.:: Oceanborn - The UK Nightwish Fanclub ::.

04.04.06 - Emppu's Band 'Brother Firetribe' Sign to Spinefarm

Since 2001 Emppu has been working with his other band Brother Firetribe and they have now been signed to Spinefarm. Check out more information here.

01.04.06 - Nightwish.com Redesigned

Source: Nightwish.com

The official Nightwish page has now been redesigned and is online.

25.03.06 - Member's Area

The member's area has changed servers today. Could you please let us know if you experience any problems with this.

20.03.06 - 'End of an Era' DVD Update

Further information regarding the release of 'End of an Era' has been posted on the official Nightwish site:

In addition to this the DVD is going to include at least a SlideShow of pics from the Hartwall Show and a 55 minutes long document "A Day Before Tomorrow" which follows the band during the last 15 days before the Hartwall Show. The Document is edited by Timo Halo who edited and directed also the "From Wishes To Eternity - Deleted Scenes" and "End of Innocence" -"movies".

Due to contractual reasons the Finnish release of the CD/DVD is still open. And due to the very same contractual reasons it seems that the CD/DVD is going to be released only in Europe.

The following message has been posted on the official Nightwish website regarding the band's search for a new singer:

Hello there! The hassle with the media seems to have died. We´ve been off tour for some months and we´ve had a nice and long vacation. It´s time to get back in business:

Nightwish is currently and actively looking for a new singer/front woman for the band. We need the obvious things: Looks , charisma, courage and, of course, a big voice. Good grasp of the English language is also very helpful. We don´t necessarily need a classically trained vocalist like Tarja Turunen (the former vocalist). We welcome all kinds of styles and voices, natural and trained, from rock and pop to classical, and all that you can find in between. You should however be prepared to sing with a lot of dynamics and versatility. From loud and high to very sensitive stuff. You should preferably send us a cd containing 2-3 songs, that you consider to be your best work. If you send an album, would you mark out 2-3 most important songs, please? If you record and send Nightwish songs, then the most important thing is your PERSONAL TOUCH. Photographs are needed as well.

We will look into different applications and all candidates, but doing it this way would save us some time and energy. If you think you have it, just send your stuff to our management, and we´ll be happy to take you onboard.

Here´s the address. Good luck!

KING FOO ENTERTAINMENT LTD OY / EWO
Fredrikinkatu 61 A 7.krs/floor
FIN-00100 Helsinki
Finland

The band have announced the final tracklisting for their forthcoming live CD / DVD package which is scheduled for release on 2 June 2006.

NIGHTWISH - End Of an Era - Live at Hartwall Arena 21.10.2005

01. Dark Chest of Wonders
02. Planet Hell
03. Ever Dream
04. Kinslayer
05. Phantom of the Opera
06. The Siren
07. Sleeping Sun
08. High Hopes
09. Bless the Child
10. Wishmaster
11. Slaying The Dreamer
12. Kuolema Tekee Taiteilijan
13. Nemo
14. Ghost Love Score
15. Stone People (John Two-Hawks)
16. Creek Mary´s Blood
17. Over the Hills and Far Away
18. Wish I Had an Angel

07.03.06 - Nightwish Win Emma-Awards / Tarot - Remastered Back Catalogue Released / Pre-sale of Finnish Version of Nightwish Book has Started / DVD to be Postponed?

Nightwish would like to thank everyone for a great 2005 and have said despite everything it was full of great moments.

Tarot's full back catalogue has been remastered and was released on 1 March 2006. These will be available from usual sources.

Nightwish's new book is scheduled for a May release in Finland. The pre-sale has now started for the Finnish version. International versions will be released but no dates are available at present.

According to the Finnish tabloid “Iltalehti” (3.2.06) the release of the “End Of An Era” – live DVD is in danger of being postponed due to some unexpected problems in contracts. Riku Pääkkönen, the chief executive of Spinefarm tells that Tarja's manager Marcelo Cabuli is demanding the Spinefarm -company, Nightwish as a band and the management staff to sign a contract that no one of them is allowed to say anything about Tarja or Marcelo, or anything related to them, without written permission from Marcelo. This kind of contract would practically prevent the publishing of the Nightwish – book this spring as well. “We really found the proposal to be strange and soon realised that this kind of a paper cannot be signed. You can't make contracts like this” says Riku Pääkkönen in the Iltalehti article. There would be a 250 000 Euros fine for breaking the contract.

