Nightwish

Century Child (2002)

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1. Bless The Child - An utterly gorgeous choral intro greets us as we enter the fourth Nightwish record. Sam Hardwick returns as the voice of the Dead Boy - a concept that more or less dominates Century Child. Emppu's guitar here is restrained, but not unnaturally so. It exists solely to buck up the atmosphere otherwise provided by Tuomas's keyboards. Of course one would be crazy not to bring up Tarja here - her voice is beauty incarnate, this is her defining album more than anyone else's, I would say. With heart-breaking emotion she sings about being unloved except in death. This is definitely the most "emo" of the Nightwish albums when it comes to Tuomas's songwriting, but it's absolutely spell-binding at the same time. Our Dead Boy returns to send us off into the next song, bringing to a close this six minute wonder of an opening track. 10/10

2. End Of All Hope - And masterfully we slide into the second song of the album, which has a lot more oomph than the first one. Jukka and Tarja meld together in the opening before Emppu takes centerstage with his guitar. The beginning of the verse has a "Trooper" thing going on, with only Tarja's vocals present before the rest of the band joins in. The chorus of the song seems to recreate the one in "Wishmaster", but with much better effect. The instrumental section, meanwhile, seems stylized like that of "Stargazer". My only issue with this song is the way the ending chorus jars itself up in places, but otherwise a great successor to the previous song. Maybe not as great as some of the other songs on here, but great all the same. 9/10

3. Dead To The World - Two voices in the intro - one belonging to Tarja, and now a new male vocalist has joined the band. Marco Hietala. What an absolute master he is as the song enters the verses. Tuomas threw a lot of good single lines in here. "All the wars are fought among those lonely men..." "I studied silence to learn the music..." Brilliant. And then the chorus where Marco lets everything loose. This song has everything - genius lyrics, great performances from Tarja and Marco, and gorgeous music keeping it together. So good. 10/10

4. Ever Dream - Some really pretty piano backs up some really pretty singing before some more orchestral bits swoop into the synth riff that guides this song. "Ever Dream" is a classic Nightwish ballad-esque number, but it's never really been one of the ones I come back to as much, certainly when compared to the ones that pop up later. The chorus is great, though, and trying to pick all the flaws in these songs is hard as hell. I'm just gonna round down because it's not as good as the great songs on here. 8/10

5. Slaying The Dreamer - As if "Ever Dream" was a bit too soft for the palette, we next erupt forth with "Slaying The Dreamer". Emppu's riffage controls this song's angrier lyrics of criticism against Tuomas's songwriting. This is a case of "sounds dumb on paper, but damn it fucking works." At least the first section of it nails things, and Emppu gets to shine in some glorious place, including the faux-solo before the bridge. But then the song takes a dive into angry Marco vocals and things skyrocket. This is little more than a tirade, and actually executed pretty well, but I prefer the change-up in "Romanticide" (see next album) more. Still, it's a great song overall and I can't bring down the score below a 9/10.

6. Forever Yours - "Angels Fall First"... "Swanheart"... "Two For Tragedy"... and now, "Forever Yours". Another palette cleanser after the banger that was "Slaying The Dreamer", this is the latest in a line of "ballads with minimal heaviness but a shitload of atmosphere". I think it's also their best. There's so much emotion put in this one and I find it crazy that it's as overlooked as it is. I love this one. Tarja's emotional performance shines in here and I think it's one of the best ballads even outside of Nightwish's work. Just beautiful. 10/10

7. Ocean Soul - A male choir backed by a flurry of the keyboard bring to life this fucking amazing song. The listener is there, looking out upon the waves, strolling by the sea, and it's just so fucking good. Tarja narrates her (or really, Tuomas's) love of the ocean, which peaks at the chorus, which is honestly one of the best in the Nightwish canon. This is another song I'm shocked gets overlooked by a lot of people. I love it. Best song on here that isn't over ten minutes long. 10/10

