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Here it finally is, the most
anticipated metal release of 2002, or at least one of them. The first album
from Nightwish was rather immature concerning the song writing but you could
still easily tell that something big was about to hit us very soon. "Ocean
Born" proved that theory more than one could ever have expected and Nightwish
was suddenly one of the biggest metal bands in the world with enormous success
in both Europe and South America. "Wishmaster" was also a wonderful album
althouth there was very little progression from the last album except for an
even more powerful and professional sound. I was very excited when I sat down
to listen to their new album and I was positively surprised. After the last
album I feared that there was no way for the band to push their music further
but luckily I was wrong. "Century Child" shows a band who does not want to
stand still but continue to develop. I don't think it has anything to do with
Marco Hietala (Tarot, Sinergy) joining the band on bass but this does not
sound like a complete copy of their last albums. The pompous and bombastic
arrangements that have become a trademark for the band are still there of
course but the songs are more complex than they have been before with stronger
classical influences. This time even the slower, more ballad-ish songs sound
good and this is because Tarja have finally found out how to sing. Don't get
me wrong here. She has always had an amazing voice but this is the first time
that she has shown any noteworthy qualities of melodic singing which is very
important when it comes to less aggressive songs. Then comes me complaining
again. Changes always have their price and this time there are too many songs
with a traditional rock structure to them which makes them a little boring at
times. Another thing is that they have decided that it was a good idea to
throw in a few male vocals. They sound absolutely awful and only ruin the
overall impression. If they want to have a male vocalist he should at least be
able to sing or otherwise stick to just spoken words. Now I'm done
complaining I think. This is unfortunately the weakest Nightwish release since
the debut but it is still a superb album that should not disappoint any fans
of the band. Once again the best songs are better than last time and the worst
songs are worse... Stand-out tracks: "Bless The Child", "End Of All Hope",
"Beauty Of The Beast".
| Tracklist |
1. Bless The Child 2. End Of |
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All Hope 3. Dead To The World 4. Ever Dream 5. Slaying |
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The Dreamer 6. Forever Yours 7. Ocean Soul 8. Feel For |
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You 9. The Phantom Of The Opera 10. Beauty Of The Beast |
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: 50.15
| Buy other Nightwish albums |
