My love for Nightwish is no secret. I've instantly fallen for that band since "Angels Fall First" (1998) which surprised many people who know that I'm not a big fan of fast riffs or excessive use of keyboards; it wasn't just because of Tarja's siren-like voice (and somewhat funny accent in their first album) but also because of Tuomas' brilliant compositions which managed to remain interesting even after lots and lots of listening sessions. And to keep a huge Anathema, My Dying Bride and Opeth fan interested in that kind of music is no small feat at all, if you know what I mean.
Nightwish were already well known by 2000 and my co-worker Fotis T. was trying to find a way to get them here, he even contacted Emmpu through e-mail from which he got a reply that they'd love to come to Greece but there was actually no proposition from any promoter. It took 4 more years to see Nightwish at Rockwave Festival, the same day with Queensryche performing the entire "Operation Mindcrime" and Judas Priest returning with Rob Halford after a million years (give or take a few centuries). The sound quality was mediocre, they only played for 40-45' and the setlist was limited mostly to promoting the amazing "Once" (2004). Needless to say, every fan wanted something much better and certainly an event where they would be the headliners.
A year later the huge success helped for that and Lycabettus Open Theater was ready for a Nightwish-only show. The weather was really weird and it had been raining for the better part of the day, but somehow the sky cleared up that night; coincidence? I think not. Probably nature itself shut the hell up to listen to them.
More than 3.500 people were inside the theater and lots who couldn't afford a (PRICEY) ticket had camped around it on the hilltop rocks. Pretty impressive sight, especially when one of them lit up a flare and started jumping around, standing on a rock 30 meters above the ground. Yes, Greeks are loonies; that's verified alright.
Nightwish appeared at 9:40 pm with "Dark Chest Of Wonders", forcing people to go crazy, jumping around like nuts, something that went on through the entire night with only short breaks during the slow songs. "Planet Hell", "Ever Dream", "Kinslayer", a "Phantom Of The Opera" cover and the "Siren" followed. "Sleeping Sun" was something I really expected since I'm just filled with awe at Tarja's beautiful voice with this song. I mean sure, I really enjoy it when she's hitting high notes too - with extreme ease - but she really tears my soul apart with vocals like the ones she uses in it.
The next song came as a surprise to me (and a guy I met there) since we had been talking about how great Pink Floyd are just before the gig started. I think we should have discussed about winning a gazillion bucks in a lottery before, but that was nice as well. A cover of "High Hopes" was the perfect opportunity for Tarja to rest (and do some outfit modifications) and for the Pink Floyd fans to get a small taste for what we'll probably never see live the way it should be performed; by the way, that cover is also included in their "Best Of" release.
The siren returned and the show continued with "Bless The Child", "Wishmaster" (more frenzy from the crowd), "Slaying The Dreamer", "Kuolema Tekee Taiteilijan", "Nemo" (madness reigned, big time) and "Ghost Love Score".
Just before the encore, they were awarded with a Golden Record on stage for the sales of "Once" in Greece. It's quite refreshing to see that award go to a band that really deserves it for a change.
After the short ceremony that took place in front of the cheering fans, they performed "Creek Mary's Blood" and ended the night with "Wish I Had an Angel", one of my fave songs that they were unfortunate enough to have included it in the soundtrack of one of the worst movies EVER, "Alone In The Dark" (ranking high amongst IMDB's top worst 150 movies), directed by none other than the worst director alive, Dr. Uwe Boll. I just had to mention this hideous movie to save some innocent souls from watching this piece of cinematic crap (or any other crap this madman has released) just because there's Nightwish in it. Don't do it, seriously, removing your fingernails with a set of pliers is more fun and less painful.
Back to the live gig now; the band performed as it should - perfectly. Tarja was enchanting, Tuomas, Emmpu and Jukka were just perfect and Marco was crazy as always; he also used his gift of turning the crowd nuts really often.
The sound was crystal clear, the weather was excellent (important for an open theater on such a risky night), the pictures came out looking great by Orpheus (BIG thanks to Efi for lending us her camera) and everyone had one and a half hour of pure fun.
I do have a small complaint though. Last year they had limited time to perform, so they naturally chose to use it to promote "Once" that was just released. But this year I expected something from their first two albums too. For some reason they have blocked them out from their setlist and I really doubt if "Sleeping Sun" would be in it if it wasn't for the 2005 re-release. I can't understand why they chose to do so and I can think of quite a few songs from "Angels Fall First" and "Oceanborn" (1999) that I'd rather listen to, instead of some songs they performed that night and I'm sure that most of the older Nightwish fans will agree with me. It's a shame that they ignore songs such as "Elvenpath", "The Carpenter", "Sacrament of Wilderness", "The Riddler", "Beauty And The Beast", "Devil And The Deep Dark Ocean" or "The Pharaoh Sails To Orion" which are a credit to any band's discography.
Hopefully this will change in the future and I really hope that their next visit here won't be in a couple of years just to promote another album but to give us a live performance of the truly best of Nightwish.
