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)
The Heart Asks Pleasure First
Nightwish Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
On the shore of wistful sea
A kindest heart made me believe
The world as I wish it to be
Wind in the wheat
Kiss by a hearth
Little hideaways for a lonely heart
Passed away in beauty’s doom
The good in me the child within
A cruelest heart made me forget
The world as I wish it to be
Home inside but lost for life
Human heart longing for love
Slave to the toil this mortal coil
The strife the suffering the void
Wind in the wheat
Kiss by a hearth
A dead calm winter morn
Morning birds and a smile of a stranger
Frozen moments in time
Little hideaways, the marrow of life
Little hideaways for a lonely heart
Wind in the wheat
Kiss by a hearth
Little hideaways for a lonely heart
Silent night surrounding me
On the shore of wistful sea
A kindest heart made me believe
The world as I wish it to be
The Heart Asks Pleasure First by Nightwish is a sorrowful yet beautiful ballad about longing for love, seeking moments of peace and joy amidst the strife and suffering that comes with life. The opening lines "Silent night surrounding me, on the shore of wistful sea" evoke a sense of loneliness and isolation, as if the singer is stranded in a desolate place. But then, a "kindest heart" appears, restoring the singer's faith in the world, making them believe in the possibility of a world as they wish it to be.
The song goes on to depict the duality of human nature - the "good in me", the "child within" versus the "cruelest heart" that makes us forget our dreams and desires. The lines "Home inside but lost for life, slave to the toil this mortal coil, the strife the suffering the void" suggest that despite having a home and a sense of belonging, the singer feels trapped in the grind of life, longing for something more, something that truly fills the void in their heart.
The song ends on a hopeful note with the repeated lines "Wind in the wheat, kiss by a hearth, little hideaways for a lonely heart". These lines evoke images of simple yet profound moments of joy and comfort that make life worth living. In essence, The Heart Asks Pleasure First is a melancholic ode to the human spirit that longs for love, connection, and meaning in a world full of chaos and uncertainty.
Line by Line Meaning
Silent night surrounding me
The peacefulness of the night is enclosing me in its stillness.
On the shore of wistful sea
I am standing near the ocean, contemplating my desires and past experiences with melancholic nostalgia.
A kindest heart made me believe
A warm-hearted person made me hope and have faith in a world that's aligned with my wishes.
The world as I wish it to be
An ideal world that satisfies my wants and needs.
Wind in the wheat
The sound of the wind moving across the fields of wheat.
Kiss by a hearth
A warm and intimate moment shared by the fireplace.
Little hideaways for a lonely heart
Small pleasures and retreats that alleviate the pains of being alone.
Passed away in beauty’s doom
Died without fulfilling one's purpose, but in a beautiful way.
The good in me the child within
The innocence and purity of my childhood self, that still exists in me.
A cruelest heart made me forget
The malice and cruelty of someone caused me to lose sight of my ideal world.
Home inside but lost for life
Feeling like I have a home inside, but not finding fulfillment in life.
Human heart longing for love
The desire for affection and meaningful connections with others.
Slave to the toil this mortal coil
Feeling like a victim of the struggles and hardships of life.
The strife the suffering the void
The conflicts, pain, and emptiness of existence.
A dead calm winter morn
A freezing, motionless morning full of bleakness and cold.
Morning birds and a smile of a stranger
Finding joy and happiness in unexpected moments and encounters.
Frozen moments in time
Memories and experiences that stay with us, unchanging and unalterable.
Little hideaways, the marrow of life
Small, simple moments and pleasures that make life worth living.
Little hideaways for a lonely heart
Finding comfort and solace in simple pleasures, especially when feeling alone.
Silent night surrounding me
The peaceful and quiet atmosphere of the night enveloping me.
On the shore of wistful sea
Reflecting on my desires and the past, while being near the ocean.
A kindest heart made me believe
A compassionate and caring person gave me hope and faith in my ideal world.
The world as I wish it to be
The perfect, ideal world that aligns with my desires and needs.
Contributed by Abigail B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Queen Of Nowhere
Silent night surrounding me
On the shore of wistful sea
A kindest heart made me believe
The world as I wish it to be
Wind in the wheat
Kiss by a hearth
Little hideaways for a lonely heart
Passed away in beauty’s doom
The good in me the child within
A cruelest heart made me forget
The world as I wish it to be
Home inside but lost for life
Human heart longing for love
Slave to the toil this mortal coil
The strife the suffering the void
Wind in the wheat
Kiss by a hearth
A dead calm winter morn
Morning birds and a smile of a stranger
Frozen moments in time
Little hideaways, the marrow of life
Little hideaways for a lonely heart
Wind in the wheat
Kiss by a hearth
Little hideaways for a lonely heart
Silent night surrounding me
On the shore of wistful sea
A kindest heart made me believe
The world as I wish it to be
Abel Ortega
my mom used to play this song for me on piano when i had 5. Thx to Nightwish for this precious tribute.
Queen Of Nowhere
Silent night surrounding me
On the shore of wistful sea
A kindest heart made me believe
The world as I wish it to be
Wind in the wheat
Kiss by a hearth
Little hideaways for a lonely heart
Passed away in beauty’s doom
The good in me the child within
A cruelest heart made me forget
The world as I wish it to be
Home inside but lost for life
Human heart longing for love
Slave to the toil this mortal coil
The strife the suffering the void
Wind in the wheat
Kiss by a hearth
A dead calm winter morn
Morning birds and a smile of a stranger
Frozen moments in time
Little hideaways, the marrow of life
Little hideaways for a lonely heart
Wind in the wheat
Kiss by a hearth
Little hideaways for a lonely heart
Silent night surrounding me
On the shore of wistful sea
A kindest heart made me believe
The world as I wish it to be
Un known
고마워요
Diego Gabriel Darnay
Gracias!!
Arch Lich
Thank you!
Aislinn
This was an older folk song which became popular because pianists like Michael Nyman and Myleene Klass recreated it. Tuomas took the piano style of the song and the old lyrics and orchestrated it to fit with the metallic theme of Nightwish and the guitars and drums. He added extra chorus singers and the orchestral flutes and strings to make it more folk-like and still mix with the band's instruments.
Tyurru360
Love this song; truly beautiful. Anette's voice has a fragility to it that neither Floor nor Tarja could mimic.
Niki
@Dave Mason probably the struggles of doing tarjas songs too much for her for a whole concert, mind you though there were a few she did very well, that acoustic version of Nemo she did was brilliant
Claire Berkes
Finally someone else said it! I've always felt that Anette brought an innocence to Nightwish's songs that Tuomas always seemed to be searching for in his lyrics.
Lucie Keberlova
Never....every Nightwish lady is diferent. For me is best Floor, with Anette I like few songs. I like Floor because she is showlady, her communication with people is truly perfect and I like how she sings.