October 8, 2007, 12:51 am : Nightwish: Dark Passion Play II
Filed Under: MusikDiscussion: C[7]mments
And here comes the second impression of the new Nightwish album after a few days and a couple of listening times and after I’ve slept a few nights etc. As I promised I will go through the songs one more time. Tuomas did say that we should listen to the album about ten times before passing judgement. So, I did that now and I think I’m ready to give my final impressions. If they should change at some point I would point that out.
Most important thing: God, this album makes me happy.
The Poet And The Pendulum
Brilliant. Touching. Masterpiece.
I. Awesome. That boy’s voice is simply beautiful.
II. One last perfect verse. Good introduction of Anette. God, she’s good. Chorus is simply beyond words. Best. Chorus. Ever.
III. Anette used in a way that shows that she truly fits. And she’s worthy. Such a beautiful part.
IV. Heavy and Marco. Guitars. Speed. I still do not like his growling that much but it’s solid. Did I mention: Best. Chorus. Ever.
V. If you didn’t know what perfection was, listen to this and you will know. I will always love you.
10/10 dead poets. (+/- 0)
Bye Bye Beautiful
Strong beginning. Scratch that. Amazing beginning. Did you ever listen to what we played? You chose the long road but we’ll be waiting. Bye bye beautiful. Talk about getting over the whole Tarja thing. I need to die to feel alive. Such a breathtaking song. Everything’s just perfect. Especially Anette. Did I already confess to my love for that woman? How blind can you be, don’t you see..shivers running down and up and all over my body.
10/10 forsaken trees. (+2)
Amaranth
Still on MTW. Still there are ringtones. Bad. But dude, the song is good. It reminds me of Within Temptation. Yes, it’s not the excellent stuff, that I love to death but it’s pretty solid and I like listening to it.
8/10 withering flowers. (+2)
Cadence Of Her Last Breath
Formidable start and such a beautiful voice. And all the poetry in the world finally makes sense to me. The guitar is astonishing. The melody is quite magnificent.
9/10 breathtaking butterflies. (+2)
Master Passion Greed
Talk about heavy, guitar and drum. Talk about anger. It’s stunning and thrilling and I love it. What more can I say? Seek her, seduce her, tame her, blame her, have her, kill her, feast on it all. Something awesome happened between me and this song.
10/10 angry poets. (+3)
Eva
Moving. I’m completely head over heels when it comes to Anette. Solid song but nothing exceptional.
9/10 sailing women. (+/-0)
Sahara
The song I had most troubles with. The song that I struggled with. The song that I didn’t know what to think and that I frankly didn’t like. But that so many people loved. Oh my God, how wrong I was not to like this song. Spine-tingling. Great beginning, I did agree to that already last time. Totally fascinating. The song makes me feel good. I found the rhythm!
9/10 soaring dunes. (+3)
Whoever Brings The Night
Still loving the beginning. It makes me smile. Happy. Impressive. It makes me want to glow. Rotten beauty will hunt you for a lifetime. I can’t say anything more, because there’s nothing more to say.
10/10 one-night butterflies. (+2)
For The Heart I Once Had
I need to find a word that describes this song better than the word perfect. But that’s what it is. Such a lovely voice. Once my heart beat to the rhythm of the falling snow. Impeccable. It makes me want to cry and smile at the same time. It’s Nightwish. It’s beautiful.
10/10 dead boy’s scars. (+/-0)
The Islander
Marco’s song. When I first heard it I was disappointed. Now, I just love it. Marco’s voice is so lovely, I never would have thought after all his growling he did for Nightwish. Of course, this song isn’t like the others. It’s special. But it’s beautiful.
10/10 old men. (+2)
Last Of The Wilds
We are still with the people in the north. Dancing around a fire. Being happy. It’s a happy place you can feel that. Cheerful and relaxing. Home. I feel calm.
