artykuł dla portugalskiej gazety LOUD czerwiec 2006

czarnycharakter

Momentary Lapse of Heart

After the sudden storm that struck NIGHTWISH in October last year – with the surprise exit of vocalist Tarja Turunen – the Finnish band currently enjoys a deserved period of tranquility. Short-lasting, especially if you remember that on its way is the complicated process of selecting a new vocalist and also the release of the DVD “The End Of An Era”, the awaited last release of Nightwish with Tarja. The keyboard player and leader of the band, Tuomas Holopainen, shared with us his fears, disappointments and hopes, a moment before diving back into the tumultuous sea that is the present.

What’s the feeling among the band now, that all the “dirt” on the press about Tarja leaving seems to have finally settled?

The feeling right now is very good, in the sense that we feel confident about the future. I’ve already written all the songs for the next album and the other elements of the band have just been listening to the material... So far there are 15 new songs and everyone seems very pleased with them. The future looks pretty promising, but the last 6 months were complicated. What happened at the end of October was – without a doubt – the most difficult problem we’ve had to face and also the saddest thing that happened to us in all these years. There certainly was a bittersweet feeling involved in all the process... [sigh] The media seem to have genuinely enjoyed dealing with what happened and the episode ended up turning into a kind of public soap opera. And that’s what annoys me the most, because I want people to remember us as a metal band, and not public property.

Due to that over-exposure, was the band ever in jepordy?

We wouldn’t have continued if it was too risky, that’s for sure. Obviously we took some risks when we made the decision to continue, but there came a time when there were only two paths – give up everything or do what we did. However, I think – very honestly – that there’s still a great future for Nightwish. We’ll have to wait to see what happens. And find a new vocalist somewhere.

Given the circumstances, how did you feel working on the DVD “The End Of An Era”?

To tell the truth it was a lot of fun, but the band itself wasn’t very involved. Tero Kinnunen, who directed the concert part of the DVD, edited everything by himself... I only showed up at the studio and approved what he had already done. I wasn’t in the process from the beginning, so we didn’t participate in the editing or anything like that. A couple of days ago we went to a movie theatre in Germany, where the label had a screening for the press, and it was a night of contradictory feelings. First of all, when I was watching the concert I felt very proud because it was something I created and very proud of the other guys in the band – including Tarja. I think it’s a good product and it marks the end, really, of an era. Let’s hope another begins.

Was it a similar feeling to the one you had when you read the book Mape Ollila wrote about the group?

Basically the same, yes. The difference is I feel almost like an outsider on that book. A lot of people tend to think it’s sort of an autobiography or something like that, but... I feel like I’m just another interviewee, among dozesn of others on that book. He worked on that project for the past four years and it’s about his vision of the story of our band. I think some 30 different people were interviewed for the book, me being just one of them. I read the book almost like an outsider, so to speak... However, I’m very happy with the final result. I think it sends a very objective and honest image of the first years of our career.

I know the release of the DVD was sorrounded by some legal issues...

Yes, as a matter of fact there were some problems. At that time I was so tired of everything that had happened that I just wanted to focus on making the songs for the next album. That made it so that I washed my hands of that subject a little bit, and it became a problem only between labels and managements. I found out last night that the labels and the managements have finally come to an agreement... The DVD will be released, as predicted, in early June.

Do you think that, even though it’s art and all about your artistic creation, there’s sort of a public entity that is completely out of your control?

I think there are some things that should depend on my decision, but there are also other things that I’m happy to let other people handle. The public must understand that the work of this band is the life of its elements... It’s all we have in life, especially in my case. I think people should remember to always respect that and, lately, that hasn’t happened... Not even close, actually.

When you sit down to write new music, like you did recently, can you abstract from all those extra-musical things?

I’m learning to do it. Nightwish have always been like a kind of diary of my own life in the form of music, and, in this case, they are too. So, everything that happened in the past year will be, in a way, reflected in the music and the lyrics of the next album too. I think it’s natural –it’s not something I’m doing on purpose. It’s just that, obviously, the emotions show up in the music... [sigh] I don’t know yet, because when it comes to song arrangements it’s still a very early phase.

How has that complicated selection process been? Have you been receiving a lot of applications?

