Dark Passion Play
Encyclopedia
Dark Passion Play is the sixth studio album by Finnish symphonic metal
band Nightwish
, released on 26 September, 2007
in Finland, 28 September in Europe and 2 October 2007 in the United States. It was the first Nightwish album with the band's current lead singer, Anette Olzon
, and the first album not featuring former vocalist Tarja Turunen
, who was fired in 2005. Lead songwriter Tuomas Holopainen
has referred to it as the "album that saved his life".
The first single, "Eva
", was leaked on the Internet six days before its official release, prompting the band to release the single earlier to boost downloads. Several other versions of the song were posted on YouTube
and torrent sites a month later; the entire album with record label voiceover
s had been leaked on the Internet by 2 August. The full album (without voiceovers) was leaked on 21 September 2007, as a result of several stores in Mexico
selling the retail album much prior to the worldwide release date.
During the first week of its release, the album entered the European charts as number one in 6 different countries, selling over 100,000 copies in Finland
alone, where was certified with 3 Platinum Discs. In February 2008, the album received its 4th Platinum Disc in Finland, after having sold over 130,000 copies. Worldwide, Dark Passion Play has sold over 2 million copies since its release, being Nightwish's most successful album to date.
, the band's lead singer Tarja Turunen
was dismissed via an open letter
. In search of a replacement, the band conducted auditions from 17 March 2006 to 15 January 2007, receiving over 2000 demo
tapes in the process. Amidst much speculation the new singer was officially announced on 24 May 2007 to be Anette Olzon
, previously the singer for the Swedish AOR band Alyson Avenue
. In an interview, Holopainen said they had made the decision in January 2007 based on the impression she made while performing the song "Ever Dream
" from the album Century Child
.
The recording process started in the spring 2006 in different studios across Europe; the drums were recorded by Nevalainen in Hollola
, Finland, at the Petrax Studios, Emppu Vuorinen
recorded the guitars in Kerava
, Finland, were also record the keyboards by Holopainen and the bass parts by Marco Hietala
. Hietala is also the band's male singer, and in 2006 Hietala sung some of the new songs to record the demo versions as a base for the final recordings, with definitve vocals being recorded by Olzon at the Petrax in march 2007, immediately after being chosen to replace Tarja Turunen, and nearly two months before her name was given to the media and the fans.
When the drummer Jukka Nevalainen
was asked about the overall cost of the new album, he was quoted as saying “Roughly half a million... We don’t know the exact sum down to the euros and cents as yet.” Half of this cost was incurred in London, over an expensive eight days at the Abbey Road Studios
in London
, UK, during which time the London Session Orchestra, the Metro Voices Choir
, a gospel choir and two Irish
musicians recorded their parts at the studio.
The orchestral line-up featured 66 members from the London Philharmonic Orchestra, 32 singers from The Metro Voices and twelve gospel singers. The final mixing process spent more than 75 days at the Finnvox Studios in Kitee
, Finland, the same place where Nightwish recorded all their previous albums.
said in an interview that the album would have a lot in common with the previous album Once
. For example, the band have kept the new kind of heavier songs, such as "Master Passion Greed", "Whoever brings the night", "7 Days to the Wolves", and "Bye Bye Beautiful
", but additionally there are softer ballads, such as "Meadows of Heaven", "Eva", and "The Islander
". This album includes lots of guest musicians and orchestral parts, just like Once, but with a bigger level.
Just like the album Once, Nightwish included many new influences and experimentations in several tracks. On Once, much inspiration came from Native American music, especially "Creek Mary's Blood", which featured Lakota Indian musician John Two-Hawks
. However, on Dark Passion Play, much inspiration comes from Finnish and Irish culture and music, which can be clearly heard on "Last of the Wilds". Songs like "Master Passion Greed" included thrash metal
elements as well, displaying the newer, more modern sound of the band.
