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Dark Passion Play

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Untitled

Dark Passion Play is the sixth studio album by Finnish symphonic power metal quintet Nightwish.[3] It was released on September 26, 2007 in Finland, September 28 in Europe and October 2, 2007 in the United States. It is the first Nightwish album with the band's new lead singer, Anette Olzon, and the first album not featuring former vocalist Tarja Turunen, who was dismissed in October 2005.

Lead songwriter Tuomas Holopainen has referred to it as the 'album that saved his life'.[4]

Running at 75:43 minutes, it is their longest album to date, 15 minutes longer than the previously longest record (Once).

The album has spawned six singles: "Eva", the album's lead single, was released on May 25 2007[5] as a download-only single for charity; "Amaranth", released on August 22; Erämaan Viimeinen, which was released on December 5 in Finland only; "Bye Bye Beautiful", released on February 15, 2008; "The Islander" was released on May 21.

So far, three music videos have been filmed to accompany the album's singles. The first two, "Amaranth" and "Bye Bye Beautiful" were both shot in Los Angeles, USA in spring 2007 and cost 270,000€.[6] The "Amaranth" video was released together with the single on August 22, 2007, and "Bye Bye Beautiful" on February 15. The third music video, "The Islander", was finished in October, 2007, in Rovaniemi, Finland,[7] and released in April, 2008. Holopainen has stated that at first they were planning not to shoot another video for Dark Passion Play, but when they were offered to make the video in a town with traditional Finnish nature, they couldn't refuse.

Title Origin

According to Holopainen, the band's keyboardist and main composer, the album's title was originally intended to be "The Poet and the Pendulum", named after the album's first track. However, it was changed to "Dark Passion Play" for several reasons, taking into account that "The Poet and the Pendulum" was too long for an album title, and that he didn't want to name an entire album after himself (as he is the Poet in the song). The new name, though, has to do with the album's opening track:

The morning dawned, upon his altar

Remains of the dark passion play
Performed by his friends without shame

Spitting on his grave as they came

Faster Harder Nightwish was announced as the title of the upcoming record on April 1, 2007 on the official website. The title is possibly a pun on the Scooter single, Faster Harder Scooter. They also released a photo of the new cover's artwork, which led viewers to believe the band were completely changing their style from symphonic power metal to something more like thrash metal. Just hours later, a "promo sample" of the album could be found on several peer-to-peer networks. It was later stated on their official website that this was an April Fools' joke.[8][9]

Recording

Nightwish began recording the instrumental parts of Dark Passion Play in the autumn of 2006, and were finished by spring 2007. A total of 15 songs were recorded.[10] Following this, the orchestral recordings took place in Abbey Road Studios, London in two sessions: one in mid-December 2006 and the other in February 2007. As with their previous studio album, Once, the band collaborated with the London Philharmonic Orchestra and Metro Voices Choir.[11] Vocal recordings began in February 2007, after Anette Olzon had been chosen as the band's new lead singer. The album was mixed and mastered at Finnvox Studios, Helsinki in April - May 2007.

The album's production cost 500,000€, making it the most expensive album ever recorded in Finland. An extra 270,000€ was spent on filming the two music videos of the album[12].

Success

As of February 22 the album has sold 120,000 copies in Finland alone, granting it a four times platinum certification.It was certified platinum in switezland, and gold in Germany, Austria and poland[13]. As of January 2008, the album has topped the album charts in six countries. The singles, "Amaranth" and "Erämaan Viimeinen" have both reached number one on Finnish charts. According to Last.fm, it is their most played album, and its successful single "Amaranth" is their most played song for the last six months, as of June 2008.

New vocalist

"Dark Passion Play" introduced Anette Olzon to take Tarja Turunen's job as lead vocalist. Here seen live in Halloween 2007.

