Nightwish's diary
02.-21.03.2007 - Vocal recordings
02.03.2007
So, it's time for me, the new vocalist, to write a studio diary about the vocal recordings for the new album.
My journey to the new album recordings finally ended quite late to a very nice studio where I was greeted by some of the guys and the engineers. Since it already was evening we just had dinner and relaxed to start the big work the day after.
03.03.2007
The actual first recording day started with a very nice and steady breakfast at 09.30 and then we started working on getting the right microphone for me and some good hearing. Then time for some recording of the first song, which is an up-tempo song with good "kick" in it and where me and Marco are dividing the singing between us. Went smoothly and we were finished already after a couple of hours. Since I was gonna start recording another song the same day, I took a small nap to have some new energy for the next song. After dinner the recordings continued and the second song was on its way. It's a song with some different ways of singing technique which needs focus and attention and lot of heart in it, so we just worked on the verses for some hours before callin' it a day and head for some relaxation and just being together. This place is very good since we can stay in the same place and totally be ourselves, which I really like because of all the secrecy that are surrounding us these days....paparazzi's everywhere...Since the guys are totally hooked on scary movies, that's what we're watching every evening and I must say my nerves will need to have some rest after these weeks...;=)
04.03.2007
Woke up early and in a very good mood so I took a lovely morning walk, enjoying the sceneries before breakfast. Then a little test-singing to get my voice all warmed up before starting recording harmonies on the second song, which went very smoothly. Took a break in the afternoon where we got out, had some nice fun and just were relaxing together, going on fast engines among other things....Very nice ;=)
A little bit later in the evening we started to work on "Eva", the first song that will be released in May, but only as a download. This is a soft and sad song with lots of emotions. It worked out very well and we felt that the day had been very fulfilling so we called it a day. Again I slept with the lights on, because of the horror movies...
05.03.2007
After breakfast the work on Eva continued by working with the harmonies and that extra touch to get the song completed. I feel very good knowing that this song is the first one that will let you all hear my voice in Nightwish and I sure hope you all will get as touched by the song as I do... truly amazing song! Since it all went so amazingly smooth with the recordings, we started with another very beautiful song right afterwards.
This song is gonna be so amazingly good with all the orchestra and the choir, it's a pleasure to sing it every single time, so I truly just enjoyed the whole afternoon and then I relaxed by myself the whole evening. Singing songs with so much emotions makes so much come to surface and I just needed to have me a bit of a laugh so I only watched funny things on TV that evening....no horror movies...
06.03.2007
After a relaxed and good nights sleep we just took it easy and didn't start until after lunch with the harmonies for the song we did last night and we were finished with this one by dinner time. After dinner we started our fifth song and this is again a song where Marco and I divide the singing between us so I sang my lead parts and then we called it a night.
07.03.2007
Woke up very early since my cell phone got a sms...arrghhh... at 8.20...puiihhh...then I felt that I could just take a nice shower before breakfast and try to wake up. I felt a bit tired and decided to take a very long walk to wake the body up. Felt good to really exercise and it always helps me to get better focus when I start the singing later on. Today Marco was coming to do his parts on some of the songs so then I could just sit and listen to him while he started doing the song I had started on. As usual sounded super good and it's always a pleasure hearing him sing. This song is gonna be very powerful and after Marco had done his things I did my harmonies in the choruses and some this and thats before it was dinner time and a break to rest the voices a bit. We did a hell of a lot harmonies in this one and I felt almost dizzy after having all these different notes in my head...;=) But the song was finished and after the break it again was time for Marco to sing on one of the songs that is his song. This one is a more accoustic song with a celtic feeling and Marco has made the music for this one too. I do some adding background vocals on this one and I recorded them after Marco was finished.
