Century Child - Nightwish

Advantages: Entrancing
Disadvantages: none!

Where to begin.... I suppose this is the album that REALLY launched Nightwish for me. Until this album, including the fantastic Phantom of the Opera, was released, Nightwish were just another band in my collection. This album was just such a fresh breeze it was incredible. So, what made it different for me? Oh so many things! The return of the male vocalist, in the form of new bassist Marco (bassist and lead singer of Tarot) gave the band a new ...
...of something that was no doubt brought about by tarjas opera trained voice... its a long long list! The album flows smoothly from one song to the next, each different, yet comfortably similar at teh same time. All the way from Bless the Child through to the bonus tracks at the end of the disk you want to just turn it up, and listen to the powerful rhythms, stunning lyrics and mindboggling drumbeats that characterise Nightwish. I find it quite ... Read review

Advantages: Atmoshpheric, splendid vocals and lyrics
Disadvantages: A couple of forgettable songs

...Nightwish are a band from Finland, and formed in 1996, their music can best be described as heavy metal/gothich metal with female vocals, their music contains elements of classical and opera. Band: Tarja Turunen - Vocals Marco Heitala - Bass/ Vocals Tuomas Holopainen - Keyboards Emppu Veurinen - Guitars Jukka Nevailen - Drums Century Child was Nightwish's 4th album, a notable change on the album is the contribution by new bassist Marco Heitala, replacing departed bassist Sami Vanska, lyricist and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen had a bad year before releasing this album, and it shows on the album as some of the lyrics and tracks are more somber, and have a sadder sound 1) Bless The Child I originally never liked this song, but it has grown on me, the song is more mid paced, it starts of with a spoken word passage, before bursting... Read review

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Advantages: Some old favourites, brilliant first album
Disadvantages: very raw, not as polished as later albums (not necessarily a 'disadvantage'!)

......"But I'm still here". OK, not technically the same album (line is from End of All Hope, from Century Child), but a good link, I feel. :) Nightwish are a Finnish metal band. Their debut album, "Angels Fall First" was first released in 1996, but the digipak was released in 2002, along with all previous albums to Century Child. As far as debut albums go, this is pretty good, I think. It feels like the opening act to something great - you get a teaser of what they can do, but their talent and ability is still very raw and untapped. There are a few songs on "Angels..." that are still firm favourites with the band's fans - such as "Beauty and the Beast", which is performed on the album by [former] singer Tarja Turunen and Tuomas (keyboards). I have heard this performed live, with Tony Kakko from Sonata Arctica doing the male voal... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful

Advantages: The songs, Tarja's voice, beautiful artwork, originality, fantastic lyrics
Disadvantages: None

...pocket…and then the cover for Oceanborn caught my eye. Literally, it was the cover that sold it to me; that beautiful fantasy-style artwork. HMV had two Nightwish albums, this and Century Child, and the covers were so beautiful I had to check them out. I looked to the back and - imagine my surprise - when the list of instruments and band members were presented. Pianos? Synthesisers? A female vocalist?…In a 'heavy metal' CD? I was intrigued, so snapped them both up. And the second I popped them into my CD player realised this was quite possibly the best impulse buy I'd ever made. The Band Tarja - Vocals Emppu - Guitars Sami - Bass Jukka - Drums and percussion Tuomas - Synthesisers and piano Nightwish are a Finnish band from Kitee, but sing in English (presumably, like The Rasmus, so that they could conquer the bigger markets... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful