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''Imaginaerum'' is the seventh studio album by Finnish
symphonic metal Symphonic metal is a cross-genre style designation for the symphonic subsets of heavy metal music subgenres. It is used to denote any metal band that makes use of symphonic or orchestral elements. The style features the heavy drums and guitars ...
band
Nightwish Nightwish is a Finnish symphonic metal band from Kitee. The band was formed in 1996 by lead songwriter and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen, guitarist Emppu Vuorinen, and former lead singer Tarja Turunen. The band soon picked up drummer Jukka Neval ...
. It was released on 30 November 2011 by Scene Nation Oy and
Sony Music Sony Music Entertainment (SME), commonly known as Sony Music, is an American multinational music company owned by Japanese conglomerate Sony Group Corporation. It is the recording division of Sony Music Group, with the other half being the ...
in Finland, then on 2 December in
Nuclear Blast Nuclear Blast Records is a German record label with subsidiary, subsidiaries located in Germany, the United States and Brazil. It was founded in 1987 by Markus Staiger in Donzdorf. Originally releasing hardcore punk records, the label moved on ...
in the rest of Europe and
Roadrunner Records Roadrunner Records is a Dutch–American record label focused on Heavy metal music, heavy metal and hard rock music. Founded in the Netherlands in 1980, it is now a division of Warner Music Group and is based in New York City. Formerly seen as ...
worldwide. According to Nightwish songwriter
Tuomas Holopainen Tuomas Lauri Johannes Holopainen (born 25 December 1976) is a Finnish musician, songwriter, and record producer, best known as the primary songwriter, keyboardist, and founding member of symphonic metal band Nightwish. He has stated that his son ...
, the album is a
concept album A concept album is an album whose tracks hold a larger purpose or meaning collectively than they do individually. This is typically achieved through a single central narrative or theme, which can be instrumental, compositional, or lyrical. Som ...
that tells the story of an old
composer A composer is a person who writes music. The term is especially used to indicate composers of Western classical music, or those who are composers by occupation. Many composers are, or were, also skilled performers of music. Etymology and def ...
who is reminiscing of his youth on his deathbed. The album was produced alongside the movie of the same name, directed by Stobe Harju, who previously directed Nightwish's " The Islander"
music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...
, and the album and the film share the same themes and general story.Nightwish.com - Imaginaerum
It is their second and last album with vocalist
Anette Olzon Anette Ingegerd Olsson (born 21 June 1971), known by the stage name Anette Olzon, is a Swedish singer, best known as the former lead vocalist of Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish from 2007 to 2012. She is also the vocalist of Swedish class ...
, as well as the last with drummer
Jukka Nevalainen Jukka Antero "Julius" Nevalainen (born 21 April 1978, in Kitee, Finland) is the former drummer of the Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish. Personal life He spent his early years in the city of Kitee. His music teacher at school told him ...
. The first single off the album, " Storytime", was released on 9 November 2011 and quickly topped the Finnish single charts. According to ''
Iltasanomat is one of Finland's two prominent tabloid-size evening newspapers and the largest paper in the country. Its counterpart and biggest rival is ''Iltalehti''. According to the National Media Research done in 2019, ''Ilta-Sanomat'' is also the big ...
'', ''Imaginaerum'' sold more than 50,000 copies in Finland on its first day of release. It has been described as Nightwish's best album by
Sonic Seducer ''Sonic Seducer'' is a German music magazine that covers gothic rock, new wave, EBM and other kinds of electronic music and culture. The magazine is noted for organizing the annual M'era Luna Festival. Since its inception in 1994, the ''Sonic ...
and was chosen as the album of the month by Dutch metal magazine ''Aardschok Magazine''.


