Album Recording - Part XI - Finnvox Studios / Helsinki, May-June 2011

Tuomas Holopainen, June 10, 2011



     After three years of brainstorming and songwriting, over a year of rehearsing, arranging and studio work, this triumph of musical passion and piety is finally ready to be mastered. Yesterday, after a six-week mixing session in Studio C at Finnvox, I listened the whole thing from start to finish alone for the first time, and couldn't make heads nor tails of it. It's the same old story - the same feeling of bottomless emptiness that has marked the completion of all previous albums. We could have honed the songs till Armageddon, but at some point you just have to let go and start admiring the scenery. This time, the landscape consists of 13 songs totalling 75 minutes. I think I'll probably be able to savour the end result only after a couple of months of mixing detox, but the encouraging comments by those near to me assure that it is a decent album. One person who heard Imaginarium called it "the greatest adventure he ever heard with his two ears".


     There's clearly more grin to the new album than on the last one, more funfair, Moomins, smoky taverns, and twisted landscapes. It equals the Milky Way in width and breath, even according to our standards.


     As Markus Selin put it: "Now you've really gone and emptied the bag of tricks!"


     We're now going to get some distance to the album before mastering it later in the autumn. Meanwhile, we're going to be busy designing the cover, completing the instrumental and orchestral versions of the album, planning the upcoming tour, shooting the movie, and digesting the audio bloat. An excellent cure for the latter should be peaceful country atmosphere, fishing, and following the games of the current pesäpallo season. (By the way, during the home games of Kiteen Pallo, the entry music will be a remix consisting of the main riff and chorus of song number 11 off Imaginarium.)


     Big thanks and bear hugs to the whole band for their patience; to Mikko Karmila and Tee Cee Kinnunen for their forbearance, craftsmanship and enormous amount of work; and in advance to Mika Jussila for the finishing touch! It's been a magnificent journey so far. Big thanks to you, too, for living with us through this process and having faith in what's to come. I'm sure you won't be disappointed.


     Tuomas


     Kitee 5th of June

Imaginarium - Update III

     During the last six weeks, the work on Imaginarium has advanced by leaps and bounds. We’ve been so busy with the project there has been precious little time for anything else.


     While the band supervises the final mix of the album, location scouting is already underway for the Imaginarium movie. As the name of the movie and the information disclosed so far suggest, these real-world special places are few and far between.


     The production crew has also been strengthened by people who have extensive knowledge of post-production technology. This is crucial, because the shoot and post-production are expected to be extremely complex and technically challenging. One of the characters in the movie also needs special attention from the animation department. Without teasing you any further, we can only disclose that this character will surely be remembered by many a Nightwish fan.


     Because of the technical challenges and need for more planning, the shooting has been postponed. The movie will nevertheless be completed on time, as the post-production was begun already before the shooting.


     There’s obviously a lot of expectations for the movie score. Tuomas is currently working on variations with Petri Alanko, renowned for his prize-winning music for the Alan Wake video game. The score will be based on the songs on the album and their main themes in a way that — like many other things with the Imaginarium movie — is a first in the history of motion pictures.


     Imaginarium was also featured at the Cannes Movie Festival, where Solar Films presented their forthcoming films. At the same time, the script went through its biggest and most anticipated overhaul so far, confirming that Imaginarium will in no way be a children’s movie but a dark and foreboding fantasy; a dream world that lacks no surprises.


     In a nutshell, like the director of the movie tends to characterize his productions, “well-planned is half done”. The famous sign post on the crossroads leading to Imaginarium is already visible. It says “Imaginarium, X miles”, and underneath it reads in small, red, curving hand-writing: “Soon it’s time to start shooting.”