08.03.2007
Today Marco continued recording a song he sings by himself, so I had a relaxed and nice day just watching him and enjoying his vocals. It's a very angry song and as you all know, Marco can sing very powerful and he sure did... Later in the afternoon he left and I started to work on the 14-minute masterpiece by recording the first verses and it all went well. Took it easy in the evening, had dinner etc and then just went to bed after listening to the songs we had recorded up 'til now and it's 7 songs already done! Wow, that is totally amazingly good work and we all felt that we could use some rest and vacation for some days so we decided to take the weekend off and then start again on sunday afternoon.
11.03.2007
Back to work again after some nice couple of days off. Started right away with the 14-minute song again and the whole day was dedicated to that. It felt like the body and voice had relaxed so good and it always take some time to get back to business again, so we all took it easy, bit by bit until all my parts were done and now only Marcos vocals needed to be added. The song has so many different elements, both lots of power, emotions, softness and roughness. Everything combined makes this a total experience, like a movie, as you all will hear later on... Then relaxation after a good hard days work before going to bed.
12.03.2007
Today we recorded a song that from the beginning only was ment to be a bonus track, but after recording it I think we all felt that it needs to be in the album...;=) It's a very happy, melodic song and it has a chorus that really get stucked in the head immediately. We were done after a couple of hours and in the afternoon a journalist came to visit us, listen to the new songs and interview me. He was the greatest guy and we had such a blast during the evening and it ended quite late in the night... There even was some singing done by this journalist and Tuomas...growling which will be heard during the most aggressive song on the album....very funny night of recordings, I can assure u, with lots of laughs...;=)
13.03.2007
After a hard nights partying we all were tired and took it easy. I had to put on a nice make-up, nice clothes etc and do the interview and photo shoot. I was a bit black under the eyes from the lack of sleep, but since I don't drink so much, I felt quite alright. In the afternoon the journalist left home and we started working on a song which has ethnical elements in it. I even do some sounds inspired by "same-jojk". So it's a mix between sandy desert meeting Lapland and it's a big piece of music as always;=) The evening ended in front of the TV before going to bed.
14.03.2007
I woke up with the biggest headache and really not felt good at all. My body was aching and I immediately took some painkillers for the head and got back to the bed for some hour. Unfortunately nothing helped and when I tried to start recording a new song, nothing worked and we just had to take a day off for me to rest. I took some flu-medicine and put myself in front of the TV all day and just relaxed. Bad day, but we have time for a days rest so nothing to do really....
15.03.2007
Since I still didn't feel so good I rested the whole morning and didn't start recording until 13.30, where we recorded what is gonna be a bonus track. A very happy, nice song that sounds very Finnish and Scandinavian to me. Worked well and we were ready with that one around 19.30. It was time to relax a bit.
16.03.2007
Took it easy during the morning, just a nice walk as usual and then at 13.30 we started recording again. Todays song was quite high to sing for me so I was a bit worried about the voice, due to the flu, but after some warm-up takes it sounded good again. The song is a softer one and when I recorded the demo for it I immediately loved to sing it. It has very nice lyrics and a melancholic feeling in the chorus that just gets to me. I enjoy to sing it because of that. After dinner and some continued recording, I took a sauna before some TV and bed. I felt so much better now and that made me happy since there were still 2 songs to go....
17.03.2007
Weekend again, but we continued recording since the days are running faster now.... This day we had a song that Emppu has done the music for and Tuomas the lyrics. When I first sang this for the demo-recordings it was quite weird and hard to sing, because of its melody, that are very up and down....but Tuomas had a moment of deep thinking and then he asked me to sing more straight instead, changing the melody, and it turned out so cool... I think this song is the weirdest, but at the same time, so great in it's beat and melody....and we experimented the whole day and there were many: "no, can we do that??" to be followed by: "wow, sooo cool....". A very funny day and one of the ones where we had to try out so many things and then really think deeply to solve some problems along the way. But when the singing was done and Tuomas recorded some “demo-keyboards” on top, the feeling among us was that it's a great song with spooky elements in it... I think it's a combination between The Grudge and Tim Burton's movies... And when it was time for relaxation after another good day, we counted the recorded songs to 11!!
