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Wishmaster (album)

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Wishmaster
An image of a young boy kneeling on a cliff that oversees a large body of water. Under his knee is a piece of parchment with some writing on it. There are several swans on the water that the boy is reaching out towards, and far in the distance is a forest with many trees.
Studio album by
Nightwish
Released8 May 2000 (2000-05-08)
RecordedJanuary–March 2000
Studio
Genre
Length53:30
LabelSpinefarm
Producer
  • Nightwish
  • Tero Kinnunen
Nightwish studio album chronology
Oceanborn
(1998) 		Wishmaster
(2000) 		Century Child
(2002)
Singles from Wishmaster
  1. "Deep Silent Complete"
    Released: 16 July 2000
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles[2]
Chronicles of Chaos[3]
Metal Hammer (GER)[4]
Kerrang![citation needed]

Wishmaster is the third studio album by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish. It was released on 8 May 2000 through Spinefarm Records in Finland. The album was released in the rest of Europe by Drakkar Entertainment on 29 May, and in Japan by Toy's Factory on 19 July. In the US, it was released by Century Media on 6 February 2001.[5]

Wishmaster peaked at No. 1 in the official Finnish charts;[6] the album also debuted in the European charts at No. 21 in Germany[7] and No. 66 in France.[8] Wishmaster has sold more than 79,447 copies in Finland alone,[9] and as of January 2023, more than 150,000 copies have been sold in Germany alone, certifying the album 1x Gold.[10] In 2019, Metal Hammer ranked it as the 18th best power metal album of all time.[11]

Most reissues of the album contain the song "Sleepwalker", which was released in July 2000 to compete in the Finnish national final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2000.[12]

Background and release

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The writing and recording of Wishmaster was very fast and devoid of complications, in contrast with what had happened for Oceanborn.[13] The main composer Tuomas Holopainen considers the album "the most distant and least personal (...) in the Nightwish catalogue", despite containing the "mother of all Nightwish songs - Dead Boys' Poem."[14] The image of the dead boy would reappear in several songs of the following albums. Wishmaster was issued on 8 May 2000, a few days earlier than its scheduled release,[15] because the music had leaked onto the Internet.[13]

Music style

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Wishmaster's sound continues the bombastic symphonic power metal approach originally featured on Oceanborn, albeit with more emphasis on atmosphere and melody versus speed and heaviness. Perhaps even more so than its predecessor, Wishmaster has a very clear fantasy theme.[14] While commonly considered to be closer to conventional power metal, there is still a great variety with slower songs like "Two for Tragedy" and "Dead Boy's Poem", and more epic pieces like "FantasMic". "The Kinslayer" is written about the victims of the Columbine High School massacre.[16] "Wishmaster" was inspired by the fantasy novel series The Lord of the Rings and Dragonlance, mentioning Elbereth, Lórien, and the Grey Havens from the former; and Dalamar, Raistlin Majere (Dalamar's shalafi, or "master"), Gilthanas, the Sla-Mori, Silvara and the Inn of the Last Home from the latter.[16] "FantasMic" is a song about the Disney animated movies, particularly their fantasy and fable elements, taking its title from the Disneyland show Fantasmic!.[14]

Track listing

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All lyrics are written by Tuomas Holopainen; all music is composed by Holopainen, except where noted

Wishmaster track listing
No.TitleMusicLength
1."She Is My Sin" 4:46
2."The Kinslayer" 3:59
3."Come Cover Me"
  • Holopainen
  • Emppu Vuorinen
4:34
4."Wanderlust" 4:50
5."Two for Tragedy" 3:51
6."Wishmaster" 4:23
7."Bare Grace Misery"
  • Holopainen
  • Vuorinen
3:39
8."Crownless"
  • Holopainen
  • Vuorinen
4:26
9."Deep Silent Complete" 3:57
10."Dead Boy's Poem" 6:47
11."FantasMic" 8:18
Total length:53:30
Japanese bonus track
No.TitleLength
12."Sleepwalker" (heavy mix)3:10
Total length:56:40
2007 reissue bonus tracks
No.TitleLength
12."Sleepwalker" (original version)2:57
13."Wanderlust" (live at Pakkahuone)4:34
14."Deep Silent Complete" (live at Pakkahuone)4:24
Total length:65:25

Personnel

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Credits for Wishmaster adapted from liner notes.[17]

Charts

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Chart (2000) Peak
position
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[18] 1
French Albums (SNEP)[19] 66
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[20] 21

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Finland (Musiikkituottajat)[21] Platinum 79,447[21]
Germany (BVMI)[22] Gold 150,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ Ravelin, Antti J. "Nightwish - Wishmaster review". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  2. ^ Gromen, Mark (6 June 2000). "Nightwish - Wishmaster". Bravewords.com. Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  3. ^ Wee, Alvin (10 January 2001). "Nightwish - Wishmaster". Chronicles of Chaos. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  4. ^ "Nightwish - Wishmaster". Metal Hammer (in German). June 2000. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  5. ^ "Nightwish releases to hit the USA". Nightwish's Official Website. 22 February 2001. Archived from the original on 2 January 2010. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
  6. ^ "Nightwish - Wishmaster (album)". Finnishcharts.com. Media Control Charts. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  7. ^ "Album – Nightwish, Wishmaster". Charts.de (in German). Media Control Charts. Archived from the original on 3 September 2014. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  8. ^ "Nightwish - Wishmaster (album)". Lescharts.com (in French). Media Control Charts. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  9. ^ "Tilastot - Nightwish" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 25 August 2014.
  10. ^ "WISHMASTER by NIGHTWISH sales and awards". Retrieved 21 February 2024.
  11. ^ Chantler, Chris (14 November 2019). "The 25 greatest power metal albums". Metal Hammer. Future plc. Retrieved 2 March 2021.
  12. ^ "2000 YLLÄTYKSELLINEN KOMPROMISSIRATKAISU". yle.fi (in Finnish). Retrieved 27 November 2022.
  13. ^ a b Bonutto, Dante (2007). Wishmaster (CD Booklet). Nightwish. London, UK: Spinefarm Records UK. p. 14. 0602517449350.
  14. ^ a b c Holopainen, Tuomas (2007). Wishmaster (CD Booklet). Nightwish. London, UK: Spinefarm Records UK. p. 3. 0602517449350.
  15. ^ "New Album: Wishmaster". Nightwish's Official Website. 1 May 2000. Archived from the original on 2 January 2010. Retrieved 29 August 2014.
  16. ^ a b Holopainen, Tuomas. "Lyrics - Wishmaster". Nightwish Official Website. Archived from the original on 4 February 2012. Retrieved 26 August 2006.
  17. ^ (2000). "Wishmaster liner notes". In Wishmaster [CD booklet]. Spinefarm.
  18. ^ "Nightwish: Wishmaster" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  19. ^ "Lescharts.com – Nightwish – Wishmaster". Hung Medien. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  20. ^ "Offiziellecharts.de – Nightwish – Wishmaster" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
  21. ^ a b "Nightwish" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 10 February 2023.
  22. ^ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Nightwish; 'Wishmaster')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved 10 February 2023.

Bibliography

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