Quite a lot, to be honest. I didn’t expect this amount of demos. So far I’ve heard about 450 and there are still 15 to 20 coming in every day. I called home today and they said there already are 100 or more waiting for me... we’ve been listening to each one, but we haven’t decided anything at all yet. And I’m sure nothing will be decided until te end of this year... We have to take the time we need to make this decision and not give into anything.

You don’t have to mention names, but have you recieved applications from someone from known bands?

We’ve received some but, obviously, it would be indecent to say from who.

Aren’t you afraid that, from now on, Nightwish will be coursed by the “will they ever reunite” syndrome?

I’m sure a lot of people will hate us forever for what we’ve done. There are a lot of fierce Tarja fans that will never accept anything we do again, however the music is... however, that’s a consequence of the decision we made conscientiously and inevitably will have to live with. We’re recruiting a new element.

But you are aware that the new vocalist will have to deal with a great deal of pressure with every record you release, with the comparisons to the previous vocalist and rumours that Tarja will return to the band...

Yes, I’m sure that’s going to happen, too. One of the most important criteria in the selection of the new singer process is that she needs to have a very strong character, great self-esteem and a good sense of humor, because we can imagine the hell she’s going to have to go through as soon as we announce who she is. She’ll be compared to Tarja for the rest of her life... It’s be very bad, I feel sorry for her already. [laughs] But we’ll definitely do the best we can to support her and to make the right decision.

You’re probably still very “on edge” with everything that’s happened, but if in 5 years Tarja does an interview saying she wouldn’t mind returning to Nightwish if she was invited... How would you react?

That’s a subject that’s impossible to answer right now. I have the habit of thinking that nothing is impossible in this life... we’ve seen how life works, so I couldn’t say an absolute “no” to that situation. However, right now it seems like such a distant possibility... I think it’s best for everyone to follow their own path and look to the future instead of the past.

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Tarja Turunen is Nightwish’s fallen angel. Face and voice of the band for 10 years, she was in the centre of the news that shocked the fans of the band in October of last year, when she was fired by Tuomas and co. The title of “The End Of An Era” relates directly to her and this is the DVD where we’ll see the Finnish diva – one of the greatest female voices of heavy metal of the last years – singing for the last time with Nightwish. It was essential, therefore, to talk to Tarja to learn what the singer thinks of all the process that lead to her being fired from the band, the agitation that followed and what the future holds for her.

Did you have any artistic input on how the “The End Of An Era” DVD was prepared and edited?

No, I wasn’t part of the project of preparing the DVD. All that happened between me and the band... I left and, because of that, there wasn’t even a chance to participate in the preparation of that release. Since they haven’t even called me yet, we haven’t spoken to each other, so there was no contribution of mine in the editing of the DVD. It was very hard. I finally watched it when I got the copy I was contractually entitled to. I watched it at home about a month ago, and of course it wasn’t easy. I watched it from beginning to end, but it was a little like a lightning in terms of memories and feelings... However, it’s a very well made product and the concert itself was one of the best Nightwish ever did, so I ended up being happy for finally being able to listen to myself onstage, after all these years. Of course we’d recorded some concerts here and there, on tour, but it had never been so easy for me to listen to myself, because the recordings had never been done by the band itself. This time the whole recording was done by the band, and so everyone felt the pressure of doing everything as good as possible. We were very nervous before entering the Hartwall Arena, because it’s sort of a musical Meca in Finland and being there was like a dream come true to the Finnish fans. The fact that it was a great concert makes it one of the best memories we all have, definitely.

So there was a bittersweet feeling when you watched the DVD...

Yes, it ended up that way. I remembered, of course, the feeling backstage, before going onstage and seeing the people crying and laughing and the fans supporting us... People who have supported Nightwish since the beggining and who have supported me personally as well. The concert itself was wonderful and we all ended up with tears in our eyes onstage, at the end of the performance. It had been such a long tour – almost 2 years – and we finished it precisely there, at Hatwall Arena... It was a very important thing for Nightwish.

Did you have any clue at that time that something was really going to end there, on that night?