18.03.2007
Sunday and last day for my vocal recordings!!! Only one song left and this one is a bonus song, which we don't even know yet if we're gonna be allowed to release since the original composer hasn't said his yes yet....but we keep our fingers crossed and of course we record it anyway... It's a very, very beautiful song and Tuomas lyrics are so good and suit it well. For me, I felt a bit nervous about this one, since it goes extremely high in the end and there were some difficult parts here and there for me to get over. But the guys were so nice and helpful and when we started to work on it, I just let the song flow and it went very well. Did the harmonies as well and then Tuomas recorded some demo-keyboards on top and it sounded amazing! I sure hope the composer will say yes, cause it would be so disappointing if we can't release this one...
19.03.2007
So, I was done with the recordings and now Marco came back to do the things he had left here and there in the songs. As always he turned up, did great vocals and his voice added so much to the songs. At the same time as he recorded, I had some guests to entertain. Some record company people and also other guests. We all had a nice day. The whole day was buzzing with people and we all had a nice meal together in the evening, before they left again and we could relax and go to bed.
20.03.2007
The thing that remained now was to listen through all the recorded songs and fix some minor things, before we said that everything is ok to go to the mixing table and mastering. The day was mainly just packing, fixing cd's to everyone and eating our last dinner together. Then in the evening, we had a party!! Super nice party and I must say that I had kept myself sober and very good all the weeks, due to being able to sing good...but this night I could just let go and drink and have a blast with the guys....
I didn't fall asleep until early morning and even if I didn't feel so good the morning after, it was sure worth it!! Super nice evening!
21.03.2007
Sooo.....3 weeks of recordings, being away from home had come to an end....and I felt both happy and sad at the same time...;=) Mixed emotions, of course... since the whole period of time had been so tremendously rewarding and at the same time lots of hard work....but mainly I felt very sad leaving this place where I had slept for so many nights, had so many laughs, chewed my nails in fear after watching the horror movies, eaten superb food, been together with my new family and been singing in all the various ways I can, using my voice as fully as I can.... what a great time!!! And best of all, it's only the beginning... See u all soon!!!
Written by Anette on May 13, 2007
The Abbey Road Studios - Kimmo
Day 1
21.2.2007
Wake-up at 5:45 a.m.
It was –29 degrees outside. Oh, darn it. I wondered if the old LT would start up, because it didn’t have an engine block heater. …Or actually it did, but typically it was taken for maintenance mere three weeks ago, just in time for freezing weathers to start – when it was known already in last springtime that the current piece of machinery was malfunctioning. Luckily it started up, so after a drive to the station and a train to Helsinki, I was in Seutula waiting for the plane to take off. The “stars” were on a different flight than I was, but that was my entire fault because I booked the trip way too late. The others flew straight to London, but I was going via Oslo. The departure was approximately at the same time, at 2PM, but the boys arrived two hours earlier. Only now have I actually had time to think about what’s to be expected: possibly the most legendary studio in the world?! Wait, scratch that last one. In these few days I’d have to siphon all the know-how possible. It could very well be that I become a public nuisance there.
6 p.m. Finally in London
…Yes, finally. The flights were late and Heathrow was packed. The plane from Oslo was late 45 minutes to start with, and more was to follow: we circled above London for 30 more minutes waiting to be landed, and there was still more. When we finally touched down we had to sit on our asses for 45 minutes waiting for a place for the plane to open up in the terminal.
Thanks to the excellent networking of the London tubes, the rest of the journey from the airport to the hotel was easy. Only a couple of switches and I was 300 meters from my hotel. The time was already past eight in the evening, so I decided to skip the visit to the studio. There would have been only the transferring of materials tonight, so it really didn’t matter. Tomorrow at 9:30 a.m. the proper sessions would start and I’d be watching and learning.
Day 2
22.2.2007
Wake-up at 7:30a.m.