Background

While rumours of the next Nightwish album had been circulating for a while, the album was confirmed in the June 2009 edition of the Finnish magazine ''Soundi'', when lead composer and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen stated that he had started work on a new album. In October 2009, rumours about the new album were circulated, suggesting that the title would be ''Wind Embraced''. Lead vocalist Anette Olzon dismissed the rumours as false and stated that the songs for the new album had not yet been completed, with the exception of three songs written before May 2009. Holopainen said in a 2009 interview that " .. can't reveal to you anymore but there is going to be a big twist so to say, on the next album." In an interview with uilleann pipist
Troy Donockley Troy Donockley (born 30 May 1964) is an English composer and multi-instrumentalist most known for his playing of Uilleann pipes. Having performed with many artists as a session player, he is most notable as a member of Finnish symphonic metal ba ...
(who recorded with the band on ''
Dark Passion Play ''Dark Passion Play'' is the sixth studio album by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish. It was released on 26 September 2007 by Spinefarm Records in Finland, 28 September by Nuclear Blast in Europe and 2 October 2007 by Roadrunner Records in th ...
''), when asked about his involvement in the new album, he stated "Oh, yes, I ''will'' be playing on the next album and, from what Tuomas has told me, it is going to be something extraordinary..." In early 2010, Olzon reported that the album was half-written, and that fans should not expect anything earlier than fall 2011. In April 2010, Holopainen revealed that he had then finished writing songs for the album, and in June, he had finished recording the pre-production demo. Throughout summer 2010, the band gathered to rehearse songs in the Finnish village of Sävi, and recording of the album started in October 2010 and ended in May 2011, while the finished album stood ready on June 4. The band announced in late 2010 that more information about the album's content would be released in late January 2011, but on February 1, the official website bore a statement written by Holopainen that there would be a delay in the information being released due to schedule changes. He added, however, that "it still is the Burton- Gaiman- Dalí amusement park we are about to enter." In the same statement, it was also revealed that the album would be themed, and that "mood changes seem to be more present than ever before". The orchestration demos he had received from
Pip Williams Philip "Pip" Williams (born 7 October 1947), sometimes spelt Phillip, is an English record producer, arranger, and guitarist. He is best known for producing albums for Status Quo and The Moody Blues, but has also worked with a large number of we ...
were described as "beautiful, twisted, tribal and cinematic stuff". In the Finnish version of the statement, it was also revealed that a few songs would not be getting any orchestration at all, differing from their latest album, on which all songs had a major orchestral presence. On 10 February 2011 Nightwish announced on their website that the new album title would be ''Imaginarium''. They also revealed that the band had been preparing a movie based on the album, which would be released in 2012 and directed by Stobe Harju, who previously directed the music video for " The Islander". According to Tuomas, the name was meant to be related to "the power of imagination and the roller coaster of life". At first he thought of ''Imagine'', but that would be too obvious and similar to
John Lennon John Winston Ono Lennon (born John Winston Lennon; 9 October 19408 December 1980) was an English singer-songwriter, musician and activist. He gained global fame as the founder, co-lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist of the Beatles. Lennon's ...
's
song A song is a musical composition performed by the human voice. The voice often carries the melody (a series of distinct and fixed pitches) using patterns of sound and silence. Songs have a structure, such as the common ABA form, and are usu ...
, so he changed it to ''Imaginarium''. On February 23, three interviews were released on the website - one each with composer Tuomas Holopainen, director Stobe Harju, and producer Markus Selin. Holopainen revealed the origin of the project, and that Nightwish will appear as themselves in the film, with minor roles. On August 31, the band announced that the album and movie had changed name from ''Imaginarium'' to ''Imaginaerum'', to avoid mix-ups with other things entitled "Imaginarium". This also led to changing the title of the track with the same name, but the song " Storytime" still includes the word "imaginarium" in the lyrics. In early September, it was announced that the first single from the album would be "Storytime". A week later, the band released the ''Imaginaerum'' cover, track list and commentary on each song written by Holopainen. "Storytime" was released as a CD, download and as a
video Video is an Electronics, electronic medium for the recording, copying, playback, broadcasting, and display of moving picture, moving image, visual Media (communication), media. Video was first developed for mechanical television systems, whi ...
through
YouTube YouTube is an American social media and online video sharing platform owned by Google. YouTube was founded on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim who were three former employees of PayPal. Headquartered in ...
on November 9, and after a mere week the band announced that the single was topping the Finnish single chart, as well as having high positions in
Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
and
Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...
. On November 18,
Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology company * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek myth ...
released 30-second samples from every song off the album, and the band shortly announced on their website that Amazon had done so without their knowledge, and that they recommended that one shouldn't listen to them, if one "want(ed) to experience the true impact of the album". On November 23, the Finnish
Disney comics Disney comics are comic books and comic strips featuring characters created by the Walt Disney Company, including Mickey Mouse, Donald Duck and Scrooge McDuck. The first Disney comics were newspaper strips appearing from 1930 on, starting with t ...
magazine, Aku Ankka, collaborated with the band in a pre-listening of the song "The Crow, the Owl and the Dove", which was released on Aku Ankka's website and required a code that was given in that week's issue of the magazine. Within hours, unlicensed copies of the song were available on YouTube and various torrent sites. Nightwish confirmed on January 11 that this will be the second single of the album.