Yes, the tour. [laughs] That was the feeling that prevailed... That we’d finally made it there and that the marathon of concerts was finally ending, so we could have a big vacation and some time for our families, for ourselves and to do different things.

Do you think that, throughout all this process, Nightwish’s name and your own have been a little worn out, with everything that’s been said in the press?

In a way, of course. The way the band decided to deal with the subject... It wasn’t the way I would have handled things, definitely. There were a lot of private things, exposed to the public. Things I would never talk about, because they only concern the band. But it was their decision. It’s something I’ll never understand and something I’ll never forget. Maybe forgive someday, but never forget. I always kept my word about this whole subject... I don’t want to continue talking about what happened and about the whole problem because I’ve spoken to the media once about it, I told my feelings and my stand on everything... At some point I felt like I needed to move on with my life and the band needed to move on with its life. However, I would never say everything that’s been written in the media and it makes me very sad to see everything that’s been published.

What’s the feeling regarding the band nowadays?

It’s something I wouldn’t like to talk about much. Of course, as people, we were together for 9 years, we went through a lot. We weren’t friends, as they’ve been saying in every interview they do. Friendship, to me, is something very different from what we had... Friends stay in touch outside of work. In 9 years we were only a band... The bass player changed, Marco joined and we all got along very well. We had no problems, we didn’t argue or anything. We spent a lot of time together, travelled, but using the word “friendship” is very strong to describe that relationship. I have my friends and we spend a lot of time together – we go out, we call each other almost every day. To me, that’s friendship. It’s hard, of course, when you think about everything we went through together, but in a way I think it ended up being positive, because at this point I only want to think about positive things, get through this situation, continue and do different things.

You are preparing an album of Christmas songs to be released at the end of the year. Will that record contain only traditional songs?

It’s a little strange for me to go in the studio in the middle of the Summer to record a bunch of Christmas songs... I’m not sure how I’m gonna find the feeling to sings Christmas songs, in the Summer and inside a studio. [laughs] The record will have some internationally popular songs, some traditional Finnish songs and also some new and original recordings. It’s be produced by the same producer who worked with me on my Christmas single 2 years ago. So this project will end next Christmas, when I release this record and do a bigger tour through Finland and, this time, also through Russia – I’m doing a couple of shows in Moscow. The album will be released only in Finland... It’s something very small, dedicated to the Finns who love the Christmas season and all it entails. Nowadays a lot of artists do these kinds of projects, but no, this won’t be my solo album; it’ll only be a Christmas record.

But you are aware that your fans outside of Finland will be going crazy after your record...

In a way I am aware of that, of course. [laughs] And I don’t mind an international demand, but the release will only be Finnish.

What about your solo album? What can you tell us about it at this time?

I made a deal with the German Universal Records, who has a project for that record. We’ve already started working together... I feel very good and I’m very honoured to have the privilege of working with these people, because they seem to respect me and understand me as an artist. It’s been very nice... We’ll see how it goes, but the plan is to release it in 2007. I don’t know when, exactly what month, but the plan predicts that it’ll come out next year. And, of course, touring is also part of the plan. Musically, I can say that the people who like metal will definitely find some elements on my record. But they won’t be able to call it a metal album. We’ll use elements of different musical styles – some from classical music – and do a combination of everything. It’ll be very interesting, because it’ll be something new. As a singer it’s a big challenge – the biggest in my career so far – making people listen to what I can do, this time alone, and enjoy it. It will be more, musically, than just a heavy metal band making music. I want to make that perfectly clear. For example, if a heavy metal band put 3 piano songs on its album people would say “huh?! That’s not heavy metal”. But, musically, I’m a little more diverse than that and I go until the completely non-metal side of music. People end up knowing me as a singer who’s a little different; I came to metal from a completely different world, but I kept that musical side of my career at the same time as I was with Nightwish. I still want to keep it, but for my solo album I had to have all the musical elements that were part of my life until now. It’s something interesting, that will represent a great challenge for me... But I’m very anxious to start and see what the future holds for me.

Apart from Vile Vallo, of HIM, you may be the most internationally known person out of the Finnish music world. Does that pressure you, everytime you have to face those challenges?

