NIGHTWISH – Yesterwynde – review

NIGHTWISH – Yesterwynde – review
Nuclear Blast

Oh, Nightwish. You weren’t very good to begin with. Then you released “Once”. And you were very good. Then you released “Dark Passion Play” and “Imaginaerum”. And you became my bestest, favouritest band in the whole wide world. Those were the days.

“Endless Forms Most Beautiful” had some fantastic moments on it, although it was too damn long. Then came “‘Human. :II: Nature” with its two good songs. ‘Shoemaker’ and ‘Pan’, since you ask. But it was all a bit meh, as I so eloquently wrote in my review. I also said at the time that I got the impression that Tuomas Holopainen wants to move on elsewhere but Nightwish is the cash cow. Interestingly enough, when “‘Human. :II: Nature” came out, he spend more time talking about the upcoming Auri release than anything else. Guess what he’s doing now?

Anyway, back to “Yesterwynde”. It’s better than “‘Human. :II: Nature”. Can’t deny it, don’t want to. Is it great? No. It has some great moments but I reckon my dream of Nightwish releasing a truly great album will never be realised. “Imaginaerum” came oh so close but it wasn’t to be.

The good news this time around is that someone has remembered to plug Emppu Vuorinens guitar in. Hurrah! And it’s when you can hear him play that the record comes to life. Side One is actually magnificent. After the title track intro, ‘An Ocean of Strange Islands’ and ‘The Antikythera Mechanism’ give us 15 minutes of everything that made Nightwish so special. The latter, especially, is the best we’ve heard from them since 2011.

Thence to Side Two. Oh, dear. I saw the video for ‘The Day of…’ when it came out, then vowed to avoid the subsequent singles until the album arrived. It’s terrible. Absolutely no redeeming features whatsoever. ‘Perfume of the Timeless’ meanders aimlessly whilst ‘Sway’ verges on the edge of heavy hey nonny no. On the plus side, as I bought the vinyl, I never have to listen to Side Two ever again.

On to the second LP and I’m still struggling with it. ‘The Children of ‘Ata’ really belongs on an Auri album but ‘Something Whispered Follow Me’ redeems things slightly with its hard prog approach. ‘Spider Silk’ is, again, more prog rock than metal but it’s bearable.

To the last side and ‘Hiraeth’. Now I’m sure Troy Donockley is a lovely bloke and he’s a masterful musician but if I never hear him sing again, I will make no complaints. This is where Marko is missed. It’s a nice enough song with a lovely melody but I’m still grateful when Emppu turns it up on ‘The Weave’. That’s Nightwish. Things end with a bit of a whimper but as ‘Lanternlight’ is about Tuomas Holopainens dead Dad, it would be churlish to be uncharitable.

So, there it is. 71 minutes long and about 40 minutes of prime Nightwish. Side One will be worn out by the time I’m finished playing it but it’s a rich price to pay. Hopefully, 2028 will bring something better.

BUY FROM AMAZON

PS: Add Nightwish to the Thieves Gallery who don’t include a download code with expensive vinyl releases.