To/Die/For

To/Die/For (often abbreviated TDF) were a gothic metal band from the town of Kouvola in southeast of Finland, assembled in 1993 as a hard rock band under the name Mary-Ann. In 1999, they decided to change their musical style to gothic metal, changing their band name as well. The band disbanded on 13 April 2009, but has reformed as of 4 July 2009, and played their final concert at John Smith Festival in Finland on June 22nd, 2016. 

To/Die/For was formed under the name Mary-Ann in 1993. They released two demo EPs, “Mary-Ann” in 1997 and “Deeper Sin” in 1998, before changing name as they modified musical style from heavy metal to gothic metal in 1999. “Deeper Sin” thereby resulted in a record deal with Spinefarm Records.

Their debut album – All Eternity – was released in Finland by the end of 1999, and the band then signed contracts with Nuclear Blast (for Europe) and Pony Canyon (for Japan). Their cover of “In The Heat Of The Night” was to be the only single, and together with “Farewell” it was recorded as a music video, and obtained a fair amount of exposure.

In 2000, the band toured Europe together with Dark Tranquillity, Sentenced and In Flames. Bassist Miikka Kuisma quit the band and was replaced by Marko Kangaskolkka, who had played with the band in its early years. “Epilogue”, the successor of “All Eternity”, was released in 2001, and was followed by a tour with Lacrimosa.

The album “Jaded” was released in 2003, and is by many fans still seen as their best effort. In August of that year, vocalist Jarno Perätalo left the band. He assembled a new band named Tiaga, integrated by former members of To/Die/For. Juha Kylmänen (from For My Pain and Reflexion) then assumed the vocals of To/Die/For. However, in 2004, Jarno Perätalo and the band Tiaga took the name To/Die/For themselves, releasing the fourth album, simply entitled “IV”, in 2005.

On 4 October 2006 To/Die/For released their fifth studio album, entitled “Wounds Wide Open”. After the promotional tour that stretched to October 2007, the band decided to take a break.

To/Die/For released their 6th album “Samsara” in 2011, and after spending the following years touring, released their 7th studio album “Cult” in May 2015. The first single for their the album, “Screaming Birds”, was released in November 2014. To/Die/For announced ending their career in July 2016 and have ceased activities since.