The concert in Hartwall-Arena is about to be released as a DVD and as a live-album. To do that the agreement from all the parties is needed and because of this unfortunate mess it seems hard to get one member to sign.

In worst case Finnish fans will have to order their copy of the DVD from outside the Scandinavia.

“Maybe one could see this as another example how the fans are treated..” says Tuomas in Iltalehti article.

Source: Iltalehti 3.2.2006

01.02.06 - Greetings from Tuomas / Highest Hopes Most Sold Album in Finland in 2005

"It`s been 3 months since the last show in Hartwall Arena and things are finally calming down. I just read through the yet unfinished version of the upcoming Nightwish-book. I was very impressed. It made me feel nostalgic, happy, ashamed and sad at the same time. This book is written by Mr. Mape Ollila and it`s being finished as we speak. The Finnish version of the book will be released in May. Also the live dvd "End Of An Era" will be released later this year but we have no information about the exact release date yet.

At the moment I`m occupied with writing songs for the next Nightwish album. 14 pieces done so far. I`m also participating in Timo Rautiainen`s solo album, the new For My Pain album, and some Kotiteollisuus´ live gigs before summer. With Nightwish we will start rehearsing the new stuff in June, entering the studio in September. Again we will write a diary through this site so you guys know what`s happening while in the studio. New Nightwish-homepage will also see daylight soon.

At the moment Emppu has his own side projects, Marco is working with the new Tarot-album and Jukka is busy with his new project, unrelated to music business.

The new singer will be announced through this site when the time comes. Please believe in nothing that`s not confirmed on this page.

Highest Hopes is officially the highest selling album of 2005 in Finland with sales of over 65000 copies, as compared to Robbie Williams with Intensive Care (61366) and Yö with Kuolematon (60458).

A review from one of Tarja's solo performances is now available on the reviews page.

The famous Finnish humppa-band Eläkeläiset have recorded a great version of Nemo. The single Jukolan Humppa has just arrived at the Nightwish Shop and MoreMusic.

Nightwish have once again featured heavily in the results of Terrorizer Magazine's annual readers poll. Tuomas was voted the 9th best musician and also came eighth in the 'Most Shaggable Male' category. Meanwhile, Tarja came in at equal 5th in the 'Best Vocalist' category, joint 8th for 'Personality of the Year' and was voted 3rd 'Most Shaggable Female'. 'Highest Hopes' also picked up 7th place for 'Best Cover Art'

Not all readers were as impressed however, with Nightwish also featuring 3rd in the 'Worst Band/Artist' cetegory and picking up 9th place for 'Most Disappointing Band/Artist'.

Congratulations to Nightwish. Their latest release, 'Highest Hopes', has sold over 60 000 copies in Finland meaning it has made double platinum sales.

Apparently information has been circulating in the media that Nightwish have found a new singer. This is not correct and the band have personally informed fans etc via Nightwish.com that this is indeed a lie. According to the statement on the official site they are not actively searching for, or negotiating with, a new singer. More information will be posted as it is available.

Satu and Jukka are pleased to announce the arrival of Luna's brother who was born today. Both Satu and the baby are doing well and hope to be home for Christmas.

New reviews from various shows throughout 2005 are now available on the reviews page. There is also a rundown of the first official meet up available to read now.

In addition to the 'End of an Era' DVD, due in June 2006, Nuclear Blast will be releasing a Nightwish compilation DVD on January 23. The release is set to contain the band's promo videos, clips and more.

