Review NIGHTWISH “Yesterwynde”

A new album from Nightwish is always a moment of excitement and anticipation. The symphonic metal band has delivered many great releases, with “Human. :II: Nature.” being one of them. Four years later, Nightwish are back with their latest album “Yesterwynde”, and to clarify one thing right now – “Yesterwynde” is a new word that doesn’t exist in any dictionary. According to Nightwish mainman Tuomas Holopainen, the term describes a feeling that every listener can interpret individually.

Now that we have more clarity about the unusual title of the album, let’s pay some attention to the music and we have to go back to “Yesterwynde” because the song is the dramatic intro of the album.

Grand and cinematic sounds are the starting point of a the album that has everything we can expectfrom a band like Nightwish. Bigger sound scapes and the great voice of Floor Jansen are essential moments of the opener and an album that reflects 100% of Nightwish’s trademarks.

It feels like the new album has more of everything. More anthemic, more bombastic and more cinematic from start to finish – that is “Yesterwynde”. All this ‘more’ doesn’t mean that the album is overloaded. Holopainen spent 3.5 years sketching, crafting and fine-tuning the album. With a great musical vision and a high level of creativity the skipper put a lot of heart and soul into “Yesterwynde” and the effort pays off with one of the best longplayers Nightwish has ever released. On this release everything comes together in a great way. From the music to the lyrics to the artwork, it all reflects a vision that has been realized.

Photo Credit: Tim Tronckoe

The atmospheric “Yesterwynde” is followed by the nine-minute epos “An Ocean of Strange Islands,” a very powerful song that also includes a softer section with a touching feel.

“The Antikythera Mechanism” is one of the album’s darker moments. Keeping a moderate pace, Nightwish bring back the typical trademark melodies, fueled by a dramatic aspect that is breathtakingly good. Excellent vocals and a glorious chorus make the song a very versatile piece of music with some moments that even remind me of bands like Queen.

Nightwish puts more creativity into one song than many other bands manage to put into an entire album. I can recommend to listen to “Perfume of the Timeless” which is loaded with twists and moments where things even become rock musical-like. Having said that, there are some parallels, especially when it comes to the mutual interaction between lyrics and music. It feels like both together are a strong package that allows Nightwish to convey feelings in an even stronger way than on previous releases.

Diving into the lyrics allows us to discover a basic pattern about memories, mortality and humanity. It is also about time and how mankind has evolved over billions of years and how we are all part of an unbroken chain in which love is a fundamental element. All this helps the band to tell a story with the vocals being the narrative aspect and the music adding the emotional depth.

Songs like “The Children of ‘Ata” and the peaceful “Hiraeth” are other examples of the creative flow of the album, which touches on many aspects of rock and metal. And not to forget the orchestral arrangements that are also part of Nightwish’s sound. Yes, we are talking about a six-piece band with Troy Donockley adding the sound of some more unusual instruments like Uilleann Pipes, Bouzouki and others. It’s the orchestral elements though, like on “The Weave”, that brings a more dramatic angle to the music and adds an extra layer of density when it comes to the sound of the new album.

“Yesterwynde” is an album that is the next highlight in the already rich history of the Finnish/Dutch/British symphonic metal masterminds. It is the most complete album the band has released so far, and it might be difficult to top this level. As said, there is more of everything on this album and yet there is a humble approach to musical perfection that provides the playbook for this very creative and versatile release. “Yesterwynde” is a landmark album that will find its place among the all-time classics of rock and metal.