_Imaginaerum is the seventh studio album by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish, that was released on the 30th of November 2011.The album is a concept album as said by Tuomas in an interview telling the story of an old composer on his deathbed, reminiscing of his youth. The album was produced alongside the movie of the same name, directed by Stobe Harju, who previously directed Nightwish's "The Islander" music video, and the album and the film share the same themes and general story. The first single off the album, "Storytime" was released on November 9, and quickly topped the Finnish single charts.Imaginaerum was certified 2x Platinum in Finland on the day of its release, with more than 50,000 copies sold. It has been described as Nightwish's best album by Sonic Seducer, and named Album of the Year by Metal Hammer.
The album has been described as following a natural development from Dark Passion Play, inspired greatly by film scores. Like Dark Passion Play as well as Once and Century Child it features a live orchestra, again orchestrated by Pip Williams. The orchestrations have been described as "beautiful, twisted, tribal and cinematic", but will not be featured on every track as it was on Dark Passion Play. Bassist Marco Hietala has emphasized that the album is heavier than the predecessor.
Holopainen has cited three major influences on the album film director Tim Burton, author Neil Gaiman and painter Salvador Dalí.Musical influences include Hans Zimmer, Danny Elfman, Ennio Morricone, Christy Moore, Van Halen and Pantera, and one song especially - "Rest Calm" - is inspired by death/doom giants Paradise Lost and My Dying Bride. Holopainen has called one song the "epic song of the album", "Song of Myself", which is almost as long as Dark Passion Play's "The Poet and the Pendulum" at 13 minutes. It is divided into four parts and especially influenced by poet Walt Whitman. One acoustic piece is also called "a Moominvalley Christmas Carol". One song, referenced to as "the Nukkumatti song" (nukkumatti being Finnish for sandman) is described as "a pounding, twisted and chorusless ghost train ride is sure to bring a smile to your face. At least it has done so to everyone who has heard it. Danny Elfman goes humppa", and another is described as "something completely different from anything we've ever done. All of us need to find new ways to play our instruments and use vocals for that piece. A terrifically challenging and mind-expanding song."
References by Wikipedia
The album has been described as following a natural development from Dark Passion Play, inspired greatly by film scores. Like Dark Passion Play as well as Once and Century Child it features a live orchestra, again orchestrated by Pip Williams. The orchestrations have been described as "beautiful, twisted, tribal and cinematic", but will not be featured on every track as it was on Dark Passion Play. Bassist Marco Hietala has emphasized that the album is heavier than the predecessor.
Holopainen has cited three major influences on the album film director Tim Burton, author Neil Gaiman and painter Salvador Dalí.Musical influences include Hans Zimmer, Danny Elfman, Ennio Morricone, Christy Moore, Van Halen and Pantera, and one song especially - "Rest Calm" - is inspired by death/doom giants Paradise Lost and My Dying Bride. Holopainen has called one song the "epic song of the album", "Song of Myself", which is almost as long as Dark Passion Play's "The Poet and the Pendulum" at 13 minutes. It is divided into four parts and especially influenced by poet Walt Whitman. One acoustic piece is also called "a Moominvalley Christmas Carol". One song, referenced to as "the Nukkumatti song" (nukkumatti being Finnish for sandman) is described as "a pounding, twisted and chorusless ghost train ride is sure to bring a smile to your face. At least it has done so to everyone who has heard it. Danny Elfman goes humppa", and another is described as "something completely different from anything we've ever done. All of us need to find new ways to play our instruments and use vocals for that piece. A terrifically challenging and mind-expanding song."
References by Wikipedia