According to Blabbermouth the forthcoming 'End of an Era' DVD release is scheduled as 5 June 2006. The contents are as follows:

01. Dark Chest Of Wonders
02. Planet Hell
03. Ever Dream
04. The Kinslayer
05. Phantom Of The Opera
06. The Siren
07. Sleeping Sun
08. High Hopes
09. Bless The Child
10. Wishmaster
11. Slaying The Dreamer
12. Kuolema tekee taiteilijan
13. Nemo
14. Ghost Love Score
Encore:
15. Creek Mary's Blood
16. Over The Hills And Far Away
17. Wish I Had An Angel

11.11.05 - Tarja Turunen Press Conference - Tarja 'decided to leave in December 2004'

Tarja has met members of the press in Helsinki for the first of two official press conferences. As well as expressing her regret at the way in which her dismissal was handled, an open letter from the band as opposed to face to face, she also admitted to having made the decision to quit Nightwish in December 2004.

Video clips from the press conference can be seen here. Translations of the conference transcripts as well as discussion on Tarja's statements can be found on our forums.

Nightwish have now released an official 'Once' note book. These are available for order from the Nightwish shop and are available as hard cover books only at this stage.

Tarja has recently announced press conferences in Helsinki and Berlin. These will take place on Friday 11 November and Monday 14 November respectively. It is envisaged that from these conferences we will learn more about Tarja's plans and immediate future now that she is no longer a member of Nightwish. More information will be posted as it becomes available.

A new review from the Metal Hammer Awards on 13.06.2005 is now available on the reviews page.

Photos and reviews from Nightwish's Hammersmith Apollo gig have now been added to the photos and reviews pages.

Reviews from the Hartwall Arena gig in Helsinki on 21.10.2005 are also available on the reviews page.

Tarja has now issued her own statement to her fans and the media regarding recent events. The press conference is still scheduled to take place.

Since last Sunday morning, I have been asked to express my position by magazines, newspapers, radio and TV stations, fan clubs and fans from Finland and from all over the world. So many in total that it is physically impossible for me to find the time to reply to them all individually. Hence I decided to put down a couple of words in this text to let my fans, family and friends and the public know how I feel after the recent events.

At the moment I am in Argentina. I hope you can understand that after this shocking life change comparable to a divorce, I didn't want to stay alone at home in Finland. My husband had booked his tickets to Argentina many months ago and I decided to travel with him at the last minute.

But the fact that I am in Argentina and the long distance should of course not be an excuse not to comment on the situation.

Last Friday 21st of October was a day the whole band had been waiting for a long time.

Practice started early in the morning. I was very sick and nervous because of the fact that I was not even able to sing during the rehearsals.

Also nervous because the concert programme was going to be longer than usual for a Nightwish concert. Furthermore we were going to have a special guest to perform with us, more wardrobe changes for myself than usual and for the first time big screens and bigger production on stage.

Even though every one of us knew in advance that the concert was sold out, finally on stage, we saw that screaming, applauding and standing people took every seat. The feeling was unbelievable.

I will never forget how amazing it was to experience the Finnish audience's gorgeous reception.

When the concert was over, I cried of happiness on stage. Happy tears because I was able to do my best as always even though I was sick. Happy tears because our long tour got the greatest possible ending and happy tears because of the best recognition an artist can get: applause and smiling faces.

After the concert, the guys of the band invited me backstage to join them and asked me to hug altogether. This felt strange as it was the same kind of hug we traditionally came together for before every concert. That tradition remained between us, even though the tension and increasing pressure already existed since a long period of time.

The immediate feeling in me was to thank them, which I did loudly but without any reply.

After this, they gave me a letter and asked me to read it the following day. The same letter that is now public.

I didn't know what to say and still at the moment that I am writing these lines, I don't.

I sense great anger in that letter and I continue to have very confused feelings about it, but I don't want to reply to this anger with an even greater anger. Private matters should never be taken to the public.

I know this moment we are going through is very sad for everybody, including the guys.

While there would have been so many different possibilities and ways to express what they wanted to tell me with the letter, I remain unable to understand the way they chose to handle this. I am sorry that the guys got me so wrong. I don't recognize myself at all from the way they described me.

They mentioned mean things about me, but the fact that they involved Marcelo, my husband, crossed the line. He is the man I love, my friend and has been my biggest support over the last years.

We have been band mates for 9 years, experienced good times and not so good ones. I thought I knew them, but I was wrong.

I need to put my feelings together again and I promise to come back to public soon. I will announce a press conference where I will be talking about my future plans. This doesn't mean that you should expect this conference to be an instrument to attack anybody. It won't.