In October 2005, after a world tour in support of Once, the band's lead singer Tarja Turunen was dismissed via an open letter. In search of a replacement, the band conducted auditions from March 17, 2006 to January 15, 2007, receiving over 2000 demo tapes in the process.[14]

Amidst much speculation it was officially announced on May 24, 2007 that Anette Olzon, who previously was the singer for the Swedish AOR band Alyson Avenue, is the new vocalist of Nightwish. In an interview, Holopainen said they had made the decision in January 2007 based on the impression she made while performing the song "Ever Dream" from the album Century Child.[15]

Of course it's gonna be a huge task for the singer - she will be always compared to Tarja but I'm pretty confident that she'll do well.
-Tuomas Holopainen regarding Anette Olzon's ability[16]

Leaks

The first single, "Eva", was leaked on the Internet six days before its official release, prompting the band to release the single earlier to boost downloads. Several other versions of the song were posted on YouTube and torrent sites a month later. The entire album with record label voiceovers had been leaked on the Internet by August 2, . The full album (without voiceovers) was leaked on September 21, 2007, as a result of several stores in Mexico selling the retail album much prior to the worldwide release date.

The video for the album's fourth single "Bye Bye Beautiful" was leaked early on YouTube and similar sites.

Live performances

A world tour in support of Dark Passion Play kicked off in Tel Aviv, Israel on October 6, 2007 followed by a North American tour throughout October and November, with support from Paradise Lost.[17] The tour includes a Scandinavian and a European leg, at least three American tours (the third one being in May, 2008) and visits in Australia and Asia.

According to Holopainen, this will be the longest tour the band has ever attempted, and will probably last for about two and a half years.[18]

For their Once album, Nightwish had planned to have a grand concert in London with live orchestra, as progressive metal band Dream Theater had on what later would be their "Score" album, and this is still in the works. In an interview in December, 2007, Holopainen said that they're planning the concert and that this is something he really wants, but that the locale they want is booked for two years in advance.[19] The concert is expected to be filmed for a DVD release.

Dispelling the rumours that Olzon will never be capable of performing old Nightwish hit songs, Holopainen said that the tours' setlists will be divided equally to songs of the new album and older material.[20] He is not afraid that Olzon won't be able to perform the songs that Turunen usually sang, as she even on her demo showed of her ability performing for example "Ever Dream" and "Higher Than Hope".[21] He has also stated that they will play the band's biggest hits, such as "Nemo", "Sleeping Sun" and "Wishmaster", as earlier in their live performances. However he has confirmed that they will not play songs "The Phantom of the Opera", "Passion and the Opera", "Stargazers" and "Walking in The Air" again, as these go beyond Olzon's non-operatic mezzo-soprano vocal range. At first they didn't play the song "The Siren" either, but it was introduced in February, 2008 as an edited version.

Music style

Before the album's release, band leader Tuomas Holopainen said in an interview that the album will have a lot in common with the last album "Once". For example, the band have kept the new kind of heavier songs (such as "Master Passion Greed", "7 Days to the Wolves" and "Bye Bye Beautiful"), but that additionally there will be softer ballads (such as "Meadows of Heaven, "Eva" and "The Islander"). Also that there will be a very long symphonic track ("Ghost Love Score" on "Once"), ("The Poet and the Pendulum" on "Dark Passion Play). The new album includes lots of guest musicians and orchestral parts - in the same interview, Holopainen said that as they recorded Once they had 18 people in the choir, and still this wasn't enough.

He also claimed there was going to be "shockers" that he didn't want to reveal. The longest track, "The Poet and the Pendulum", is a song that according to him is a very personal, epic piece that is a lot like film music, and lasts for almost 14 minutes. Music engineer Mikko Karmila has also stated that the style is much more progressive than earlier.

The extremes are there more than ever before. So it's not going to be like Century Child 2. There is more hope in some of the new songs.
-Tuomas Holopainen, band leader, keyboardist and main composer[22]

Holopainen also said that there are darker pieces reminiscent of Century Child, such as "The Poet and the Pendulum", and some others. It will be a dark album, both musically and lyrically. Even though the album is much more upbeat than "Century Child".[23] Songs that reflect this mood are for example the second single "Amaranth" and "Bye Bye Beautiful"'s B-side "Escapist".

Just like the album "Once", Nightwish included many new influences and experimentations in several tracks. On "Once", much inspiration came from Native American music, especially "Creek Mary's Blood", that featured Native American musician John Two-Hawks. However, on Dark Passion Play, much inspiration comes from Finnish and Irish culture and music as this can be clearly heard on "Last of the Wilds".

