A Finnish glam rock band that first saw the light of day in the late '90s, Negative were influenced by such rock giants as Guns N' Roses, Mötley Crüe, and Hanoi Rocks. Singing in English, the group started life as a trio in 1997, eventually playing its first show in 1998. Negative signed a deal with Gbfam Records in 2002, and released their debut album, War of Love, soon after. The album would go on to become a huge seller (gold) in their home nation, and eventually found successful release in the rest of Scandinavia and other parts of Europe and Asia. In 2004, Negative returned to the charts with their second full-length, Sweet & Deceitful. The band toured extensively over the next two years, and in 2006 members Jonne Aaron (vocals), Larry Love (guitar), Sir Christus (guitar), Antti Anatomy (bass), Jay Slammer (drums), and Snack (keyboards) released album number three, Anorectic, to a great reception. In 2007, after more touring, the band was awarded for its efforts with the Best Finnish Act prize at that year's MTV Video Music Awards. Another busy year arrived for the Finnish combo in 2008, with Negative first seeing the release of a double-DVD overview of their career, In the Eye of the Hurricane, and the release of album number four, Karma Killer, in May. Before the album could be recorded, however, a stumbling block appeared, as longtime guitarist Sir Christus and the band decided to end their time together. The band took on a close friend to cover for Christus in a live capacity, but would remain a five-piece in its "official" lineup. ~ Chris True