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One of the bands that everybody has been talking over the last few years is definitely Nightwish. Call it a fashion of female vocals, call it good promotion or call it artistically exceptional albums, today the Finnish band is one among the top leading (from all aspects) bands of this planet. "Angels Fall First" which was their first album, I can’t hide that it had appeared enough precocious to me. But with each album constituted still a step more forward, with their highlight "Once" which ejected really the popularity of Nightwish.

Somewhere here however, came the news of redundancy of Tarja Turumen to upset their regularly ascendant course. Even from the mouths of most fanatic fans of the band came out the question "does Nightwish exist without Tarja;" It’s true that the lady in question constituted the voice of the group; after all we speak for an enormous personality upon the stage and a charismatic voice that it absolutely ties up with the compositions of leader Tuomas Holopainen. The answer was given from the group; Anette Olzon (ex-Alyson Avenue).

The first thing therefore that will occupy us is this choice of Anette as substitute of Tarja. The first acoustic "contact" that I had with Olzon was in last year's album of Michael Bormann (Redrum, ex-Jaded Heart) is something very different from her presence in Nightwish, but something very relative with her presence in Alyson Avenue. A melodic rock singer, therefore, with classic study (?) is called to replace one of the most important lyrical voices of metal scene. The result, even though it was difficult for me to imagine it, is something far more than successful.

Of course we speak about a voice with pop tinge that removes a sense of youthfulness and freshness that was absent a lot from the music of Nightwish. And even if Olzon knows that the operatic vocals is not something she can offer, in no case it changes the form of the Nightwish songs, that always maintains this atmospheric and lyric essence, but on the contrary, it adds a new form that I couldn’t distinguish until today. I would dare to say that in several points of new album, precisely because of Anette, my brain ran associatively also to Sharon den Adel (Within Temptation).

The first song that was released via internet was "Eva", while the first single that introduces "Dark Passion Play" is "Amaranth". Two beautiful songs, even if they represent one from a lot of different aspects that are unfolded while listening the entire album.

All that was told regarding the enormous budget that new album needed are confirmed by the first hearing, from the very first song. Choral parts (Metre Voices Choir), the London Session Orchestra, the Abbey Road studios, the band and the voice of Anette compose an enviable result that it makes it impossible to compare this album with the most distant past. This result however is a product of careful work from all those involved with "Dark Passion Play". It would be impossible to exist such an abundance of persons and instruments that would give us something so much harmonious if had not been done such an amazing work in the sector of instrumentation and production, whereas the chorus and the orchestra are henceforth part of the band and no a foreigner body that simply accompanies Nightwish.

Therefore it’s a glorious work, without the classic rhythmical guitars of Nightwish that lend always their distinguish metal character being absent, while the keyboards are in the leading role, leading each piece to the path that Mr. Holopainen wants and delimits the way that the listener follows in each piece separately. Marco Hietala (Tarot) finds joy in the role of "beast" once again in the known henceforth game with the "beauty" ("Bye Bye Beautiful" – a song about the relation of Tuomas with Tarja - and "7 Days to the Wolves"), while he entirely undertakes the vocals of "Master Passion Greed" and writing the "The Islander".

In total, therefore, "Dark Passion Play" contains a lot of musical elements that they deserve you to seek them. There are songs such as "Master Passion Greed", that is moved in the limits of thrash, "For The Heart the Once Had", that unravels the pop side of Anette, ballads as "Eva" and "Meadows Of Heaven", folk-Jethro Tull influences as in the "The Islander", Celtic ala' Skyclad culture in the "Last Of The Wilds" and an epic masterpiece as "The Poet And The Pendulum" that it includes almost all the above and much more, functioning as an ideal opening of the album.

My only doubt and concern in how well the songs can be attributed live. The only solution certainly is the prerecording of the orchestra and choruses, something which is not very charming, but then again I believe that Tuomas will think of something. I am sure that those who saw at least positively the band in the past, now they will worship Nightwish. Those who spoke about the end of the band, they couldn’t be more wrong and those who did not have the occasion to know Nightwish up till today, "Dark Passion Play" is more than certain that it will bring to the band a very big number of new fans, towards those who already exist.