For the second time, growling has being featured on the track Master Passion Greed by keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen and an unknown Metal Hammer reporter[24] . First time was by Marco Hietala on Once, Planet Hell.

"While Your Lips Are Still Red", a bonus track on the Amaranth single, is the first song featuring Marco Hietala's softer vocals. Hietala is generally known for his screamings and sometimes growlings in the songs. "While Your Lips Are Still Red" is written by Tuomas as the theme song for the upcoming Finnish feature film "Lieksa!", technically it's not a Nightwish track as it only features Marco on vocals, Tuomas on keyboards and Jukka on drums.

The album's average track length (Spinefarm Records' version with 13 songs) is 5.8 minutes, with most of the songs lasting for about four minutes. Three tracks are over seven minutes long, which is long for a Nightwish record, a band that mostly had songs about 4-5 minutes and one or two longer per album. The track "The Poet and the Pendulum" is the longest song in the band's history, 13:55, 3:33 minutes longer than the song that used to occupy that position, "Beauty of the Beast".

Track listing

All songs written by Tuomas Holopainen, unless otherwise stated. All lyrics by Holopainen. Arrangements by Hietala, Holopainen, Nevalainen, Vuorinen and Kinnunen.

Disc 1:

Title Writers Notes Length
1. "The Poet and the Pendulum" Holopainen Feat. Tom Williams on treble vocals 13:54
2. "Bye Bye Beautiful" Holopainen The fourth single 04:14
3. "Amaranth" Holopainen The second single 03:51
4. "Cadence of Her Last Breath" Holopainen 04:14
5. "Master Passion Greed" Holopainen 06:02
6. "Eva" Holopainen The first single 04:24
7. "Sahara" Holopainen 05:47
8. "Whoever Brings the Night" Vuorinen 04:17
9. "For the Heart I Once Had" Holopainen 03:55
10. "The Islander" Hietala The fifth single 05:05
11. "Last of the Wilds" Holopainen Instrumental. Its vocal version, "Erämaan Viimeinen", is the third single 05:40
12. "7 Days to the Wolves" Holopainen, Hietala 07:03
13. "Meadows of Heaven" Holopainen 07:10
14. "Escapist" Holopainen Bonus track on Japanese version 04:57

Disc 2 (Instrumental Version of the above):

Title Writers Notes Length
1. "The Poet and the Pendulum" Holopainen 13:54
2. "Bye Bye Beautiful" Holopainen 04:14
3. "Amaranth" Holopainen 03:51
4. "Cadence of Her Last Breath" Holopainen 04:14
5. "Master Passion Greed" Holopainen 06:02
6. "Eva" Holopainen 04:24
7. "Sahara" Holopainen 05:47
8. "Whoever Brings the Night" Vuorinen 04:17
9. "For the Heart I Once Had" Holopainen 03:55
10. "The Islander" Hietala 05:05
11. "Last of the Wilds" Holopainen 05:40
12. "7 Days to the Wolves" Holopainen, Hietala 07:03
13. "Meadows of Heaven" Holopainen 07:10

Nuclear Blast, Spinefarm Records and Roadrunner Records each released special editions that included an instrumental version of the album, which contain instruments that are hard to hear, or are omitted, from the original version of the album.

Bonus Tracks

Amaranth single

Erämaan Viimeinen single

Bye Bye Beautiful single

The Islander single

Lyrical themes

1. The Poet and the Pendulum

"The Poet and the Pendulum" is the opening track on the album. It is the longest track on both the album and in the band's history, nearly fourteen minutes long. The composer, band leader and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen has expressed that he is very happy with this song, and before its release he officially hailed it as his favorite Nightwish song ever.[25]

The song is divided into five sections, titled 'White Lands Of Empathica', 'Home', 'The Pacific', 'Dark Passion Play' and 'Mother & Father'.

"The Poet and the Pendulum" is clearly the lead song of Dark Passion Play; Aside from being the longest song and the album opener, the album was also initially supposed to be named The Poet and the Pendulum. It was changed into Dark Passion Play for several reasons, including that it at first was too long to be an album title, and that Tuomas didn't want an entire album entitled after him (as he is the poet in the song). "Dark Passion Play", however, also comes from the lyrics of the song ("The morning dawned, upon his altar / Remains of the dark passion play / Performed by his friends without shame / Spitting on his grave as they came"[26]) and the fourth part of the song is also called "Dark Passion Play". The story behind the track also is a passion play (see Story).

