Songwriter/keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen founded Nightwish in 1996, with guitarist, Emppu Vuorinen, and former vocalist Tarja Turunen.  They recorded their first demo later that year.  Holopainen's original plan for the band had been an acoustical sound, but, after hearing the demo,

Nightwish

We are not here because we want to become big stars. I take it more as a challenge, because everybody in Europe says the American market is the hardest one in the world, especially for European bands. So if you can actually accomplish something on this continent, you can give yourself a good pat on the back.

The Early Years

Songwriter/keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen founded Nightwish in 1996, with guitarist, Emppu Vuorinen, and former vocalist Tarja Turunen.  They recorded their first demo later that year.  Holopainen's original plan for the band had been an acoustical sound, but, after hearing the demo, and realizing that Turunen's voice was too powerful for the music, he decided they would need to add metal elements as well.

Their first album, Angels Fall First, was released in 1997.  It was originally released in limited quantities, and later re -distributed more broadly.  After the second distribution, the album sold more than 36,000 copies.  The release, The Carpenter, reached #3 on the Finnish charts, but the album did not bring the national fame they desired.

Climbing to the Top

In 1998, Nightwish released their second album, Oceanborn in Finland.  In 1999, they released the album worldwide.  The band toured Finland to promote the album and their previous release.  By the end of the year, both albums had certified platinum in Finland.  Wishmaster, their third album, was released in 2000.  The album debuted at #1 in Finland and charted in Germany and France; they were gaining fans across the world.  Upon release of Wishmaster, Nightwish embarked on a world tour, performing in South America, Mexico, Canada, Europe.

After a shakeup in the roster, the band went on to record and release Century Child in 2004.  The album included a cover on the opera hit, Phantom of the Opera.  The album certified double platinum, but it was their 2004 release, Once, that demonstrated the results of their touring, recording, and promotion.  Once peaked at #1 in Finland, Germany, Norway, and Greece.  It certified triple platinum in Finland, platinum in Germany, and gold in Sweden, Norway, Switzerland, and Austria.

At the Top

In 2006, the band publicly released lead vocalist Turunen, and began accepting demos to be considered for the spot of their new lead singer.  The day after they announced Annette Olzen to be their new lead singer, they released their charity single, Eva, as the first offering from their upcoming album.  The single was only released digitally; fans could listen to the audio stream for free or purchase a download in mp3 format.  The album, Dark Passion Play, was released in 2007, and certified 5x platinum in Finland.  It was commercially successful in Europe and the US as well.

Holopainen has stated that they are currently recording their next album.  It is due for release in early 2011.  The band has been keeping fans updated via social networking, including MySpace and Twitter.

Did you know . . .

1. Nightwish is Finland's most successful band in history.

2. Holopainen sang back-up vocals on their first album, but refused to sing on any subsequent tracks because he feels his voice is not good enough.

3. The new lead singer, Annette Orzen is currently pregnant.

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