Holopainen also said that there are darker pieces reminiscent of the album Century Child
, such as "The Poet and the Pendulum", and some others. It will be a dark album, both musically and lyrically. Even though the album is much more upbeat than Century Child. Songs that reflect this mood are for example the second single "Amaranth
" and "Bye Bye Beautiful"'s B-side "Escapist."
certification four times. "Dark Passion Play" has sold over 2 million copies worldwide. It has been certified as 2x platinum in Switzerland, Platinum in Hungary and Gold in Germany
, Sweden
, Austria
and Poland
; Dark Passion Play is also the most successful Nightwish album in UK and USA.
As of January 2008, the album has topped the album charts in six countries; the singles, "Amaranth
" and "Erämaan Viimeinen
" have both reached the first position on Finnish charts. According to Last.fm
, "Dark Passion Play" is their most played album, and its successful single "Amaranth" has as of February 2009 been holding the position of most played song since its release.
The album was also critically acclaimed in most reviews. Allmusic called the album a "sort of opera aria" and praised "Bye Bye Beautiful
", on a track pic and "Eva
", that they say it focus on the new vocalist vocal abilities. Metal Storm
said of "The Poet And The Pendulum" as "not just a statement to anyone who may have questioned the future of the band, but is also if you will, the title track with the pendulum on the front cover of the album and is also the epitome of the whole album to come", and called the album a "very much a Nightwish album is one of the most adventurous outings of the band's history."
The album was also given a positive review by Blabbermouths Keith Bergman, who gave the album a 7.5 out of 10 and stated that it "may not be a masterpiece throughout, but it's got enough moments of symphonic metal bliss to warrant a high recommendation. About.com
writer, Chad Bowar, gave the album a score of 4 out of 5 stars, calling Dark Passion Play "an excellent album that's right up there with the best the band has done."
To promote the release of the album, Nightwish played the Dark Passion Play World Tour
, that took place from 2007 to 2009.
On 22 September 2007, the band hosted a secret concert at Rock Café in Tallinn
, Estonia
, disguising itself as a Nightwish cover band
called "Nachtwasser". Their first official concert with the new singer was in Tel Aviv
, Israel
on 6 October 2007. The Dark Passion Play tour thus started, visiting the United States, Canada, most of Europe, Asia, and Australia. In 2008, the band played over 100 shows, with dates in Oceania
, Europe and Asia. In November, the band played in South America, and before this leg they took a 3 months break; Nightwish start the third leg in 2009, with dates in North America and Europe, and also playing in several summer metal festivals, including Graspop Metal Meeting
and Masters of Rock
. The last show was played in Helsinki
, Finland, in front of 10 thousand people.
The support bands were changing throughout the tour. The frequent acts were the Finnish pop rock
female group Indica
, Swedish metal band Sonic Syndicate
and the Swedish industrial metal
band Pain. The USA tour was supported by Gothic metal
band Paradise Lost
. In the last concert, the opening band was the Finnish act Apocalyptica
. On 11 March 2009, was released an EP
/DVD, Made in Hong Kong (And in Various Other Places)
, with 8 live tracks recorded during the tour in various concerts; the DVD contains three music videos as well as a documentary featuring material from Israel to South America, directed by Ville Lipiäinen.
Symphonic metal
Symphonic metal is a term used to describe heavy metal music that has symphonic elements; that is, elements that are either borrowed from classical music or, as with progressive rock music, create a style reminiscent of it, e.g...
band Nightwish
Nightwish
Nightwish is a Finnish symphonic metal band from Kitee, Finland. Formed in 1996 by songwriter and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen, guitarist Emppu Vuorinen, and former vocalist Tarja Turunen, Nightwish's current line-up has five members, although Tarja has been replaced by Anette Olzon and the...
