the prophets of false.
As the moon is rising,
Gave us the sign.
Now let us rise up in awe.
Rock 'n' roll angels bring thyn Hard Rock Hallelujah.
Demons and angels all in one have arrived.
Rock 'n' roll angels bring thyn Hard Rock Hallelujah.
In God's creation supernatural high.
(Solo)
Wings on my back,
I've got horns on my head.
My fangs are sharp,
And my eyes are red.
Not quite an angel
The one that fell.
Now choose to joins us
Or go straight to hell!
Hard Rock Hallelujah.
Hard Rock Hallelujah!
Hard Rock Hallelujah.
Hard Rock, yeah.
Rock 'n' roll angels bring thyn Hard Rock Hallelujah.
Demons and angels all in one have arrived.
Rock 'n' roll angels bring thyn Hard Rock Hallelujah.
In God's creation supernatural high.
Rock 'n' roll angels bring thyn Hard Rock Hallelujah.
(Aaaaah-aaaaah-aaaaah-aaah)
Rock 'n' roll angels bring thyn Hard Rock Hallelujah.
(Aaaaah-aaaaah-aaaaah-aaah)
Hard Rock Hallelujah.
Hard Rock Hallelujah!