Production

The planning phase of the album started in the beginning of 2008, while Holopainen was on the ''
Dark Passion Play World Tour The Dark Passion Play World Tour was a concert tour by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish, taking place from 2007 to 2009 in support of their sixth studio album, '' Dark Passion Play'', released by Nuclear Blast on September 26, 2007; it wa ...
'' (October 2007 - September 2009). In May 2009 he had the concept clear, as well as three or so finished songs. In March 2010, Holopainen finished writing the music for the last song, while some lyrics still were unfinished, and on June 2, the pre-production demo had been recorded. In the summer of 2010, the band (except for singer Anette Olzon, who was pregnant at the time) gathered for rehearsal in the Finnish village of Sävi. Olzon would later join the band on September 6 to rehearse and record her vocal demos. At this time, there were twelve songs planned for the album. The last one, the title track, was later decided to be cut into two separate songs, "Song of Myself" and "Imaginaerum". Holopainen has described the situation as similar to the song " The Poet and the Pendulum" on ''Dark Passion Play'', and its final part "Mother and Father", which was also discussed to be cut into another song, but decided to be kept as a single track. The first proper recording for the album was drums, which
Jukka Nevalainen Jukka Antero "Julius" Nevalainen (born 21 April 1978, in Kitee, Finland) is the former drummer of the Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish. Personal life He spent his early years in the city of Kitee. His music teacher at school told him ...
started recording in October 2010. On October 20, all drum recordings were finished, whereas Emppu Vuorinen started recording the guitar tracks. Around New Year, Vuorinen had finished all comp tracks and about half of the leads to the album, planning to record acoustic and solo sections after the orchestral and choir sessions in February. At the same time,
Marko Hietala Marko Tapani "Marco" Hietala (born 14 January 1966) is a Finnish Heavy metal music, heavy metal vocalist, bassist and songwriter. Internationally, he is best known as the former bassist, male vocalist and secondary composer to Tuomas Holopainen, ...
had finished all his bass recordings throughout December. In February 2011, the orchestral and choir parts were rehearsed and recorded in Angel Recording Studios in
London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. Most players of the 53-piece orchestra had already worked with the band on the previous albums ''
Once Once may refer to: Film, television and theatre * ''Once'' (film), a 2007 Irish musical film by John Carney ** ''Once'' (musical), a 2011 stage adaptation of the film * ''Once'' (TV series), a 2017–2019 Argentine telenovela * Canal Once (Mex ...
'' (2004) and ''Dark Passion Play'' (2007), including the orchestral arranger
Pip Williams Philip "Pip" Williams (born 7 October 1947), sometimes spelt Phillip, is an English record producer, arranger, and guitarist. He is best known for producing albums for Status Quo and The Moody Blues, but has also worked with a large number of we ...
. One difference from earlier orchestra recordings were the decision to record all rhythmic instruments separate from the rest of the orchestra, making it easier for the mixing process. Around this time, the decision had been made to divide the title track into the two separate "Song of Myself" and "Imaginarium", and the orchestra and choir recorded 13 songs, not 12 as had originally been planned. It was also around this time that the band had settled on an album name - ''Imaginarium'', which later changed its spelling to ''Imaginaerum''. Anette Olzon's vocal recordings were originally planned for 7 March 2011 but plans changed when she fell in her home a few days before and broke her rib, and the date was changed to early April. Male vocalist (and bassist)
Marko Hietala Marko Tapani "Marco" Hietala (born 14 January 1966) is a Finnish Heavy metal music, heavy metal vocalist, bassist and songwriter. Internationally, he is best known as the former bassist, male vocalist and secondary composer to Tuomas Holopainen, ...
was instead called in to record his parts early, so to not waste the booked studio time, but before being able to start recording, Hietala as well slipped and hurt his rib, and had to hold several days before starting the recording. At the same time, recording engineer Mikko Karmila was home sick, and the day after Hietala had slipped, the other recording engineer Tero Kinnunen was run over by a horse and cart. Holopainen would later refer to this as "the Curse of the Mummy". Towards the end of March, according to Hietala, "the mummy's curse ..seems to have lifted a bit". He had by this time finished all but one male vocal tracks, and Holopainen had finished all his keyboard, piano and hammond parts, alongside a great portion of soundscapes. Through the end of March and the beginning of April, the band recorded "final touches" for the album while waiting for Olzon to get well enough to record her parts. This included some additional percussion and tribal drums, as well as the guest recordings of Troy Donockley and
Pekka Kuusisto Pekka Kuusisto (born 7 October 1976) is a Finnish musician. Biography Kuusisto comes from a musical lineage. His grandfather was the composer and organist Taneli Kuusisto, his father Ilkka Kuusisto, who had many functions in Finnish musical l ...
. By April 9, Olzon had still not recovered completely, but she was well enough for it not to affect her singing, and by mid-April all her vocals were finished. On 4 June 2011 the crew had finalized the album, and Holopainen listened through it from start to finish. He wrote of it:


Concept and storyline


Connections between the film and the album

The album is produced alongside the film with the same name, directed by Stobe Harju and described as an "emotional fantasy-adventure", and feature the same basic themes and ideas, though told in more detail and with more extensive characters in the film than in the album. According to Holopainen, the film has evolved radically from the original plan, while still retaining the main spirit of the foundation. To Holopainen, it "was important from the very beginning that the album would work as its own individual piece of art" that would "work on its own without the film". According to drummer Jukka Nevalainen, "this is not a concept album per se", but it's "a coherent package from the beginning to the end". The foundations to the music were developed before the pre-production of the film, during which Holopainen and Harju collaborated in developing the characters and the script.


