May I wish upon the night Jacki Spencer Shout - Marco I.08

czarnycharakter

I’ve been sitting here in front of the computer for over half an hour now trying to gather the words to attempt to describe who Nightwish is. Oh, where to begin!? I could always tell you that they are a female fronted Finnish symphonic rock band, but that just doesn’t seem to cover it. Maybe I could tell you that they’ve had a couple of lineup changes and you could welcome their new signer, Anette Olzon. I could even tell you that their new album Dark Passion Play dropped this past October and went triple platinum in a month. Yet that still doesn’t seem to begin to grasp the concept of Nightwish. I guess you’ll just have to keep reading this interview with bassist/ co-vocalist Marco Hietala to find out the real story behind the band…

Shout!: You have a lot of history with the band since 2002, but can you give a brief description on how this lineup came together?

Marco Hietala: At first I guess we got to know each other when I was playing in this other band called Sinergy. We went to Europe to support Nightwish for about five weeks on one of their tours. Over that much of time you really get to know the bands you’re touring with and usually end up doing vocals with them on stage by the end of the tour. That was in 2000 and in 2001 they started to have some kinds of problems with the band. There were a couple of choices to either pack the whole thing up and call it done or the other thing was that they would just find another bass player and that is what they decided to do. So the former bass player had to go and he had already written some songs that included male vocals. It of course would be ideal if you could get a package of a singing bass player instead of two separate people. So they called me and asked if I would like to come to Tuomas’ place and talk more about being the bass player. I told them to let me finish my cigarette and coffee and I’d be right over because I only lived about 100 meters from his house at the time. [Laughs] We ended up talking for a few hours and I didn’t really like the direction they were wanting to go in because it was a little heavier and moodier. They told me I would also be doing quite a lot of background vocals and even some lead and I was okay with that because I had been doing that for a long time. So I kind of knew at that time that I would already do it even though we said to give it like two weeks to think about it and all. I really knew from the first time that it would be arranging the new set up. We would have to schedule rehearsals and new recordings and everything. The first day I jumped on a train, stopped at a gas station and bought a case of beer and from then everything just clicked.

S!: What do you think is the key to longevity with this current lineup?

Marco: At least from my point of view we get along really well together and there is a healthy respect for everyone. We play well together also and we like a lot of the same things like movies and music. With the new vocalist, Anette, this tour is also one way of seeing how well she holds up. She’s doing quite fine because this isn’t the easiest place to be for a girl on a bus for five weeks with a bunch of dirty guys. [Laughs] She’s been taking it really well though and hopefully she’ll stay with us.

S!: If you had to describe Nightwish to someone who has never heard the music, how would you describe it?

Marco: Uh… that is a difficult one because the band has so many different elements. A lot of people have tried to describe us. [Long pause] I guess symphonic rock is the best way to put it. That would be close but not all. The mood changes from soft and sensitive stuff to really hard stuff. You really need to cover a lot of territory with it and it’s really hard.

S!: What is the biggest sacrifice you’ve made to get where you are today?

Marco: The biggest sacrifice of course is the loss of a normal life. Myself and our drummer Jukka have kids and wives. That is probably the biggest thing you have to sacrifice. I’d love to be at home right now watching my boys grow. They’re six and twin boys. So yea, that is really hard and now that we’ve been away for five weeks and we’ll be going home tomorrow, that feels really good. I have no problem doing shows and I love doing shows but I’d like to see my kids!

S!: What are your thoughts on your new album, Dark Passion Play?

Marco: I’m very happy with it. I’m sure every time you finish an album and then look back on it there is always something you would want to change about it. For the most part I think it is a very good product of where the mental state of the band is though. It is pretty dark and passionate like the title states. This gloomy outcome was very much a result about the situation we were in like our vocalist and everything. All this media stuff happened that got blown out of proportion as well. We just had to get out of that and overcome it and I think this album reflects what the band was doing at that time.

S!: Looking back in retrospect, what would you change?

Marco: My troubles are almost all not the songs but a couple of the days I was recording vocals was in winter and I was in bad shape. I was sick for a couple of weeks and I wanted to do it later but the guys insisted that it was fine. I consider myself to have quite high standards and I am a perfectionist so I would have liked to do them again. Hopefully next album I just won’t be sick at that time. [Laughs]

S!: How do you rate the albums’ growing success?

