Highest Hopes is a "Best Of" for those of you who are not aware. It takes selections from a number of previous Nightwish albums and provides a pretty good overview of a career that has been, to say the least, successful in many ways, musically, financially, ecumenically, and, for the most part, personally. . . that last part requiring an asterisk in the most recent history of the group. As most people are aware, the Nightwish presented here is no more, the voice of that group, one Tarja Turunen, having been summarily dismissed following a 2 year world wide tour of some note following the last performance in Helsinki in October of 2005. That, of course, was a move that many considered suicidal considering that Ms. Turunen had a voice and presentation that was pretty much in a league of its own. With their newest album, featuring a new singer, that verdict will be put to the test over time. Clearly, the group has not decided to bring on a Tarja 2.0 and has, instead, moved to a somewhat different vocal style in addition to some relatively new musical directions. But, enough of that, let’s look at Highest Hopes for a moment.

Unlike some Best of albums, this one presents a somewhat different format. It does include selections available from previous albums ranging from earlier releases like Oceanborn to the 2004 masterpiece Once, one of their latest albums and one of the best sellers from a largely well-received library. However, also thrown into the mix are selections not included in previous offerings including studio versions of "Walking in the Air", "Deep Silent Complete", "Sleeping Sun" and "Ever Dream". These can be of mixed value to listeners since many would argue that this is one band that may record better in concert than in the studio. Certainly for this reviewer, nothing compares to End of an Era, the recording of that last concert in Helsinki, especially if you have access to the DVD (and the zone free player required to play it) where the musical component is enhanced by the dynamic stage presence of this marquee group of entertainers.

In the interest of prudent wordsmithing, it may not be of value to cover each song presented here in depth. The value of this compilation is in the diversification of the material, at least in a temporal sense. If we argue that Nightwish is largely responsible for the development of the musical genre we refer to as symphonic metal (or operatic metal, for those of you who prefer that title), this compilation does a fine job of documenting that evolution. Several songs presented here come originally from the album Oceanborn although only one was actually taken from that album; "Stargazers". And, I guess that is as good a place to start as any. The song demonstrates the core of the Nightwish approach, fine instrumental efforts and the operatic vocals that have become the trademark of the Nightwish sound. Moreover, the lyrics, a signal component of any Nightwish song, demonstrate the direction that the group will utilize throughout their history:

Floating upon the quiet hydrogen lakes

In this ambrosial merry-go-round they will gaze

Ephemeral life touched by a billion-year-show

Separating the poet from the woe

We ain’t talking rap here folks. Keyboardist / Composer / Lyricist Tuomas Holopainen is a first class craftsman and, if you follow the music from the early days to the last song on the list the progression of his artistry is clear.

Remaining songs are drawn from several Nightwish titles including Wishmaster, Over the Hills and Far Away, Century Child, Ever Dream and Once covering nearly a decade’s work.

Themes are somewhat consistent in the sense that "Gothic" lyrics tend to predominate. Bless the Child is representative of this direction. The song begins with a narration over an instrumental core. At its completion, Tarja sets the stage for the thrust of the number:

Where have all the feelings gone?

Why has all the laughter ceased?

The song, a relatively strong guitar based number moves through the remaining vocals and is closed with another narration over the instruments. Within this narration the speaker reminds us of our final fate:

My tale is the most bitter truth:

Time pays us but with earth & dust, and a dark, silent grave.

However, the group, and Tarja in particular, are certainly capable of ballads of intense beauty. Sleeping Sun has been a staple of the Nightwish live performance for some time and the cover presented here is as good as any. The song is pure classical with Tarja providing an exhibition of her wares that is unforgettable. The musical background is subdued and serves to enhance to beauty of the presentation. It’s a hard song to forget.

One of the interesting things about this album is the diversity of material. For those of you not familiar with their work, Nightwish doesn’t limit their work to their own material; they often cover material from other artists that is consistent with their interests. Over the Hills and Far Away is a good example of this trend. The song, originally composed and recorded by Gary Moore in an album of the same name, is something of an Irish Folk / Rock tune. Gary Moore, for those of you unfamiliar with the name, was the one of the duel lead axe for the well known Irish troop Thin Lizzie, headed up by bassist Phil Lynott. The song demonstrates the strong guitar work of lead guitar Emppu Vuorinen who matches the original guitar work of Moore lick for lick.

Of course, the focus, arguably, is the soaring soprano of lead singer Turunen and is the telltale signature of the Nightwish sound. They don’t call it operatic for nothing. Her vocals range from classical (Sleeping Sun, Walking in the Air) to hard rock (Nemo, Wishmaster) and everything in between. They say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery and there are many bands out there that are clearly attempting to replicate this sound. . . with various levels of success. Replicating the Tarja vocal, however, is a tall order and, in this writer’s opinion, one that has yet to be achieved.

The backing musical quartet is no less competent. The aforementioned Tuomas addresses a range of keyboards augmented by electronic sounds of various levels of complexity. Bassist Marco Hietala, a late addition to the group several years ago, provides significant vocal capability as well as performing admirably on the base. These vocals, it should be noted, come under the heading of "Clean vocals" as opposed to the grunting sounds associated with other offerings in this genre. Lead guitarist, the diminutive Emppu Vuorinen, can match skill with virtually any guitarist short of Eric Clapton himself. And drummer Jukka Nevalainen provides a solid beat and a visual performance to match most any stick man.

The music is all first rate, no weak performances on this compellation. If you enjoy this music, it’s all here with a fine range of offerings that span the capabilities of this first rate musical ensemble. If you’re new to Nightwish, this will prepare you for the rest of the catalog. If you have other offerings, this is a good way to look at what’s available on other titles. The bad news, of course, there won’t be any more, at least not with Tarja. And that, in and of itself, is reason to look at the CD. And remember the greatness it represents.

9 / 10