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TUOMAS HOLOPAINEN says next NIGHTWISH album will contain some major surprises

08-12-2022

NIGHTWISH keyboardist and main songwriter Tuomas Holopainen has once again said the band’s upcoming follow-up to 2020’s “Human. :II: Nature.” will be the third part of a trilogy that began with 2015’s “Endless Forms Most Beautiful” album. He told Metal Hammer: “I immediately knew after getting that album (‘Endless Forms Most Beautiful’) done that, ‘Okay, we have to do more songs about this, because there’s so much more to explore and tell the world. We’re not done with this.’ And the same thing happened after ‘Human. :II: Nature.’; we’re still not done. So let’s do one more. At least one more.

“In a way, (the next album) is the third part of a trilogy, which started with ‘Endless Forms…’ and then ‘Human. :II: Nature.’ There are some major surprises there again, but it feels like a natural continuation to ‘Human. :II: Nature.’

According to TuomasNIGHTWISH‘s next LP will cover previously uncharted ground while continuing in the more cinematic style that has characterized some of the band’s recent efforts..

“The wonderful thing is that we have had the demo (of the album) done since last spring. So it’s been done for six months now. We really have all the time in the world to go through it all, and we have had a such great time with the band, just listening to the demo in our hotel rooms — me singing the lyrics and the melodies to Floor (Jansen, vocals). She’s recording them and then she’s seeing them and throwing ideas to each other.”

This past September, Tuomas was asked if NIGHTWISH‘s upcoming LP will once again be an exploration of evolutionary science, as was the case with the previous two releases. Tuomas said: “Yes and no. It sails on the same waters, but there’s some new surprises there as well.”

Holopainen went on to say that NIGHTWISH fans will have to wait a while before hearing new music from the band. “We’ll enter the studio next year and the album is gonna come out maybe early 2024,” he said.

In August, Tuomas told Rock Sverige that he spent “about a year” working on the music and lyrics for the next NIGHTWISH album.

Asked if he got any kind of inspiration from the pandemic, Tuomas said: “Yeah, lyrically there’s a couple of things that reflects the pandemic, but not in the way you would expect.”

“Human. :II: Nature.” was released in April 2020. The follow-up to 2015’s “Endless Forms Most Beautiful” was a double album containing nine tracks on the main CD and one long track, divided into eight chapters, on CD 2.

In August, NIGHTWISH announced the addition of bassist Jukka Koskinen (WINTERSUN) as an official member of the band. Koskinen, who made his live debut with NIGHTWISH in May 2021 at the band’s two interactive experiences, had spent the last year touring with NIGHTWISH as a session musician.

In November, Floor revealed that she was “cancer free” after recently undergoing surgery to have a tumor removed following a breast cancer diagnosis.

Last mont the the band released Human. :II: Nature. (Tour Edition) under Nuclear Blast

Human. :II: Nature. (Tour Edition) comes as luxurious 2CD plus Blu-ray Digipak including the recent album alongside the Virtual Live Show From The Islanders Arms 2021 on Blu-ray – region code free for the first time – to cater their gigantic global audience! Originally available just as DVD release, and on Blu-ray in Japan, this new edition is the ultimate version to re-experience this unique and magical show NIGHTWISH created after their world tour had to be cancelled.

The tracklisting reads as follows:
CD 1:   Human. :II: Nature.
01. Music                                 
02. Noise                                                   
03. Shoemaker                                            
04. Harvest                                                
05. Pan                                                    
06. How’s The Heart?                             
07. Procession                                       
08. Tribal                                                   
09. Endlessness       
 CD 2:   All the Works of Nature Which Adorn the World
01. All The Works Of Nature Which Adorn The World – Vista
02. All The Works Of Nature Which Adorn The World – The Blue
03. All The Works Of Nature Which Adorn The World – The Green
04. All The Works Of Nature Which Adorn The World – Moors
05. All The Works Of Nature Which Adorn The World – Aurorae
06. All The Works Of Nature Which Adorn The World – Quiet As The Snow
07. All The Works Of Nature Which Adorn The World – Anthropocene (incl. “Hurrian Hymn To Nikkal”)
08. All The Works Of Nature Which Adorn The World – Ad Astra
Blu-ray:  Virtual Live Show From The Islanders Arms 2021
1.Intro   1:46
2.Noise   5:15
3.Planet Hell   4:40
4.Alpenglow   4:43
5.Élan   4:21
6.Storytime   5:35
7.How’s the Heart?   4:53
8.Harvest   5:31
9.Dark Chest of Wonders   4:23
10.I Want My Tears Back   5:24
11.Ever Dream   4:47
12.Nemo   5:23
13.Sleeping Sun   4:25
14.Pan   5:17
15.Last Ride of the Day   4:44
16.Ghost Love Score   10:30
17.The Greatest Show on Earth   16:41
18.All the Works of Nature Which Adorn the World: VIII. Ad Astra   3:36

NIGHWISH Live
Tickets for all show dates are now available.
See all tour dates below.
NIGHTWISH European Tour 2022

20.11.   BE   Antwerpen – Lotto Arena 
21.11.   UK   London – Wembley Arena
22.11.   UK   Birmingham – Resorts World Arena 
23.11.   IE   Dublin – 3Arena 
25.11.   DE   Berlin – Max-Schmeling-Halle 
27.11.   NL   Amsterdam – Ziggo Dome 
28.11.   NL   Amsterdam – Ziggo Dome 
30.11.   FR   Paris – Accorhotels Arena 
01.12.   DE   Düsseldorf – PSD Bank Dome 
02.12.   LU   Esch-Sur-Alzette – Rockhal 
04.12.   AT   Vienna – Wiener Stadthalle D 
05.12.   DE   München – Olympiahalle 
06.12.   IT   Milan – Lornzini District 
09.12.   DE   Frankfurt – Festhalle 
10.12.   DE   Bamberg – Brose Arena 
12.12.   DE   Hamburg – Barclaycard Arena 
13.12.   DE   Leipzig – Quarterback Immobilien Arena 
14.12.   PL   Gliwice – Arena Gliwice 
16.12.   CH   Zurich – Hallenstadion 
18.12.   DE   Stuttgart – Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle 
20.12.   HU   Budapest – Sportarena 
21.12.   CZ   Prague – O2 Arena 

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