It’s freezing! Not outside, inside. The window, which was 2 meters high, was letting in lots of cold air. Oh dear, some good Finnish carpentering would be needed in this four star hotel! (I guess the Britons have their own standards of classification for their hotels, because in Finland this would barely be considered a hostel.) After a quick breakfast a trip to the store to buy a new map of London, as the one bought yesterday only showed central London, and Abbey Road was not in it. After a quick check-up I managed to find the way to the studio. But then I called Ewo who invited me for a cup of coffee to his hotel. I took a 30 minute ride in the tube to the boys’ hotel Danubis, and from there-on a ten minute walk to Abbey Road. As we approached the legendary crosswalk I started to look around: where was the studio? All the buildings around us looked pretty much the same. As my gaze wandered a bit I did manage to find the place we’re headed. From the outside the building looked tiny, but once we got in I noticed how very wrong I was. There are two stories above ground level and one below. This was also where Studio1 was located, which had a large space to play in, and where the recordings would take place tonight and tomorrow.
As we arrived most of the preparations have already been done: the microphones were in place and a massive earphone-thingy had been built for the orchestra (there are 66 musicians and every one had their own headsets, and still there were as many left over on the shelves). A monster-sized Neve88RS mixer was dominating the control room and the listening was a product of B&W: three frontal speakers + a subwoofer and five speakers in the back!
Present in the studio:
Arranger Pip Williams
Conductor James Shearman
Recording engineer Haydn Bendall
ProTools operator Richard
Two assistants (I wish we could afford these in Finland as well)
Mikko Karmila, Jukka, Tuomas, Ewo, Toni
The schedule for today’s sessions is as follows:
The orchestra from 10a.m. to 2 p.m.: 66 musicians
From 3 p.m. to 6p.m.: 51 musicians
The skill in all areas here was sooo damn impressive that it was actually frightening. >From the first takes on the musicianship was astounding. Somehow it was hard to realise that the orchestra actually just had received their notations, and have not had a chance to rehearse at all. On the other hand, when I heard what these people have been up to previously I wondered no more. The conductor of the orchestra has directed the London Symphony Orchestra in, say, the Harry Potter films. Haydn has been working on the sounds in the movies of James Cameron. I thought it might be better that a boy from the countryside did not try to tell people what to do. The only minor nuisance was that the listening in the control room, although superb, was pretty damn LOUD! Pip told us that the B&W speakers are excellent for classical music, although treble elements are constantly being replaced. No wonder why.
After the orchestrations some “traditional” singular instruments were due, like kettledrums, a railroad track, and a piece from a block of flats. The two latter instruments were used to convey a dazzling doomsday sound, which Tuomas commented as the best he had ever heard. After the kettledrummer had finished his parts he entered meekly into the recording room to ask for a copy of the notation. He mentioned being also a music teacher and added that this was the most difficult session ever. He told that his students will get some Nightwish notes in front of them, if they start to think too highly of themselves. That’ll wipe the smirk off their faces. In the midst of the listening sessions I drank at least two potfuls of coffee, which the assistants keep carrying in, and emptied a whole bowl of grapes.
The choir from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.: 33 singers
When the choir was in the beginning of the first song, I was amazed to hear that they have neither rehearsed this song – nor even heard it before. It’s not one of the easiest songs for the singers, but still it was done in just over half an hour. Actually the recordings are becoming slightly boring because nothing “unusual” is happening. These people are “Pro”!
Day 3
23.2. Abbey Road Studio
I arrived at 11 a.m. in time to hear the last take of the orchestrations. Another showcase of professionalism, as over two hours of the time reserved was not spent. So we waited, because the choir was coming back to carry on their work only at 2 p.m. Nothing could be done to hurry things up. At last the singers arrived, and to quote a legendary sportscaster: “It is done!” I could do nothing but admire that level of skill.
At 7 p.m. a slightly different instrument was introduced: a harpsichord from Hungary. The thing reminded of a grand piano with the lid and keyboards removed, and it was played by hitting the strings directly with two “sticks”. In whole of London there is only this one guy who knows who to play this instrument. This doesn’t mean that the guy sucked or anything, very much on the contrary! So no point in starting up a career in London playing this thing as long as this guy is still around.