The song is based upon Edgar Allan Poe's famous story "The Pit and the Pendulum".

The song is partly based on a 1842 short story by Edgar Allan Poe called "The Pit and the Pendulum". In this story the main character is captured and sentenced to death by the Spanish Inquisition. He awakes to find himself on a board and a scythe-like blade swinging from the ceiling coming closer and closer to him. In The Poet and the Pendulum, composer / keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen dies by that method. He is later reborn in the story and bids farewell to his mother and father.

In the first part of the song ("White Lands of Empathica"), a choir boy tells the story about how Tuomas Holopainen has died under the blade ("The songwriter's dead / The blade fell upon him / Taking him to the white lands / Of Empathica").[27]

In the second part ("Home"), the narrator goes back in time, before his death. He tells about the grief and sorrow, how he knows that he is about to die ("One last perfect verse"), and the feelings of being misplaced in this world ("Take me home"). There's also a reference to their song "Meadows of Heaven"; this song is about memories from the innocent childhood, and that is what this verse of "The Poet and the Pendulum" also is about ("My home was there 'n then / Those meadows of heaven / Adventure-filled days / One with every smiling face").

In the first half of part three, "The Pacific", he reminisces how his life used to be, and here he now lies on the board waiting for his death ("Swaying blade my lullaby"). Later in that part, he speaks of the sorrow in knowing his time is to come, that he "only have three minutes and counting".

The fourth part, entitled "Dark Passion Play", is the angriest part, in which Holopainen blames and accuses his friends for his death ("2nd robber to the right of Christ"). The second half is spoken, explaining how Holopainen died, happy.

In the finale, "Mother & Father" is dedicated to his parents and it's from his mother's perspective.

In addition to the vocals provided by Olzon and Hietala, several parts of the song are supplemented by the voice of a young boy soprano, Guy Elliot. The second boy soprano and voice is Tom Williams.

2. Bye Bye Beautiful

"Bye Bye Beautiful" is written by Holopainen about the band's former vocalist, Tarja Turunen, who was fired from the band by an open letter in 2005, and his feelings before and after she changed her attitude towards the band and its music. This was at first rumored among fans and later revealed by Holopainen in an interview.[28]

3. Amaranth

"Amaranth" is, according to the composer, a song about the divine, perfect beauty that always will last and the hope that always is there.[29]

4. Cadence of Her Last Breath

A song very personal to Holopainen, a story about falling in love, running away, falling in love and then running away again.[30]

5. Master Passion Greed

"Master Passion Greed" is what many people call Nightwish's most aggressive song ever.[31] It is about former vocalist Tarja Turunen's husband Marcelo Cabuli, and how he changed her, and his attempts at destroying the band due to his greed.[citation needed]

This is the only track on Dark Passion Play where Anette Olzon does not perform any vocals; on other songs she at least has performed backing vocals. This is because the singer Marco Hietala had a talk with the Composer Tuomas Holopainen telling him he did not feel it was right to let her sing about something she has nothing to do with. Therefore, Marco Hietala, who's been the band's bassist and vocalist since 2001, performs the vocals together with a choir.

The band has confirmed that they will never play the song live, and so far they haven't.

6. Eva

The song is about a young girl of pure innocence (Eva) that has been treated wrongly in her life, being bullied at school, and her mental escape from her home as she alone runs away for a better future, dreaming of what will come.[32]

7. Sahara

This song is about the Sahara Desert and life there. The song makes references to pharaohs and queens and evokes an Egyptian mood through its use of the harmonic minor scale.[citation needed] The song also weaves in allusions to Greek mythology, mentioning "aegis of mirage" and the "Elysian Fields" in the lyrics. It is basically a simple story of Ancient Egypt.[33]

10. The Islander

This song is about a former experienced sailor, who then becomes a man still dreaming for the sea, so he works in a lighthouse.[citation needed] He remembers his childhood, and at the end of song the lyrics change slightly, essentially saying that he has committed suicide.[original research?] This song is closer to folk-style, and uses only acoustic guitars rather than electric. It also uses some keyboard effects and drums. Marco Hietala sings the whole song with only backing vocals from Anette. He wrote most of the music for the song, unlike most others which were written by Tuomas Holopainen.[citation needed]

