Notes: Nightwish

In honor of Lordi's triumphant victory at Eurovision, let us delve for a moment into the world of Scandinavian Metal.

Hells yeah.

Now, I know some of you are familiar with the entertaining stylings of Therion. With their symphonic thunder, they had such promise, yet left so much unrocked. Don't get me wrong, I love Vovin, Secret of the Runes and that one song, Thor the Powerhead. But Therion is usually a mixed bag. You have to choose carefully.

Enter Nightwish. If you're looking to get your Epic Raging Gothic Metal Fix, look no further. Find me another band that has Val Hallen, Viking God of Rock on bass.

I just picked up their 2004 album, Once, along with a few singles from iTunes. Fronted by opera singer Tarja Turunen (who has sadly since left the band), Nightwish presents a gigantic soul-shattering sound. Imagine a full symphony orchestra dominated by a brushed chrome bass and an unholy elven chorus with assists from a burning harpsichord. It is a sound to get lost in. I've read some reviews that compare the band favorably to Evanesence. I can understand that - the female leads are similar, Nightwish also has some distinct Christian overtones, and the styles occassionally brush lightly against each other.

Dark Chest Of Wonders and Planet Hell are good hard rock monsters to get you started, with rampaging bass work backed up by flowing orchestral themes trying desperately to keep up. Relax for a while with the sweet and ghostly Kuolema Tekee Taiteilijan, an easy competitor for inclusion on any Lord of the Rings soundtrack. The Siren, Dead Gardens, and Nemo are all good secondary tracks, although somewhere in there is the single longest headbanging bass solo with hellscream in the history of music. I'm not saying it's good, I'm just pointing out that it's there.

The gem of the album is of course the ten minute Ghost Love Score, which in my opinion is worth the price of the album (apparently iTunes agrees). As if someone had soulforged Danny Elfman, James Newton Howard and Jim Morrison into a living wall of theatric sound, the piece is an epic cascade of strings, guitar rifs, chorals, and saintly vocals. Listen to it. It is nothing short of legendary.

Highly recommended.