Tarja Turunen's Christmas concert... what an experience.
I had no idea what to expect from this show. To be completely honest, I didn't actually know it was a joulukonsertti when I bought my ticket; I thought it was her solo band. I was a bit disappointed when I found out I spent quite a lot of money on that sort of thing, considering I am notorious for HATING Christmas music. But hei, I never do anything festive and I've never seen Tarja perform before (not even with Nightwish, to break my heart), so I figured it would be something interesting, and I was not let down.
Tarja was performing her Christmas show with a percussionist, a guitarist, and an organist (is that a word?). The music was ridiculously well done, and I was really pleased by the Finnish Christmas songs. Maybe it's because I didn't know any of them, but the music was brilliant, the songs didn't annoy me like every Christmas song in North America does, and Tarja was unreal.
Her voice is crisp and perfectly pitched and just, mind boggling. She sounds so completely unreal, and it was cool to see her without all the other stuff. I mean, I love Nightwish and they are one of my favorite bands ever, and as I said, I'm crushed that I never saw them with Tarja, but this show was focusing on just Tarja, not on a band as a whole, so it was great to see what she could do.
Her musicians were also really cool. The guitarist looked like he could be quite the rocker but was holding back for the sort of... sanctity of the event. He looked like he was having an absolute blast though and was so into the music, having fun, smiling, and being a bit silly even. The percussionist was in complete control of all of his instruments - from the drums to the chimes, and just looked so practiced and confident. And the organ guy was so Phantom of the Opera that it hurt. And I mean that in the most awesome sort of way. Epic loud phantom-music, totally excellent.
Tarja looked absolutely beautiful, in her lovely black/red dresses and still managed to look a bit metal even though she was doing a fancy show (I'm glad I had the good sense to dress nicely). What was really cool though was that she took a couple breaks and let her band play. I expected some sort of festive music, and I honestly don't know what you consider "festive" in Finland but this was like, dark, ambient music and it was weird as hell and totally brilliant. I was really shocked and absolutely thrilled about it.
Even cooler, she did a Finnish version of Silent Night as an encore, which was nice because, as I said, I hate North American Christmas music but with the Finnish lyrics it was so much better. And her last song was Walking in the Air, and they had "snow" come out to fall around her while she sang, it was beautiful and SO cool to hear with her random assortment of instruments, not a band. Magnificent.
So, while I found the show a bit short, and a lot expensive, it was totally worth the experience and I would probably even consider going again. It was great to hear her at her classical-style best and I would recommend seeing her to anyone. She really is amazing, regardless or not of what you think of her character.
Year: Dec 2009
Opening bands: n/a
Who I went with: me, myself, and I
Location: Sibeliustalo, Lahti, FI
Showing posts with label 2009. Show all posts
Showing posts with label 2009. Show all posts
Feb 17, 2010
Concert Reviews - Riverside w/Ageness
Another weekend in Helsinki, another show to check out. This weekend we changed up from the usual melodic death or power metal I've been seeing to taste something I haven't tried in a while... progressive metal!
I have seen one prog show before, and if you read my reviews, you will know that I had been very unimpressed by Dream Theater's live show. Granted, I think that was just a bad night and would be willing to give them another chance because I think they're a great band. However, I went into Riverside with some skepticism because of this former experience with these long songs performed live.
We arrived a while after Ageness started. The band seemed to have some potential, but everyone seemed to be quite old and we got the vibe that the singer (who looked like Geddy Lee and Dio had a child together) was the master behind the band and the whole thing was his special baby. Shame it wasn't better. It wasn't bad but it got old after a while. It was pretty much the quintessential opening band. Good, but not great, and a nice choice to open for a band of the same genre but you know it's nowhere near as good as what you're about to hear.
So, Riverside. I heard about these guys because Michael's brother was really into them (which is surprising because, Opeth aside, he's not really the prog metal type). I have one of their CDs and I consider it to be a good CD but after a while nothing seems to jump out. It's good to have for a listen but nothing to go crazy over anyways. They are also the only Polish band I can name.