Musical and lyrical content

The album has been described as following a natural development from ''Dark Passion Play'', inspired greatly by
film score A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film. The score comprises a number of orchestral, instrumental, or choral pieces called cues, which are timed to begin and end at specific points during the film in order to ...
s. Like ''Dark Passion Play'' as well as ''Once'' and ''
Century Child ''Century Child'' is the fourth studio album by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish. It was released in 2002 through Spinefarm Records in Finland, Drakkar Entertainment in the rest of Europe, Century Media Records in the US, and Toy's Factor ...
'' it features a live orchestra, again orchestrated by Pip Williams. The orchestrations have been described as "beautiful, twisted, tribal and cinematic", but will not be featured on every track as it was on ''Dark Passion Play''. Bassist Marko Hietala has emphasized that the album is heavier than the predecessor. Imaginaerum is the first Nightwish album since their debut that features no music written by the guitarist Emppu Vuorinen. The reason for this, according to Vuorinen, is that after the long and exhausting touring for Dark Passion Play, he had no interest in touching his instrument for months. Holopainen has cited three major influences on the album — film director
Tim Burton Timothy Walter Burton (born August 25, 1958) is an American filmmaker and producer. Known for popularizing Goth subculture, Goth culture in the American film industry, Burton is famous for his Gothic film, gothic horror and dark fantasy films. ...
, author
Neil Gaiman Neil Richard MacKinnon Gaiman (; born Neil Richard Gaiman; 10 November 1960) is an English author of short fiction, novels, comic books, audio theatre, and screenplays. His works include the comic series ''The Sandman (comic book), The Sandma ...
and painter
Salvador Dalí Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquess of Dalí of Púbol (11 May 190423 January 1989), known as Salvador Dalí ( ; ; ), was a Spanish Surrealism, surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, ...
. Musical influences include
Hans Zimmer Hans Florian Zimmer (; born 12 September 1957) is a German film score composer and music producer. He has won two Academy Awards, a BAFTA Award, five Grammy Awards, and has been nominated for three Primetime Emmy Awards, Emmy Awards and a Tony ...
,
Danny Elfman Daniel Robert Elfman (born May 29, 1953) is an American film composer, singer, songwriter, and musician. He came to prominence as the lead vocalist and primary songwriter for the new wave band Oingo Boingo in the early 1980s. Since scoring his ...
,
Ennio Morricone Ennio Morricone ( , ; 10 November 19286 July 2020) was an Italian composer, Orchestration, orchestrator, conductor, trumpeter, and pianist who wrote music in a wide range of styles. With more than 400 film score, scores for cinema and televisi ...
,
Christy Moore Christopher Andrew "Christy" Moore (born 7 May 1945) is an Irish folk singer, songwriter and guitarist. He was one of the founding members of the bands Planxty and Moving Hearts and has had significant success as a solo artist. His first albu ...
,
Van Halen Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1973. Credited with restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene, Van Halen was known for their energetic live performances and the virtuosity of their guit ...
and
Pantera Pantera () is an American Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Arlington, Texas in 1981 by the Abbott brothers (guitarist Dimebag Darrell and drummer Vinnie Paul), and currently composed of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, an ...
, and one song especially - "Rest Calm" - is inspired by death/doom giants
Paradise Lost ''Paradise Lost'' is an Epic poetry, epic poem in blank verse by the English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The poem concerns the Bible, biblical story of the fall of man: the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan and their ex ...
and
My Dying Bride My Dying Bride are an English doom metal band formed in Bradford. Since their inception in 1990, they have released 15 studio albums, five EPs, one demo, one box set, four compilation albums, one live album, and one live CD/DVD release. Along ...
. Holopainen has called one song the "epic song of the album", "Song of Myself", which is almost as long as ''Dark Passion Play's'' "The Poet and the Pendulum" at 13 minutes. It is divided into four parts and especially influenced by poet
Walt Whitman Walter Whitman Jr. (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist, and journalist; he also wrote two novels. He is considered one of the most influential poets in American literature and world literature. Whitman incor ...
. One acoustic piece is also called "a
Moominvalley Moominvalley (, ) is a fictional place, where the Moomins live in the tales by Finnish author Tove Jansson. Especially in the early books Moominvalley is depicted as a beautiful place with green slopes, rivers, fruit trees, flowers and a pla ...
Christmas Carol". One song, referenced to as "the Nukkumatti song" (''nukkumatti'' being Finnish for ''
sandman The Sandman is a mythical character originating in Germanic and Scandinavian folklore who puts people to sleep and encourages and inspires beautiful dreams by sprinkling magical sand onto their eyes. Representation in traditional folklore The San ...
'') is described as "a pounding, twisted and chorusless ghost train ride is sure to bring a smile to your face. At least it has done so to everyone who has heard it. Danny Elfman goes
humppa Humppa is a type of music from Finland. It is related to jazz and fast foxtrot, played two beats to a bar ( or ) at around 110 to 130 beats per minute. Humppa is also the name of a few social dances done to humppa music. All dances involve a bo ...
", and another is described as "something completely different from anything we've ever done. All of us need to find new ways to play our instruments and use vocals for that piece. A terrifically challenging and mind-expanding song."