So, that was it for the singing and playing this time around. The hard drive was backed-up and the studio cleared of microphones – by the assistants – and then it was onward to the hotel.
Finishing notes:
Unfortunately I had to leave for Finland early on Saturday morning, so I missed the gospel choir being recorded in Studio2. In the very same studio some band called The Beatles also recorded their things! Later on I heard that there were lots of things to see and hear. I hope the guys took a lot of pictures.
Before these sessions I questioned the whole point of this endeavour: to go to England to record the orchestra and the choirs. I really don’t question that anymore: the quality was, and is superb and everything was fast, and we could really focus on the main thing in making music – the content. Also that the sound in Studio1 was major factor in the end result. In Finland this would have required an operahouse or the like to be rented, and that would have been way too difficult. I’m eagerly awaiting for the album to be finished!
Written by Kimmo on May 3, 2007
The Abbey Road Studios - Ewo
Sunday 17.12.2006 Helsinki – London
During the afternoon we had a meeting at the King Foo headquarters concerning the upcoming world tour. Some preliminary plans were made, the situation with the crew discussed, the overall atmosphere of the pack was examined, about 5 pots of coffee drunk and a whole bunch of rolls eaten. Spirits were up and the humour still there. Looking good!
Then a taxi to the airport and off to London! Not long after arriving to the hotel and sitting at the lobby bar we met the first local one with a demotape...
Monday 18.12.2006 - London
There was excitement and whispers from the past times in the air as we arrived to the legandary Abbey Road Studios. At 10 am. the first orchestral sessions started, this time with 66 musicians, lasting throughout the whole day, with the choir recordings late in the evening. Pip Williams is quite a wizard with the orchestrations! Some salad at the Abbey Road cafeteria during lunchbreak, which ended up being a countdown to an afternoon nap at the extremely comfy sofa of Studio – A.
Bedtime at 9.30 pm. Recording heavy metal is such a hard duty.
Tuesday 19.12.2006 – London
In the studio things were picked up from where they were left last night. More orchestras and choirs. I went to Oxford Street to have some sushi and do some Christmas shopping with Emppu. Tuomas, Jukka, Mikko & Tero stayed at the studio the whole day. Way to go, you eager beavers!
In the evening I found myself at the sold-out Cradle Of Filth – show in Astoria. The band was real tight, the crowd supporting them 6-0! Also Toni (Peiju, from King Foo) arrived to the London fog, and after the gig we went to Carlic&Shots with our local agent to have a bite. Then, goodnight.
Wednesday 20.12.2006 – London
This day was booked for the recordings of a brilliant piper, Mr. Troy Donockley, who is also a member of a international magicians` society, ”Magic Circle”. Pip already ”warned” us about this fantastic player and magician. Troy, beside his playing, performed his tricks in every possible moment, messing with our rational minds every time he did so. I won`t go into details here, you wouldn`t believe me anyway... It was pure art of magic.
He had also met the guy who originally taught Uri Geller how to bend spoons. It`s not hard to guess that during the evening there was a whole bunch of bent spoons and forks on the tables... Not to mention the flying cards, burning deck of cards, etc.
Thursday 21.12.2006 – London
Mrs. Nollaig Casey was the guest musician of the day. This lovely Irish lassie and her fiddle were needed for a couple of celtic-styled songs and WHOA, her performance was mere brilliance! The recordings lasted until late evening and while Nollaig and Tuomas went to have dinner at the lobby bar, I went to check out the old hardcore band, GBH. Great show, punk`s not dead!
Returning to the hotel, lots of familiar faces at the bar and a table full of bent spoons... Seems like a few pots of HouseCoffee had also been drunk.
Friday 22.12.2006 – London
The last day of recordings was reserved for 2 boy sopranos. These lads were needed for just one song and they did their parts so fast that I didn`t see a glimpse of them before arriving to the studio. Tuomas, Jukka and Mikko were there, though, to witness the fantastic performance. Wait `n hear!
