Oceanborn

Background

Speaking to Kerrang! in 2008, band founder Tuomas Holopainen reminisced that the band got really ambitious after the debut album "that was never meant to be released as a proper record. It happened almost by accident, so we decided to put everything into making Oceanborn great." He added:

We were all such amateurs when it came to recording. We didn't really know what we were doing, so we were just experimenting with a lot of different things, we even brought in this string trio who were complete shit, then another violin, then another violin on top. So we ended up with 'Moondance' having 20 tracks of violin, just because we hadn't done this before and didn't know what we were doing! It's a pretty stuffed album, but I also think it's one of our best because you can hear the excitement of trying all these new things. It seems strange that this became a breakthrough album, because back at the time the music was so funny. It was really operatic, and when you look at the pictures, they look pretty horrific.

According to Kerrang!, "for all its Royal Albert Hall grandiosity, Oceanborn was actually recorded in a Finnish school."

Style

This album marked a definitive change in musical scope for Nightwish from their folk-laden roots in Angels Fall First, showcasing a more bombastic, power metal-oriented sound with faster tempos, harmonic guitar/keyboard leads, and plenty of double-bass-heavy drumwork. During that time, Stratovarius was Holopainen's biggest inspiration, hence the power metal sound of the album. Oceanborn's sound hearkens a more dramatic approach in the overall musical scope, mostly relegated to the symphonic keyboard work and lead singer Tarja Turunen's vocals. Most of the album is fantasy-themed, with tracks like "Swanheart" and "Walking in the Air", a cover from the animated TV special The Snowman, as typical examples; however, the song "Gethsemane", has a more religious feel to it. In addition, there are also some theatrical tracks like "Devil & the Deep Dark Ocean". Oceanborn is among their darkest albums, making use of the harsh vocals of Tapio Wilska in the songs "The Pharaoh Sails to Orion" and "Devil & the Deep Dark Ocean".

Live performances

Since the album's release, "Sacrament of Wilderness" has remained a fan-favorite at concerts, and it's still performed often. Both "Sleeping Sun" and "Walking in the Air" have also been performed often on shows. "Walking in the Air" returned to the live set list of the band at 19 September 2009 at Hartwall Areena, this time as an acoustic song sung by then-vocalist Anette Olzon. Having been dropped from their live shows, since Turunen's dismissal in 2005, "Stargazers" returned to the live set list on the Endless Forms Most Beautiful tour, with Floor Jansen as their newest singer in 2015.

In recent years, former vocalist Tarja Turunen released covers from two Oceanborn songs: "Stargazers", on a live version (recorded March 27, 2011) that can be heard on the CD/DVD Luna Park Ride; and "Swanheart", also a live recording (April 2013) with Tarja performing accompanied by a symphonic orchestra, choir and Mike Terrana on drums, that can be heard on the CD/DVD Beauty and the Beat (Tarja album).

Track listing

All lyrics written by Tuomas Holopainen, except where indicated; all music composed by Tuomas Holopainen, except where indicated.

Personnel

Credits for Oceanborn adapted from liner notes.