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Oceanborn is the second studio album by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish. It was released in Finland by Spinefarm Records on 7 December 1998[6] and in the spring of 1999 worldwide.[7] It was released by Drakkar Entertainment in the rest of Europe, and by Toy's Factory in Japan. It is their first album with bassist Sami Vänskä.

Oceanborn
Studio album by Nightwish
Released	7 December 1998 (1998-12-07)
Recorded	August–October 1998
Studio	Caverock, Kitee, Finland Finnvox, Helsinki, Finland
Genre	Power metal symphonic metal
Length	49:02
Label	Spinefarm
Producer	Nightwish[1]
Nightwish studio album chronology
Angels Fall First (1997) Oceanborn (1998) Wishmaster (2000)
Alternative cover
European edition
Singles from Oceanborn
"Sacrament of Wilderness" Released: 25 November 1998 "Walking in the Air" Released: 31 January 1999

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[2]
Chronicles of Chaos	10/10[3]
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal	8/10[4]
Metal Storm	10/10[5]

Oceanborn has sold more than 68,000 copies in Finland.[8] The single "Sleeping Sun" was released in August 1999, and the song has been included in every reissue of the album since then. The album was released in the US by Century Media in March 2001.[9]

In 2017, Loudwire ranked it as the 10th best power metal album of all time.[10]

Background

Speaking to Kerrang! in 2008, band founder Tuomas Holopainen reminisced that the band got really ambitious after the debut album "that was never meant to be released as a proper record. It happened almost by accident, so we decided to put everything into making Oceanborn great."[11] He added:

We were all such amateurs when it came to recording. We didn't really know what we were doing, so we were just experimenting with a lot of different things, we even brought in this string trio who were complete shit, then another violin, then another violin on top. So we ended up with 'Moondance' having 20 tracks of violin, just because we hadn't done this before and didn't know what we were doing! It's a pretty stuffed album, but I also think it's one of our best because you can hear the excitement of trying all these new things. It seems strange that this became a breakthrough album, because back at the time the music was so funny. It was really operatic, and when you look at the pictures, they look pretty horrific.[11]

According to Kerrang!, "for all its Royal Albert Hall grandiosity, Oceanborn was actually recorded in a Finnish school."[11]

Style

This album marked a definitive change in musical scope for Nightwish from their folk-laden roots in Angels Fall First, showcasing a more bombastic, power metal-oriented[12] sound with faster tempos, harmonic guitar/keyboard leads, and plenty of double-bass-heavy drumwork. During that time, Stratovarius was Holopainen's biggest inspiration, hence the power metal sound of the album.[13] Oceanborn's sound hearkens a more dramatic approach in the overall musical scope, mostly relegated to the symphonic keyboard work and lead singer Tarja Turunen's vocals. According to Mape Ollila, who penned the band's biography:

Along with Therion's Theli, the album came to be known as one of the cornerstones of the emerging genre of symphonic metal.[14]

Most of the lyrics are fantasy-themed, with tracks like "Swanheart" and "Walking in the Air", a cover from the animated TV special The Snowman, as typical examples; however, the song "Gethsemane", has a more religious feel to it. In addition, there are also some theatrical tracks like "Devil & the Deep Dark Ocean". Oceanborn is among their darkest albums, making use of the harsh vocals of Tapio Wilska in the songs "The Pharaoh Sails to Orion" and "Devil & the Deep Dark Ocean".

Live performances

Since the album's release, "Sacrament of Wilderness" has remained a fan-favorite at concerts, and it was still performed often until 2003. In 2007 it returned to the setlist but after 2008, it wasn't performed again until the Decades: World Tour in 2018. Both "Sleeping Sun" and "Walking in the Air" have also been performed often on shows. "Walking in the Air" returned to the live set list of the band on 19 September 2009 at Hartwall Areena, as an acoustic song sung by then-vocalist Anette Olzon.[15] Having been dropped from their live shows since Turunen's dismissal in 2005, "Stargazers" returned to the live set list on the Endless Forms Most Beautiful World Tour, with Floor Jansen as their newest singer in 2015.[16]

In recent years, former vocalist Tarja Turunen released covers from two Oceanborn songs: "Stargazers", on a live version (recorded 27 March 2011) that can be heard on the CD/DVD Luna Park Ride; and "Swanheart", also a live recording (April 2013) with Turunen performing accompanied by a symphonic orchestra, choir and Mike Terrana on drums, that can be heard on the CD/DVD Beauty and the Beat. Since leaving the band, she has also still sang in concerts Passion and the Opera, Sleeping Sun and Walking in the Air.

Track listing

Personnel

Credits for Oceanborn adapted from liner notes.[17]

Charts

Certifications

Country	Organization	Year	Sales
Finland	IFPI	2001	Platinum (+ 40,000)[23]

References

Bibliography

• Ollila, Mape (2007). Once Upon a Nightwish. Deggael Communications. ISBN 978-952-99749-2-4.

External links

• Nightwish's Official Website

На других языках

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[de] Oceanborn

Oceanborn ist das zweite Album der finnischen Metal-Band Nightwish. Es erschien am 7. Dezember 1998.

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- [en] Oceanborn

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[es] Oceanborn

Oceanborn es el segundo álbum de Nightwish y uno de los más importantes de la banda. Es uno de sus álbumes más oscuros por hacer uso de la voz de Tapio Wilska en canciones como "The Pharaoh Sails To Orion" y "Devil & the Deep Dark Ocean". La mayoría de las demás canciones son fantasías, como por ejemplo "Swanheart" y "Walking In The Air", aunque también hay sonidos religiosos que se hacen sentir en canciones como "Gethsemane". "Stargazers" inicialmente se llamó "Aztecs".[1]

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[ru] Oceanborn

Oceanborn (с англ. — «Рождённый океаном») — второй студийный альбом финской симфоник-метал-группы Nightwish. Его релиз состоялся в октябре 1998 года.

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