8. Feel For You - A pretty cool bass intro brings the listener in before the synths and keyboards take the spotlight. Tuomas writes of a certain muse he loved who has left him in the dark and leads him to evil thoughts (drinking venom et al). Marco has a cool chorus section and then Tarja leads a decent outro. Again, another song with all the right parts, but like "Ever Dream", it's not as memorable as the great songs that fill up most of the album. 8/10

9. The Phantom Of The Opera - And now some orchestra to make this album darker than it already is, as Tarja and Marco tackle the parts of Christine and Eric (respectively) to bring to life the classic Nightwish cover of Andrew Lloyd Webber's monstrous musical number. It's pretty well executed, but I don't think it's their best cover (that's "High Hopes" from End Of An Era), and I think this is actually Marco's weakest moment on the album. Also loses a point for not dropping out the music at the end for a big operatic Tarja moment. 8/10

10. Beauty Of The Beast - Century Child honestly goes by ridiculously fast; the songs are tight and well constructed, and all just really fit in perfectly. Any weaker ones are boosted by the set-up of the tracklist. But just in case that wasn't enough, Tuomas also decided to throw in another epic, this one finally breaking the 10 minute mark, to cap off the album. And what a send off it is.

I. Long Lost Love - Quietly does the song fade in, with Tuomas's keyboard leading the listener into a flurry of music that is further boosted by the presence of an orchestra. And the way the drums and bass kick in right as the verse begins is just flat out awesome. "Trees have dropped their leaves..." We are somewhere between fall and winter; the world is cold, life seems to be dying. So too is love, as Tuomas bemoans someone he still cares about ("I still feel for you") despite them not giving him the time of day ("what should be lost is there"). While he sounds very much like an incel in places ("I feel I will never find anyone"), this piece is entirely too relatable for a lot of people; I used to feel the same way myself. It's this sense of honesty that makes "Long Lost Love" a perfect beginning to the song. Tarja and Marco blend together on the chorus wonderfully. But this is only the beginning...​
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II. One More Night To Live - Things quiet down before synths and guitar come forth once more to bring the listener into the song's second act, where the pain of a loveless life has made our narrator - the Dead Boy - reminisce to a time when he didn't need to care about such things. Memories of his childhood, however, only lead to more pain as he yearns to reconnect with that old part of himself now lost in time. Emppu gets a cool guitar piece before the pre-chorus section, and then we break into some big parts of the song. "All of my songs can only be composed of the greatest of pains." Jesus. There's some cryptic imagery in the bridge as well, as Tuomas rights about sinners raping saints, and beastly feasts. It adds a lot to the atmosphere and texture the song has already built up. Some great instrumental pieces and then we return to the chorus, which ends absolutely stunningly and chillingly.​
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III. Christabel - And then one final monologue of Sam Hardwick... and holy shit is it fucking epic. "I'm but [...] a Dead Boy, who failed to write an ending to each of his poems..." Goddamn. And then we close out the song with Tarja's gorgeous voice and fade out, just as we faded in. We all return to the same pool where the rest sprang from.​
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Finally, after two previous attempts at writing an epic, Tuomas knocked it out of the fucking park with "Beauty Of The Beast". It's beautiful, it's tragic, it's spellbinding, it's glorious sad, all at once. He'd top this one in future (somehow), but this is just one brilliant moment after another. Glorious. 10/10

This is the first album where the band really got it right with just about every song. They aren't all perfect, but the bulk are, and even weaker songs work at least as they were intended. This is definitely their darkest album, as well. The lyrics are full of pain, but they work well with the atmospheric music. This would be the final album before Tuomas went absolutely nuts with the "symphonic" part of "symphonic metal" (which is far from a bad thing, IMO), and it's a great way to bring an end to the early era of Nightwish.

Average Rating: 92%

This is the first of the golden trio of Nightwish albums, IMO. Up next is Once. Really looking forward to that one.
 
While I agree about Century Child being one of Tarja's most balanced and definitely best works with the band, I absolutely love Floor's take on CC songs. Then again, I probably love Floor's take on every single NW song she as sung so far... but yeah. Oh well, I think Scaretale and one or two others didn't work out quite as well, but then again, it was right after her joining them in the middle of the tour and all.

