Dark passion play --- Nightwish --- 2007 (Nuclear Blast)
Now
this was certainly ambitious! After firing longtime lead vocalist Tarja Turunen, Nightwish auditioned thousands of singers before finding her replacement in Anette Olzon. Unsure how the fans would react to Tarja's replacement --- especially given that she was fired rather than left, never a good way for musicians to part --- the first album to feature the new vocalist opens on a fourteen-minute epic. I guess that's confidence in their new singer for you. This was Nightwish's sixth album, and since its release, and its followup last year, it seems the faithful have taken Anette to their hearts.
But this is the first Nightwish album I've reviewed, although I have featured some of their tracks on the Random Track of the Day slot --- indeed, I believe they were the very first track selected, way back in August of last year --- so we're coming at it without the “Tarja bias”, as it were, with no preconceptions of how the music should be, how the songs should be sung, or any real effort at, or need for, comparison between the two singers.
It opens, as I mentioned, on a real epic piece, almost fourteen minutes of “The poet and the pendulum”, which puts me in mind of the beginning of the movie “Interview with the vampire”: ghostly piano, string section and high female operatic vocal before the action starts, and heavy violins clash with guitar and drums as the first part gets underway. This song is broken into five separate parts, the first called “White lands of Empathica” would seem to be the dramatic instrumental opening, the overture if you will, then “Home” is a heavy, fast rock tune with the new vocalist showing she's no shrinking violet, taking centre stage as the orchestra back her strongly. Things slow down then with mostly violin backing her for “The Pacific”, in which she sings like an angel fallen from grace, very restrained and gentle, until heavy bassoon and horns introduce a spoken, urgent vocal backed by frenetic violin as the title track, as it were, part four, “Dark passion play” hits in and takes the song to new levels.
The electric guitar and violins do battle here, one trying to best the other, with heavy keyboard passages counterpointing their struggle, then the harsher vocals of Marco Hietala carry the song into a sort of reprise of “Home”, until another spoken vocal backed by the Metro Voices Choir leads us into the final part of the song, “Mother and father”, a slower, mid-tempo ballad style with the piano coming back in, filled out by the orchestra and the choir as the song moves towards its somewhat muted conclusion. It ends on the voices of the choir, tinkling piano and rolling drums fading away like thunder moving slowly out over the sea.
You could say nothing other than that it's a great start, but putting such a long track at the beginning of an album is certainly a gamble, as Rush found out, though it certainly worked for them. “Bye bye beautiful” is much more straightforward rock/metal, with hard electric guitars, a nice vocal from Anette supplemented by male backing vocals from, I assume, Marco Hietala again. Some great keyboard work from Tuomas Holopainen in a track that really rocks along with a lot of power and energy. Really more a vehicle for the vocals of Hietala though than for the new girl, but they put this right on “Amaranth”, one of the five singles taken from this album.
A nice, almost Asialike piano line introduces a song that soon explodes into life, the London Philharmonic Orchestra lending their considerable talents to the music, and Anette definitely taking centre stage again as we head into another rocker with operatic and dramatic overtones, and this continues into “Cadence of her last breath”, where again Anette shows off her vocal prowess. I don't know what Tarja's style was, but this woman seems born to sing with this band: they fit together seamlessly, and you would be hard-pressed to believe this is their first album together. A lot of power in this song, not so much of the orchestra as Nightwish revert to just using their own instruments mostly, but are no worse for it.
Things get
really heavy then for “Master passion greed”, with Marco taking over on the vocals, resulting in this song sounding more like something by In Flames or Dimmu Borgir, with heavy, snarling guitars and it has to be said, from my point of view, not the greatest vocals: very forced I find, but then I'm not a fan of harsh vocalisation. It's also really more a song that tries to pound you into submission than woo you with subtleties and clever instrumentation. It's not bad, but I'd class it as much more inferior to what has so far gone before. It does get a bit more dramatic and less frenetic near the end, with the orchestra and choir coming back in to lend their weight to the song, but that really only serves to confuse me, though it does end well.
A nice ballad then in “Eva”, the first single that was taken from the album. Piano and what could be harp against Anette's crystal clear and passionate voice provides a nice respite from the hammerblows of “Master passion greed”, with some lovely low whistle from Tony Donockley and the choir in fine voice. Great guitar solo from Erno Vuorinen and some really fine orchestral arrangement backing both Anette and the Metro Voices Choir. The orchestra stays around for “Sahara”, as the music returns to fast, hard, rocking metal with an extended guitar intro with arabic overtones, then it crashes into a sort of “Kashmir”-like beat, with Anette singing like Cleopatra at the height of her powers, sharp, growling guitar backing her as Nightwish turn out a real rock cruncher.
Things keep rocking then, but at a faster tempo with “Whoever brings the night”, which seems to dispense with the orchestra entirely --- or they could be in there, but certainly not as prominent as on other tracks: it's the guitars and drums that drive this song. Much more commercial and almost AOR in its way is “For the heart I once had”, with, it would seem, both lead and backing vocals by Anette, and more whistle and pipes from Tony Donockley, and you can hear the influence he brought to bands like, among others, Mostly Autumn on this. He's back for “The islander”, carried mostly on acoustic guitar and whistle --- low and tin --- with Marco taking the vocal and proving that he doesn't have to growl, though he often does. A very celtic infused song, which would not be out of place on a trad album. Some nice backing vocals, indeed on this it's Anette who supplies some of those. Uileann pipes coming in now, completing the Irish trad feel of the song.
And this influence continues as the pipes carry on into “Last of the wilds”, with some fine violin from Nollaig Casey and some great guitar work on the album's single instrumental. It rocks along at a fine lick, trading celtic fusion for heavy metal and back again, a real experiment that certainly seems to work. Almost a sense of Horslips in there, or Moving Hearts; not too surprising really as Nollaig has worked with the latter in her long musical career, as well as bands like Planxty, and other Irish artistes such as Frances Black, Donal Lunny and Liam Clancy. Certainly a talented musician.
It's back to the operatic dramatic epics for “7 days to the wolves”, another cruncher with a big instrumental section in which the orchestra really gets to show what it can do, and this takes us to the closer, the beautiful “Meadows of Heaven”, with gorgeous piano melody and beautiful violin, with Donockley's uileann pipes again creating a luxuriant celtic feel, while the orchestra outdoes itself in power and majesty. Anette's vocal is at times restrained and at other times let loose with the full passion and emotion she can display, and transmit through her voice. The Metro Voices Choir add their voices to hers, giving the whole thing a sumptuous, full and dramatic feel, topped off by a Gilmouresque guitar solo from Erno Vuorinen, some more beautiful piano and gentle violin.
Like the closing act, the finale of a massive musical, this song really rounds off the album and leaves you with goosebumps, and a lasting impression of a really well-crafted and well-executed album. If there was any worry after Tarja had left that Nightwish might struggle to continue, then this album lays to rest those fears decisively. It's close to a masterpiece, a massive resurgence from the band, and a clear statement of intent.
Never fear, Nightwish fans: these guys ain't going nowhere! Except on and on and on...
TRACKLISTING
1. The poet and the pendulum
(I) White lands of Empathica
(ii) Home
(iii) The Pacific
(iv) Dark passion play
(v) Mother and father
2. Bye bye beautiful
3. Amaranth
4. Cadence of her last breath
5. Master passion greed
6. Eva
7. Sahara
8. Whoever brings the night
9. For the heart I once had
10. The islander
11. Last of the wilds
12. 7 days to the wolves
13. Meadows of Heaven