The First Tour of the Angels

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The First Tour of the Angels
Tour by Nightwish
Associated album Angels Fall First
Start dateDecember 31, 1997
End dateMarch 6, 1998
No. of shows7
Nightwish concert chronology

The First Tour of the Angels was a concert tour by Finnish symphonic power metal band Nightwish from December 31, 1997, to March 6, 1998. Nightwish played only seven gigs since Jukka Nevalainen and Emppu Vuorinen were waylaid by their mandatory military draft and Tarja Turunen had not finished her studies. [1] The male vocals in "Beauty and the Beast", "The Carpenter" and "Astral Romance" were sung by Tuomas Holopainen, beside Tarja. The band was supported by bassist Samppa Hirvonen and the keyboardist Marianna Pellinen during the tour; in 1998, Samppa was replaced by Sami Vänskä.

Contents

Background

Following the release of Angels Fall First , the band performed their first show on December 31, 1997 at the Huvikeskus in their hometown of Kitee. Jukka said that they had an audience of 400 people in attendance, with Tuomas saying that he was paralyzed, as the band felt quite terrified of performing on stage. [2] During the tour, Tarja's friend Marianna Pellinen supported alongside the band as the backing vocalist:

She gave me so much support. Even if I had to be the front woman from the very beginning. Marianna actually stressed about the gigs more than I did. There was a lot of stage fright to overcome.
— Tarja Turunen [2]

Tarja had also recalled feeling nervous when performing for the first time:

The Huvikeskus gig began with 'Elvenpath', and boy was I nervous! It went well, but it was really difficult to sing. It was hard to control your own voice in a live situation. It took me two or three years before I could go on stage knowing what I was doing. I'd just started my classical studies when this Rock thing came along. It was totally insane – I was jumping around the stage like a moose! Tuomas actually said after the first gig that 'Tarja's rocking like a moose!' [2]

After the debut performance was another two shows in Helsinki at the Lepakko on January 9, 1998 opening for Babylon Whores and the Tavastia on February 13, 1998. [2] Tuomas recalled when they traveled to Helsinki with the band to perform at the Lepakko:

I've never been so nervous about anything in my life. It was absolutely horrible to travel to Helsinki for that gig. I mean, we were just a hillbilly Heavy Metal band from Kitee with only a single gig to our name! I almost passed out. I had a weird taste in my mouth. It was just something utterly terrifying. [2]

Tarja recalled that the show in Lepakko was over pretty fast as the band had only seven or eight songs in their set, with an attendance of 200. During "Angels Fall First", many were surprised to see Tarja crying, though it was later confirmed that the cause of stage fright. [2]

The show at the Tavastia turned out to be no success either, as band manager Ewo Pohjola recalled the sound being terrible, and that the band had not played a single note for about three weeks. [2]

The band would later open as a support act for a sold out Children of Bodom in Joensuu at the Kellari on February 25, 1998. There was a technical mishap at the start of their performance, in which the intro music was supposed to play at the beginning, but the club DJ forgot to change the channel on the PA. When he changed it, Tero Kinnunen recalled that the music began at a deafening volume which made the windows in the bar clink. [3]

At the last show of the tour in Siilinjärvi on March 6, 1998, the band opened up for Tarot and met the band's vocalist and bassist Marco Hietala who would later join the band in 2001. [3]

I watched their show and thought their music was actually quite good at times. They had all this force and drama, so maybe some day they would successfully combine the two. But goddamn, they looked absolutely horrible on stage. Shorthaired guys just standing there – Tarja was a pretty girl but just as petrified, shrieking in the middle of the stage in her leather pants. Honestly, I assumed them to be just a momentary fad and thought they will fade away after six months or so. Luckily, of course, I was so wrong.
— Marco Hietala [3]

Personnel

Additional musicians

Setlist

Played live
  • "Elvenpath"
  • "Beauty and the Beast"
  • "The Carpenter"
  • "Astral Romance"
  • "Angels Fall First"
  • "Tutankhamen"
  • "Know Why the Nightingale Sings"

The following songs have also been purported to have been played, though this is impossible to confirm.

  • "Nymphomaniac Fantasia"
  • "A Return to the Sea"
  • "Once Upon a Troubadour"
  • "The Forever Moments"
  • "Piano solo"

A typical setlist would consist of:

Tour dates

DateCityCountryVenue
Finland [8]
December 31, 1997 Kitee Finland Huvikeskus
January 9, 1998 [A] Helsinki Lepakko
February 13, 1998 Tavastia Club
February 14, 1998 Pori Jungle Jane
February 25, 1998 [B] Joensuu Kellari
February 27, 1998 Jyväskylä Lutakko
March 6, 1998 [C] Siilinjärvi Huvikumpu

Information

A The band opened for Babylon Whores at this show.
B The band opened for Children of Bodom at this show.
C The band opened for Tarot at this show.

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References

  1. ↑ "Nightwish Official Biography". Nightwish.com. Archived from the original on June 21, 2013. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Ollila, Mape (2007). Once Upon a Nightwish. Deggael Communications. pp. 60–64. ISBN   978-952-99749-2-4.
  3. 1 2 3 Ollila, Mape (2007). Once Upon a Nightwish. Deggael Communications. pp. 68–69. ISBN   978-952-99749-2-4.
  4. ↑ "Band- Members". Nightwish.com. Archived from the original on 2009-10-16. Retrieved 2009-10-15.
  5. ↑ "Band- Members". Nightwish.com. Archived from the original on 2008-09-15. Retrieved 2009-10-15.
  6. ↑ "Band- Members". Nightwish.com. Archived from the original on 2008-08-02. Retrieved 2009-10-15.
  7. ↑ "Band- Members". Nightwish.com. Archived from the original on 2008-08-02. Retrieved 2009-10-15.
  8. ↑ "Live: Past Shows (1997)". Nightwish's Official Website. Retrieved 2009-10-14.

Bibliography

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