I hope they'll play Beauty of the Beast live one day, it's a song that I've always wanted to hear Floor singing, and I actually hoped it to be played when Anette was still in the band too. We'll see, it's definitely one of those older songs that have... maybe even 40/60 chance of making an appearance, since they've already played pretty much every other "epic" with the current line-up. :)

But yeah, I pretty much agree with everything said in the post above, when it comes to bigger picture and the quality of the album. As for a couple of individual songs, my views might differ a little bit, but that's irrelevant, as the album is very solid in any case.
 
Once (2004)

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1. Dark Chest Of Wonders - "Once, I had a dream... and this is it!' With a flourish we are thrust into an onslaught of guitar lead forward by some thunderous drumming and a rumbling bass, and then thrown into a river of awe as we plunge into the fantastic orchestral riff that unlocks our "Dark Chest Of Wonders". The band finally has an orchestra in full force and the guitar is a bit heavier to provide some balance and it's fantastic. There's even a choir that gets unleashed in the verses to complement Tarja's (still lovely) voice. The way the verse slides right into the (fucking phenomenal) chorus is just genius. A couple of breakdowns bring us to an awe-inspiring bridge, then more orchestration, and finally two chorus reprises, the second of which has one of the best key changes I've ever heard. What a ride. We're in for a good one, folks. 10/10

2. Wish I Had An Angel - Tarja and Marco open up this single with a shorter version of the chorus, and then we're thrust into a pumping piece that uses synthesized drums for effect... and y'know what, it works. Tarja has a lovely verse, but the star of this song is definitely Marco. He tears through that chorus with precision, allowing the listener to really get into the idea this song is talking about (lusting someone else's woman... ouch). He and Tarja also share the bridge, which is surrounded by two pieces where Tuomas gets to play with the keys, and it sounds very wintery and dreamy, a sort of interesting contrast to the song's lyrics. The song ends with some positively demented singing from Marco as he repeats the song's title. Another knock-out song and a great choice for a single. 10/10

3. Nemo - Gorgeous piano opens up the first single from the album, which breaks into a guitar piece before Tarja takes centerstage again with the verses. Tuomas really poured out all his emotions into this one. "Nemo", meaning "nobody" in Latin, discusses how faceless he feels in his depression, and it's beautifully brought to life through Tarja's beautiful voice, which holds so much emotion one wonders if she knows what she's singing about personally. The chorus is the highlight of the song, but there's not a second wasted overall. Emppu gets in a lit solo, the bridge is like talking a look out at the ocean and watching a ship float out of sight and out of mind, and the ending utilizes the orchestra perfectly to bring the song to a close. It's amazing how well-constructed this song is. The lyrics are poignant and breathtaking, and it's one of the rare times the band's choice for the first single was right on the money. This one helped break the band into more of the international spotlight, and it's a perfect way to introduce one to their music. 10/10

4. Planet Hell - A choir opens up the fourth track slowly but surely, as the orchestra starts to rise out of the darkness. The violins peak before Jukka's drumming enters the scene. From there we rise into a heavy guitar piece as we move away from personal darkness to how fucked-up our world is. Marco absolutely nails his performances on this song, as he sings about the destruction mankind racks upon itself with a fury and anger few others could pull off as well as he does. This is the perfect contrast to Tarja's pieces, which are more personal, how she (or really Tuomas) just feels helpless in such a cruel world. The singers pull together for the chorus, where Tuomas throws in two Biblical references: one to the Ark, and then he takes the classic phrase of "God works in mysterious ways" and flips it on its head. Brilliant. On an album with a fuck-ton of awesome songs, this is one of the best. 10/10

5. Creek Mary's Blood - Some thumping introduces John Two-Hawks to the album, as he rises out of the mist to bring to life this tale of injustices toward Native Americans. Acoustic guitar underscores Tarja's beautiful verses. The second one, in particular, is lyrically stellar. "We cared, you took; you fought, we lost." God. And then it rises into the magnificent chorus that references the tragic Trail of Tears. Some flute before a sort of guitar solo from Emppu takes the stage, and then we lower back down for a more orchestral / choral piece that brings to life more Native American imagery. Some pumping guitar and drums thrust us further into this world; then Tarja gets a shorter verse before the song rises again to the chorus, where the second refrain changes the song from minor into major. It's jarring at first listen, but eventually it becomes evident: men may take their lives, but the spirit can never die. Godly.