, released on 26 September, 2007
2007 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 2007.-January:*January 1 - George Shearing is knighted for services to music in the Queen's New Year Honours List. Evelyn Glennie becomes a Dame...
in Finland, 28 September in Europe and 2 October 2007 in the United States. It was the first Nightwish album with the band's current lead singer, Anette Olzon
Anette Olzon
Anette Ingegerd Olsson , known by the stage name Anette Olzon, is a Swedish singer from Helsingborg, best known as the second lead vocalist of Finnish symphonic power metal band Nightwish. Olzon was formerly the vocalist in the Swedish AOR band Alyson Avenue...
, and the first album not featuring former vocalist Tarja Turunen
Tarja Turunen
Tarja Soile Susanna Turunen Cabuli is a Finnish singer-songwriter and composer. She is a full lyric soprano and has a vocal range of three octaves....
, who was fired in 2005. Lead songwriter Tuomas Holopainen
Tuomas Holopainen
Tuomas Lauri Johannes Holopainen is a Finnish composer known best for symphonic metal music. He has also studied jazz and classical styles, but prefers to be influenced by harmonic film music....
has referred to it as the "album that saved his life".
The first single, "Eva
Eva (song)
-Personnel:*Anette Olzon - lead vocals*Tuomas Holopainen - keyboards*Erno Vuorinen - lead guitar*Jukka Nevalainen - drums*Marco Hietala - bass...
", was leaked on the Internet six days before its official release, prompting the band to release the single earlier to boost downloads. Several other versions of the song were posted on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
and torrent sites a month later; the entire album with record label voiceover
VoiceOver
VoiceOver is a screen reader built into Apple Inc.'s Mac OS X, iOS and iPod operating systems. By using VoiceOver, the user can access their Macintosh or iOS device based on spoken descriptions and, in the case of the Mac, the keyboard. The feature is designed to increase accessibility for blind...
s had been leaked on the Internet by 2 August. The full album (without voiceovers) was leaked on 21 September 2007, as a result of several stores in Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
selling the retail album much prior to the worldwide release date.
During the first week of its release, the album entered the European charts as number one in 6 different countries, selling over 100,000 copies in Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
alone, where was certified with 3 Platinum Discs. In February 2008, the album received its 4th Platinum Disc in Finland, after having sold over 130,000 copies. Worldwide, Dark Passion Play has sold over 2 million copies since its release, being Nightwish's most successful album to date.
Background and production
On 21 October 2005, after the Once Upon a TourOnce Upon a Tour
-In 2004:-In 2005:-External links:*...
, the band's lead singer Tarja Turunen
Tarja Turunen
Tarja Soile Susanna Turunen Cabuli is a Finnish singer-songwriter and composer. She is a full lyric soprano and has a vocal range of three octaves....
was dismissed via an open letter
Open letter
An open letter is a letter that is intended to be read by a wide audience, or a letter intended for an individual, but that is nonetheless widely distributed intentionally....
. In search of a replacement, the band conducted auditions from 17 March 2006 to 15 January 2007, receiving over 2000 demo
Demo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
tapes in the process. Amidst much speculation the new singer was officially announced on 24 May 2007 to be Anette Olzon
Anette Olzon
Anette Ingegerd Olsson , known by the stage name Anette Olzon, is a Swedish singer from Helsingborg, best known as the second lead vocalist of Finnish symphonic power metal band Nightwish. Olzon was formerly the vocalist in the Swedish AOR band Alyson Avenue...
, previously the singer for the Swedish AOR band Alyson Avenue
Alyson Avenue
Alyson Avenue is a Swedish classic rock band. The band's musical style was described as "AOR". The band has released two albums: Presence of Mind and Omega, and are currently recording a third, which will feature previous lead singer Anette Olzon....
. In an interview, Holopainen said they had made the decision in January 2007 based on the impression she made while performing the song "Ever Dream
Ever Dream
Ever Dream is the eighth single by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish which was the group's first single release in two years. The single also preluded a new album, Century Child....
