Hanoi Rocks

Hanoi Rocks
Hanoi Rocks performing at the Ilosaarirock festival in 2008
Background information
Origin	Helsinki, Finland
Genres	Glam punk, hard rock, glam rock, glam metal
Years active	1979–1985, 2001–2009
Labels	Johanna Kustannus, Lick, Nippon Phonogram, CBS, Major Leiden Productions, Liquor and Poker Music, Backstage Alliance, Pronit
Associated acts	Briard, Pelle Miljoona Oy, The Suicide Twins, Jerusalem Slim, Demolition 23., New York Dolls, Cherry Bombz, Shooting Gallery
Website	www.hanoirocks.info
Past members	Michael Monroe Andy McCoy Nasty Suicide Sami Yaffa Gyp Casino Razzle Terry Chimes René Berg Tumppi Varonen Peki Sirola Nedo Soininen Stefan Piesnack Timo Kaltio Lacu Timpa Laine Costello Hautamäki Stevie Klasson Conny Bloom Andy "A.C." Christell George Atlagic

Hanoi Rocks was a Finnish rock band formed in 1979. They were the first Finnish band to chart in the UK and they were also popular in Japan. The band broke up in June 1985 after the drummer Nicholas "Razzle" Dingley had died in a car accident during their first US tour in December 1984. Original vocalist Michael Monroe and guitarist Andy McCoy reunited in 2001 with a new line-up of Hanoi Rocks until 2009. Although musically closer to traditional rock n' roll and punk, Hanoi Rocks have been cited as a major influence in the glam metal genre for bands such as Guns N' Roses, Skid Row and Poison.

According to Finnish radio and TV personality Jone Nikula, who was the band's tour manager in the 2000s, Hanoi Rocks's albums have sold between 780,000 and 1,000,000 copies around the world, but mostly in Scandinavia and Japan.

Hanoi Rocks was formed in Helsinki in 1980 by Michael Monroe (Matti Fagerholm) and his friend, guitarist Andy McCoy (Antti Hulkko). McCoy did not join the band immediately, because he was the guitarist for the Finnish punk band Pelle Miljoona Oy. McCoy allowed Monroe to form the band with an agreement that McCoy would join later.

The original lineup of Hanoi Rocks was Michael Monroe on vocals, former Pelle Miljoona Oy guitarist Stefan Piesnack, Monroe's guitarist Nasty Suicide, bassist Nedo Soininen, and drummer Peki Sirola.

The band toured Finnish clubs, playing McCoy and Monroe's own songs and covers like Cheap Trick's "He's a Whore," The Police's "Born in the 50's" and MC5's "Looking at You." At one of the band's first shows was Seppo Vesterinen, who had brought big name artists like Iggy Pop and Frank Zappa to Finland. Vesterinen soon became the band's manager after speaking with McCoy and Monroe. In late 1980 Andy McCoy left Pelle Miljoona Oy to join Hanoi Rocks, and was later joined by another former Pelle Miljoona Oy member, bassist Sami Yaffa. McCoy replaced Stefan Piesnack, who had been arrested for drug possession, and Yaffa replaced Nedo. By then Peki had left the band, and when it relocated to , they hired an old friend of Monroe and McCoy's, drummer Gyp Casino.