Track by track

"Taikatalvi" is Nightwish's first real intro song, and one of few Nightwish songs performed entirely in Finnish (alongside " Kuolema Tekee Taiteilijan" from ''Once'', " Erämaan viimeinen" from ''Dark Passion Play'' and "Lappi ( Lapland)" from ''
Angels Fall First ''Angels Fall First'' is the debut studio album by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish, originally released by Spinefarm Records on 30 September 1997 as a 500-copy limited edition. This edition is highly sought after by collectors and in 201 ...
''). The song also introduces the " snow flake theme" of the album and movie, as the Finnish word "taikatalvi" means "magic winter". It is also the Finnish title of the book
Moominland Midwinter ''Moominland Midwinter'' ( Swedish title: ''Trollvinter'') is the sixth in the series of Tove Jansson's Moomin books, published in 1957. This book sees Jansson adopt a darker, more introspective tone compared to the earlier books that is continue ...
. "Storytime" was released as the first single of the album on 9 November 2011, and quickly topped the Finnish single charts. Holopainen has described it as the band's first single to represent the entire album, being different from the singles " Eva" and "
Amaranth ''Amaranthus'' is a cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan group of more than 50 species which make up the genus of annual plant, annual or short-lived perennial plants collectively known as amaranths. Some names include "prostrate pigweed" an ...
" which Holopainen didn't feel do the same for ''Dark Passion Play''. He has also said that it greatly represents the band as a whole, with "punchy riffs and a melodic chorus" and an
orchestra An orchestra (; ) is a large instrumental ensemble typical of classical music, which combines instruments from different families. There are typically four main sections of instruments: * String instruments, such as the violin, viola, cello, ...
heavy C-part. "Ghost River" has been described as "a duel between the
Devil A devil is the mythical personification of evil as it is conceived in various cultures and religious traditions. It is seen as the objectification of a hostile and destructive force. Jeffrey Burton Russell states that the different conce ...
and Mother Gaia", and is more theatrical and "weirder" than the rest of the album. It was also one of the first songs on the album to be written. "Slow Love Slow" is not technically a ballad, instead being a
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
-like song inspired by American 1930s
nightclub A nightclub or dance club is a club that is open at night, usually for drinking, dancing and other entertainment. Nightclubs often have a Bar (establishment), bar and discotheque (usually simply known as disco) with a dance floor, laser lighti ...
music, a genre new to the band. It is also influenced by
David Lynch David Keith Lynch (January 20, 1946 – January 16, 2025) was an American filmmaker, visual artist, musician, and actor. Widely considered one of the greatest filmmakers of all time, Lynch was often called a "visionary" and received acclaim f ...
and his ''
Twin Peaks ''Twin Peaks'' is an American Surrealist cinema, surrealist Mystery film, mystery-Horror film, horror Drama (film and television), drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It Pilot (Twin Peaks), premiered on American Broad ...
'', and Holopainen has called it a certain surprise for many. "I Want My Tears Back" features Troy Donockley on pipes, and is according to Holopainen one of the more approachable songs on first listen, as well as a possible future single. "Scaretale" has been described as "quite the opposite", and is about childhood
nightmare A nightmare, also known as a bad dream, Retrieved 11 July 2016. is an unpleasant dream that can cause a strong emotional response from the mind, typically fear but also despair, anxiety, disgust or sadness. The dream may contain situations o ...
s, being Nightwish's version (lyrically) of
Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. It was formed in Los Angeles in 1981 by vocalist and guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...
's "
Enter Sandman "Enter Sandman" is a song by American heavy metal band Metallica. It is the opening track and lead single from their self-titled fifth album, released in 1991. The music was written by Kirk Hammett, James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich. Vocalist ...
", and also homages the Disney song " Grim Grinning Ghosts", with "Scaretale"'s original working title having been "Haunted Mansion Ride". "Arabesque" is an instrumental, which was constructed especially for a scene needed in the movie. It is one of two instrumentals on the album, alongside the title track; thus ''Imaginaerum'' contains the most instrumentals yet on a Nightwish album (counting the "Lappi" series on ''Angels Fall First'' as a single song). "Turn Loose the Mermaids" is a "celtic ballad, sad, melancholic" song, and one of only two "real
ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and song of Great Britain and Ireland from the Late Middle Ages until the 19th century. They were widely used across Eur ...
s" on ''Imaginaerum'', and with a
Spaghetti Western The spaghetti Western is a broad subgenre of Western films produced in Europe. It emerged in the mid-1960s in the wake of Sergio Leone's filmmaking style and international box-office success. The term was used by foreign critics because most o ...
inspired C-part. "Rest Calm" is one of the heavier songs on the album, inspired by
doom metal Doom metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that typically uses slower tempos, low-tuned guitars and a much "thicker" or "heavier" sound than other heavy metal genres.K. Kahn-Harris, ''Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge'' ...
bands such as
Paradise Lost ''Paradise Lost'' is an Epic poetry, epic poem in blank verse by the English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The poem concerns the Bible, biblical story of the fall of man: the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan and their ex ...
and
My Dying Bride My Dying Bride are an English doom metal band formed in Bradford. Since their inception in 1990, they have released 15 studio albums, five EPs, one demo, one box set, four compilation albums, one live album, and one live CD/DVD release. Along ...
, and is a mid-tempo and heavy but still melodic song that "gets totally out of hand in the end". "The Crow, the Owl and the Dove" is one of only two ballads in the album, co-written by Holopainen and bassist-vocalist Marko Hietala, who has written several songs for the band in the past. Holopainen has pointed out that it's "kind of funny that the most poppy ballad on the album is composed by the most metalhead dude in the band". The song also contains some Troy Donockley's lead vocals before his tin whistle solo part. "Last Ride of the Day" is inspired by being on a
roller coaster A roller coaster is a type of list of amusement rides, amusement ride employing a form of elevated Railway track, railroad track that carries passengers on a roller coaster train, train through tight turns, steep slopes, and other elements, usua ...
. "Song of Myself" is inspired by Holopainen's favorite poet
Walt Whitman Walter Whitman Jr. (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist, and journalist; he also wrote two novels. He is considered one of the most influential poets in American literature and world literature. Whitman incor ...
, and his famous ''
Song of Myself "Song of Myself" is a poem by Walt Whitman (18191892) that is included in his work ''Leaves of Grass''. It has been credited as "representing the core of Whitman's poetic vision."Greenspan, Ezra, ed. ''Walt Whitman’s "Song of Myself": A Sourcebo ...
''. It is "the epic one on the album", 13 minutes and 30 seconds in length and divided into four parts: # "From a Dusty Bookshelf" (0:00–0:23): The instrumental intro of the track. # "All That Great Heart Lying Still" (0:23–3:35): The first half of the actual song. # "Piano Black" (3:35–6:53): The second half of the actual song. # "Love" (6:53–13:30): The entire second half of the complete track, containing nothing but ambient symphonic metal music and spoken narrations. "Imaginaerum", the title track, is the outro track of the album, conceived as what could run in the credits of the movie. Holopainen came up with the idea of making a
medley Medley or Medleys may refer to: Sports *Medley swimming, races requiring multiple swimming styles * Medley relay races at track meets Music *Medley (music), multiple pieces strung together People *Medley (surname), list of people with this nam ...
of the album's main musical themes, and gave orchestral arranger Pip Williams free hands to make what he wanted of it, making it one of two songs of the album not composed entirely by Holopainen.