" from the album Century Child
Century Child
Century Child is the fourth studio album of Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish, released in 2002 by Spinefarm Records. It is the first album with current bassist and male vocalist Marco Hietala....
.
The recording process started in the spring 2006 in different studios across Europe; the drums were recorded by Nevalainen in Hollola
Hollola
Hollola is a municipality of Finland.It is located in the province of Southern Finland and is part of the Päijänne Tavastia region. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of ofwhich is water...
, Finland, at the Petrax Studios, Emppu Vuorinen
Emppu Vuorinen
Erno "Emppu" Matti Juhani Vuorinen is a Finnish guitarist, most famous for being a founding member and occasional songwriter of the symphonic metal band Nightwish...
recorded the guitars in Kerava
Kerava
Kerava is a town and municipality in Finland.It is located in the province of Southern Finland and is part of the Uusimaa region. The town has a population of and covers an area of of which is water. The population density is...
, Finland, were also record the keyboards by Holopainen and the bass parts by Marco Hietala
Marco Hietala
Marko Tapani "Marco" Hietala is a heavy metal vocalist and bassist. Internationally, he is most known as the current bassist, male vocalist and composer, of the symphonic metal band Nightwish...
. Hietala is also the band's male singer, and in 2006 Hietala sung some of the new songs to record the demo versions as a base for the final recordings, with definitve vocals being recorded by Olzon at the Petrax in march 2007, immediately after being chosen to replace Tarja Turunen, and nearly two months before her name was given to the media and the fans.
When the drummer Jukka Nevalainen
Jukka Nevalainen
Jukka Antero "Julius" Nevalainen is the drummer in the Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish and the Finnish progressive metal band Sethian.- Biography :He spent his early years in the city of Kitee...
was asked about the overall cost of the new album, he was quoted as saying “Roughly half a million... We don’t know the exact sum down to the euros and cents as yet.” Half of this cost was incurred in London, over an expensive eight days at the Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios
Abbey Road Studios is a recording studio located at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music company EMI, its present owner...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, UK, during which time the London Session Orchestra, the Metro Voices Choir
Metro Voices
Metro Voices is a choir group based in London, England that specialises in performing for the motion pictures. They work closely with the London Philharmonic Orchestra and with acclaimed British composer Craig Armstrong...
, a gospel choir and two Irish
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
musicians recorded their parts at the studio.
The orchestral line-up featured 66 members from the London Philharmonic Orchestra, 32 singers from The Metro Voices and twelve gospel singers. The final mixing process spent more than 75 days at the Finnvox Studios in Kitee
Kitee
Kitee is a town and a municipality of Finland.It is located in the province of Eastern Finland and is part of the North Karelia region. The municipality has a population of and covers an area of of which is water...
, Finland, the same place where Nightwish recorded all their previous albums.
Music description
Before the album's release, band leader Tuomas HolopainenTuomas Holopainen
Tuomas Lauri Johannes Holopainen is a Finnish composer known best for symphonic metal music. He has also studied jazz and classical styles, but prefers to be influenced by harmonic film music....
said in an interview that the album would have a lot in common with the previous album Once
Once (Nightwish album)
Once is the fifth studio album by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish, released on June 7, 2004 by Nuclear Blast and on November 24 by Spinefarm, with the US release on October 5 by Roadrunner Records. In an interview, Tuomas Holopainen said that it is up to the listener to find out the meaning...
. For example, the band have kept the new kind of heavier songs, such as "Master Passion Greed", "Whoever brings the night", "7 Days to the Wolves", and "Bye Bye Beautiful
Bye Bye Beautiful
-Charts performance:In the UK, "Bye Bye Beautiful" entered the UK Rock Singles Chart at number two, behind Nickelback's "Rockstar". After the European release, "Bye Bye Beautiful" reached its highest position in a national singles chart, in Spain, reaching number 4, slightly lower than Nightwish's...