10/10 instruments. (+1)
7 Days To The Wolves
The chorus came to be my friend. The wolves, my love, will come.. The guitars rock my soul, when the violins start you simply know you’re listening to pure perfection. Nothing else can be said, because it’s totally beyond words. Oh, and that part in the middle? It makes me grin with happiness.
10/10 lonely wolves. (+1)
Meadows Of Heaven
Oh, do I love my piano and my violin. Angelic. The flowers of wonder and the hidden treasures.. It’s a truly beautiful song. As I said last time, there’ll never be a Sleeping Sun again but this song makes up for it.
10/10 flowers of wonder. (+/-0)
I do still wonder, how would it be if Tarja would be singing this stuff and on one side I still think, I’d probably die listening to this record and on the other side I still believe I’d be disappointed because her voice was made for so much more than just this. So, I will stop wondering and I will start looking forward to seeing her with her solo career. And Nightwish still is as great as they used to be.
Tags: Album: Dark Passion Play, Music: NightwishSeptember 30, 2007, 1:36 am : Nightwish: Dark Passion Play!
Filed Under: MusikDiscussion: C[2]mments
Nightwish is back with a new singer and I got me the special edition. I was a sceptic. But, I was not disappointed. Way better than Once and Once wasn’t even bad. The first thing I noticed was the awesome booklet. It’s dark but it’s perfect. Beautiful colours, images. Best booklet until now.
So, this is the first impression. I will tell you in a few days if it’ll last.
The Poet and the Pendulum
Awesome start. Such goosebumps. The thought crossing my mind that this song could be un-fucking-believable. The voice, even though I miss Tarja and am not really in favour of Anette, is just awesome. Then the music really starts and I was shivering. Heavy. Perfect.
When she really starts to sing you realise that you have to get used to her, because we’re probably all used to Tarja, but it’s a special voice and god, it fits! The chorus is nearly perfection. I cannot die, I, a whore for the cold world. This passage on its own makes the song worth it. The next part is way calmer. And it’s so Nightwish.
It, again, gets heavier. Some great guitar. Great? Scratch that. Awesome. Marco then starts to sing and I’m still not a big fan of his singing. Sometimes it’s just right. It fits but it’s not my favourite part. The boy’s voice is awesome though. I wonder if it’s the same one that they use on Wishmaster but I’m too lazy to check it out. Last part of the song is where Anette won me over. Tarja, who? Ok, that’s a lie. Tarja is like the goddess of music and she was what made Nightwish’s Oceanborn the best album in history but with this one you notice that really Tuomas is the heart of Nightwish.
10/10 melancholic poets.
Bye Bye Beautiful
Finally the hills are without eyes? Dude, the poet was on crack! Strong start. Catchy. Great riffs. Some pop influence is around. But it doesn’t bother me. Anette got me even more. I think, I love her. Marco’s awesome here, it completely fits, nothing else would have matched the song.
But again: Blindfold for the blind. Dead siblings walking the dying earth. On crack, I tell you. I wonder when we’ll start having to analyze Tuomas’ writing in school!
8/10 melancholic poets.
Amaranth
We all now it from the TV. MTV and the likes play it. It’s annoying. Well, good for the band. They even sell it as a ringtone. Yeah. I’m not sure what to think of this one, just like I never knew what to think of Nemo. I’m just not too happy with this one. I’ll need to listen to it a few more times before I can judge. It just does nothing for me. I don’t feel shivers, I don’t even feel close to shivers. It kind of makes me shrug.
6/10 melancholic poets.
Cadence Of Her Last Breath
Starts with a strong beat. Somehow the melody doesn’t catch me though. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a solid song but it doesn’t grab me. Then again neither did The Siren in the beginning and it ended up being one of my favourites. It’s one of the slower songs. But it also has one hell of a great guitar solo. I’ve been missing the keyboard a lot, already lacking on Once. Part of the reason why I love Oceanborn so much is the keyboard.
7/10 melancholic poets.
