FROM WISH TO ETERNITY - LIVE

Watching the newer "End of an Era" DVD next to this, it is impossible not to notice the differences in mood between the two, the looks on faces, the body language. "End" was a good show but it was obvious there was tension. This DVD on the other hand is a joyous rock show with Tarja and the Boys clearly working together as a team and likely still as friends, the atmosphere on the stage is much more festive. The material is also much stronger here. I have not heard all of these Nightwish studio albums but I prefer the material on this show to the "End" show. There were some killer combinations of brilliant symphonic metal with Tarja's stunningly beautiful operatic voice. She is easily the best female vocalist I have heard fronting a rock/metal band in some time-imagine a classically trained, expressive, emotional vocal up against these adventurous, powerful goth-metal mini-suites. Tuomas in fact mentions that in the interview that he writes the songs almost as miniature soundtracks. It really is something to see. I believe Tuomas writes most of the material and I must say there are some nice songs here. The Boys in the band are monster as well, most notable are the powerful drumming and lead guitar. While Tarja gets much of the attention from the audience it is worth noting the amazing individual performances around her.

One area where this DVD falls short of "Era" is in the budget and production aspects. There are clearly some poor shooting/editing choices here. The later show had the advantage of their fatter bank accounts and the audio/video quality and stage production grew up as well. But that can't substitute for catching Nightwish at the peak of their power, which is this DVD. This is not typically the kind of music I listen to but I really, thoroughly enjoyed every second of this show. Great stuff! The extras include two good videos with a decidedly cold Scandinavian-metal feel to them, some live tracks, interviews with Tarja and Tuomas, and photo gallery. 3 ½ but rounding up on this one for being one of the most entertaining metal shows I've seen combined with the unique vocal talent. I have not heard their new album but watching this show I cannot believe they threw away this vocalist-things must have been pretty bad for them not to try to resolve their differences. I understand there is quite a debate about whether Nightwish even belongs at a progressive site like ours-while I won't take that up in a review I have to point out what another reviewer mentioned: he said the whole thing is "wonderfully over-the-top" and it certainly is. You should come to Nightwish expecting to let the bombast wash over you without questioning relevance, and you might find yourself enjoying something you didn't think you would. As was the case with me. I don't know if their albums are great but I can say that this live performance is worth seeing.

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