", but additionally there are softer ballads, such as "Meadows of Heaven", "Eva", and "The Islander
The Islander (song)
-Chart performance:"The Islander" went straight to #1 in Finland on the first day of its release. Recently, Nightwish have had major success in Spain and "The Islander" reached #5 in the Spanish Singles Chart, continuing a run of Top 5 singles from Dark Passion Play.-Personnel:*Marco Hietala – Male...
". This album includes lots of guest musicians and orchestral parts, just like Once, but with a bigger level.
Just like the album Once, Nightwish included many new influences and experimentations in several tracks. On Once, much inspiration came from Native American music, especially "Creek Mary's Blood", which featured Lakota Indian musician John Two-Hawks
John Two-Hawks
John Two-Hawks is an Oglala Lakota Native American musician who has been performing professionally in live concerts since the early 1990s. He sings and plays many instruments, but is best known as a pioneer and virtuoso player of the Native American flute...
. However, on Dark Passion Play, much inspiration comes from Finnish and Irish culture and music, which can be clearly heard on "Last of the Wilds". Songs like "Master Passion Greed" included thrash metal
Thrash metal
Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized usually by its fast tempo and aggression. Songs of the genre typically use fast percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work...
elements as well, displaying the newer, more modern sound of the band.
Holopainen also said that there are darker pieces reminiscent of the album Century Child
Century Child
Century Child is the fourth studio album of Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish, released in 2002 by Spinefarm Records. It is the first album with current bassist and male vocalist Marco Hietala....
, such as "The Poet and the Pendulum", and some others. It will be a dark album, both musically and lyrically. Even though the album is much more upbeat than Century Child. Songs that reflect this mood are for example the second single "Amaranth
Amaranth (song)
-Charts performance:"Amaranth" is Nightwish's most successful single reaching number 1 in Spain, Hungary, Norway and Finland. It went straight to number one in Finland and stayed at number 1 for 3 weeks, dropping to number 2 in its fourth week on the chart. "Amaranth" then returned to the top spot...
" and "Bye Bye Beautiful"'s B-side "Escapist."
Reception
The album has sold more than 130,000 copies in Finland to date, placing 26th on the list of best-selling Finnish albums ever released, which has granted it a platinumMusic recording sales certification
Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,...
certification four times. "Dark Passion Play" has sold over 2 million copies worldwide. It has been certified as 2x platinum in Switzerland, Platinum in Hungary and Gold in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
; Dark Passion Play is also the most successful Nightwish album in UK and USA.
As of January 2008, the album has topped the album charts in six countries; the singles, "Amaranth
Amaranth (song)
-Charts performance:"Amaranth" is Nightwish's most successful single reaching number 1 in Spain, Hungary, Norway and Finland. It went straight to number one in Finland and stayed at number 1 for 3 weeks, dropping to number 2 in its fourth week on the chart. "Amaranth" then returned to the top spot...
" and "Erämaan Viimeinen
Erämaan Viimeinen
-Personnel:*Tuomas Holopainen - keyboards*Erno Vuorinen - lead guitar*Jukka Nevalainen - drums*Marco Hietala - bass- External links:*...
" have both reached the first position on Finnish charts. According to Last.fm
Last.fm
Last.fm is a music website, founded in the United Kingdom in 2002. It has claimed 30 million active users in March 2009. On 30 May 2007, CBS Interactive acquired Last.fm for UK£140m ....
, "Dark Passion Play" is their most played album, and its successful single "Amaranth" has as of February 2009 been holding the position of most played song since its release.
The album was also critically acclaimed in most reviews. Allmusic called the album a "sort of opera aria" and praised "Bye Bye Beautiful
Bye Bye Beautiful
-Charts performance:In the UK, "Bye Bye Beautiful" entered the UK Rock Singles Chart at number two, behind Nickelback's "Rockstar". After the European release, "Bye Bye Beautiful" reached its highest position in a national singles chart, in Spain, reaching number 4, slightly lower than Nightwish's...