Finally, the song ends with John Two-Hawks reciting a poem written by Tuomas in what's supposed to be a Native American language. Cherokee would probably be the best fit given the context, but Two-Hawks identifies as Oglala Lakota so that would also fit. The English version is a typical Tuomas construction, but it's got some cool imagery and a good final line about how their spirit will remain long after pride destroys the white men who cast them out. It really brings home the point of the song. It's a tad overlong, but it fits well. Or at least it would, were it not for research that shows that Two-Hawks is actually a white guy masquerading as a Native American, which is the absolute antithesis of the song as a whole. Nightwish aren't to blame for this, but it still is a disappointing part of an otherwise glorious song, although not as good as the ones that preceded it IMO. Thus, I'm docking a point. 9/10

6. The Siren - But we return to the excellent standard this album has otherwise had with "The Siren", which opens with some rising orchestra before Emppu gets in a really great guitar riff, that perfectly brings to life the image of a ship sailing southward to doom. Tarja slides out from the sea in the guise of a siren (honestly, who better to play such a character?) and gets a short but sweet verse. Then she vocalizes behind Marco, a frustrated sailor whose hands are tied to the wheel and he can't do anything about it. Easily one of his best performances in the Nightwish canon. Then we get a great instrumental piece where Tuomas uses his keys to bring up a sea of sound that drops out eventually to let Tarja step back in as the siren. Finally, the chorus returns but Marco this time realizes he tied his own hands to the wheel when he decided to listen to the sirens, and he's the reason he'll meet his fate on the rocks. Ughhh, so good! There's not a whole lot to this song lyrically, but the way it's executed is just perfection, once again. This album fucking rules. 10/10

7. Dead Gardens - The curtain slides back, and we walk into a writer's lonely den as the guitar builds up, signifying the pressure mounting on his head as he attempts to write another song for his album. Is this the result? "Dead Gardens" deals with writer's block, and how burnt up Tuomas must've felt at some point. Tarja does a good job of bringing this to life in the verse and that absolutely beautiful chorus. One expects it to be more more blinding than it is, but it's actually just a gorgeous piece with some of Tarja's best singing. Tuomas also subverts expectations with the way the second pre-chorus actually doesn't lead to a chorus reprise, but instead to the bridge, which has a cool spoken word piece that references previous Nightwish songs and how they ring in his head as he tries to put out another success. (Spoiler: he succeeded.) Then through that lovely chorus again and we hit the rocky outro, which seems to run on for a while before abruptly ending. No resolution, just a sudden end. Kinda like life. I think this song is brilliant and I'm surprised that so many overlooked it. This is definitely the hidden gem of the album. 10/10

8. Romanticide - Emppu opens up "Romanticide" with a cool guitar piece before Tuomas adds a dark flourish of synths to the mixture. This one is pretty much a sequel to the ideas expressed in "Slaying The Dreamer", right down to the song's structure (switching into a completely different song partway through). Luckily, it's on the same level, if not a little better. The highlight of the main song is the bridge ("See me ruined..."), but everything else here is really strong at the same time. Then the switch-up which is lead by Jukka and Marco's rhythm section before the latter shares the stage with Tarja, leading the song to its end. Another great one, but maybe a bit overrated all things considered. It's one of my least favorites on here, which means it's still good, just not as good as any of the songs that came before it. I love the way it sets up for GLS, though. 9/10

9. Ghost Love Score - The thunder of drums backs a booming orchestra and an angelic choir, assuring listeners that they are about to embark on an epic journey through the mind of Tuomas Holopainen. "Beauty Of The Beast" wasn't big enough for him; this time around he decided to write a full on cinematic experience in the form of a symphonic metal song. He's using every bit of the London Philharmonic Orchestra to get his money's worth, and somehow pretentiousness doesn't even seem to enter the equation here. This is about the experience, and what an experience it is.

