Interview with Tuomas Holopainen (keyboards, vocals, songwriting)
Whilst the Dickensian tale of Ebenezer Scrooge is a criticism of early capitalism Scrooge McDuck’s story seems to pat the entrepreneur spirit (or the American Dream) on its back, or at least it seems so from the Disney version as I remember some details of watching it when I was a young kid. Carl Barks created McDuck on the model of Ebenezer but seems to elevate the capitalist (even if one who rose from rugs to riches) from the unsavoury anti-hero by philanthropy in the process and thus apologise him rather than transform him to an extent of Dickens’ Christmas Carol. There is still a difference between being charitable and generous. The impression I’m getting though is that McDuck is more fun, and not weighing a ton in moral judgement can be its advantage. Still, I can’t say it took hold of me so I’ve never read Don Rosa’s comic book ‘The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck’ to compare and even after listening to the album and after the interview I’m not entirely seduced into doing so, on the other hand, who knows... never say never and all that.
Tuomas Holopainen, the creative motor of NIGHTWISH, is a fan of both Disney and Don Rosa and is releasing his solo album under a loose concept of McDuck’s adventures. He got into
Rosa’s comic book back in 1995-6, and he was also a fan of Disney’s world since the age of two. I’m not really a fan of either so to stress again: I’m really an outsider looking in and my above views are to be taken as speculations rather than set opinions.Holopainen urges us to hear it out without our prejudices as it may seem a childish story to take on. He makes an example of Tolkien’s ‘Lord of the Rings’, which of course can seem childish with its array of wizards, elves, dwarfs, wraiths, disembodied demon and various subspecies of wickedness. Yet the fight against the trilogy’s evil reflects the fight against fascism of WWII, the climax of the fight is spoilt by the hobbits’ Shire descending into forced industrialisation and another form of nasty societal control (Soviet Union) conveying Tolkien’s distaste of both. All that is driven by Tolkien’s libertarian leanings with opposition to any form of totalitarian regime and pro-monarchist tendency; it can be argued that some of his views are naive and even contradictory (libertarian monarchist - wth?). Another parallel that I will draw personally beside Holopainen’s own may indeed be that the fictional character of the story is an eccentric (according to a relative of mine whose father, a former professor of Maths in Oxford University, knew the writer, who was a professor of philology, personally) as was the real person of Tolkien.
Musically I don’t think Holopainen strayed from the core of his comfort zone, on the other hand you’ll get him on what he does best – beautiful compositions underlined by his passion for film scores. He says that when he reads (though he mention this in connection with these stories I
imagine it’s so with most books, films or art that he gets into) his mind conjures music, different melodies and sounds of instruments; for me everything comes down to seeing painting and what I see within the album is fluid symmetrical patterns with non-abrasive colours. Not likely to pierce your frozen sea with an axe but soothe its encroaching blackness for a while at least – or maybe not at all. It’s at times predictable and there’s something that says his heart or focus may not have been completely in it. This may be as it was written during the break in NIGHTWISH tour because on the other hand it’s not for the lack ambition about it as he “fancied the idea of maybe being the first one ever to write a soundtrack to a graphic novel.” Also I wonder if he lost something in trying to make the album more “accessible and interesting” by adding “lyrics, human voices, even a few choruses like in traditional song structures” whereas the original idea for it was to be instrumental and more ambient. Taking on an opportunity to add ethnic/ world music elements to illustrate the character’s globetrotting sounds like a suitable idea yet it’s where the predictability comes from. Nor do I think it was cool to take on Ennio Morricone in ‘Into the West’. Not only the association sounds belaboured it is a bit like Alps taking on Himalayas.
Holopainen is vastly talented, no doubt about it, yet I always get a feeling he is withholding his potential or something more wild within his self. It’s something I get from watching him trying
to be a man happy to be on the side, somewhere at the back, pushing the band or ideas in front of him rather than behind him, taking on innocuous and quiet role whereas listening to him, getting a gist of him, you pretty sure know he’s a strong personality whom you wouldn’t want to cross, a hint of control freak-ism. I think if he lets go he can reach and achieve even more, in my humble opinion. It may sound as a criticism but expecting more of someone you admire already is not a bad thing.Holopainen was born on Christmas Day in 1976, to a family of a Finnish entrepreneur father. His mother encouraged his budding talent in music by signing him into piano classes when he was seven; later on he also took tenor sax and clarinet. A school exchange trip to USA turned him towards Metal after he attended concerts of METALLICA and GUNS’N’ROSES. Around the time he started reading Don Rosa’s book he started NIGHTWISH, which went on to establish quite an influential position in the genre of Symphonic Metal, as most of you will already know.
Of course there’s a lot of collaboration going on in this album, let’s leave Don Rosa’s for the last. Tony Kakko of SONATA ARCTICA is a Don Rosa’s fan also and wanted to participate ever since Holopainen mentioned the idea to him. He is the storyteller in ‘Cold Heart of the Klondike’ and there’s also Alan Reid as Scrooge McDuck, Johanna Kurkela as “Glittering” Goldie O’Gilt and Johanna Ivanainen as Scrooges’ mother and sister. Why these musicians in particular? Holopainen says that he wanted to make an album with his closest friends. Another participant is also Pip Williams who directed the London Philharmonic orchestra and choir (Metro Voices), and who has collaborated with NIGHTWISH before.
And of course Don Rosa himself; how did Holopainen got him on board? “I believe it was back in 2010, he was promoting one of his books in Finland and I had a chance to meet him after
press conference in Helsinki for about five minutes. I told him about this idea of mine, he listened to me very politely, I gave him Nightwish CD and that was it. I don’t think he took it that seriously and I don’t blame him, but then two years later I emailed him, told him that ‘this thing is actually gonna happen, I have the studios booked and I have some of the songs ready and I would love for you to draw the cover artwork’. And he [Don Rosa] said ‘Yeah, I can try but I haven’t done anything from 2006 so are you sure you want me to do it?’” Of course Holopainen was delighted, and Don Rosa ended up making the cover art and even gave Holopainen his original sketches that no one has seen before for the CD lay out and the video of ‘A Lifetime Of Adventure’. Don Rosa also flew out to Finland to co-star, so to speak, in it. “A fan-boy moment” as Holopainen describes it. The two of them are so far maintaining the connection built through this. Holopainen has chosen ‘A Lifetime of Adventure’ (you can view it on YouTube) as a single because its song structure is the most conventional and accessible one. I’d also say the most sentimental. It just about to manages to avoid the cheesy territory but I’m wondering if I’m saying that only because I love NIGHTWISH and have a lot of time the band and its mastermind and his projects. So that’s it, folks!
