Nightwish is a Finnish symphonic metal band from Kitee. The band was formed… Read Full Bio ↴Nightwish is a Finnish symphonic metal band from Kitee. The band was formed in 1996 by lead songwriter and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen, guitarist Emppu Vuorinen, and former lead singer Tarja Turunen. The band soon picked up drummer Jukka Nevalainen, and then bassist Sami Vänskä after the release of their debut album, Angels Fall First (1997). In 2001, Vänskä was replaced by Marko Hietala, who also took over the male vocalist role previously filled by Holopainen or guest singers. Although Nightwish have been prominent in their home country since Angels Fall First, they did not achieve wider success until the release of the albums Oceanborn (1998), Wishmaster (2000) and Century Child (2002). Their 2004 album, Once, has sold more than one million copies and was the band's breakthrough in the United States. Their biggest US hit single, "Wish I Had an Angel" (2004), received MTV airplay and was included on three US film soundtracks to promote their North American tour. The band produced three more singles and two music videos for Once, as well as a re-recording of "Sleeping Sun" for the compilation album, Highest Hopes: The Best of Nightwish (2005), before Turunen's dismissal in October 2005. Her last performance with Nightwish was during a concert recorded for the live album/DVD End of an Era. After the concert, the other members informed Turunen with an open letter that she was no longer a member of Nightwish.

In May 2007, Nightwish announced Anette Olzon as Turunen's replacement. That September, the band released their sixth album, Dark Passion Play, which has sold almost 2 million copies. The album's lead single, "Amaranth", became one of Nightwish's most successful in Europe. The supporting tour, one of the band's largest, started on October 6, 2007, and ended on September 19, 2009. The band released an EP/live album, Made in Hong Kong (And in Various Other Places), in March 2009 as a CD/DVD, and their seventh studio album, Imaginaerum, was released globally on various days in late 2011/early 2012.

On October 1, 2012, Nightwish announced that they had parted ways with Olzon and would be finishing the tour with at that time ReVamp vocalist (ex-After Forever) Floor Jansen. In October 2013, Nightwish made Jansen and longtime session uilleann pipes player Troy Donockley permanent members of the band, and they were featured in the acclaimed album Endless Forms Most Beautiful, released on March 27, 2015. From 2014 to 2019, Nevalainen, while still a member of the band, was inactive due to severe insomnia issues; in July 2019, he announced that he would not be returning to the band, with Kai Hahto, who had acted as his replacement since 2014 (including by performing all drums on Endless Forms Most Beautiful), being promoted as the official drummer, and is featured as such at the ninth album, Human. :II: Nature., which was released internationally on April 10, 2020. After twenty years of performing with the band, it was announced that bassist Marko Hietala had parted ways with the band in January 2021. Jukka Koskinen was announced as Hietala's replacement to play bass during the tour. In August 2022, he was announced as a permanent member of the band.

Nightwish is the third-best-selling band and musical entity in Finland with certified sales of nearly 900,000 certified copies. The group is also the most successful Finnish band worldwide, selling more than 10 million records and receiving more than 60 gold and platinum awards, having released six Number 1 albums and thirteen Number 1 singles. On October 26, 2018, Nightwish was inducted into the Finnish Music Hall of Fame, becoming the honorary gallery's 11th member.

Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nightwish

Studio albums
Angels Fall First (1997)
Oceanborn (1998)
Wishmaster (2000)
Century Child (2002)
Once (2004)
Dark Passion Play (2007)
Imaginaerum (2011)
Endless Forms Most Beautiful (2015)
Human. :II: Nature. (2020)

SAHARA
Nightwish Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

A ballad of dark queen echoes through night
As he flees the curse of gods, the pharaoh`s wrath

1001 nights unseen
The philosopher and the queen

Ancient mariner in a sea of sand
The burning beauty his tomb to die for

1001 nights unseen
The philosopher and the queen
Horizon`s swarming with death
Run!

Heaven has a darkened face
Dunes are soaring, as on a chase
Caravan of the cursed
Chasing him across the waves

May he now rest under aegis of mirage
As the sands slowly turn to Elysian fields

1001 nights unseen
The philosopher and the queen

1001 nights unseen
The philosopher and the queen

Overall Meaning

The song Sahara by Nightwish is a powerful and enigmatic piece that tells a story of a man fleeing from the curse of the gods and the wrath of the pharaoh, while being chased by a caravan of the cursed. The lyrics describe the man's journey through the desert as he is pursued and the dangers he faces along the way. The song also features the dark queen, an ancient mariner, and the philosopher, all of whom are intertwined in this mysterious journey through the Sahara.

The lyrics are rich with symbolism and metaphor, creating vivid images of a world that is both beautiful and treacherous. The dark queen and the philosopher represent two opposing forces, with the former being associated with darkness, mystery, and chaos, while the latter embodies reason, logic, and order. The ancient mariner is a symbol of the sailor who is lost at sea and must navigate through unknown waters. Together, these characters give a sense of the unknown and the uncertain, creating a sense of tension and suspense in the song.

The chorus of the track, featuring the line "1001 nights unseen, the philosopher and the queen," is a nod to the classic collection of Middle Eastern and South Asian stories, One Thousand and One Nights. These stories were compiled over many centuries and represent a rich tapestry of cultures and civilizations. The song Sahara draws inspiration from this tradition, weaving together many different elements to create a unique and captivating musical experience.

Line by Line Meaning

A ballad of dark queen echoes through night
The night is accompanied by a song of a cruel queen.

As he flees the curse of gods, the pharaoh`s wrath
A man is running away from the wrath and curse of the gods and the pharaoh.

1001 nights unseen
There are numerous nights that have gone unnoticed.

The philosopher and the queen
There is a queen and a philosopher.

Ancient mariner in a sea of sand
An old sailor is in the middle of a sand sea.

The burning beauty his tomb to die for
The beauty of the sand is so strong that someone would even die for it.

Horizon`s swarming with death
There is death surrounding the horizon.

Run!
Someone is telling someone else to keep running away from danger.

Heaven has a darkened face
The sky is dark and gloomy.

Dunes are soaring, as on a chase
The sand dunes are moving as if they are chasing someone.

Caravan of the cursed
There is a group of people who are cursed.