Jukka is a star in the song's intro, keeping things together with the crescendo of orchestra before Emppu and Marco decide they want a piece of the action too, and jump in, leading the song forward as the ensemble they're surrounded by reaches climax with a soaring piece that overlooks a mountain lake, where things quiet down as we float towards the waters and spot two people swimming below. Tarja steps out of the shadows as a narrator. We realize that the view we are given is merely past-tence. "We used to swim..." This is a flashback scene to give context for the journey we are going to be on. One of the two turns to the other, takes her hand in his, and tells her the following, our chorus:

My fall will be for you
My love will be in you
If you be the one to cut me
I'll bleed forever...
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The choir sings these lines as Tarja's voice backs them up, with a bit of naivety and a twinge of sadness, as though we already know that things will go south with these two. Then we cut to the present day with the second verse, as Tuomas (the main character of this song, of course) strides out upon the beach. The sun has not yet risen. The smell of the salt spray takes him back to that lake as the choir picks up the chorus again.

Then things quiet down. Only synths and Tarja's voice remain. Tuomas is still lost in thought, reminded of those early years, where a siren struck his fancy and stole his heart. Nonetheless, he stayed true to his music, writing of his one dream that kept him on his path. Then, as the drums and piano kick in, he talks of his persona the Dead Boy, the Century Child, who will be born again. It was the siren that unlocked it in him in the first place, and without her he could've never gotten here. This leads to Emppu's soulful guitar solo, which, will it basically mirrors the vocal lines, is nonetheless one of his best in that department.

Then things quiet down and we're lost in a sea of darkness, yet with sparks of blue and white constantly floating in front of us. The orchestra remains the sole thing playing here. It feels like a romp through the nostalgia and bliss of childhood, with the real world ever trying to rear its ugly head and break the spell cast. The choir brings things up; there is a constant sense of rising. The darkness is traded for the embrace of sunlight. We drift slowly up, up, and then...

BAM! We burst out of the water, ala The Little Mermaid, as the band kicks back into the provide power behind the forceful orchestra. Vocals return for Tuomas asks to be brought back to the time when they were still friends or otherwise just leave him alone henceforth. His love for her is leading him off the path he'd been trying to keep on for all his career. This piece is repeated but in a higher key, more glorious than before. Then things turn darker as the choir come in as the devil on the shoulder. Lust. Death. Anything to find peace. Tarja then sings these lines to cement the way it's started to consume him. "Relive the old sin of Adam and Eve..." And then a reference to the Beast that he's seen himself as - cold, unlovable, doomed to be lonely forever.

The orchestra takes the spotlight again here, as it contrasts the darkness of the previous piece with a lot brighter tones - only to be cast out and broken down. Then they increase in fervor as the mind is racked with anguish and emotion. Things will never be the same again, no matter what happens. The song then returns to a modified version of the intro, which brings us to the final piece before the outro chorus.

Upon birth, we are born pure and bright, yet as we move further in life we build up a shell that it's hard to break from. Tuomas pleads through Tarja to let this shell be broken and return him back to the innocence of childhood, where there was no room for unhappiness, no room for pain. Return back to the spring, where life can start again, this time with his love by his side. We feel the earnestness of his optimism when he says, "I'll be there, when you say..." And then that crushing blow when his love casts him aside in favor of another. "Time to never hold our love..." What a blow. Like standing on top of a cliff and being pushed off, only to fall in reverse. It's that feeling that brings us back to the chorus, but with a major change from before...

My fall will be for you
My love will be in you
You were the one to cut me
So I'll bleed forever...
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This time Tarja sounds mournful as she backs the choir. Of course the song's biggest twist would only be revealed after she was fired from the group - that this was about her. She was the siren that helped him express himself, brought him to this point in time, set on path with a band always rising, always striving for better. Yet through it all, he never would get his love for her reciprocated, as she married someone else in 2002. "Ghost Love Score" is thus an ode to the band's career up to this point, and a foreshadowing of the inevitable. For now they would remain band mates, but that wouldn't last long.

The orchestra soars and builds before leveling off as the song reaches its close and fades to black, just as all films do. With "Ghost Love Score", Tuomas set out to write something akin to an actually film score, but with metal firmly involves. It would be his finest moment. There are great songs before this, and there are great songs after, but there's only one "Ghost Love Score". The best thing is that it leaves a lot open for the listener's interpretation. Above is my attempt at breaking through its music and lyrics as best as I can, but someone else is likely to have a different view. And that's okay. That's what music is all about.

This is what music's all about. This is the first song that's ever really made me question whether or not "Empire Of The Clouds" is actually my favorite song, because I've listened to this one time and time again and there's still always something new that sticks out to me. It constantly makes me well up, sometimes bursting outright into tears. It's personal, it's majestic, and it's beautiful. This one goes to 11/10. It's that good.

10. Kuolema Tekee Taiteilijan - How to move on from the grandeur of "Ghost Love Score"? We head into the Finnish woods. It's nighttime, and the stars are shining bright up above. I love when Tuomas writes in Finnish; it's a beautiful, musically poetic language and the band executes it perfectly. The title translates to "Death Makes An Artist", and the lyrics seem to discuss the world Tuomas's writing has built up, often breaching into his personal life. It's a beautiful little ballad. Not on par perhaps with some of the big hitters this album has had, but it's great all the same. If they weren't going to end the album with GLS then this is the perfect way to lead to the actual finale. 9/10

11. Higher Than Hope - Some wind carries from "Kuolema" into the album's final track, where acoustic guitar picks up this tale, a tribute to a real life friend who ultimately died of cancer before the album's release. Bits of his thoughts on his disease are woven into the bridge, making this song sound stunningly more "real" than it would have otherwise. Everything about this glows with sorrow, but a sorrow tinged with hope. The soaring chorus hits home especially. "Drown without inhaling" is an incredibly dark line particularly. This one goes further where other references to death don't, and it succeeds pretty damn well. A slow burner, but honestly, ends the album perfectly and on a high note. 10/10

Now that's one hell of an album. Ever song is good, calling any weaker is just playing with semantics. Everybody is on fire, particularly Tuomas, who's got some of his best material on here. But then there's the orchestration, and the way Marco, Jukka, and Emppu hold down the fort as Tarja sings her soul out. This is a bit of a transition album, from the less booming nature of the band's previous albums to the absolute "everything including the kitchen sink" onslaught of future records. And honestly, it's the band's best. I'm looking forward to seeing if HVMAN. :||: NATVRE. shakes things up, but I doubt this one will be toppled from its place as the crowning jewel of the band's discography. Their final hurrah with Tarja and goddamn did she leave on a high note.

Average Rating: 98%
 
98% is ridiculous and it was too long for me to read as a whole, but I love seeing finally at least some kind of appreciation for Once here.
 
Listened to the new album for the first and second times.
CD1: I'm shocked and stunned :) After five years of waiting they come out with this? In some ways album sounds very bland and unmemorable. Don't get me wrong, most of the songs do sound nice, but somewhat forgettable and 'meant to be played in the background, while doing other things'. There's not much hooks, twists and turns, not much great melodic passages. It's really strange. Laid back album, album without steroids. Compared to new album, 'Endless Forms Most Beautiful' sounds much more intense, 'in your face', 'metal' and 'we really mean it'. On EFMB there's much more passion and much better production. In 'Human.Nature' dominates rhythm section. Guitars, in most songs, are pushed to the background. Any memorable solo? Album is more acoustic, has live feel to it. Floor, to my ears, sings even more softly, and powerless?
'Human.Nature' album is 'relaxing' type album.
I think, Tuomas reached some sort of closure as a symphonic metal composer, and clearly - more than ever - wants to be a film score composer. This album will be remembered as 'transitional'? and clearly suffers from 'one musician writes it all' approach. Best songs: Shoemaker, Harvest, Pan, How's the Heart.