I have to say, with very low expectations of this show (and even a tiny bit of regret because the ticket was a bit pricey), I was really pleased that I had chosen to check it out. For starters, the music was really really good. Even when they played long songs (12+ minutes) it never got boring because it always changed up and it NEVER once sounded like the musicians were just showing off. The guitarist was sort of bouncing on the spot all the time and the keyboardist looked like he was enjoying himself. I really liked the vocalist though. Remniscient of Mikael Åkerfeldt from Opeth, he was awesome to watch live. He had a great sense of humor, joking onstage about singing and the length of their songs, and other such things. He had a great voice too... really smooth transitions between regular and high pitch, and he was just overall really fun to watch.
We were discussing the different bands we could hear in Riverside's music. I could definitely hear Dream Theater elements, as well as some new Iron Maiden style stuff, a bit of Deep Purple, and even a hint of Smashing Pumpkins at one point. The music was diverse, and interesting. It was powerful and melodic and mystical, like good prog metal should be. You got to hear all the members of the band doing their thing and enjoying it and having fun (including the keyboardist and a theramin, haha)!
I really have to conclude that I didn't have much or anything to complain about during this show. It took a while for the band to get the crowd into it but after a few songs, they really started to feel it and got more into it, rocking out and singing along (it really helped that the singer was encouraging and funny, making it easy to sing along even if you didn't know the words). The song selection was good (even though I didn't know hardly any of it) and much more diverse than the Rapid Eye Movement album alone... I even decided I'd look up more of their music because they had one song that they played acoustically that I really loved.
I would completely recommend this band, if you're a fan of progressive metal at all. It was really solid, really well done, and really impressive. Definitely a band to check out if you ever get a chance!
I have seen one prog show before, and if you read my reviews, you will know that I had been very unimpressed by Dream Theater's live show. Granted, I think that was just a bad night and would be willing to give them another chance because I think they're a great band. However, I went into Riverside with some skepticism because of this former experience with these long songs performed live.
We arrived a while after Ageness started. The band seemed to have some potential, but everyone seemed to be quite old and we got the vibe that the singer (who looked like Geddy Lee and Dio had a child together) was the master behind the band and the whole thing was his special baby. Shame it wasn't better. It wasn't bad but it got old after a while. It was pretty much the quintessential opening band. Good, but not great, and a nice choice to open for a band of the same genre but you know it's nowhere near as good as what you're about to hear.
So, Riverside. I heard about these guys because Michael's brother was really into them (which is surprising because, Opeth aside, he's not really the prog metal type). I have one of their CDs and I consider it to be a good CD but after a while nothing seems to jump out. It's good to have for a listen but nothing to go crazy over anyways. They are also the only Polish band I can name.
I have to say, with very low expectations of this show (and even a tiny bit of regret because the ticket was a bit pricey), I was really pleased that I had chosen to check it out. For starters, the music was really really good. Even when they played long songs (12+ minutes) it never got boring because it always changed up and it NEVER once sounded like the musicians were just showing off. The guitarist was sort of bouncing on the spot all the time and the keyboardist looked like he was enjoying himself. I really liked the vocalist though. Remniscient of Mikael Åkerfeldt from Opeth, he was awesome to watch live. He had a great sense of humor, joking onstage about singing and the length of their songs, and other such things. He had a great voice too... really smooth transitions between regular and high pitch, and he was just overall really fun to watch.
We were discussing the different bands we could hear in Riverside's music. I could definitely hear Dream Theater elements, as well as some new Iron Maiden style stuff, a bit of Deep Purple, and even a hint of Smashing Pumpkins at one point. The music was diverse, and interesting. It was powerful and melodic and mystical, like good prog metal should be. You got to hear all the members of the band doing their thing and enjoying it and having fun (including the keyboardist and a theramin, haha)!
I really have to conclude that I didn't have much or anything to complain about during this show. It took a while for the band to get the crowd into it but after a few songs, they really started to feel it and got more into it, rocking out and singing along (it really helped that the singer was encouraging and funny, making it easy to sing along even if you didn't know the words). The song selection was good (even though I didn't know hardly any of it) and much more diverse than the Rapid Eye Movement album alone... I even decided I'd look up more of their music because they had one song that they played acoustically that I really loved.
I would completely recommend this band, if you're a fan of progressive metal at all. It was really solid, really well done, and really impressive. Definitely a band to check out if you ever get a chance!