Recordings finished, backups taken, time to go home. Or so you would think.
Once at the Heathrow airport we found out that our flight was cancelled due to the severe fog. The earliest we could make it home would be sometime during Christmas Eve. So back to the hotel, booking an extra two nights and drinking some HouseCoffee to ease the melancholy.
Saturday 23.12.2006 – London (still here)
Throughout the day some furious Christmas shopping and a sushi-orgy. Karmila threatened to buy ” so much junk, rubbish and crap for the family, that it should keep him out of the purgatory for a while”. `Tis the season to be merry!
Hours and hours of walking, feet aching, early to bed since the alarm is set for 5.45 am! This flight we cannot miss, or we will spend the holidays in a London hotelroom.
Sunday 24.12.2006 – London – Helsinki
Jepsss! We made it to the plane. Finnish newspapers and Finnair`s meaty (I got Jukka`s meatballs as well) dinner were nice mind - lifters. Tuomas & Jukka rented a car at the Helsinki airport to make it home for the night.
All in all, the trip was a success, and it seems that the album will end up being ”totally insane” (Tuomas)!!
And don`t forget the new cheers for Emppu during the upcoming tour: ” Good, Eetu!, Yes, Eetu!!!)
Yours,
Eduardo Pohjola
Written by Ewo Pohjola on January 1, 2007
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29-30.10.2006 – Tuomas
I`m writing this while flying back to Finland from Hamburg, Germany. We spent the weekend there with Ewo & Toni (King Foo), meeting some people from the publishing company and Nuclear Blast. They wanted to hear some new Nightwish demo songs and make some preliminary plans for the year 2007. The meeting went really well, one broken sterosystem, due to listening to the new songs far too loud, and a bunch of happy big bosses. The feedback from them was very flattering, which naturally gave us loads of confidence.
We also chose the upcoming single songs.
The discussion went on in the evening in our hotel room. Posing in the cover of latest ”Talouselämä” (=Financial lives) – magazine, business – guru Holopainen decided to draw back from the conversation, since he didn`t understand anything of the jargon they were talking about. I`m happy to leave the money issues etc. to those smarter to me.
In a few moments I find myself in Clochard – bar, hammering nails into a wooden log, and drinks into my head. Kapanen, the legendary keeper of the Hamburg rock shop, and Ville of HIM are also there. Kapanen wins this extremely simple but addictive hammer-a-nail-into-a-log-game every time. But hey, he was the only one sober.
The journey continued into another bar, where Ewo and Toni also joined us. This girl, hanging from an aluminum pole, was having a birthday. Ville and I sang a Happy Birthday-song to her (Ville sang, I sounded like Evinrude-engine in distress), a gesture which gave us free drinks for the rest of the night. One way of making it cheap, I guess.
A couple of weeks ago I visited Emppu in his studio in Kerava, Finland, checking out his progress with the guitars he`s been recording for the upcoming Nightwish album. He had 13/15 done of the comp guitars. 4 comp guitars with 2 different sounds (Bogner + Engl & MesaBoogie + Marshall). In addition to these, he will record 2 more guitars here `n there with a special sound, plus leads and solos. This is pretty much the same way we recorded guitars for the ”Once” –album. Everything he`s done so far sounds simply fantastic, and played with utmost care. First Jukka`s better-than-ever effort and then this.
I feel very proud of the guys.
The very next day we tested another vocalist canditate. She came to the studio to sing some new songs. Sounded astonishingly good! She sang one of the new slower songs with such soul it made the songwriter bite his lip instead of producing.
Farewell to the girl and back to studio to listen through all the songs with Emppu. We marked all the parts with guitar leads and solos so he can go on with his recordings. It was a boring duty, so we ended up doing a whiskey-stenched trash-version of a legendary Finnish song; Tapio Rautavaara`s ”Rosvo-Roope”.
I`m still ashamed of that, some legends should stay untouched.
