We’re all pretty amped up for NIGHTWISH to release their new album, “Yesterwynde,” right? 2024 is an important year for fans, not just for that reason, but also because it also gives us an opportunity to revisit “Once,” which is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. The album was noteworthy for many reasons. First of all, it’s definitely a fan-favorite release. It’s also the last album to come out featuring Tarja Turunen on vocals, before the release of “The End of an Era” and the legendary letter that came after recording the final video on the album release tour. There are always a lot of complicated feelings surrounding that split, so there’s no better time to revisit and review this album!
Perhaps one of the most noteworthy things about “Once” was the truly spectacular quality of the orchestrations. This was the first time the band could afford a proper orchestra, so almost all of these tracks feature the LONDON PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA (who has been with the band ever since) and you can really hear how the quality skyrocketed when using a real orchestra already in the first track, “Dark Chest of Wonders.” It’s a fantastic hit, full of power and energy and mystique and fantasy – exactly the kind of thing that NIGHTWISH fans live for.
“Wish I Had an Angel” has a strong kick from Marko Hietala‘s vocals in the chorus, paired with Tarja‘s vocalizations in the background, and then topped with a vocal duet… mix all that with gritty guitar solos and you’ve got a truly brilliant song. It’s also noteworthy that this album seems to be one of the last where Tuomas Holopainen was writing a lot about angels and vaguely religious themes, which we would learn towards “Endless Forms Most Beautiful” was because he is nowadays an atheist.
“Nemo,” naturally, has that beautiful piano intro that we all know and love and will scream for when we hear it live. It was also paired with a really lovely music video and gorgeous, fantastical lyrics… magnificent! I’ve never been someone who watches a lot of music videos, but I remember living in this video for a period of time in my life. The choral build-up, followed by a great little guitar solo from Emppu Vuorinen is really the cherry on top of this track. If I recall correctly, there’s an extended version of that solo to be found in one version of the song as well.
“Planet Hell” has that chanting from the choir and a very exciting orchestral part, and also balances vocals between Marko and Tarja nicely. Remembering and re-listening to songs like this make it all the more heartwarming that those two are friends again and making music together and touring together. It’s a peppy track that I’ve always found to be rather polarizing – in my experience, fans have always found it to be one of the best songs, or one of the most upbeat but nevertheless least enticing.
There’s a clear native North American influence to “Creek Mary’s Blood” in the amazing choral parts and flutes from John Two-Hawk. The song is slow enough that it could be considered a ballad, yet still hugely benefits from the backing oomph from the orchestra. It does only toe the line of ballad-dom though, as the pace picks up (as does the chanting) about halfway through for a while, and ends with more vocals from John.
“The Siren” is another polarizing song that people have (again, in my experience) always said was either one of the most beautiful tracks with great guitar work and eerie vocals, or one of the least interesting songs on the release. Personally, I always appreciated the focus on string instruments from Martin Loveday (cello) and Sonia Slaney (violin) and how they elevate the song, especially paired with those gritty heavy metal guitars. In fact, if there’s one thing that I do miss in modern NIGHTWISH tracks, it is the heavy guitars, as it seems like Emppu is not allowed to solo anymore, sadly. Also, Tarja‘s vocalizations in this track, paired with Marko‘s slightly grungier vocals, is the definition of the classic Beauty-and-the-Beast style (assuming you don’t think growling is mandatory for BatB). I particularly love the vocalizations around the halfway mark. Worth mentioning that, before this review, I had no idea that Sami Yli-Sirniö (KREATOR, BARREN EARTH) was playing sitar on this track!
“Dead Gardens” is one of those tracks that I didn’t pay the most attention to back in the day, but on re-listening, I do really appreciate the heavy guitar sound. It’s a bit more of a straightforward song for NIGHTWISH, but Tarja‘s got a lot of force and delicacy paired together. Perhaps the reason it didn’t stand out as well for me is because I’ve always found the verses to be a bit more exciting than the chorus, which is quite brief. For you Finnish music geeks, that’s Jouni Hynynen of KOTITEOLLISUUS growling, and I, for one, did not know he growled.
“Romanticide” is probably the most decidedly evil-sounding song on “Once,” as well as one of the most straightforward heavy metal tracks, even though the chorus goes up into sharp high notes. Then we have the song that is often considered the peak of NIGHTWISH‘s discography: “Ghost Love Score.” It goes without saying that this was my favorite NW song for many years, just because… how can you not be impressed by it? The orchestrations, the vocals, the lyrics, the story, the magic… this is exactly what NIGHTWISH has always been about. I would be lying if I said that I haven’t written fantasy stories using this song as a soundtrack. You can even hear a cover of it from BEAST IN BLACK‘s vocalist, Yannis Papadopoulos in its original key, which is worth checking out if you’re a fan. If the band has an eternal legacy, it might very well be this song and it would be well-deserved. It doesn’t matter whose version you like best, it’s undeniable that this is a progressive, flawless, 10/10 track.
If there’s one song that regular NIGHTWISH fans like, but Finnish fans love, it’s probably “Kuolema Tekee Taiteilijan,” which translates loosely to “death makes an artist.” Personally, I recall never really caring about the song because it’s a slow, lovely ballad, but I’ve always related best to ballads from their lyrics, much less than their music (I’m not very interested in slow songs unless they’re instrumentals), so that always made it very hard to get into this track, back when I didn’t know what the lyrics meant. It is a beautiful song, no denying that, but my reaction to that beauty, when compared to that of my Finnish friends has been a passing nod versus holding one another and weeping, so you can certainly imagine that there’s some magic to this track and it’s likely worth your while to read a translation of the lyrics.
One of my low-key favorite songs on this album has always been “Higher than Hope,” due to the absolute beauty of it, though the song didn’t hit me until after I listened to “Made in Hong Kong,” for whatever reason. What I didn’t know before now, was that this song was written in memoriam of a Finnish artist/DJ named Marc Brueland who was a friend of Tuomas‘, who passed away in 2003 after a nearly-8-year battle with cancer. He’s the one whose voice you’re hearing in the narration as well, so it really brings even more magic to this song once you know that. Beyond that, this song has a lovely acoustic guitar intro before Tarja‘s tender vocals come in. The emotional push as it hits the chorus is what always gave me chills, especially as they only tease the first chorus, cutting it in half and proceeding, so when the second chorus hits and continues, it really leaves an impact.
Really, as much as I adore all of NIGHTWISH‘s discography, there’s definitely something special about “Once,” for myself and many other fans. When I discovered the band as a teenager in Canada, this was the first new release after I had listened to “Wishmaster” about a million times, which made it all the more special for me. Many people have wonderful associations with this album for endless reasons and there are a lot of reasons within the band as well that make it a truly special release. Does it hold up 20 years after it’s release? I think you’d be hard-pressed to find anyone who would deny it!
Written by Bear Wiseman
Tracklist
- Dark Chest of Wonders
- Wish I Had an Angel
- Nemo
- Planet Hell
- Creek Mary’s Blood
- The Siren
- Dead Gardens
- Romanticide
- Ghost Love Score
- Kuolema Tekee Taiteilijan
- Higher than Hope