Riverside
Year: Nov 2009
Opening bands: Ageness
Who I went with: Marc
Location: Nosturi, Helsinki, FI
Oct 6, 2009
Concert Reviews - Amorphis
I missed Amorphis twice this year. I'm not sure why that was such a big deal to me considering I never got big into their stuff. I like them and they've got great music though, so when I was hungover and passed out and didn't wake up until their set was half over at Nummirock I was pretty bummed. And at Ankkarock my friend wasn't ready to go on time so we were too late for that performance also.
I saw that they were playing in Hel in December so I had planned on going and this weekend I was supposed to see Amon Amarth playing in Tavastia. Unfortunately for me, by the time I went to get my Amon Amarth tickets, they were sold out. I did manage to get the last available ticket for Amorphis a week later though but that meant going solo (something I am getting more comfortable doing).
So, opening bands were Amoral, whom I've seen once before and am on the fence on the whole Ari Koivunen thing, and Before the Dawn, whom I tend to enjoy and watched a bit of at Nummirock, so I was relatively pleased with the lineup for this show.
I found myself a nice spot on the rise right at the front before Amoral started playing (after having a nice visit with Ilkka at merch) and prepared for the show. What I was not prepared for was the crowd.
After that was Before the Dawn. I know they're not everyone's favorite but I think their music is okei and I like the bassist's voice combined with the vocalist's growls. The music was really good. They played a few songs I really like, a few more that I recognised, and a few ones I didn't but it was a good show. I have to say again that I really like Lars Eikind's voice. He sings quite nicely.
Little intro to a side-story... I asked the security guy (who was very nice) if I could have the set list for the show and he asked the stage crew guy, who said no. Jerk. To be continued.
Year: Oct 2009
Opening bands: Amoral and Before the Dawn opened for Amorphis
Who I went with: me, myself, and I
Location: Helsinki - Nosturi
I saw that they were playing in Hel in December so I had planned on going and this weekend I was supposed to see Amon Amarth playing in Tavastia. Unfortunately for me, by the time I went to get my Amon Amarth tickets, they were sold out. I did manage to get the last available ticket for Amorphis a week later though but that meant going solo (something I am getting more comfortable doing).
So, opening bands were Amoral, whom I've seen once before and am on the fence on the whole Ari Koivunen thing, and Before the Dawn, whom I tend to enjoy and watched a bit of at Nummirock, so I was relatively pleased with the lineup for this show.
I found myself a nice spot on the rise right at the front before Amoral started playing (after having a nice visit with Ilkka at merch) and prepared for the show. What I was not prepared for was the crowd.
Amoral, first song
Before I get into this, let me explain something about myself. I go see bands for the music. I enjoy watching live shows even if the music isn't my favorite. I just like seeing performances and taking pictures and that sort of business. What I do not like are groupie poser girls who slut up the scene and make the girls who actually like the music look bad. And that's pretty much all you're gonna find at an Amoral show these days.
Ari Koivunen
Don't get me wrong, Amoral's music is quite okei, but I can't comment too much because I don't actually know any of their songs. I also don't know what their old vocalist was like. I will admit though that since my last review of them, Ari seems more comfortable with the music and he didn't seem nearly as out-of-place as before. They sound good, they look fine on stage, and whatever you may think of Ari Koivunen, the guy has a voice. But I have to wonder if he hates himself for going on Finnish Idol because the only people in their crowd were slutty 15-year-old groupie wannabe sluts and little boys who want to be like him. It made me nauseous. It made me ill. It made me never want to see them play again (regardless of how much I love their drummer and his vinyl pants). Particularly annoying were two girls right near me who were trying way too hard and took off their shirts to try and get some attention. Because they think that their bras are going to impress Koivunen. Seriously. If you're gonna be a poser slut, at least have the guts to show your boobs.
Amoral full band
After that was Before the Dawn. I know they're not everyone's favorite but I think their music is okei and I like the bassist's voice combined with the vocalist's growls. The music was really good. They played a few songs I really like, a few more that I recognised, and a few ones I didn't but it was a good show. I have to say again that I really like Lars Eikind's voice. He sings quite nicely.