Master Passion Greed
Heavy. No doubt left there right at the start. God, Tuomas was angry. Ok, scratch that. Furious. The last time I heard him that furious, I have the impression, was on Century Child with Slaying the Dreamer. It’s mostly Marco. It might get to be one of the songs I will really like when I listened to it more often. Hearing it for the first time it doesn’t take my breath away. But, I sense something good will happen between me and this song.
8/10 angry poets.
Eva
Slow. Solid. Anette winning me over even more. Shivers running down my spine. It’s not Sleeping Sun. But hey, nothing will ever be Sleeping Sun.
8/10 melancholic poets.
Sahara
We go to Egypt. We go with lots of guitars. We also take a lot of orchestra with us. The trouble I have with this song is that I have the impression it should go way faster than it actually goes. It makes me kind of nervous and makes me want to move way faster than I should, so I’m completely not getting along with the rhythm. I’m not sure yet what to think of this one.
6/10 melancholic poets.
Whoever Brings The Night
What an awesome start. Immediately loving the guitar. It has a vibe that reminds me of Romanticide and I might not really like Once as much as the rest of their work but that song was heavenly. Anette’s voice really fits the way Nightwish is going. I already with the last album thought that Tarja was majorly underused and that a voice like hers just isn’t what was needed to produce such music and I gotta admit that maybe Anette’s in the meantime the better voice for Nightwish, simply because Tuomas isn’t going for the style anymore that he did when he composed Oceanborn. It’s just not the kind of music for a voice like Tarja’s anymore.
8/10 melancholic poets.
For The Heart I Once Had
Nice melody in the beginning. Anette sounds delicious and simply beautiful. Maybe there’ll never be a Sleeping Sun again but this song makes up for that. Once my heart beat to the rhythm of the falling snow. How beautiful is that? Shivers. No tears yet, but just play me that song in the right moment and you’ll find them streaming down my face.
10/10 melancholic poets.
The Islander
Marco’s song. His last one was beautiful, so I was very curious to hear this one. And wow, he sings, actually sings and it’s awesome. It’s not a song that would kick anyone off his/her chair. But it’s a nice song. Solid melody, nice instruments.
8/10 singing band members.
Last Of The Wilds
Did we go to Irland? Well it doesn’t matter where we went to, it’s without any doubt a beautiful place. This song is simply relaxing. Instrumental, no vocals.
9/10 instruments.
7 Days To The Wolves
Did I mention that I miss the keyboard? But awesome guitars. Then there comes great drums. Then comes the guitars again and you simply know you’re listening to perfection. Then the violins arrive and you want to cry. Such a beautiful song. Just the chorus isn’t my best friend yet but I gotta listen to it a few more times before I can judge.
9/10 melancholic poets.
Meadows Of Heaven
PIANO. IT’S STILL ALIVE. Shivers from the very beginning. Tears from the first sentence on. Maybe this song also wants to tag along when we indulge ourselves for never ever getting a Sleeping Sun again. It’s one of the most beautiful song I’ve ever heard.
10/10 crying fans.
Why do I have the impression that Tuomas wasn’t too happy with how the whole thing went down with Tarja? I might be wrong. And I’m not up to date with the interviews anymore. I’ve been too angry at the whole situation and kind of let the band slide out of view for a while. Well, me not a happy camper either, that’s for sure. But after this album, I’m so going to that concert. Because, they’re back!
Don’t forget the concert next February in Zurich! Let’s see what Anette does with the old songs. Well, I’ve seen what she did to Sleeping Sun on youtube. I don’t know what to think. It’s not bad. But my love for Tarja is pure and I just can’t let go of that astonishing, divine, phenomenal voice. I don’t know yet what will happen with my first impression, if I truly can fall for Anette as the new singer. I don’t know. It still hurts when I listen to the old songs and then think of how next time I will see them live it’ll be without the diva that made me laugh and cry at the same time whenever I’ve listened to their songs.
Tags: Album: Dark Passion Play, Music: Nightwish