Thanks a lot to all the people who are supporting me during these sad times. My family, friends, colleagues, and the great number of fans. I love you and I really feel I have not failed you.

Speaking to Finnish broadcaster YLE, Tarja has stated that she will be holding a press conference in November to give her side of the story on her departure from Nightwish. She also told the network "I'm really upset. The way in which this was brought up publicly is cruel and sad. It wasn't enough that the letter talked about me, but the way in which my husband was also dragged into it is shocking.

Tuomas and the three other members of Nightwish have published this open letter to Tarja Turunen and fans of Nightwish regarding her position with the band. There is currently no further news, although we will bring you it as soon as we hear anything. Please be aware that this is not a hoax, and is 100% official.

Nightwish recorded "End Of An Era" - live release yesterday evening in Hartwall-Arena, Helsinki. As you can imagine, the atmosphere in the Arena was wild but also quite blue. This was the ending for a one and a half year lasting "Once" -World Tour. Nightwish wishes to thank everybody for an unbelievable tour. Unfortunately the title "End Of An Era" also holds a deeper meaning. The open letter, which was given to Tarja after the show, tells it all. You can read it below.

Dear Tarja,

It`s time to choose whether the story of Nightwish ends here or whether it will still continue an undetermined period of time. We`ve been working with this creation for 9 years and we are not ready to give up yet. Nightwish is a way of life, something to live for, and we`re certain we can`t let it go.

Equally certain is the fact that we cannot go on with you and Marcelo any longer. During the last year something sad happened, which I`ve been going over in my head every single day, morning and night. Your attitude and behavior don`t go with Nightwish anymore. There are characteristics I would never have believed to see in my old dear friend. People who don`t talk with each other for a year do not belong in the same band.

We are involved in an industry where the business-side of things is a necessary evil and something to worry about all the time. We are also a band which has always done music from the heart, because of friendship and the music itself. The mental satisfaction should always be more important than money! Nightwish is a band, it`s an emotion. To you, unfortunately, business, money, and things that have nothing to do with those emotions have become much more important. You feel that you have sacrificed yourself and your musical career for Nightwish, rather than thinking what it has given to you.

This attitude was clearly shown to me in the two things you said to me in an airplane in Toronto: ”I don`t need Nightwish anymore.” and ”Remember, Tuomas, that I could leave this band at any time, giving you only one day`s warning in advance”. I can`t simply write any more songs for you to sing.

You have said yourself that you are merely a ”guest musician” in Nightwish. Now that visit ends and we will continue Nightwish with a new female vocalist. We`re sure this is an equally big relief to you as it is for us. We have all been feeling bad long enough.

You told us that no matter what, the next Nightwish album will be your last one. However, the rest of us want to continue as long as the fire burns. So there`s no sense in doing that next album with you, either. The four of us have been going over this situation countless times and we have realized that this is the thing we want to do in life. It´s all we can do. In December 2004, in Germany, you said that you will never tour again for more than two weeks at a time. You also said that we can forget about U.S. and Australia because the fees and the sizes of venues are too small.

In interviews I`ve mentioned that if Tarja leaves, that would be the end of the band. I understand that people will think this way. Nightwish is, however, a scenery of my soul and I`m not ready to let go because of one person. A person who wants to focus her creativity to somewhere else, a person whose values don`t match mine.

We were never bothered by the fact that you didn`t participate in writing/arranging songs, you never in 9 years came to rehearse the songs with us before going to the studio. Not the fact that while on tour you always wanted to fly, separately from us with your husband. Not the fact that you are an undisputable front image of the band. We accepted and felt ok about everything except greed, underestimating the fans, and breaking promises. It was agreed by the five of us that Nightwish would be the priority in everything that we do during 2004-2005. Still so many things were more important to you. The ultimate example being the already sold-out show in Oslo, which you wanted to cancel because you needed to rehearse for your solo concerts, meet frieds and go to the movies. Those were the words Marcelo used in an e-mail explaining the cancellation. This being just one example of so many. I couldn`t think of a worse way of being selfish and dismissing our fans.