Lars Eikind (clean vocals and bass)
The thing that made me the happiest about their show was the drummer though. If I recall correctly, he is just a touring drummer but he had this ridiculously huge grin on his face the entire show and every time I looked at him I just couldn't help but smile also because he just looked SO happy. A couple songs I recognised, for interest's sake, were Disappear, Faithless, and Deadsong. My biggest problem, and this was unfortunately with all the bands, was that the vocal quality of the main vocalist was not very good from where I was sitting.
Before the Dawn
Little intro to a side-story... I asked the security guy (who was very nice) if I could have the set list for the show and he asked the stage crew guy, who said no. Jerk. To be continued.
Tomi Joutsen, Amorphis
I know you really want to know what I thought of Amorphis though. I can see right through you! Okei, well, bear in mind, like I said, that I actually don't know much of their stuff (like all the bands this night). But the performance was brilliant. Really brilliant. Tomi Joutsen is a tiny little guy who is completely ripped and has a really strong and proud stage presence. Like, the guy is a massive aura of confidence, but he doesn't project himself like a douche. And what a voice. He has a really lovely singing voice combined with solid growls, making such a really wonderful overall show. And my lord that man's dreadlocks are long. Really long. Like, a few of them are down to his knees (granted, as I said, the man is very short).
The stage performance was great. The line-up is really solid, with a couple guitars, bass, keyboards, and drums. Tomi had a sort of a 50s-style mic, which was kind of cool. Everyone looked like they were having fun, playing confidently, and enjoying the sold-out crowd. I've said that I don't know that many songs by them, but they played the ones I know, including The Smoke, Silent Waters, and House of Sleep. There were a couple others I recognised too but didn't know the names of, which was nice.
Continuing my setlist tale, after the show one of the crew guys (possibly the one who shot me down before) grabbed a couple of set lists and handed them out to the crowd. The security guy was totally going to take one for me but the nasty old woman beside me snatched it first like a seedy gremlin. I am pretty sure she was actually cackling and drooling too, in the sort of Gollum "my precious" way. But when I was in the lineup to leave, he came back to the other side of the stage with two more setlists and no one noticed him but me so I went up and he gave me one. So here is the set from the show:
1. Leaves Scar
2. Towards & Against
3. On Rich and Poor
4. Sampo
5. Castaway
6. The Smoke
7. Majestic Beast
8. Alone
9. Silent Waters
10. Against Widows
11. Silver Bride
12. Sky is Mine
13. My Kantele
EC House of Sleep
EC Black Winter Day
All in all, I was really pleased with the show, I'm more interested in listening to Amorphis now, and I would definitely go back to see them again. This completely made up for the fact that I've missed them twice over the summer. Oh, and how can you go wrong playing Eläkeläset's Vaivaistalossa as your outro track? You can't!
The stage performance was great. The line-up is really solid, with a couple guitars, bass, keyboards, and drums. Tomi had a sort of a 50s-style mic, which was kind of cool. Everyone looked like they were having fun, playing confidently, and enjoying the sold-out crowd. I've said that I don't know that many songs by them, but they played the ones I know, including The Smoke, Silent Waters, and House of Sleep. There were a couple others I recognised too but didn't know the names of, which was nice.
Continuing my setlist tale, after the show one of the crew guys (possibly the one who shot me down before) grabbed a couple of set lists and handed them out to the crowd. The security guy was totally going to take one for me but the nasty old woman beside me snatched it first like a seedy gremlin. I am pretty sure she was actually cackling and drooling too, in the sort of Gollum "my precious" way. But when I was in the lineup to leave, he came back to the other side of the stage with two more setlists and no one noticed him but me so I went up and he gave me one. So here is the set from the show:
1. Leaves Scar
2. Towards & Against
3. On Rich and Poor
4. Sampo
5. Castaway
6. The Smoke
7. Majestic Beast
8. Alone
9. Silent Waters
10. Against Widows
11. Silver Bride
12. Sky is Mine
13. My Kantele
EC House of Sleep
EC Black Winter Day
All in all, I was really pleased with the show, I'm more interested in listening to Amorphis now, and I would definitely go back to see them again. This completely made up for the fact that I've missed them twice over the summer. Oh, and how can you go wrong playing Eläkeläset's Vaivaistalossa as your outro track? You can't!