", on a track pic and "Eva
Eva (song)
-Personnel:*Anette Olzon - lead vocals*Tuomas Holopainen - keyboards*Erno Vuorinen - lead guitar*Jukka Nevalainen - drums*Marco Hietala - bass...
", that they say it focus on the new vocalist vocal abilities. Metal Storm
Metal Storm (webzine)
Metal Storm is a webzine specializing in various forms of heavy metal music. It is based in Tallinn, Estonia but caters to an international audience, symbolically recognized by the acquisition of an EU domain in 2008...
said of "The Poet And The Pendulum" as "not just a statement to anyone who may have questioned the future of the band, but is also if you will, the title track with the pendulum on the front cover of the album and is also the epitome of the whole album to come", and called the album a "very much a Nightwish album is one of the most adventurous outings of the band's history."
The album was also given a positive review by Blabbermouths Keith Bergman, who gave the album a 7.5 out of 10 and stated that it "may not be a masterpiece throughout, but it's got enough moments of symphonic metal bliss to warrant a high recommendation. About.com
About.com
About.com is an online source for original information and advice. It is written in English, and is aimed primarily at North Americans. It is owned by The New York Times Company....
writer, Chad Bowar, gave the album a score of 4 out of 5 stars, calling Dark Passion Play "an excellent album that's right up there with the best the band has done."
Promotion
Dark Passion Play World Tour
-Additional notes:*In 2007 the band played the ballad "Eva" in selected dates.*In 2008 the band covered Megadeth's Symphony of Destruction with only Marco Hietala on vocals....
, that took place from 2007 to 2009.
On 22 September 2007, the band hosted a secret concert at Rock Café in Tallinn
Tallinn
Tallinn is the capital and largest city of Estonia. It occupies an area of with a population of 414,940. It is situated on the northern coast of the country, on the banks of the Gulf of Finland, south of Helsinki, east of Stockholm and west of Saint Petersburg. Tallinn's Old Town is in the list...
, Estonia
Estonia
Estonia , officially the Republic of Estonia , is a state in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland, to the west by the Baltic Sea, to the south by Latvia , and to the east by Lake Peipsi and the Russian Federation . Across the Baltic Sea lies...
, disguising itself as a Nightwish cover band
Cover band
A cover band , is a band that plays mostly or exclusively cover songs. New or unknown bands often find the cover band format marketable for smaller gigs, and these bands may be known as a wedding band, party band and function band. A band whose covers consist mainly of songs that were chart hits is...
called "Nachtwasser". Their first official concert with the new singer was in Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv
Tel Aviv , officially Tel Aviv-Yafo , is the second most populous city in Israel, with a population of 404,400 on a land area of . The city is located on the Israeli Mediterranean coastline in west-central Israel. It is the largest and most populous city in the metropolitan area of Gush Dan, with...
, Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
on 6 October 2007. The Dark Passion Play tour thus started, visiting the United States, Canada, most of Europe, Asia, and Australia. In 2008, the band played over 100 shows, with dates in Oceania
Oceania
Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...
, Europe and Asia. In November, the band played in South America, and before this leg they took a 3 months break; Nightwish start the third leg in 2009, with dates in North America and Europe, and also playing in several summer metal festivals, including Graspop Metal Meeting
Graspop Metal Meeting
Graspop Metal Meeting is an annual metal festival in Dessel, Belgium that has taken place each year since 1996. Despite the small size of the festival grounds the festival draws a large number of international spectators, with a total of 142,000 visitors in the course of the 2011 edition...
and Masters of Rock
Masters of Rock
Masters of Rock is a series of compilation albums issued by EMI Records in Europe. Each volume is by a different artist. Albums in the series include:*Masters of Rock , a compilation album of early Pink Floyd music; volume 1 of the series...