Nightwish is a way of life and a job with many obligations. To each other and to the fans. With you we can`t take care of those duties anymore.

Deep within we don`t know which one of you drove us to this point. Somehow Marcelo has changed you from the lovely girl you were into a diva, who doesn`t think or act the way she used to. You are too sure of your irreplaceableness and status.

It`s obvious that you blame your stress and misery on us four. And you think we don`t respect or listen to you. Belive us; We have always had the uppermost respect towards you as a wonderful vocalist and as a friend. And very often during the past couple of years the plans were made according to your decisions only. You were always the only one who wanted more money from the shows. This ”compensation and more money from everything” –attitude is the fact that we are most disappointed of!

We wish that from now on you will listen to your heart instead of Marcelo. Cultural differences combined with greed, opportunism and love is a dangerous combination. Do not wither yourself.

This decision is not something we are especially proud of but you gave us no choice. The gap between us is too wide. And the decision is made by us four unanimously. We are beyond the point where things could be settled by talking.

All the best for your life and career,

Tuomas

Emppu Jukka Marco

Ps. This is an open letter for everybody.

Nightwish's new 'best of' cd 'Highest Hopes' has debuted in the Finnish Top 40 album chart at #1.

The band are currently playing in Brazil and will complete their 'Once' world tour in Helsinki on 21 October 2005 at Hartwall Arena.

The next Nightwish releases are set to be the 'Sleeping Sun' singles. These will be available in CD and DVD format as follows:

CD:
Sleeping Sun 2005 (radio edit)
Sleeping Sun (original)
Sleeping Sun 2005 (long version)

DVD (includes videos):
Sleeping Sun 2005
Sleeping Sun original
Sleeping Sun live at the Summer Breeze festival

Photos from Nightwish's sold out Hammersmith Apollo show on 25 September 2005 are now available for viewing over on the photos page.

Anyone wishing to submit photos to be included on this page may do so by getting in touch with Mary.

28.09.05 - 'Highest Hopes' Sells Platinum / Hammersmith Apollo Concert / Kerrang

Nightwish's new release 'Highest Hopes - The Best of Nightwish' has already sold over 40 000 copies in Finland on it's day of release. This means the band have once again reached platinum sales figures. The album includes a live version of the Pink Floyd cover 'High Hopes' and a rerecorded version of fan favourite 'Sleeping Sun'. (Look out for the new video for 'Sleeping Sun').

'Once' has also been named the best selling album in Finland with sales reaching approximately 100 000 copies in Finland alone.

Nightwish took to the stage at Hammersmith Apollo on 25 September 2005 to play to a sell out crowd for their last UK show of their current tour. The concert included pyrotechnics, only previously seen at festivals and concerts outside of the UK. If you were lucky enough to be there and would like to submit a review please get in touch with Mary. Likewise, if you would like to chat to people about the concert or anything else, please visit our forum.

Nightwish are featured in this week's issue of Kerrang. Tarja is featured on the front cover and interviews with Marco, Tuomas and Tarja are included.

The release date for Nightwish's latest cd, 'Highest Hopes', has been pushed back to 3 October 2005. The album should have been released this week, but unfortunately a delay has occurred. The album will be available from all usual outlets. As far as we are aware the tracklist is as follows:

Wish I Had An Angel
Stargazers
The Kinslayer
Ever Dream
Elvenpath
Bless The Child
Nemo
Sleeping Sun
Dead To The World
Over The Hills And Far Away
Deep Silent Complete
Sacrament Of Wilderness
Walking In The Air
Wishmaster
Dead Boy's Poem
High Hopes - Live

As you are all no doubt aware Nightwish are due to play their last UK show of the current tour at Hammersmith Apollo tomorrow night. We would welcome reviews from people who are lucky enough to be attending what is bound to be an amazing show! If you wish to submit a review for inclusion on the page please get in touch with Mary. Likewise, if you wish to review any other Nightwish gigs that you've attended / cds / etc please get in touch.

The competition has now closed and the winners have been announced over on our competition page.

Look out for Nightwish on the front cover of Kerrang in the next few weeks. More information will be posted as to issue date if / when available.