When I got back home I checked through all the new lyrics. 13 ready so far, 2 still under way. I felt content to realize this is the best I can do. 3 lines of the lyrics were cencored, though. I received a very polite note from London saying that these lines would be far too unappropriate to sing, since we are not doing another ”Exorcist”-sequel here... I got the point and rewrote the lines with a bleeding heart. The artist was again misunderstood.
Or actually he was understood all too well this time.
The album cover/booklet artwork is being done as we speak. Toxic Angel and his wife Gina (Highest Hopes / End Of An Era) will do the artwork again. Looking very good!
Across the Big Blue, in Los Angeles, Mr. Jussi Tegelman has just finished creating the additional soundscapes for the album. Instead of using samples from FX-CD`s, we wanted something tailor-made for these songs only, and luckily Jussi agreed to help. He`s doing sounds/effects for movies as a profession.
So this is where we stand at the moment. Once Marco has some time off from Tarot, we will record the basses, within the next 2 weeks for sure. Then pretty much all we can do is wait for the orchestral sessions in Abbey Road, London to begin, since it`s no use to record any keys, vocals or solos prior to that. Pip Williams calls me on a daily basis, to clarify some chords, notes or new arrangement ideas. He`s in fire, like the band, which can only be a positive thing for the album. Seems like the guestlist of the album will be the size of Kitee`s phonebook. Due to the orchestras and choirs, mostly. It actually feels like the process has spread in so many directions I`m soon out of strings from my fingers. But the trust in the pack is strong. We feel that when it comes to the atmosphere, this might be the most ”band album” we`ve done so far.
Writing chordmaps for Pip, working with the missing pieces of lyrics and rehearsing for the upcoming Kotiteollisuus-tour. These will fill my days in the near future.
There will be more to tell and we will be in touch soon!
Take care, all of ya,
Tuomas, 29.-30.10.2006
The most inspiring of the month:
Movies: Dead Poets` Society, Wolf Creek, The Notebook
Books: Walt Whitman: Leaves Of Grass, Robin Hobb: Fool`s Fate
Music: Tarot: Crows Fly Black, Kotiteollisuus: Iankaikkinen, Lady In The Water-Soundtrack, NW – demo, with `n without vocals
TV: Maajussille Morsian (A Bride for Farmer John ??!!)
Written by Tuomas on November 10, 2006
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9-20.9.2006 – Drums / Jukka
On Saturday 9.9.2006, we gathered together after approximately two months long demo recording break. Schedule included traditional acts like setting up the instruments and talking bullshit. But we also managed to play through a couple of songs. On Sunday we didn’t play at all since we had something else to do...
From Monday to Wednesday we went through the new songs and made the final changes to them. It’s really rewarding to notice that making a demo really helps with certain things. Some things that sounded really good when we made the demo needed to be completely re-arranged. So even though making a demo from the new songs sometimes feels like a waste of time, it’s the only way to be able to notice that certain things that sound great to you are complete nonsense. Luckily at this point we can still change them.
On Thursday morning Ewo picked me up from the hotel and our journey to Petrax Studios started. Tuomas stayed in Helsinki to take part to a release party of a new Donald Duck book called ”Rokkikukot”. I and Ewo picked up the drums from our rehearsal place and headed toward Hollola. As you can see and especially hear from one of our video blogs, the journey was once again full of stupid and meaningless small talk. But we had a lot of fun and that’s all that matters. After getting to Petrax Studios we took our equipments in and Ewo headed back to Helsinki to join Tuomas in Donald Duck book’s release party. Kai Hahto (Wintersun), who we had an honour to get to take care of tuning drums, arrived in the evening.
On Friday morning we set up the drums with Mr. Hahto and he started to search for the desired sound. At the noon Mr. Karmila, Tuomas and Mr. TeeCee arrived and we made the last changes in drum sounds. The desired sound was found surprisingly easily and great thanks for it goes to Mr. Hahto. More than ever we paid attention to the sounds since real sounds are planned to be used more than ever in a final mix. Let’s see how it turns out to be. At the end of a day we recorded one nice song and headed to sauna.
