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Angels Fall First

1997 studio album by Nightwish From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Angels Fall First
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Angels Fall First is the debut studio album by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish, originally released by Spinefarm Records on 30 September 1997 as a 500-copy limited edition.[5] This edition is highly sought after by collectors and in 2012 a copy was sold for $1137.23 on eBay.[6] It was subsequently released to the general public on 1 November, with four additional songs. The album was released in the US by Century Media in March 2001.[7]

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Angels Fall First is a power metal album with gothic, folk and classical elements.[2]

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Background

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Tuomas Holopainen wrote the music for the album during his time in the Finnish Army.[8] In a 2008 interview with the British magazine Kerrang!, Tuomas Holopainen remembered:

It came about in August 1996, around a campfire. We were at my summer cabin, a bunch of friends camping out, barbecuing, singing songs, and then it just hit me that I wanted to start a band. But we were too far ambitious at that time for it to remain simply acoustic and making music with just acoustic guitar, keyboards and female voice, was just a bit boring, and we naturally started heading in a heavier direction. The funny thing about Angels Fall First is that it was only supposed to be a demo to send out to record labels. But then Spinefarm heard it and thought it was perfect, so they put it out as it was with no remixing or anything. I used to be a bit embarrassed but now I can feel proud and nostalgic about those songs.[9]

The original pressing featured Holopainen's home contact address, an accident from reprinting the demo sleeve for the album.[9]

As of December 2009, Angels Fall First has sold more than 36,000 copies in Finland alone.[10]

The band, and especially band leader and keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen has since frowned upon the album, considering it essentially an extended demo. In a 2011 interview, when asked what album other than Imaginaerum Holopainen wanted to make into a movie, he replied that it would be Angels Fall First, and that it would be "a black-and-white comedy".[11]

The male vocals heard on "Beauty and the Beast", "The Carpenter", "Astral Romance" and "Once Upon a Troubadour" are sung by keyboardist–band leader Tuomas Holopainen, as well as the whispers in the beginning of the demo version of "Etiäinen".[12] Following this release, Holopainen never sang credited on an album again, because he thought that he was not good enough.[12]

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Track listing

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All lyrics are written by Tuomas Holopainen; all music is composed by Nightwish.

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Personnel

All information from the album booklet.[13]

Nightwish

Additional musician

  • Esa Lehtinen – flute

Production

  • Tero Kinnunen – engineering, mixing, recording
  • Mika Jussila – mastering
  • Garry Black – cover photo
  • Toni Härkönen – photography

Charts

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Certifications

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Notes

  1. Standard edition release date. Limited edition released on 30 September 1997.[1]

References

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