DARK PASSION PLAY

After Nightwish kicked Tarja on to a dark and cold street, for no reason, basically because Tuomas is a bit whiny, (but like Morrissey, he does make some great music.) they started to make this album, while looking for a lead singer, who they found in a bin probabbly (Anette Olzon, they probabbly didn't find her in a bin, it was proabbly Tk Max or something).

To be honest, I think they knew that criticism would attack them from every corner. But how do you combat the criticism...with a great album of course. And did they succeed...obviously.

This album was actually suprisingly amazing. There was some meh meh moments, but the music did make up for it. Unlike the last album, the heaviness was toned down and the orchestra was turned up (still not Within Temptation...has anybody thought of giving Within Temptation this album in order to show them how to produce an album the right way).

The new singer isn't as good as Tarja, but to be honest, not many people are. She is a great singer and she is very good looking (well if she was a boot, I don't think anyone would like them anymore).

1. The Poet & The Pendulum - Well can you match Ghost Love Score, ICS Vortex you can. This song is beyond epic. It makes other symphonic metal bands cry. The soprano vocals, performed by Aled Jones (not really). The orchestra is amazing and it even reminds me of a film soundtrack. It's also very dramtatic. It's so dramatic that it made Peter Gabriel shed his skin, or scales, or whatever he is made of now. Yea, I'm being too funny. The lyrics are also very good, but I don't think the word rape should be used in a song, unless it's that song from Hamlet 2, "Raped In The Face".

2. Bye Bye Beuaitful -Tuomas, please, get over it. This song is amazing, but still, Tuomas is still cranking over Tarja, she's gone, get over it. The video also made no sense, why did you replace the guys with girls, it's so cheesey, Whitesnake did a parody of it. All in all, it's a still very catchy.

3. Amaranth - Annete's vocals are really shown off in this song. When I first heard this song, I didn't think it was that catchy, but it is incredibly infectious. Amazing song, incredibly remerable.

4. Cadence Of Her Last Breathe - This song is about Tuomas wishing that Tarja was dead. GET OVER IT... It's very catchy and the artwork which shows Tarja holding a butterfly was just stupid. If you are trying to hide the meaning of the song...do it better.

5. Master Passion Greed - This song is about how Tuomas hates Tarja's husband. I'm just not gonna say anything.

6. Eva - Finally, the Tarja bashing is over. Back to songs about... homless... children. How depressing can you be? It is incredibly beautiful and the arrangement is great.

7. Sahara - Very epic and catchy. As long as it's not about Tarja.

8. Whoever Brings The Night - A song about prositutes. Why is there always a song about sex, Tuomas really needs to get lobotomised. Still a great song.

9. For The Heart I Once Had - A nice ballady song with a great chorus and an amazing vocal performance from Annette. :)

10. The Islander - A song about Tarja being on Lost, not really but I wouldn't be suprised if it wasn't. Very catchy and very nice. Great vocals from Marco, and I like the Uilean Pipes.

11. Last Of The Wilds - I have played this song, so many times, on nearlly every instrument known to man. I actually skipped this song, cause it already is playing in my head, even now.

12. 7 Days To The Wolves - Very epic and great riff. The chorus is also very catchy and memorable.

13. Meadows Of Heaven - A nice ballady song to end the album. And every band, at some stage, will end up using a gospel choir, It's called the Simon Cowell disease.

CONCLUSION - This album is great and really made critics stand up and applaude, but really awkwardly, like in a teen movie. Although, like every lyricist, Tuomas lyrics are getting worse, e.g. John Petrucci, Steve Harris, Mike Portnoy. Buy it, it's an amazing album.