When the first beams of sun lit Saturday morning, we started the first actual recording day. Quick sound checks confirmed that no big changes in sounds needed to be done and we started to go through the first songs. The first song was a low tempo song which could be used as background music for a North-African sightseeing. This song is not that difficult to play but because of the low tempo we needed to make sure that the beat was running smoothly. A second song recorded was a 14 minutes ”mammoth” in which parts change from a basic beat to extremely heavy ”Pantera” kind of riff blast. But the changes between the different parts worked really well, so recording a song was a piece of cake. Then we recorded a song which had a ”demo” name ”Woods” which comes from traditional Finnish tunes which this song has. Last one for the day was new album’s cover song. This time the cover song is not originally a ”real” song but more like a great piece of art which has one of the most beautiful themes ever made. Original song doesn’t have any lyrics but we added them and without forgetting the original atmosphere of the tune tried to turn it into a ”real” song.
At the end of a day everybody agreed that we could be really happy for the result of the day. We reserved 10 days for the drum recordings because we definitely don’t want to do anything in a hurry. But even though we didn’t work for long today (4-5 hours) we got 4 songs recorded (including one 14 minutes monster), so we were really happy.
We started to work on Sunday being still satisfied from previous day’s results. First in line was a song which is build around Marco’s great riff and Tuomas’s awesome chorus. In a C-part of this song we changed the traditional 16th note double bass drum beat to a bit more interesting 16th note double bass drum/snare beat. Not that difficult beat to play but definitely more interesting. Then we recorded a song made by Emppu which includes strong old school heavy influences. Especially the C-part before the last chorus includes quite nice blast. Third song was a song which is probably the straightest of the songs going to the new album and it has quite a strong hit potential. We ended the day by recording a ballad which doesn’t have that much drum parts so it was an easy job for me.
Again being extremely satisfied for the results of the day we decided to try to make recording a bit more challenging by getting a hangover for the next day. Emppu came to visit us and after we’d gone to sauna, checked out the new Dream Theater DVD and raised a few glasses we already had a wanted challenge on our way. But the challenge hunt didn’t end yet. It continued until the early hours and included recording session for a great blues song. Song is well recorded and some day it will probably be released for people to hear but probably it won’t end up being in our next album...
Monday morning came after well slept 4 hours. Sand in my mouth and feeling numb I tried to get myself started. But even before opening my eyes I was sure our search for a challenge had been successful. Pro is always a pro!!!
The start of the recordings was delayed since the other guys also had problems getting themselves started. Eventually we dragged ourselves into the studio and recorded three songs. First one was maybe the simplest song in the new album which in all its simplicity works extremely well. Second song recorded has a bit of the same mood as Wish I Had An Angel has. Last song for the day of suffering was a potential first single for the next album. This song has great bass drum rhythms both in verses and in C-part and somehow it succeeds to bluff its listener to think it’s an easy song even though it’s actually one of the most difficult ones on the new album.
Since we really didn’t feel like partying we went to sleep to be able to give 100% for the last recording day.
On Tuesday morning we woke up with a smile in our faces knowing that there were only two more songs to be recorded and after that… PARTY! We started by recording a calm ballad in which we needed to focus on getting the beat running smoothly because tempo is really slow. When playing beat on a slow tempo, the beat easily sounds unsteady which makes the whole song to sound unsteady. We succeeded really well, and after a little break it was time to take over the last song. It was a song which in Nightwish-scale is extremely fast and goes on the very limits of player’s abilities. After being sure this song was well recorded it was time to party. First we took a fast trip to the nearest liquer store and then went to sauna. In the early hours we again recorded some great stuff which might be released someday, somehow.
On Wednesday morning we packed our cars, said goodbyes and started our trip back home feeling tired but at the same time really happy and satisfied. We had drums recorded for another album of a band which has no commercial potential what so ever. Things could be worse.
Written by Jukka on October 16, 2006
