Editorial Review:

Album Description:
Although it is their sixth studio album,Dark Passion Play marks the beginning of a new era for Finnish symphonic metal masters Nightwish. With new vocalist Annette Olzon onboard, Nightwish returns with their most accessible material to date. Firmly rooted in their trademark symphonic sounds featuring elaborate keyboard and guitar parts blended seamlessly with intricate string and choir sections, Olzon’s vocals have more pop sensibility as they are far less operatic than those of her predecessor. This is perfectly exemplified in the vocal melodies in Amaranth, Eva and the scorching duet with bassist Marco Hietala titled Bye Bye Beautiful. Nightwish mastermind Tuomas Holopainen (keyboards) not only wrote all the lyrics and all but two songs on the album, but also helmed the project as one of the producers along with T.C. Kinnunen and Mikko Karmila, who also mixed the album. Dark Passion Play has already made history as Finland’s most expensive recording project to date with massive string sections and choirs and it is clearly evident in the impeccable production. Nightwish have taken the symphonic elements of their prior works and infused them with a new voice to create a sound representative of the album title: dark, playful and, most of all, passionate.

Amazon.com:
Nightwish returns with an ambitious epic metal opus that begins promisingly enough but quickly devolves into another formulaic power rock affair. The band's at its most powerful and convincing on the opening 'The Poet and the Pendulum' (all 14 minutes of it), the dynamic 'Bye Bye Beautiful,' and the infectious pop-inflected 'Amaranth.' But mid-album tracks such as 'Sahara,' 'For the Heart I Once Had,' and the limpid closer, 'Meadows of Heaven,' retread familiar ground that reminds us of epic metal's more disappointing tendencies--faux pop, bombastic bombast, anemic anthems, and a penchant for the maudlin. With new vocalist Annette Olzon in the ranks, the Finnish outfit stands poised to make a thoroughly convincing and wholehearted classic (listen to 'The Islander' for further proof) but falls short, delivering a decent but distracted recording. It's too ambitious, too scattered, and, simply, too long--and that's too bad. --Jedd Beaudoin









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Disc 1:

1. The Poet and the Pendulum
2. Bye Bye Beautiful
3. Amaranth
4. Cadence of Her Last Breath
5. Master Passion Greed
6. Eva
7. Sahara
8. Whoever Brings the Night - Nightwish, Vuorinen, Emppu
9. For the Heart I Once Had
10. The Islander - Nightwish, Hietala, Marco
11. Last of the Wilds
12. 7 Days to the Wolves - Nightwish, Hietala, Marco
13. Meadows of Heaven

Rating: - Someone else's opinion
Unlike most people that have reviewed this CD, I believe that this is one of, if not, the best CD Nightwish has put out. For one thing, the greatest song on their greatest hits was the Pink Floyd remake, "Hope."
The new vocalist Annette, is by far a greater addition to this band. Maybe i wasn't the biggest Nightwish fan, but now I am going to be a loyal fan as long as they have this vocalist. In my opinion, this is a must have and the best Nightwish has to offer.

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Rating: - one of the best albums ever
im not quite sure how these people do not like anettes voice or give it a bad review. Yeah tarja was an amazing vocalist but anette is too. There is not one crappy song on this album. Its probably one of the only albums id give a 5/5 for. it doesnt matter how many times i listen to the album. it never gets old. Even the bonus tracks on all the limited additions are amazing. Ive been into metal for quite awile and this is one of the best bands lyrically, musically and vocal out there. this one will not dissapoint, not one bit.

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Rating: - ALLURING
The next time someone brushes off Goth music as being too loud to understand, point them in the direction of "Dark Passion Play" by Nightwish. It is a beautifully presented modern opera with voices to match, and it lures you in to its dreamlike story. If you only have time to listen to one sample, listen to "Eva," and you'll see how different this music is from the norm and how talented the artists are. I am NOT a fan of Goth music, or I wasn't half an hour ago, but this Nightwish CD has changed my mind.

My only criticism is that every cut on the album is presented in the same key. I wish the artists had stretched their vocal cords and changed key only slightly for a bit of variety. However, this shouldn't stop you from buying this CD and immersing yourself in its beautiful sound.

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Rating: - New to NIGHTWISH
I first heard Nightwish in the movie "Alone in the Dark" with "Christian Slater", and I've been in love with Nightwish ever since. I bought the cd "ONCE" as my first album because of the song "Wish I had an Angel", then I bought "Dark Passion Play", and I just fell in love with the music. They have that "GOTHIC, CHAMBER, and CELTIC" sound which I love, and the song "Meadows of Heaven" is amazing. That song makes my spirit fly, I just take off.

If you never been a fan of Nightwish, believe me, after hearing their cd's I am a #1 fan.

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Rating: - They're still amazing, even without Tarja
This is the first Nightwish album to be released after the public firing of former vocalist Tarja Turrunen. Although Tarja will be sorely missed, it is time we give our full attention to the new vocalist, Annette Olzon. Though the rabid Tarja fans out there still refuse to give Annette a chance, I found myself quite impressed with her, and am looking forward to hearing more from her in the future.
The first thing you'll notice is the difference in their vocal styles. Annette has more of a soulful rocker approach, as oppossed to Tarja's beautiful soprano. Though Tarja definately has more range, Annette has a lot of enthusiasm and energy that's hard not to like. Her vocals are reminiscant of a storyteller, which is very approapriate for a lot of the songs in this album.
But the band's sounds have evoled as well. Band leader Toumas has really evolved as a composer, utilizing a full orchestra for this album. Bass player Marco also get's to contribute many more vocals than in past albums, even having his own solo song, Master Passion Greed. I highly reccomend this album, even to those who are sceptical of the band being good without Tarja. I assure that they are, and are more than capable of evolving further.
Reccomended tracks: Poet and the Pendulum, Sahara, Amaranth, 7 Days to the Wolves, Meadows of Heaven.