Track Listing

1. The Poet And the Pendulum
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

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1143 in Music
• Released on: 2007-10-02
• Number of discs: 1

Amazon.com
Nightwish returns with an ambitious epic metal opus that begins promisingly enough but quickly devolves into another formulaic power rock affair. The band's at its most powerful and convincing on the opening "The Poet and the Pendulum" (all 14 minutes of it), the dynamic "Bye Bye Beautiful," and the infectious pop-inflected "Amaranth." But mid-album tracks such as "Sahara," "For the Heart I Once Had," and the limpid closer, "Meadows of Heaven," retread familiar ground that reminds us of epic metal's more disappointing tendencies--faux pop, bombastic bombast, anemic anthems, and a penchant for the maudlin. With new vocalist Annette Olzon in the ranks, the Finnish outfit stands poised to make a thoroughly convincing and wholehearted classic (listen to "The Islander" for further proof) but falls short, delivering a decent but distracted recording. It's too ambitious, too scattered, and, simply, too long--and that's too bad. --Jedd Beaudoin

Album Description
Although it is their sixth studio album,Dark Passion Play marks the beginning of a new era for Finnish symphonic metal masters Nightwish. With new vocalist Annette Olzon onboard, Nightwish returns with their most accessible material to date. Firmly rooted in their trademark symphonic sounds featuring elaborate keyboard and guitar parts blended seamlessly with intricate string and choir sections, Olzon's vocals have more pop sensibility as they are far less operatic than those of her predecessor. This is perfectly exemplified in the vocal melodies in Amaranth, Eva and the scorching duet with bassist Marco Hietala titled Bye Bye Beautiful. Nightwish mastermind Tuomas Holopainen (keyboards) not only wrote all the lyrics and all but two songs on the album, but also helmed the project as one of the producers along with T.C. Kinnunen and Mikko Karmila, who also mixed the album. Dark Passion Play has already made history as Finland's most expensive recording project to date with massive string sections and choirs and it is clearly evident in the impeccable production. Nightwish have taken the symphonic elements of their prior works and infused them with a new voice to create a sound representative of the album title: dark, playful and, most of all, passionate.

Album Details
2007 Return of the Finnish Band with their Sixth Full Length Album that is Richer and More Varied Than Before, Touching Lightly on More Ethnic Flavours and Being as Ever Bombastic as it Bloody Well Can Be. The Heavenly Voice of New Singer Anette Olzon Carries Through Bright and Powerful - and also More Varied Than that of her Predecessor. She Truly is What Nightwish's Music Deserves.

Customer Reviews

Man, I love this album!!!!!
I only just heard this album for the first time a few months ago, but it already ranks among my favorite albums of all time. The music on this album is spectacularly amazing. I consider it Nightwish's best album, of the ones that I've heard. Tuomas's compositions are complex and stunning. The combination of orchestra, metal guitars, keyboards and soaring voices are just stunning. Every song is just amazing. There are no weak spots even though the album is very long. The opener, The Poet and the Pendulum is a masterpiece in itself. The final song, Meadows of Heaven is among the most beautiful songs I have ever heard. It seems to get mixed reactions from reviewers on here, but I love it to an absurd degree. It reminds me of everything beautiful and worthwhile in life.

Even though the album doesn't feature singer Tarja Turunen I believe it is the band's crowning achievement. I have tried to avoid the Annette versus Tarja debate, I will just say that Annette is a wonderful singer with more conventional vocals than Tarja's operatic vocals. She does a great job. Any lover of symphonic metal should hear this masterpiece.

One Size Does Not Fit All
86 the preconceptions and you'll find alot to like in this disc. This is my first Nightwish disc so I do not have preconceptions from the previous band lineup. To give you a little background, I also listen to Lacuna Coil, Within Temptation and Leaves Eyes.

While some reviews complain that the music is too much this or not enough that, the best part feature of this disc is the variety! This includes:

The Poet and the Pendulum could serve as a soundtrack for a short film with a range of emotions running along a common theme.

The Islander is a folk piece that recalls Scandinavia's maritime heritage.

Meadows of Heaven has some vocal elements that seem influenced by gospel music which I certainly did not expect.

The backing music of Master Passion Greed reminds me of speed metal and yet the ending has wailing brass that would not be out of place on a Bond soundtrack. In general, Nightwish uses more brass than other groups I have heard.

Songs such as Cadence of Her Last Breath and Sahara are more traditional rock fair and are excellent. I also enjoy Annette's vocals. If you like variety, check out this offering from Nightwish!

Better then expected!
Beginning to like Nightwish after Tarja left made it easier I suppose to me to like this album, but I went back and acquired all of the others as instructed. People told me it would change my opinion, but it didn't! Anette is a fine replacement for Tarja! Her vocal skills are not quite soprano, but they are very reputable and she holds her own! "Sahara" is a great track and so is "The Islander", though it takes a bit of getting used to at first. The album is the first step into a new era for Nighwish and with this one as good as it is I can't wait to see where the band will go next!