28.08.05 - 'The Cave' Soundtrack Competition / Nightwish at Lowlands Festival / Gold Awards - Germany / Review of Earthshaker Festival Appearance

Don't forget you have until midnight 31 August 2005 to enter our competition. Check the competition page for more details.

You can either listen to or view Nightwish's recent performance at the Lowlands Festival via Nightwish.com. Click here to access the files / streams from the main page.

Nightwish have been awarded Gold in Germany for sales of 'End of Innocence' and 'Tales from the Elvenpath'. Drakkar label boss, Bogdan Kopec, traveled to Finland to personally give the band their awards. Click here to see a photo of the band receiving their awards.

23.08.05 - 'The Cave' Soundtrack Competition / Photos from the Set of the New 'Sleeping Sun' Video / Helsinki Show Tickets / Hammersmith Tickets Going Fast / Nightwish to Present Award at Kerrang Awards

As mentioned previously Nightwish have recently made a new video for 'Sleeping Sun'. Photos from the set can be found at this location.

The video was shot in Prague and was directed by Joern Heitmann, who has previously directed, for example, the following videosrs: Rammstein: Keine Lust, Rammstein: Amerika and The Rasmus: No Fear.

Nightwish's final concert of their current year and a half 'Once' tour will take place in Helsinki on 21 October 2005. The concert sold out in record time and you can now no longer buy tickets for this event. However, the Nightwish shop is pleased to announce that they have two (2) tickets available in a 'lottery' draw.

Any orders placed with the Nightwish shop or MoreMusic.fi between 21 August and 30 September will automatically be entered into the draw. The prize will not be split and there will only be one winner. You will automatically be entered into the draw once you have ordered your item(s).

Time is running out for those of you wanting to get tickets for Nightwish's last UK date of the tour. Tickets are selling fast and it looks as though this will be another sold out show.

As well as being nominated for 'Best Single' at the Kerrang Awards the band are also scheduled to present the 'Best Band' award at this years event on 25 August 2005.

12.08.05 - 'The Cave' Soundtrack / 'Highest Hopes' / 'Sleeping Sun' / Kerrang Awards 2005

Check out 'The Cave' soundtrack from the forthcoming movie. The allbum has rare, exclusive and hit tracks from Trivium, Killswitch Engage, Ill Nino, Atreyu, Nightwish, Shadows Fall, Mastodon, and many more.

Killswitch Engage - Irreversal
Nightwish - Nemo
Atreyu - You Eclipsed By Me
Ill Nino - I'll Find The Way
Shadows Fall - Inspiration On Demand
Trivium Pull Harder On The Strings Of Your Martyr
Lacuna Coil - Daylight Dancer
Open Hand - Hard Night
Bleeding Through - Love Lost In A Hail Of Gunfire
Diecast Medieval
Strapping Young Lad - Love?
Bury Your Dead Magnolia
It Dies Today - A Threnody For Modern Romance
Mastodon - Blood & Thunder
Vext Prescription
Burning Brides - King Of The Demimonde
Egypt Central - Taking You Down
DevilInside - Conflicted, Conditioned
Candiria Bring The Pain / Multiple Incisions

For more information regarding The Cave (movie and soundtrack) check out this site.

A new video is being shot betwen 15 - 17 August 2005 for the fan favourite 'Sleeping Sun'. This has also been re-recorded for the upcoming release of the new best of 'Highest Hopes'.

Normal cd
Limited edition - cd plus 3 track live dvd
CD with bonsu 8 track cd plus a 9 track dvd (possibly import only)

Best Single
Voted for by the readers of Kerrang! Magazine and Kerrang.com
1. Green Day 'American Idiot'
2. System Of A Down 'Bring Your Own Bomb"
3. My Chemical Romance 'I'm Not Okay (I Promise)...'
4. Foo Fighters 'Best of You'
5. Nightwish 'Nemo'

As well as being nominated in the above category members of the band are scheduled to be attending the Kerrang Awards on 25 August 2005.

Visit the Kerrang website for more information and a full list of nominees in each category.

The cover art for Nightwish's forthcoming release 'Highest Hopes' has been posted on the official Nightwish site. Click here to view the cover.