CD2: Nice instrumental music but nothing too memorable.

I think it's no coincidence, that they closed Nightwish forum before album release date. There may be many, - more than usual - confused and negative reviews.
All in all nice, smooth album but I prefer 'Endless Forms Most Beautiful'.
 
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Got the new album (Black vinyl version) today. Going to give it a spin soon. I liked the tasters we got, especially The Harvest. Noise was good, but nothing too exciting. Probably works well on the album. We'll see!

Exciting times.
 
Finnish station Radio Rock had Tuomas and Kai on to present, in full, HVMAN. :||: NATVRE. My girlfriend and I tuned in and honestly, loved it. There’s a lot to this one that will need further listens before it all sinks in, but this might actually be up there with their best. It definitely blows Endless Forms Most Beautiful out of the water.
 
Diesel 11 said:
Finnish station Radio Rock had Tuomas and Kai on to present, in full, HVMAN. :||: NATVRE. My girlfriend and I tuned in and honestly, loved it. There’s a lot to this one that will need further listens before it all sinks in, but this might actually be up there with their best. It definitely blows Endless Forms Most Beautiful out of the water.
Click to expand...
I haven't heard the new album yet, but I really liked Endless Forms Most Beautiful for its lyrics – I've read a lot of Richard Dawkins, you see.
 
Midnight said:
I haven't heard the new album yet, but I really liked Endless Forms Most Beautiful for its lyrics – I've read a lot of Richard Dawkins, you see.
Click to expand...
This one is an obvious continuation, but it expands on several ideas, some never touched on before, and has more layers than seemed possible.
 
First impression: I really like Human Nature! I think in the long run, it might become a golden piece in the Nightwish discography.

The album has an aura which changes my mood everytime I turn it on. To me, this is the dictionary definition of a concept album. I understand some Nightwish fans who want to hear more of the old tunes, but IMO the new ideas that are digested in this album make it better than the last couple of albums. It sounds like the band members did not care about the feedback they will receive. They just did what they feel right.

What they did is also much better than repeating Wishmaster once again. For those who stay behind, Noise and How's the Heart might be easier to enjoy.

My first impression is that the balance between progression and folk, epic and sentimentality is just perfect. It is hard to distinguish between songs, as they all seem to have their role in the big picture.

From Vista to Tribal, Floor's different attitudes of singing is just fantastic.
 
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More developed thoughts coming at some point, but here's couple of notes and first thoughts after two listens:

*Well balanced, versatile album. As mentioned by a fellow listener above, the direction is good and fresh. That being said, I really enjoy How's the Heart and overall, I think that the more traditional stuff - and the album in general - dodges the most obvious #TuomasHolopainen tropes surprisingly well!

*... which also means that Troy's role here is much more creative and better utilized, and even the pipe parts written for him are far from being just another, even a bit uninspired repeat of iwantmytearsbacklastofthewildselan thing which EFMB occasionally came dangerously close to, but managed to so-so avoid that pitfall.

*Endlesness is, a bit surprisingly perhaps, still the most distant song for me, but I believe I'll get into it better after a couple of more listens.
 
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Every song apart from How’s The Heart? and All The Works Of Nature Which Adorn The World now has a video on the Nightwish YouTube channel. Here are the first three uploads:



 
I listened to the new album a couple of times already, but I don't find it to be a good one -idk, maybe I will need more listens. Only three songs I really like (so far) - ''Noise'' (probably the best song from the album), ''How's The Heart'' and ''Pan''.
The album has great melodic parts in every song, but it contains hardly any solos. This album feels more like strongly oriented in instrumental parts.

CD 2 (All the Works of Nature Which Adorn the World) - good but not impressive instrumental music.

- In contrast, from the first listen of Endless Forms Most Beautiful, I instantly liked four songs (the title track, SBTB, ''My Walden'' and the best song on the album for me, ''Alpenglow'').
 
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