Reception

''About.com'' gave the album four and a half stars out of five, stating that "Sometimes albums are so diverse that they become disjointed, but that never happens here. Even though there are a lot of different styles represented, there's still a cohesiveness and common thread tying everything together." ''
MSN Music ''MSN Music'' was a part of MSN's web services. It delivered music news, music videos, spotlights on new music, artist information, and live performances of artists. The website also served as a digital music store from 2004 to 2008. History ...
'' praised the album, writing "Incredibly, ''Imaginaerum'' pulls off the near-unthinkable, a 75 minute symphonic metal album that's engaging, imaginative, flamboyant, and above all else, fun." Steve Harris, the leader, bassist founder and main composer of
Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris (musician), Steve Harris. Although fluid in the early years of the band, the line-up for most ...
, chronicles his great appreciation for the sound of the band in a statement: “When I heard 007’sDark Passion Play, I couldn't believe it. I thought, ‘Now, this is a proper fucking album.’ It's got everything bar the kitchen sink in there. It was controversial because of the new singer nette Olzon but she was brilliant. No disrespect to Tarja, but Anette's voice suited them a lot better. There's heavy stuff, classical, even a bit of Disney – all kinds of shit in there. I think it's one of the best-sounding albums I’ve ever heard in my life. Then I got the next one, 011'sImaginaerum. Storytime is a fantastic, instant song. The rest of the album took me a while to get into. Dark Passion Play was so good, I thought there was no way they could ever come up with an album that's anywhere near that, but the more I got into Imaginaerum, the more I loved it."


Promotion

The release of ''Imaginaerum'' was followed by a world tour, named the
Imaginaerum World Tour The Imaginaerum World Tour was a concert tour by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish, in support of their seventh studio album, ''Imaginaerum''. The tour started in Los Angeles, USA, on January 21, 2012, and then the band played an arena tour ...
. The tour started in
Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...
on 21 January 2012. Finnish metal band
Amorphis Amorphis is a Finnish progressive metal band founded by Jan Rechberger, Tomi Koivusaari, and Esa Holopainen in 1990. Initially, the band was a death metal act, but on later albums they evolved into playing other genres, including progressive meta ...
supported Nightwish on this portion of the tour. The European leg of the tour began on 2 March 2012 in
Joensuu Joensuu (; ; ) is a city in Finland and the regional capital of North Karelia. It is located in the eastern interior of the country and in the Finnish Lakeland. The population of Joensuu is approximately , while the sub-region has a population ...
, Finland. When the tour returned to North America following the European leg of the tour, Nightwish was supported by
Kamelot Kamelot is an American power metal band from Tampa, Florida, formed by Thomas Youngblood in 1987. The Norwegian vocalist Roy Khan joined for the album '' Siége Perilous'', and shared songwriting credit with Youngblood until his departure in A ...
. During the US tour, singer Anette Olzon fell ill at the show in Denver on 28 September 2012.
Elize Ryd Hanna Elise Isabell Maj Höstblomma Ryd (born 15 October 1984), known professionally as Elize Ryd (), is a Swedish singer, best known as one of the three vocalists and co-lyricist in the Heavy metal music, heavy metal band Amaranthe. She also gai ...
and
Alissa White-Gluz Alissa White-Gluz (; born 31 July 1985) is a Canadian singer, best known as the lead vocalist of the Swedish melodic death metal band Arch Enemy, and former lead vocalist and founding member of the Canadian metalcore band The Agonist. Her vocal ...
, the back-up singers for Kamelot, stepped in to help perform the show. After the Denver show, Nightwish posted the following message on its Facebook page: ''"We were in hell esterday Vocalist in a hospital. Show about to be canceled... But nobody gave up an inch. With the help from the ladies Elize and Alissa from KAMELOT, we actually managed to pull of a relaxed and great show! The crowd doing the mass karaoke with the band playing was absolutely amazing. We were humbled and grateful at the same time. This is unity and help from friends and fans."'' Two days later, Olzon was let go from the band with
Floor Jansen Floor Jansen (; born 21 February 1981) is a Dutch singer and songwriter. She is the third and current lead vocalist of Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish. Jansen first became known as the lead vocalist of symphonic metal band After Forever f ...
being called to finish the tour in her place. Jansen was announced as the new lead singer of Nightwish in October 2013.