Amorphis
Year: Oct 2009
Opening bands: Amoral and Before the Dawn opened for Amorphis
Who I went with: me, myself, and I
Location: Helsinki - Nosturi
Concert reviews - Ensiferum
I have decided that I will indeed grace my readers (all none of them) with a review of this show, because, well, frankly it was a great show. The reason I hadn't really intended on reviewing this show was that I hadn't been paying a WHOLE lot of attention to it.
After having a few drinks we went upstairs to the balcony bar to watch Tracedawn, who was already going. I haven't actually heard them before but I had read online that these guys are quite young and they are. Really young. And I don't know any of their songs but they were pretty good. They had a nice show, the music was fine, and that's pretty much that. As I said, my attention in the opening bands was not at its best.
After having a few drinks we went upstairs to the balcony bar to watch Tracedawn, who was already going. I haven't actually heard them before but I had read online that these guys are quite young and they are. Really young. And I don't know any of their songs but they were pretty good. They had a nice show, the music was fine, and that's pretty much that. As I said, my attention in the opening bands was not at its best.
Tracedawn
Metsatöll: Markus Teeäär and Lauri Õunapuu
Metsatöll was second on the line-up. This is an unusual Estonian folk metal band. They were actually the main highlight and reason for coming for a couple of friends, like Markus and Erkka. I had been only half paying attention because Jake had showed up and there were lots of people appearing to talk to. As far as folk music goes, it didn't really jump out at me as being incredible. That being said, it wasn't bad. The singer was good, looking like a proper hairy viking-type, and their torupill (Estonian bagpipes)/etc player was really quite phenomenal. The overall impression didn't leave a great mark on me though. That could just be because I wasn't really watching though.
Of course, the main highlight for us was Ensiferum. Garance had flown in from France for the show, so you know it had to be a good one. And it was. They opened up with the intro song off their new album and went right into an explosive rendition of From Afar and Twilight tavern. Pete Lindroos was looking happy and comfortable in his new full-time-no-other-obligations position of lead singer (as you should know, he is no longer the vocalist for Norther) and was having a great time.
Of course, the main highlight for us was Ensiferum. Garance had flown in from France for the show, so you know it had to be a good one. And it was. They opened up with the intro song off their new album and went right into an explosive rendition of From Afar and Twilight tavern. Pete Lindroos was looking happy and comfortable in his new full-time-no-other-obligat
Ensiferum, Sami Hinkka
Sami Hinkka was playing a really excellent looking bass and looking very good (and very viking). Markus Toivonen was playing well and I'm betting he's happy with the present line-up of the band. I couldn't see Emmi Silvennoinen (or Janne Parviainen) because she was not in my line of sight but I could hear her and she was playing very nicely. I recall having really liked her performance the last time I saw them back in Calgary and I was very pleased to hear that they had added her as a permanent member to their lineup.
Ensiferum, Sami, Pete, and Markus
And what can I say? I'm a sucker for a bunch of men in kilts and war paint. Scottish, Ensiferum-logo, Finnish flag, whatever these guys are in, they look great and they look hot. I love it.
The set was great. I was really glad to hear a lot of the new songs live, and they played almost the entire album. The new songs feature a lot more symphonic stuff, a long more clean/chant vocals, and a lot of power! Unfortunately though, with all the new songs they left out a couple classics, like Token of Time (which I heard in Calgary so I didn't miss it) and Lai Lai Hei, which I was really sad not to hear. However, hearing Iron and the entire sold-out crowd doing the TÄTTÄDÄDÄÄ TÄTTÄDÄDÄÄ together. I think my favorite from the night had to be Smoking Ruins though. I love everything about that song: the music, the lyrics, the clean vocals combined with Pete's growls... the whole thing was just solid and epic. Fantastic.
So here is the setlist from the show.