. The last show was played in Helsinki
Helsinki
Helsinki is the capital and largest city in Finland. It is in the region of Uusimaa, located in southern Finland, on the shore of the Gulf of Finland, an arm of the Baltic Sea. The population of the city of Helsinki is , making it by far the most populous municipality in Finland. Helsinki is...
, Finland, in front of 10 thousand people.
The support bands were changing throughout the tour. The frequent acts were the Finnish pop rock
Pop rock
Pop rock is a music genre which mixes a catchy pop style and light lyrics in its guitar-based rock songs. There are varying definitions of the term, ranging from a slower and mellower form of rock music to a subgenre of pop music...
female group Indica
Indica (Finnish band)
Indica is a Finnish pop rock group founded in 2001. Jani Jalonen of Sony Music became interested in the group, and a recording contract was signed 2003. Indica's first album, Ikuinen virta was released in 2004. It has since sold platinum in Finland....
, Swedish metal band Sonic Syndicate
Sonic Syndicate
Sonic Syndicate is a melodic death metal band from Falkenberg, Sweden. They are influenced by Swedish melodic death metal bands such as In Flames, Soilwork and metalcore bands like Killswitch Engage.....
and the Swedish industrial metal
Industrial metal
Industrial metal is a musical genre that draws from industrial music and many different types of heavy metal, using repeating metal guitar riffs, sampling, synthesizer or sequencer lines, and distorted vocals. Founding industrial metal acts include Ministry, Godflesh, and KMFDM.Industrial metal's...
band Pain. The USA tour was supported by Gothic metal
Gothic metal
Gothic metal or goth metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music that combines the aggression of doom metal with the dark melancholy of gothic rock. The music of gothic metal is diverse with bands known to adopt the gothic approach to different styles of heavy metal music...
band Paradise Lost
Paradise Lost (band)
Paradise Lost are a heavy metal band that formed in 1988 in Halifax, England.-History:Their first three full-length albums are examples of the death/doom style, although the latter two incorporated some melodic and gothic elements...
. In the last concert, the opening band was the Finnish act Apocalyptica
Apocalyptica
Apocalyptica is a band from Helsinki, Finland, formed in 1993. The band is composed of classically trained cellists Eicca Toppinen, Paavo Lötjönen, and Perttu Kivilaakso and drummer Mikko Sirén...
. On 11 March 2009, was released an EP
Extended play
An EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
/DVD, Made in Hong Kong (And in Various Other Places)
Made in Hong Kong (And in Various Other Places)
-DVD:# Bye Bye Beautiful # Amaranth # The Islander # Back in the Day... Is Now-Choice of tracklist:...
, with 8 live tracks recorded during the tour in various concerts; the DVD contains three music videos as well as a documentary featuring material from Israel to South America, directed by Ville Lipiäinen.