Packaging

The cover art was done by Janne "Toxic Angel" Pitkänen, who had previously done the cover art to Nightwish's 2007 album ''Dark Passion Play'', as well as all single covers since " Eva" (2007). The cover art features the entrance to a desolate
amusement park An amusement park is a park that features various attractions, such as rides and games, and events for entertainment purposes. A theme park is a type of amusement park that bases its structures and attractions around a central theme, often fea ...
in
winter Winter is the coldest and darkest season of the year in temperate and polar climates. It occurs after autumn and before spring. The tilt of Earth's axis causes seasons; winter occurs when a hemisphere is oriented away from the Sun. Dif ...
night, with a giant full moon, parts of a
roller coaster A roller coaster is a type of list of amusement rides, amusement ride employing a form of elevated Railway track, railroad track that carries passengers on a roller coaster train, train through tight turns, steep slopes, and other elements, usua ...
, and the title of the album reading across the park entrance. According to band leader Holopainen, he was very clear from the beginning that there should be "not a single living thing" in the picture, and believes that the picture holds a "sublime but desolate, 'all this is waiting for you, and only you' feeling". What would ultimately become the cover was originally designed as album's centrefold image, but once Holopainen and a few others had seen it, they decided that it should be the cover. The picture was thus cut to fit a CD, but the original version, without cutting and without the band name across it, was released as a teaser in September 2011 on the band's website. Except what is seen on the album, this version also features more parts of the roller coaster as well as several
zeppelins A Zeppelin is a type of rigid airship named after the German inventor Ferdinand von Zeppelin () who pioneered rigid airship development at the beginning of the 20th century. Zeppelin's notions were first formulated in 1874Eckener 1938, pp. 155� ...
floating in the air above the park. The cover to the first single, "Storytime", was also done by Toxic Angel, and ties together with the themes of snow, the blue colours and the roller coaster.


Track listing

All lyrics are written by
Tuomas Holopainen Tuomas Lauri Johannes Holopainen (born 25 December 1976) is a Finnish musician, songwriter, and record producer, best known as the primary songwriter, keyboardist, and founding member of symphonic metal band Nightwish. He has stated that his son ...
, except where noted; all music is composed by Holopainen, except where noted; all lead vocals by
Anette Olzon Anette Ingegerd Olsson (born 21 June 1971), known by the stage name Anette Olzon, is a Swedish singer, best known as the former lead vocalist of Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish from 2007 to 2012. She is also the vocalist of Swedish class ...
, except where noted.


Editions

To date sixteen different editions of ''Imaginaerum'' have been released: * Regular/basic edition: The regular edition of the album, featuring the 13 tracks above. * Two-CD Digipack edition: The regular album and a bonus disc which features instrumental versions of all the songs and is packaged in a
Digipack Optical disc packaging is the packaging that accompanies CDs, DVDs, and other formats of optical discs. Most packaging is rigid or semi-rigid and designed to protect the media from scratches and other types of exposure damage. Jewel case A ...
. Includes a poster. * Two-LP clear vinyl edition: The regular album on two clear
vinyl record A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English) or a vinyl record (for later varieties only) is an analog signal, analog sound Recording medium, storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, ...
s. It contains an A2 sized poster inside. * Two-LP marbled vinyl edition: The regular album on two marbled vinyl records. It is limited to 250 copies and features an A2 sized poster inside. * Two-LP grey vinyl edition: The regular album on two grey vinyl records. It is limited to 250 copies and features an A2 sized poster inside. * Two-LP golden vinyl edition: The regular album on two golden vinyl records. It is limited to 100 copies and features an A2 sized poster inside. * Two-LP white vinyl edition: The regular album on two white vinyl records. It contains an A2 sized poster inside. * Two-LP picture disc edition: The regular album on two picture disc vinyl records. It contains an A2 sized poster inside. * Two-CD Japan first pressing edition: The regular album and a bonus disc which features demo versions of the songs "I Want My Tears Back", "Slow, Love, Slow" and "The Crow, the Owl and the Dove", plus a demo version of "Storytime". * Mailorder edition: The two-CD Digipack album with a bonus disc, featuring a demo of the song "Rest Calm". It also features an "Imaginaerum Mirror" and is packaged in a big box. It is limited to 1000 copies. * Roadrunner edition: The band's label in North America, Roadrunner Records, released an additional digital version of the album, which contains all the tracks on the two-CD Digipack album plus four bonus tracks. It also includes demo versions of the songs "I Want My Tears Back", "Slow, Love, Slow" and "The Crow, the Owl and the Dove", plus a demo version of "Storytime". The package also included an exclusive T-shirt, signed lithograph by the band, and entry into a contest to win tickets to the 21 January 2012 show in Hollywood. * Two-LP clear vinyl orchestral edition: The orchestral version of the album (12 tracks) on two clear vinyl records. * Two-LP black vinyl orchestral edition: The orchestral version of the album (12 tracks) on two black vinyl records. * Two-LP dark blue vinyl edition: The regular album on two dark blue vinyl records. It is limited to 150 copies and features an A2 sized poster inside. * Two-LP black vinyl edition: The regular album on two black vinyl records. * Tour edition: The regular album and a bonus disc which features orchestral versions of the songs (not to be confused with the instrumental versions found on the 2 CD digipack's bonus disk). It also includes a DVD containing a 90-minute documentary on the Imaginaerum film, and the music video for "Storytime". This edition comes packaged in a "Digibook" case.