The set was great. I was really glad to hear a lot of the new songs live, and they played almost the entire album. The new songs feature a lot more symphonic stuff, a long more clean/chant vocals, and a lot of power! Unfortunately though, with all the new songs they left out a couple classics, like Token of Time (which I heard in Calgary so I didn't miss it) and Lai Lai Hei, which I was really sad not to hear. However, hearing Iron and the entire sold-out crowd doing the TÄTTÄDÄDÄÄ TÄTTÄDÄDÄÄ together. I think my favorite from the night had to be Smoking Ruins though. I love everything about that song: the music, the lyrics, the clean vocals combined with Pete's growls... the whole thing was just solid and epic. Fantastic.
So here is the setlist from the show.
Ensiferum, Pete Lindroos
1. By the Dividing Stream
2. From Afar
3. Twilight Tavern
4. Little Dreamer
5. Elusive Reaches
6. Wanderer
7. Heathen Throne
8. Guardians of Fate
9. Tale of Revenge
10. Smoking Ruins
11. Slayer of Light
12. One More Magic Potion
13. Tumman Virran Taa
14. The Longest Journey
EC Treacherous Gods
EC Battle Song/Porilaisten Marssi
EC Iron
Enska is definitely one of my favorite bands these days and I'm really glad I've seen them again now that I know them infinitely better than the last time I saw them live. Great performance, great new songs, and an overall great feeling of good times, battles, and metal.
Enska
Year: October 2009
Opening Bands: Tracedawn and Metsatöll opened for Enska
Who I went with: Garance, Matti, Jake, and joined at points by Teemu, Sebastian, Kasper, Varpu, Erkka, Markus, Atte, Aki, Antti, Marko, and more!
Location: Helsinki - Nosturi
Concert Reviews - Apocalyptica/Nightwish
I haven't really felt wildly compelled to do this in a while. I also haven't been to a show in a really big venue since I moved to Finland either though. Not sure if it's related.
Either way, a few months ago, very shortly after I moved to Hel, my first host family's grandparents brought over a newspaper clipping for me. It is quite a well known fact (probably because I posted it on my Au Pair profile) that I love Finnish metal and hoped to see as many shows as humanly possible while I was in Europe, and they were eager to help me out. I debated it for some time. It was an expensive show, and I didn't know anyone in town so I wasn't really keen on going. Adversely, I have never seen Apocalyptica play live before and I like them a lot, and I also was interested to see the grande finale after 2 years and 193 other shows. So I opted to go.
Apocalyptica came out relatively quickly after I arrived, to my great pleasure. I've never been good at remembering their song names, unfortunately, but it was of no consequence. I recognised their cover of Fade to Black by Metallica, as well as an instrumental version of Bittersweet, which was quite lovely, and they brought in a guest singer (you may know him as Antti Hyyrynen of Stam1na) to do I'm Not Jesus and I Don't Care from the Worlds Collide album. They also finished with Hall of the Mountain King, which is one of those songs that I had really hoped to hear live, and I was not disappointed.
Visually, Eicca Toppinen and Perttu Kivilaakso were both incredibly brilliant to watch. The long hair and headbanging while playing, Perttu playing with the cello tilted to the side (which I imagine takes some talent because you are holding up your cello at an unusual angle while playing), and some rocking on the ground, waving cellos around, that sort of business; they both were quite amazing to watch. Paavo Lötjönen impressed me far less. Maybe it was his inital lack of hair that made me lose interest in him but his stange presence was to me less metal and more show-off. Plus, without the hair he made the band lose symmetry. Nothing against his playing though. I also thought it was interesting to see them with a drummer. He didn't overpower the other three like I might have thought. I was pleased to see this, though it might've been nice to see them when they were just four cellists.
As for Nightwish, they opened with a soft instrumental with a guest musician who was playing an instrument that I couldn't quite recognise. It seemed like a bagpipe but not exactly. After that they went into 7 Days to the Wolves, Everdream, Wishmaster, Sahara, Amaranth, Nemo, Last of the Wilds, and many more. They brought out a guest violinist, Pekka something, to play The Siren, and he was incredible. After that, they kept him around for one more song, which totally made my entire night worth it - While Your Lips Are Still Red (which you may recall was my song of the day a while ago and is one of my alltime favorites of theirs). It is a song written for a movie and was on a single, so it wasn't something I ever expected to hear live and I was very pleased. Near the end they did the accoustic versions of The Islander and Walking in the Air featuring the guest musician on the strange instrument and flutes from the intro, and finished with a never-before-played version of Meadows of Heaven, which I admit I enjoyed live much more than I did on the album (definitely my least favorite song). It was good, but I could've done without the extensive vocal soloing at the end that sort of brought it down a bit.
