Nightwish might seem like a ridiculous proposition to those not versed in the intricacies of symphonic metal, but their Andrew Lloyd Webber-esque operatics are underpinned with genuine emotion.
New album Yesterwynde – a fairly preposterous made-up word, granted – was partly inspired by the death of keyboard player and chief songwriter Tuomas Holopainen’s father. It returns to ground the band first explored on 2015’s Richard Dawkins-inspired Endless Forms Most Beautiful, namely the fleeting beauty of godless human existence.
Once again Holopainen sugars the existential pill with allegorical lyrics, some (e.g. An Ocean Of Strange Islands) inspired by his love of fantasy books, others by real-life events (The Children Of ’Ata retells the hopeful tale of a group of shipwrecked Samoan kids).
Even by Nightwish’s standards, the album is sonically huge. The Day Of and Perfume Of The Timeless offer the kind of grandiose maximalism that puts most Hollywood blockbuster soundtracks to shame, while powerhouse singer Floor Jansen remains the most versatile and charismatic vocalist the genre has to offer. Big and clever – a rare combination.