Marco: I would rate it quite good. Although with the vocalist thing again, we were quite worried how fans would take to Anette because Tarja had quite a huge personality. We were worried how people would take the album and seeing a new vocalist. We believed in it and it comes down to what kind of music you like and what songs you put on the album. If you do a good album then it will go well. That is what happened and it was a tremendous relief and a real boost of confidence for us that is went triple platinum so quickly. That was record time for us and we were so happy. It only took like two weeks to go double platinum and then by the fourth or fifth week it was already triple. That was really fast for us because the last one took over a year to do that and this took a month! [Laughs]

S!: How did you approach this album compared to previous ones?

Marco: The attitude and principles of the band have always been that we would just do the music. We would rehearse it, arrange it, and then if we wanted to change something we would want one thing to be better or something to be different. We never thought about what it should sound like or what people will want it to be like. We hear something and try and it and we just see what happens. Just because one album was a hit that doesn’t mean we think we have to do something exactly like it again. I think it keeps the whole thing honest and very fresh. We reflect a lot of our personal lives. We always find new things and have new influences in all the aspects of our lives.

S!: You bring a lot to the table on Dark Passion Play like singing a couple of the songs by yourself and writing The Islander. What is it you feel you have to offer Nightwish?

Marco: I would like to think that it is because of the abilities to be able to do those things. I also like to think it is the mental chemistry that we all have together and we get along so well. We can have a drink together and laugh at a lot of silly stuff. It is all of those things you have as an artist or player and then it is also what you have as a person.

S!: Do you feel like you have more musical freedom since Tarja left?

Marco: It’s not a question of that really but more of what kind of songs we have. For instance when Tuomas writes lyrics, he sort of already has his roles cast of what each person will sing or play.

S!: Do you notice any differences on how your fans react to your music in the US compared to overseas?

Marco: No, not really. With this band though it seems to have really enthusiastic fans no matter where we go. Shows go down well and people go wild by the end of the show and that seems to happen everywhere. Of course if you go down towards Southern Europe, people tend to have a little more hot blood in them. They go almost crazy from the immediate start and keep that high until the end of the show whereas Americans are a little more reserved and they check out more things and ease into getting crazy.

S!: You’re basically superstars in Finland! How does it feel to have that loyalty in your audience no matter where you go?

Marco: It is very flattering. I don’t know if it is good for the ego but it is stroking it! [Laughs] I do enjoy that though. However it is a double edged sword because there is a lot of hassle that comes with it but to know that you’re doing something worthwhile that people like and enjoy then it is worth it. To know it helps someone get through their troubles and everything is awesome. That is what I mean to do with the music and that is what happened to me when I was young and listening to music. Bands helped me and I supported them so it is just the same thing.

S!: What is the music scene like back in Finland?

Marco: From the heavy metal point of view, there is a really good metal scene. We get a lot of good metal bands out of Finland and people are actually listening to them. Mainstream things are not common but everything is really heavy. All different types of people are listening too and I hope that it doesn’t change anytime soon. You only have 5 million people in the country so it is a very lively scene. You can usually see the members in the bands too like out having a drink or just talking with people on a regular basis so you know he belongs to this band and everything. It has its advantages. However on the flip side, there is a lot of pop music that is popular from outside of Finland. Like if Robbie Williams makes a record, it is automatically number one. There are big sellers are in other genres of music but the metal scene is very good for a country of that size.

S!: This is your last day in the states. Are you excited go back overseas and tour?

Marco: I’m going to stay home for a week and then we’ll go to Scandinavia, Copenhagen, Norway, and Sweden. Then we’ll start coming down Finland and the last show is the 16th of December and then we’ll take some time off for the holidays. Then we’ll go over to Japan, Australia, China, and stuff. We have a new album out so we have to promote it.

S!: You’re on tour nonstop until next spring. What do you to pass the time on the road?

Marco: [Points to shirt pocket] I have a Nintendo DS. [Laughs] I got that, movies, and occasionally have a drink and talk bullshit like I said earlier. Then I have tons of books for the plane rides. I’ve read at least three books now and the fourth is coming to an end for this tour.

S!: Any last words to your readers out there?

Marco: Hopefully these aren’t my last words! [Laughs] We’d love to come back to America and it has been a confidence boost for us. Everybody and myself are very grateful for everyone who has bought the album and has come to a show so let’s meet up again when we come back!