I would certainly not expect that the Creativity Center Tuomas could so soon after something musically greater than last year's solo album "Life and Times of Scrooge" raushauen but that he would stay with the new Nightwish album so much lower than expected, I would not expected.
And the new front tube Floor Jansen, in the I (especially after I saw it in div. Videos with NIGHTWISH in which they fully convinced me!) Had great expectations, is totally kept small vocally here and only an equally insignificant, interchangeable replacement represents for Anette, is also very sad but apparently wanted.
It looks as though the band did not even raise up at the mercy of the appearance that one is on the (desperate?) Looking for a worthy replacement for Tarja but they wanted to finally and completely away from the opera singing.
That makes then unfortunately usually permanently.
But do not misunderstand - the vocal aspect of this album is not the main problem but the fact that most of the songs are just boring.
The few Anspieltips are:
CD1:
- The really nice Edema Ruh
- Alpenglow, which apparently dates back to the "Life and Times of Scrooge" -Aufnahmeprozess, but had not managed to this album at that time and was here then reingeschoben
- Shudder before the Beautiful, even if we have already heard, the lead riff of the song umpteen times, especially on Imaginaerum.
- "My Walden" in which we once again, in a similar way as has been heard on Imaginaerum at my local favorite song, "I Want My Tears Back" the bagpipes, which I personally always liked a lot and even at Imaginearum for me one of the few positive Recent changes in the band counted.
CD2: Nobody needs. Very strange modern development that now at every 3rd album what currently seems a 2nd CD with instrumental versions it is. Who needs that? Would really like to understand even what is done
CD3: (orchestral version)
Well-here I quote times my former favorite colleague who used to always say: From "Sch ... ei ... 'you can not whisk cream.
Of course, the instrumentation is great. And also the arrangements of the songs are quite different from the originals, but do not automatically lead to selbige highlights.
In short: I do not listen to these versions also in more than the originals (with one exception - see below) but grab here again 10 times better to the widely quoted masterstroke "Live and Times of Scrooge" of here at the far dynamics , bombast and catchy tops.
Only the much maligned Erstauskopplung "Elan" comes in this version here finally to the full development and would in this way a place on the stroke of genius (I had previously addressed selfsame ever ??;)) "Life and Times ..." deserves. Very nice & special piece (in this and only this version!)
Even the monumental epic "Greatest Show on Earth" wins in this form only to instrumentation - at less dramatic, bombastic and emotionality.
But be fair, I want to point out that such a monumental hams are not my thing anyway. I stand more on songs in the classic 4-max 9 minutes robe. For prolonged my life is too short and the musical diversity in this world is too great;)
Very sad that of all the album highlight Edema Ruh no such Orchsterversion spendiert got - it be because, then you get selbiges in felt doubt in a few months the 17th album version - the director's cut - presented as an additional bonus ...;)
Do not misunderstand: The album is not bad. But you nunmal yes compares the work with the expectations that sets the artist.
And these have been simply higher.
For the rest of the 08/15 symphonic metal bands that would be of course a masterpiece - but this is precisely Nightwish.
And no 08/15 symphonic metal band ...
Even though they are slowly but surely in this direction to develop ...