Encore really made me happy. Another one of my alltime favorite ever Nightwish songs is off the Once album - Ghost Love Score. It's another one of those songs I thought I'd never hear... especially when Tarja Turunen isn't in the band anymore. The best part was that Anette actually did a decent job of singing it. She was, of course, no Tarja, but she didn't do a bad job. Then they finished with the 194th time doing I Wish I Had An Angel.
Overall impression? It was a really good show. My initial irritation with Anette was removed after a couple songs and the fire/lights/waterfalls (I think they were waterfalls after Meadows of Heaven, which struck me as odd, but kind of cool) were spectacular. Tuomas was playing inside a big boat and there was an anchor on the stage too, a couple high platforms, so the setup was really great in a sort of "The Islander" way. My biggest complaint really and honestly had to be Anette's blonde hair. I don't know what on earth made her think she would look better as a blonde but it's terrible. Really terrible.
Marco and Emppu are always really fun to watch on stage. And I am always really impressed with how much better Marco's singing is than it used to be. He totally outshines Anette every time he sings these days and unlike when he sings in Northern Kings, Tuomas writes songs that really help his vocals, rather than strain them. Unfortunately for me, I don't understand enough Finnish to understand anything he said at the end between Ghost Love Score and I Wish I Had An Angel, and I sort of appreciated Anette because she's Swedish and doesn't really speak any Finnish, so she was always talking in English.
All-in-all, it was a fantastic show, a great finale, and I'm really glad I went. I remain cautiously optimistic for the next album in hopes that Tuomas writes music more appropriate for Anette's style (though I'd be lying if I said I disliked Dark Passion Play - I actually do like it) the way he did for Tarja.
Track list (Nightwish)
01. Intro - Finlandia (w/ U.K. multi-instrumentalist Troy Donockley)
02. 7 Days To The Wolves
03. Ever Dream
04. Wishmaster
05. Romanticide
06. Amaranth
07. The Siren (w/ Finnish violinist Pekka Kuusisto)
08. While Your Lips Are Still Red (w/ Finnish violinist Pekka Kuusisto)
09. Poet And The Pendulum
10. Nemo
11. Sahara
12. Dark Chest Of Wonders
13. The Islander
14. Walking In The Air (w/ U.K. multi-instrumentalist Troy Donockley)
15. Last Of The Wilds (w/ U.K. multi-instrumentalist Troy Donockley)
16. Meadows Of Heaven
17. Ghost Love Score
18. I Wish I Had An Angel
Year: Sept 2009
Opening bands: Apocalyptica was opening for Nightwish
Who I went with: me, myself, and I
Location: Helsinki - Hartwall Areena
Either way, a few months ago, very shortly after I moved to Hel, my first host family's grandparents brought over a newspaper clipping for me. It is quite a well known fact (probably because I posted it on my Au Pair profile) that I love Finnish metal and hoped to see as many shows as humanly possible while I was in Europe, and they were eager to help me out. I debated it for some time. It was an expensive show, and I didn't know anyone in town so I wasn't really keen on going. Adversely, I have never seen Apocalyptica play live before and I like them a lot, and I also was interested to see the grande finale after 2 years and 193 other shows. So I opted to go.
Apocalyptica came out relatively quickly after I arrived, to my great pleasure. I've never been good at remembering their song names, unfortunately, but it was of no consequence. I recognised their cover of Fade to Black by Metallica, as well as an instrumental version of Bittersweet, which was quite lovely, and they brought in a guest singer (you may know him as Antti Hyyrynen of Stam1na) to do I'm Not Jesus and I Don't Care from the Worlds Collide album. They also finished with Hall of the Mountain King, which is one of those songs that I had really hoped to hear live, and I was not disappointed.