Tickets for Tarja's 2005 Christmas Tour are now available via her website. Special VIP packages are also available for some venues.

You can also pre-order a very limited edition cd with the recordings in Buenos Aires of the Concert of Noche Escandinava II from April 2004. These cds will be pressed to order and will be available exclusively through Tarja's site.

Check out the new issue of Kerrang to be able to vote for Nightwish. You can also visit this site for more information and your chance to win tickets to the show. The awards take place on 25 August 2005.

Although not officially announced on Nighwish.com as yet various sources, including the official Paradise Lost webpage, have announced that Paradise Lost will be supporting Nightwish at their Hammersmith Apollo gig in September. More news as we get it.

Check the reviews page for Alexis' review of Nightwish's recent performance at the Metal Hammer Awards.

On 21 October 2005 Nightwish will play their final concert of their year and a half long 'Once' tour at Helsinki's Hartwall Arena. Sonata Arctica will be their support and John Two-Hawks will appear as their special guest. The show will be directed by Antti Jokinen for an upcoming DVD. Tickets are on sale from Monday 25 July 2005 via www.lippupalvelu.fi and www.menolippu.fi.

10.07.05 - Photos Updated / Photos with Nightwish / Tuomas Photo in Grassroots [xposed] Exhibition

We now have a new section 'Photos with Nightwish'. For those of you who have been lucky enough to meet the band and get a photo(s) with them here is your opportunity to share the photos with the rest of Oceanborn.

If you would like to submit photos please email Mary with no more than 5 photos from each meeting. Any photos that are similar will not be included on the page, ie two photos of the same people but with different expressions. Most recent photo submissions will feature at the top of the page.

The following photograph of Tuomas (along with approximately 30 other images by other photographers) will be featured in the Grassroots [xposed] Exhibition at The Boogaloo in Highgate, London, between 21 July 2005 and 31 August 2005.

The exhibition aims to promote fresh and established talent within the music industry. Photos from the exhibition will be available for purchase online at www.grassrootsx.com/xposed.

A group photo of the band from after their Download performance is now available on the photos page. Special thanks to Shirlaine from Shirlainephotos.co.uk for this photo.

Due to limited numbers of seats tickets for Tarja's Christmas tour will be available to buy via her official website only. Keep checking her site for more information. According to the site tickets will NOT be made available via the venues and the only way to purchase these tickets will be through the website.

01.12.2005 - Savonlinna-Sali, Savonlinna, Finland
03.12.2005 - Kuusaa-sali, Kuusankoski, Finland
06.12.2005 - Passionskirche, Marheinekeplatz 1, Berlin, Germany.
09.12.2005 - Jona - Jugendkirche Frankfurt, Holbeinstraße 70, Frankfurt, Germany.
12.12.2005 - Casino L'AlianÇa del Poble Nou, Rambla de PobleNou, 42 Barcelona, Spain
15.12.2005 - TBC, Bucharest, Romania

The Metal Hammer Awards will be televised on ITV at midnight tonight. Be sure to tune in to see Nightwish's performance alongside the likes of Trivium, Anthrax, etc.

03.07.05 - 'Highest Hopes - The Best of Nightwish' Pre Sale / Download and Metal Hammer Reviews and Photos / Nightwish Looking for Photos from Once Tour / Photos with the Band

Apologies for the lack of recent updates. Both myself and Dave have been away at Download and Bloodstock Festivals so are catching up with the updates / news etc.

The pre sale for Nightwish's forthcoming collection 'Highest Hopes- The Best of Nightwish' has started over at the Nightwish Shop. There are three versions available - Normal Version / Limited Edition with audio cd + dvd with three live videos - available in NTSC or PAL. Check the Nightwish Shop for more information.

Check the reviews page for reviews on Nightwish's recent Download performance. We are still looking for more reviews for both the Download and Metal Hammer performances. If anyone wishes to submit these please get in touch with Mary. We are also still looking for photos to include on the site and we will be adding some more to these sections from both events shortly.

As mentioned on Nightwish.com Nightwish are currently looking for photos from the Once tour to include in an 'off tour book'. All photos from the tour are welcome to be submitted but what they are really after are photos you've taken with the band where they are in a funny or strange situation. Live photos are not requested but if you feel you have any really good live shots, they will be considered. For more information check out Nightwish.com.