Track listing
Charts
| Chart (2007–2009) |
Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
42 |
| Austrian Top 75 Albums Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
5 |
| Belgian Ultratop (Flanders) Ultratop 50 Ultratop 50 singles, often just Ultratop 50, is the weekly chart of fifty best-selling singles in Flanders, Belgium, and is produced and published by the Ultratop organization. The chart has existed since March 31, 1995... |
17 |
| Belgian Ultratop (Wallonia) Ultratop 40 Ultratop 40 singles, often just Ultratop 40, is the weekly chart of best-selling singles in Wallonia and Brussels Capital Region, the french-speaking parts of Belgium. Its equivalent covering the Flanders region is Ultratop 50. Both charts are produced and published by the Ultratop organization... |
18 |
| Canadian Albums Chart Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
24 |
| Croatian Albums Chart Croatia Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ... |
1 |
| Czech Albums Chart Czech Republic The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest.... |
1 |
| Danish Albums Chart Tracklisten Tracklisten is a Danish top 40 record chart that is presented every Thursday midnight at .The weekly Danish Singles Chart also known as Track Top-40 combines the 40 best selling tracks from legal music downloads and the sales of music singles on either CD or vinyl... |
18 |
| Dutch MegaCharts MegaCharts MegaCharts is responsible for the composition and exploitation of a broad collection of official charts in the Netherlands, of which the Mega Top 50 and the Mega Album Top 100 are the most known ones. Mega Charts also provides information to the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, of which the Dutch Top... |
5 |
| European Top 100 Albums European Top 100 Albums The European Top 100 Albums chart is the European adaptation of the Billboard 200 albums chart. It was created in March 1984.The European Top 100 Albums, commonly referred to as Eurochart Top 100 Albums shows the sales of an act in 19 European countries based on IFPI data.The European Top 100... |
4 |
| Finnish Albums Chart Mitä hittiä The Official Finnish Charts is a national record chart in Finland composed by Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland.The singles chart was started in January 1991 as Radiomafian lista and was broadcast on the radio station Radiomafia of the Finnish Broadcasting Company, YLE. This chart is based on a... |
1 |
| French Albums Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
6 |
| German Albums Chart | 1 |
| Greek Albums Charts Greece Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe.... |
3 |
| Hungarian Albums Chart Mahasz Mahasz is the Hungarian music industry association, founded in 1992. Mahasz hands out the Hungarian Music Awards and maintains the music charts for Hungary.... |
1 |
| Irish Albums Chart Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on its behalf by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured electronically... |
62 |
| Italian Albums Chart Federation of the Italian Music Industry The Federation of the Italian Music Industry is an umbrella organization that keeps track of virtually all aspects of the music recording industry in Italy.... |
14 |
| Japanese International Albums Chart Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc... |
52 |
| Mexican Albums Chart AMPROFON Asociación Mexicana de Productores de Fonogramas y Videogramas is a non-profit organization integrated by multinational and national record companies in Mexico. Established on April 3, 1963, it groups phonographic companies that represent more than 70 percent of the market in Mexico... |
22 |
| Norwegian Albums Chart VG-lista VG-listen is a Norwegian record chart. It is weekly presented in the newspaper VG and the Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation program Topp 20. It is considered the primary Norwegian record chart, charting albums and singles from countries and continent around the world. The data is collected by... |
7 |
| Polish Albums Chart Poland Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north... |
6 |
| Spanish Albums Charts | 33 |
| Swedish Albums Chart Svensktoppen Svensktoppen is a record chart at Sveriges Radio. Until January 2003, the songs had to be in the Swedish language. Svensktoppen has aired since 1962, except for the years 1982-1985. Svensktoppen airs once a week... |
4 |
| Swiss Top 100 Albums Switzerland Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition.... |
1 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
25 |
| UK Rock Chart UK Rock Chart The UK Rock Chart usually refers to the Top 40 Rock Singles and the Top 40 Rock Albums Chart compiled by the Official Charts Company from physical record sales in British retail outlets with larger than average genrespecific sales.... |
1 |
| US Top Hard Rock Albums American Top 40 American Top 40 is an internationally syndicated, independent radio program created by Casey Kasem, Don Bustany, Tom Rounds and Ron Jacobs. Originally a production of Watermark Inc... |
7 |
| US Top Rock Albums | 23 |
| US Billboard Top 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
84 |
Year-end
| End of year chart (2007) | Position |
|---|---|
| German Albums Chart | 56 |
Sales and certifications
| Country | Certification Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales thresholds) |
|---|---|
| Austria Austria Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the... |
Gold |
| Croatia Croatia Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ... |
Silver |
| Finland Finland Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside... |
4x Platinum |
| Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... |
Platinum |
| Hungary Hungary Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The... |
Platinum |
| Poland Poland Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north... |
Gold |
| Sweden Sweden Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund.... |
Gold |
| Switzerland Switzerland Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition.... |
2x Platinum |
| United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
Silver |
Personnel
Credits for Dark Passion Play adapted from liner notes.The band
Main crew
|
Guest musicians
|