Visually, Eicca Toppinen and Perttu Kivilaakso were both incredibly brilliant to watch. The long hair and headbanging while playing, Perttu playing with the cello tilted to the side (which I imagine takes some talent because you are holding up your cello at an unusual angle while playing), and some rocking on the ground, waving cellos around, that sort of business; they both were quite amazing to watch. Paavo Lötjönen impressed me far less. Maybe it was his inital lack of hair that made me lose interest in him but his stange presence was to me less metal and more show-off. Plus, without the hair he made the band lose symmetry. Nothing against his playing though. I also thought it was interesting to see them with a drummer. He didn't overpower the other three like I might have thought. I was pleased to see this, though it might've been nice to see them when they were just four cellists.
As for Nightwish, they opened with a soft instrumental with a guest musician who was playing an instrument that I couldn't quite recognise. It seemed like a bagpipe but not exactly. After that they went into 7 Days to the Wolves, Everdream, Wishmaster, Sahara, Amaranth, Nemo, Last of the Wilds, and many more. They brought out a guest violinist, Pekka something, to play The Siren, and he was incredible. After that, they kept him around for one more song, which totally made my entire night worth it - While Your Lips Are Still Red (which you may recall was my song of the day a while ago and is one of my alltime favorites of theirs). It is a song written for a movie and was on a single, so it wasn't something I ever expected to hear live and I was very pleased. Near the end they did the accoustic versions of The Islander and Walking in the Air featuring the guest musician on the strange instrument and flutes from the intro, and finished with a never-before-played version of Meadows of Heaven, which I admit I enjoyed live much more than I did on the album (definitely my least favorite song). It was good, but I could've done without the extensive vocal soloing at the end that sort of brought it down a bit.
Encore really made me happy. Another one of my alltime favorite ever Nightwish songs is off the Once album - Ghost Love Score. It's another one of those songs I thought I'd never hear... especially when Tarja Turunen isn't in the band anymore. The best part was that Anette actually did a decent job of singing it. She was, of course, no Tarja, but she didn't do a bad job. Then they finished with the 194th time doing I Wish I Had An Angel.
Overall impression? It was a really good show. My initial irritation with Anette was removed after a couple songs and the fire/lights/waterfalls (I think they were waterfalls after Meadows of Heaven, which struck me as odd, but kind of cool) were spectacular. Tuomas was playing inside a big boat and there was an anchor on the stage too, a couple high platforms, so the setup was really great in a sort of "The Islander" way. My biggest complaint really and honestly had to be Anette's blonde hair. I don't know what on earth made her think she would look better as a blonde but it's terrible. Really terrible.
Marco and Emppu are always really fun to watch on stage. And I am always really impressed with how much better Marco's singing is than it used to be. He totally outshines Anette every time he sings these days and unlike when he sings in Northern Kings, Tuomas writes songs that really help his vocals, rather than strain them. Unfortunately for me, I don't understand enough Finnish to understand anything he said at the end between Ghost Love Score and I Wish I Had An Angel, and I sort of appreciated Anette because she's Swedish and doesn't really speak any Finnish, so she was always talking in English.
All-in-all, it was a fantastic show, a great finale, and I'm really glad I went. I remain cautiously optimistic for the next album in hopes that Tuomas writes music more appropriate for Anette's style (though I'd be lying if I said I disliked Dark Passion Play - I actually do like it) the way he did for Tarja.
Track list (Nightwish)
01. Intro - Finlandia (w/ U.K. multi-instrumentalist Troy Donockley)
02. 7 Days To The Wolves
03. Ever Dream
04. Wishmaster
05. Romanticide
06. Amaranth
07. The Siren (w/ Finnish violinist Pekka Kuusisto)
08. While Your Lips Are Still Red (w/ Finnish violinist Pekka Kuusisto)
09. Poet And The Pendulum
10. Nemo
11. Sahara
12. Dark Chest Of Wonders
13. The Islander
14. Walking In The Air (w/ U.K. multi-instrumentalist Troy Donockley)
15. Last Of The Wilds (w/ U.K. multi-instrumentalist Troy Donockley)
16. Meadows Of Heaven
17. Ghost Love Score
18. I Wish I Had An Angel
Year: Sept 2009
Opening bands: Apocalyptica was opening for Nightwish
Who I went with: me, myself, and I
Location: Helsinki - Hartwall Areena
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