As previously mentioned we are looking at setting up a section for your photos with the band. Unfortunately this is proving to be a little slower than we had anticipated and is still a works in progress. However, work is underway and the page should be completed shortly. Keep checking back for more information. If any of you would like to submit photos of yourself with the band please email Mary with the photos.

Nightwish are now confirmed (via Nightwish.com) to be playing the Hammersmith Apollo on 25 September 2005. Tickets available now.

More photos from Download are now available for viewing over on the photos page.

Anyone still wishing to submit photos or reviews to be included on these site may do so by getting in touch with Mary.

17.06.05 - Tracklisting for Forthcoming Nightwish Collection / Tour Dates / Photos from Download and Metal Hammer Awards

Nightwish are soon to release 'Highest Hopes - The Best of Nightwish'. This will consist of 2 cds with the following tracklist:

Photos from Download and the Metal Hammer Awards are now available for viewing over on the photos page. More photos from Download will be available shortly.

Anyone wishing to submit photos to be included on these pages may do so by getting in touch with Mary.

Congratulations to Nightwish who won the 'Incoming Award for Best Newcomer' at the Metal Hammer Awards on Monday night! Nightwish also performed the following set: Dark Chest of Wonders, Nemo and Wish I Had An Angel.

As well as performing and receiving an award the whole band kindly took time to meet with fanclub winners at a surprise meet and greet session prior to their performance.

For those of you who were lucky enough to attend the awards we are interested in collecting some reviews (as we are for the Download performance) so if you'd like to submit any, please get in touch with Mary as soon as possible. If you have any photos from the events that you'd like to submit, please feel free to do so. Full credit will be given.

Nightwish suffered a weekend of travelling chaos, causing the band to arrive late for their Sunday Download slot and only play four songs.

The band have apologised to fans and said they’re bitterly disappointed to have had their set cut short.

Their flight to the UK from Vienna was delayed TWICE – firstly following a bomb scare and then because the plane had been overfilled with petrol.

Nightwish’s Marco Hietala said: “It’s been a nightmare of a weekend for travelling. We also got delayed in Norway the day before and had to get separate flights. It’s disappointing we were late for our slot because there were loads of people here waiting for us. I’d apologise if it was our fault but it wasn’t. Obviously I’m very sorry it turned out this way.”

A Download festival spokesman said: “They couldn’t play the whole set because it would’ve meant the remaining bands shortening their sets.”

We will be looking to add reviews to the site for the February tour / Download festival and Metal Hammer Awards. If you are interesting in writing something for the site and are attending either or attended any of the shows in February please get in touch with Mary.

We are also interested in getting together more reviews for cd releases / DVDs and other gigs so if you have written or would like to write reviews for these please let us know.

Metal Monk is also interested in reviews from Download festival. If you are attending and would like to submit reviews of the following sets for the site please get in touch with Rich. Please see list below:

Megadeth
Lordi
Napalm Death
Mad Capsule Markets
In Flames
Meshuggah
American Head Charge
Black Sabbath
Nightwish
Lacuna Coil
Mastodon

July 16 sees Nightwish headline the festival near Lake Garda in Italy! Also appearing throughout the day will be Panic DHH, Dark Tranquility, The Vision Bleak, Dark Lunacy, Vision Divine, Orphaned Land , Lordi, Entombed and Sebastian Bach.

01.06.05 - 'The Siren' To Be Released / 'End of Innocence' - Gold Sales in Germany

The third track to be released from 'Once', Nightwish's latest cd, 'The Siren' will be released on 25 July 2005 as a five track cd single with a running time of over twenty minutes. The complete tracklisting is as follows:

The Siren– edited version 3:46
The Siren– album version 4:45
The Siren– live version 4:47
Symphony Of Destruction– live version of the Megadeath classic 4:19
Kuolema Tekee Taiteilijan– live version 3:52

'End of Innocence' - Gold Sales in Germany

Nightwish's 'End of Innocence' DVD has sold over 25 000 copies and has been certified gold for sales within Germany.