11. Last of the Wilds

An instrumental song, an international match between Finland and Ireland.[citation needed]

12. 7 Days to the Wolves

A story with a simple meaning: Carpe diem, make the best out of your life. Life is short, and the wolves are breathing behind you all the time. It features several references to poet Walt Whitman in its lyrics ("Take the road less travelled by, leave the city of fools"), and the music is based on Stephen King's fantasy series The Dark Tower.[34]

13. Meadows of Heaven

This song is believed to be about a Childhood Utopia.[citation needed] There are references to child memories, such as the lyrics ("Sandbox without toy soldiers.") Also the album illustration is a farm house in a grassy meadow. It is the childhood memories of someone who lived as a farmer and remembers the fields as "Meadows of Heaven", but has left the fields after his childhood. This is arguably the most passionate and emotional song on Dark Passion Play.[citation needed] It is also referred to in "The Poet and the Pendulum", ("My home was there 'n then / Those meadows of heaven / Adventure-filled days / One with every smiling face"), perhaps the Poet (Tuomas Holopainen) is the one remembering his Childhood. This would be right since Tuomas, along with the original Nightwish-lineup came from the rural village of Kitee, Finland.[35]

Charts

Album

Chart Peak Position Certification Sales
Australia 42
Austria[36] 5 Gold +10,000
Belgium[37] 36
Canada[38] 24
Croatia[39] 1
Czech Republic[40] 1
Denmark[41] 18
European Albums Chart 85
Finland[42] 1 Platinum (x4) +120,000
France[43] 6
Germany[44] 1 Gold +100,000
Greece[45] 3
Hungary 1 Gold
Ireland[46] 62
Italy[47] 14
Japan[48] 54
Japan[49]
Foreign albums chart
12
Netherlands[50] 5
Norway[51] 7
Poland[52] 6 Gold +10,000
Spain 33
Sweden[53] 4 Gold +30,000
Switzerland[54] 1 Platinum +30,000
UK Album Charts[55] 19
UK Top 40 Rock Album Charts[56] 3
United States[57]
The Billboard 200
84 +65,000
United States[49]
Top Hard Rock Albums
7
United World Chart[58] 9 +710,000

Singles

Release date Title Notes Chart positions
AUS AUT[59] DEN[60] FIN[61] FRA[62] GER[63] HUN ITA[64] NET[65] SPA SWE[66] SWI[67]
2007-05-25 "Eva" Radio/Internet only - - - 14 - - - - - - - -
2007-08-22 "Amaranth" 38 30 4 1 62 16 1 10 47 1 13 14
2007-12-04 "Erämaan Viimeinen" Finland only - - - 1 - - - - - - - -
2008-02-15 "Bye Bye Beautiful" - - - 5 54 35 - - - 4 - -
2008-05-30 "The Islander" - - - 1 91 - - - - 8 - -
AUS AUT DEN FIN FRA GER HUN ITA NET SPA SWE SWI
Number one hits - - - 3 - - 1 - - 1 - -
Top ten hits - - 1 4 - - 1 1 - 3 - -

Credits

Band members

Guest musicians

Notes

I. ^ The first single of the album, to be released on May 30 2007, as a preview of the album. This was the first known track of the album, revealed in February 2007.[68]
II. ^ An epic piece that is dear to Tuomas, including orchestral parts. It is much like for example Ghost Love Score (Once).[69]
III. ^ The second single of the album, to be released in August 2007.
IV. ^ More info.