I had never even thought about that matter of popularity outside of Finland the way you put it. If you’re asking me if I’m the biggest Finnish musical export next to Vile Vallo... I don’t think so. You’re the one who’s putting things in those terms – I prefer not to think about it. [laughs] Of course, if I thought that way, it would become a pressure factor. However, that’s not how I think. I know I’ve been successful in a lot of things and I’ve reached levels, as an artist and as a member of Nightwish, that a lot of people don’t reach. That makes me very happy and very proud of what I’ve done, but now I wanna challenge myself and see what I can do by myself. It’s a self-challenge for myself. It’s not to show people what I can do – it’s a personal challenge, to see how I stand on my own legs. To me it’s very easy to start working for the people who’ve enjoyed my music for a long time and who I’ve learned to respect throughout the years. It’s something that makes me very excited. Of course I know there were a lot of fans – in Portugal, for example, who waited many years for Nightwish to play in thei country... And where we finally played last year. I would love to go back there, this time alone... What I want to say is that, without those people, there wouldn’t be a “me” – I wouldn’t sing, I wouldn’t be known publicly.

So you don’t think about what your audience is going to think when you decide what to do on your solo album?

I end up thinking a little, yes. To me it’s a new thing, but it’s also a new thing to the people who will listen to my music from now on. However, I think only time can say how things will go and I can’t spend energy thinking about what’s going to happen. I hope I can be happy with what I will do in the future – that’s the most important thing: to be happy with what I’m doing.

Are you prepared for the rumours and comments that will suggest you get back to the band as soon as you or the band release a new record?

That’s a very distant reality, because neither I nor the band have released records since what happened and the press hasn’t started with those stories yet. [laughs] That type of thing is inevitable and I’m prepared for it. I have to be a little ironic about what happened in the last few months of my life, because I have to deal with all the rumours that arose about it. I’ve found I can deal with those situations a lot better than I thought. I thought I was a lot weaker as a person and I imagined I wouldn’t know how to handle stress so well. It was definitely difficult, but I survived and discovered for myself that what doesn’t kill you really does make you stronger. You get happier about the little things in your life... those little things in the everyday life that you tend to not give importance to, like love, for example... Everything that relates to the people who are close to me. They’ve been giving my life new meaning, much because of the outside pressure. Unless something unpredictable happens to me – like dying suddenly – I will surely be able to deal with all the rumours about me that come up, because they can’t really be more complicated than the ones that came up already. [laughs]

Mape Ollila’s book about the band ends up, in the middle of all this process, being a small good thing or a big bad thing?

I never thought of that book as something very important related to the situation of my leaving the band. You probably don’t know – but I’ll tell you – that my interview for that book was supposed to be very long and deep. It should have lasted 2 days, he planned to do it at my house... It was important for him and for the book to gather all my experiences throughout the years and some extra-music interests I have. However, it ended up being very strange... In the middle of the tour, about 3 weeks before the last concert, the deadline for the book changed suddenly, and I was forced to do the interview via phone, in Athens, in the middle of the night, in a conversation that lasted one hour. I questioned the author about the reason for the sudden change of plans, but I never got an answer... The answer came a few weeks later, when I was fired from the band. So you’ll understand when I tell you I haven’t read the book. I know I’ll read it someday, but right now that’s all I can tell you about it.

Did you feel, at any time during the last months, that there was some sort of war between Nightwish fans and yours?

[pause] What can I say? It’s very sad to realize that people are forced to choose a side. My fans and Nightwish’s fans are the same people – and, unfortunately, the band has been forcing these people to pick a side. It’s incredible! Whatever happens in life we should never be pushed against a wall and forced to take sides from two we like. It’s crazy. Both the press and the fans should listen to the music and let it speak. The music of Nightwish lives and will live on forever. That’s what matters, no matter what’s in the press in the meantime, coming from inside or outside the band. That’s not important – what matters is the music and the feeling it gives people. I will love Nightwish until the end of my life – I’ll take advantage of some of the songs the band didn’t want to play, some written for “Angels Fall First” and others for “Oceanborn” and sing them at my concerts. I’m very proud of what I did in Nightwish and I want to keep that legacy alive. I was part of the band and it will always be a very important part of me, until the end of my life. I grew as a woman with Nightwish – they had a vital importance in my life.