{"id":49080,"date":"2015-04-22T20:00:39","date_gmt":"2015-04-23T01:00:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/?p=49080"},"modified":"2015-04-22T20:00:39","modified_gmt":"2015-04-23T01:00:39","slug":"nightwish-endless-forms-most-beautiful-cd-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hardrockhaven.net\/online\/2015\/nightwish-endless-forms-most-beautiful-cd-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Nightwish | Endless Forms Most Beautiful<\/em>"},"content":{"rendered":"

by Justin Gaines<\/span>
\n– Senior Columnist\/News Editor —<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

\"Nightwish\"Finnish symphonic metal legends Nightwish are back with a new studio album titled Endless Forms Most Beautiful<\/em>, and it\u2019s kind of a big deal. Sure, every new album is a big deal when you\u2019re one of the most prominent metal bands on the planet, but this isn\u2019t exactly \u201cjust another Nightwish album.\u201d Following a very public split with vocalist Annette Olzon, the band enlisted former After Forever vocalist Floor Jansen, who quickly energized Nightwish fans. To say that her first album with the band comes highly anticipated is an understatement. Beyond the vocalist change, this is the first Nightwish album not to feature drummer Jukka Nevalainen, who is replaced (temporarily) by Wintersun\u2019s Kai Hahto.<\/p>\n

It will no doubt come as a disappointment to some fans that Nightwish didn\u2019t pivot back to their earlier Gothic\/Operatic Metal sound with this album, especially now that they have a singer who can pull that kind of sound off. Instead Endless Forms Most Beautiful<\/em> continues on the bombastic Symphonic path they took with Dark Passion Play<\/em> and Imaginaerum<\/em>. Nightwish is again joined by a full orchestra for this album.<\/p>\n

Setting aside expectations, Endless Forms Most Beautiful<\/em> is an undeniably grand and epic production. Aside from perhaps Therion, nobody does symphonic metal like Nightwish, and this album is very much up to the band\u2019s high standards. Keyboardist\/songwriter Tuomas Holopainen has come up with some of his most elaborate orchestrations to date, and they complement the melodies beautifully. Lyrically, Endless Forms Most Beautiful<\/em> is inspired by Charles Darwin\u2019s work and is conceptually about life and science.<\/p>\n

So how does Floor sound in Nightwish? That\u2019s the big question, right? The answer is that she sounds pretty terrific, just as expected. Given her power, range and presence, she really is the ideal vocalist for this band. It\u2019s a shame they didn\u2019t grab her a decade ago when they split with original singer Tarja Turunen. They don\u2019t quite take advantage of her full range here though, which is disappointing, but given the nature of the songs there\u2019s absolutely nothing to complain about with her performance. <\/p>\n

\u201cElan\u201d is the first single from Endless Forms Most Beautiful<\/em>, and oddly enough it ends up being one of the album\u2019s least interesting songs. The bombastic album opener \u201cShudder Before the Beautiful\u201d or the tranquil yet memorable \u201cEdema Ruh\u201d might have been better choices. \u201cMy Walden\u201d is another memorable moment, with its folk melodies and instrumentation. The album\u2019s title track is the one that\u2019s most likely to get stuck in your head hours after the album is done spinning. It has very powerful melodies and an epic chorus full of choirs backing Jansen. The 24-minute epic \u201cThe Greatest Show on Earth\u201d could have been the greatest Nightwish song ever (and for certain a lot of fans were expecting \u201cGhost Love Score” times infinity), but it ends up being one of the hardest songs to get into. Perhaps it\u2019s the various interludes and slow points, but it feels like a missed opportunity somehow.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s also worth mentioning that the mixing and mastering of this album seems \u2026 off. It\u2019s not just that Floor seems low in the mix; it\u2019s that the album seems too quiet. You\u2019ll have to bump up your volume to hear it at the same level as any other recent release. Given the kind of perfectionist that Holopainen is, this is no doubt intentional. What that intention is remains a mystery.<\/p>\n

If you can set aside expectations going into this, and if you can overlook the sound issue, and especially if you\u2019re willing to give this album a few spins to really sink in, it will absolutely pay off. This may not be the kind of album that blows you away from the very start, but Endless Forms Most Beautiful<\/em> is one of the best Metal albums 2015 has to offer. There\u2019s power, beauty, grandeur and majesty in abundance, and with luck this is only the beginning of a long-lasting pairing of Nightwish and Floor Jansen.<\/p>\n

Edition Notes: There are several different versions of Endless Forms Most Beautiful<\/em> available, depending on your choice of media and price range. The bonus material \u2013 instrumental versions of the album\u2019s songs \u2013 is the same no matter which version (beyond the basic edition) you choose.<\/p>\n

Genre: Symphonic Metal<\/p>\n

Band:
\nFloor Jansen (v)
\nMarco Hietala (b) (v) (g)
\nTuomas Holopainen (k)
\nEmppu Vuorinen (g)
\nTroy Donockley (p) (w) (v)<\/p>\n

Track Listing:
\n1.\tShudder Before the Beautiful
\n2.\tWeak Fantasy
\n3.\tElan
\n4.\tYours Is an Empty Hope
\n5.\tOur Decades in the Sun
\n6.\tMy Walden
\n7.\tEndless Forms Most Beautiful
\n8.\tEdema Ruh
\n9.\tAlpenglow
\n10.\tThe Eyes of Sharbat Gula
\n11.\tThe Greatest Show on Earth<\/p>\n

Label: Nuclear Blast<\/p>\n

Website: www.nightwish.com<\/a><\/p>\n

Hardrock Haven Rating: 8.5\/10<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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