NIGHTWISH To Reveal 'Future Plans' In January

Keyboardist/mainman Tuomas Holopainen of Finnish/Swedish symphonic metallers NIGHTWISH has issued the following year-end update:

"The year is coming to an end and we're all getting ready for a hell of a rollercoaster ride of 2011!

"This past year has been a very fruitful one, if also a mind-filling one, from writing the songs for the album to come, rehearsing them in the memorable summer camp in Röskö, recording the demo, recording the actual album (drums, guitars and basses already done), and planning the year ahead. The summer was also blessed with the births of two new members for the NIGHTWISH family, Jukka's ['Julius' Nevalainen, drums] daughter Lara and Anette's [Olzon, vocals] son Nemo. A most unforgettably wonderful summer!

"In late January 2011 we will reveal near future plans of the band and some visions to come. I hope it will make all of you as thrilled as it has made us!

"Like good ole' Pinhead said: 'We have such sights to show you...'

"I wish everybody a peaceful, magic-filled Yuletide and an inspiring year 2011!"

NIGHTWISH entered the studio in October to begin recording the follow-up to 2007's "Dark Passion Play". Regarding the musical direction of the forthcoming album, NIGHTWISH singer Anette Olzon recently wrote on her official blog, "I think it's a great and varied CD. The feelings in it are great and there are a lot of elements in it, so I am sure it will have many different favorite songs for the listeners since the songs are so different in styles and sound. 'Dark Passion Play' is a great album and this one, too, so I don't know yet which one I like more, but, of course, for me personally, this one feels better to do since the songs are more adjusted to my voice and my style."

The pre-production sessions for the new NIGHTWISH CD took place in "the deepest countryside of Finland," where most of the band spent several weeks finalizing the song arrangements and recording their instrumental parts.

NIGHTWISH played a special homecoming show in September 2009 at the sold-out, 11,000-capacity Hartwall Arena in Helsinki to mark the end of the band's colossal "Dark Passion Play" two-year world tour.

NIGHTWISH is not expected to play any more concerts until the release of the band's next studio album.