NIGHTWISH Mainman Says FLOOR JANSEN Was Asked To Become Permanent Member In June

October 16, 2013

Radio Metal recently conducted an interview with keyboardist/mainman Tuomas Holopainen of Finnish symphonic metallers NIGHTWISH. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Radio Metal: The new DVD ["Showtime, Storytime"] is the perfect introduction to the new NIGHWISH lineup that was officially announced [earlier in the month]. When you decided to release a DVD with Floor [Jansen, vocals], did you already have in mind to make her place in the band official? Or, at least, did seeing the live footage convince you she was the right choice?

Tuomas: We were actually quite convinced already in the beginning of summer. We made the agreement in June. We asked her if she wanted to be part of the band last June, and we also asked Troy [Donockley, multi-instrumentalist]. They both agreed. Then we decided to keep silent until next year, just to calm things down. And then, a few weeks ago, I started writing the credits for the DVD — the "thank you" list, and all that. Then came: "NIGHTWISH are…" How do I put Floor and Troy here? "Guest vocals by Floor Jansen"? That sounds ridiculous! That's when I realized: "Why should we stay silent about this?" So we talked with the band about releasing the information now. It's also good promotion for the DVD, that Floor and Troy are official members.

Radio Metal: Did you ever consider not asking Floor to stay and looking for another singer?

Tuomas: We just kept all the doors open for the first part of this year. We were just having a really good time on tour. She was a replacement; we didn't think that she was definitely going to be the one. But week after week, we grew into the idea that this was really good. Why should we look anywhere else? As long as she agreed, of course. We didn't take it for granted that she wanted to be in the band. In the beginning of June, we asked her: "How do you feel about this? Do you wanna continue?" And here we are now!

Radio Metal: Was the decision easy for her to make? Floor went through a serious burn-out in 2011, after REVAMP's first album was released. Wasn't she afraid it could happen again with a busy band like NIGHTWISH?

Tuomas: Yeah, we talked about this. We don't want her to quit REVAMP either, everybody has side projects. We really asked her: "Are you sure you want to do this?", and she was 100% sure. I think it's gonna work out fine. We have a really good management and record label, so she doesn't need to worry about that stuff the way she has to do with REVAMP. It's gonna be much easier.

Radio Metal: How do you explain that the fans were not as scandalized, or at least as skeptical, by Floor's arrival in the band as they were by Anette's [Olzon]? Is it because she was already known in the metal world, or maybe because they've realized that what really matters in NIGHWISH is the music, and not the identity of the lead singer?

Tuomas: I wish I could answer that! I think maybe a little bit of both. But the fact that she was already quite well-known and respected in the metal genre… She has been doing this for 14 years, so people knew her. She didn't come out of nowhere. That really helped the transition to be smoother.

Radio Metal: Retrospectively, considering the fact that Anette had no lyrical singing capabilities, do you still think Anette was the right choice for NIGHTWISH at the time?

Tuomas: Yes, I do. I've said this many times. When I listen to "Dark Passion Play" and "Imaginaerum", I don't think there is another person who could have sung those songs better than her. I really, honestly think so, and the rest of the band does, as well. That was not the issue.

Read the entire interview at Radio Metal.

Find more on Floor jansen
  • facebook
  • twitter
  • reddit
  • email

Comments Disclaimer And Information

BLABBERMOUTH.NET uses the Facebook Comments plugin to let people comment on content on the site using their Facebook account. The comments reside on Facebook servers and are not stored on BLABBERMOUTH.NET. To comment on a BLABBERMOUTH.NET story or review, you must be logged in to an active personal account on Facebook. Once you're logged in, you will be able to comment. User comments or postings do not reflect the viewpoint of BLABBERMOUTH.NET and BLABBERMOUTH.NET does not endorse, or guarantee the accuracy of, any user comment. To report spam or any abusive, obscene, defamatory, racist, homophobic or threatening comments, or anything that may violate any applicable laws, use the "Report to Facebook" and "Mark as spam" links that appear next to the comments themselves. To do so, click the downward arrow on the top-right corner of the Facebook comment (the arrow is invisible until you roll over it) and select the appropriate action. You can also send an e-mail to blabbermouthinbox(@)gmail.com with pertinent details. BLABBERMOUTH.NET reserves the right to "hide" comments that may be considered offensive, illegal or inappropriate and to "ban" users that violate the site's Terms Of Service. Hidden comments will still appear to the user and to the user's Facebook friends. If a new comment is published from a "banned" user or contains a blacklisted word, this comment will automatically have limited visibility (the "banned" user's comments will only be visible to the user and the user's Facebook friends).