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Certifications


Personnel


Band

Called ''The Imagineers'' in the booklet.''Imaginaerum'' (two-CD Digipak edition) booklet. Sony Music (2011). D/ref> *
Anette Olzon Anette Ingegerd Olsson (born 21 June 1971), known by the stage name Anette Olzon, is a Swedish singer, best known as the former lead vocalist of Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish from 2007 to 2012. She is also the vocalist of Swedish class ...
 – lead vocals *
Tuomas Holopainen Tuomas Lauri Johannes Holopainen (born 25 December 1976) is a Finnish musician, songwriter, and record producer, best known as the primary songwriter, keyboardist, and founding member of symphonic metal band Nightwish. He has stated that his son ...
 – keyboards * Emppu Vuorinen – guitars *
Marko Hietala Marko Tapani "Marco" Hietala (born 14 January 1966) is a Finnish Heavy metal music, heavy metal vocalist, bassist and songwriter. Internationally, he is best known as the former bassist, male vocalist and secondary composer to Tuomas Holopainen, ...
 – bass, male vocals (on track 1, 3–6, 9-12) *
Jukka Nevalainen Jukka Antero "Julius" Nevalainen (born 21 April 1978, in Kitee, Finland) is the former drummer of the Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish. Personal life He spent his early years in the city of Kitee. His music teacher at school told him ...
 – drums, percussion


Guest musicians

Called ''Fellow Imagineers'' in the booklet. *
Troy Donockley Troy Donockley (born 30 May 1964) is an English composer and multi-instrumentalist most known for his playing of Uilleann pipes. Having performed with many artists as a session player, he is most notable as a member of Finnish symphonic metal ba ...
 –
uilleann pipes The uilleann pipes ( or , ), also known as Union pipes and sometimes called Irish pipes, are the characteristic national bagpipe of Ireland. Their current name is a partial translation of the Irish language terms (literally, "pipes of the ...
(on track 5 and 13),
tin whistle The tin whistle, also known as the penny whistle, is a simple six-holed woodwind instrument. It is a type of fipple flute, a class of instrument which also includes the recorder and Native American flute. A tin whistle player is called a whistl ...
(on track 1, 8 and 10), vocals (on track 10), spoken word (on track 12), bodhran,
bouzouki The bouzouki (, also ; ; alt. pl. ''bouzoukia'', , from Greek , from Turkish ) is a musical instrument popular in West Asia (Syria, Iraq), Europe and Balkans (Greece, North Macedonia, Bulgaria, Turkey). It is a member of the long-necked lute fam ...
* Dermot Crehan –
hardanger fiddle A hardanger fiddle () is a traditional stringed instrument considered the national instrument of Norway. In modern designs, this type of fiddle is very similar to the violin, though with eight or nine strings (rather than four as on a standard v ...
* Dirk Campbell –
sorna The sornā or sornāy (, also ''surnā'', ''surnāy'' and also ''Zurna'') is an ancient Iranian woodwind instrument. Etymology The word was most likely borrowed from an unknown Indo-European cognate of Luwian ''𒍪𒌨𒉌'' (zurni, “horn ...
* Guy Barker – solo trumpet * Paul Clarvis and Stephen Henderson – ethnic percussion *
Pekka Kuusisto Pekka Kuusisto (born 7 October 1976) is a Finnish musician. Biography Kuusisto comes from a musical lineage. His grandfather was the composer and organist Taneli Kuusisto, his father Ilkka Kuusisto, who had many functions in Finnish musical l ...
 – violin * "The loved ones & the fellowship" are credited for reciting the stanzas in track 12. *
Kai Hahto Kai Hahto (born 31 December 1973) is a Finnish musician, best known as the drummer of Wintersun and Nightwish. Career In 2002, Hahto went to New York to study jazz drumming. Hahto was a member of the grindcore band Rotten Sound. In 2004 Haht ...
 – percussion


Orchestra and choir

The choir group Metro Voices contributed vocals, led by choir mistress Jenny O'Grady. The Young Musicians London also contributed vocals, led by Lynda Richardson and co-ordinated by Jenny O'Grady. The orchestra, The
London Philharmonic Orchestra The London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) is a British orchestra based in London. One of five permanent symphony orchestras in London, the LPO was founded by the conductors Thomas Beecham, Sir Thomas Beecham and Malcolm Sargent in 1932 as a riv ...
, called "The Looking Glass Orchestra", was led by Thomas Bowes and conducted by
James Shearman James Shearman is an English conductor, orchestrator, and composer. He is perhaps best known for his contributions to film scores including those for ''Gosford Park,'' ''Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire'', '' Manchester by the Sea'' and num ...
. The orchestra and choir was arranged, orchestrated and directed by Pip Williams.


Notes


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Imaginarium (Album) Nightwish albums Roadrunner Records albums 2011 albums 2010s concept albums Albums recorded at Finnvox Studios