References

  1. ^ Nuclearblast
  2. ^ "TuomasHolopainen.net: Interview"
  3. ^ Rivadavia, Eduardo. "Nightwish at Allmusic". Allmusic. Retrieved 2008-04-23.
  4. ^ Template:Fi icon NIGHTWISH Founder TUOMAS HOLOPAINEN - "Dark Passion Play Is The Album That Saved My Life" - Metal from Finland
  5. ^ "Nightwish "EVA" aikaistuu" in Finnish
  6. ^ Nightwish.com – Nightmail
  7. ^ MetalFromFinland on third music video
  8. ^ "Nightwish.com - April fools!"
  9. ^ "Nightwish.com - New album's title and cover revealed"
  10. ^ TuomasHolopainen.net - Interview
  11. ^ "TuomasHolopainen.net: Interview"
  12. ^ TuomasHolopainen.net - News
  13. ^ http://www.roadrunnerrecords.com/blabbermouth.Net/news.aspx?mode=Article&newsitemID=89498
  14. ^ "The auditions for the new vocalist have ended"
  15. ^ Roadrunner Records Official website
  16. ^ TuomasHolopainen.net - Interview
  17. ^ "Nightwish.com - PARADISE LOST to support NW on the 2007 US tour"
  18. ^ "TuomasHolopainen.net: Interview"
  19. ^ Metal From Finland - Video Interview With TUOMAS HOLOPAINEN
  20. ^ Roadrunner Records - Interview with Anette and Tuomas
  21. ^ Roadrunner Records - Interview with Anette and Tuomas
  22. ^ TuomasHolopainen.net - Interview
  23. ^ "TuomasHolopainen.net: Interview"
  24. ^ Nightwish.com - Studio Diary
  25. ^ Nightwish.com - Tuomas Holopainen
  26. ^ Nightwish.com - Lyrics
  27. ^ Nightwish.com - Lyrics
  28. ^ Interview with Tuomas Holopainen
  29. ^ Tuomas Holopainen talks about Dark Passion Play
  30. ^ Tuomas Holopainen talks about Dark Passion Play
  31. ^ Last.fm
  32. ^ Tuomas Holopainen talks about Dark Passion Play
  33. ^ Tuomas Holopainen talks about Dark Passion Play
  34. ^ Tuomas Holopainen talks about Dark Passion Play
  35. ^ Tuomas Holopainen talks about Dark Passion Play
  36. ^ Nightwish - The Official Website
  37. ^ Nightwish - The Official Website
  38. ^ BLABBERMOUTH.NET - NIGHTWISH: More 'Dark Passion Play' First-Week Chart Positions Revealed
  39. ^ BLABBERMOUTH.NET - NIGHTWISH: More 'Dark Passion Play' First-Week Chart Positions Revealed
  40. ^ BLABBERMOUTH.NET - NIGHTWISH: More 'Dark Passion Play' First-Week Chart Positions Revealed
  41. ^ Nightwish - The Official Website
  42. ^ Nightwish - The Official Website
  43. ^ BLABBERMOUTH.NET - NIGHTWISH: More 'Dark Passion Play' First-Week Chart Positions Revealed
  44. ^ Nightwish - The Official Website
  45. ^ Nightwish - The Official Website
  46. ^ Nightwish - The Official Website
  47. ^ Nightwish - The Official Website
  48. ^ Template:Ja icon ナイトウィッシュ-リリース-ORICON STYLE ミュージック
  49. ^ a b Nightwish.jp - News: “Dark Passion Play”第一週の売上・チャート状況
  50. ^ Nightwish - The Official Website
  51. ^ Nightwish - The Official Website
  52. ^ Polska - Muzyka w INTERIA.PL - teledyski, koncerty, nowości płytowe, dobra muzyka, listy przebojów
  53. ^ BLABBERMOUTH.NET - NIGHTWISH: More 'Dark Passion Play' First-Week Chart Positions Revealed
  54. ^ Nightwish - The Official Website
  55. ^ Nightwish - The Official Website
  56. ^ BBC - Radio 1 - Chart Show - Rock Albums
  57. ^ Billboard.com - Discography - Nightwish - Dark Passion Play
  58. ^ Global Track Chart
  59. ^ Discographie Nightwish - austriancharts.at
  60. ^ danishcharts.com - Discography Nightwish
  61. ^ finnishcharts.com - Discography Nightwish
  62. ^ lescharts.com - Discographie Nightwish
  63. ^ Musicline.de
  64. ^ italiancharts.com - Discography Nightwish
  65. ^ dutchcharts.nl - Discografie Nightwish
  66. ^ swedishcharts.com - Discography Nightwish
  67. ^ Discographie Nightwish - hitparade.ch
  68. ^ "Nightwish.com - The auditions for the new vocalist have ended"
  69. ^ "TuomasHolopainen.net: Interview"

External links