Nightwish is working on a "pretty heavy" follow-up to their 2020 album Human. :II: Nature. According to Nightwish vocalist Floor Jansen in an interview with Metal Hammer, the heaviness is only one aspect of the new music, but it's certainly there.
"I would say it's a pretty heavy album, but once again, it's the multicolour diversity that is Nightwish," said Jansen. "It's all there. It's going to once again take you by the hand through beautiful stories – whether they are stories from this Earth or stories about this Earth. They're beautiful."
Of course the good news here is that Jansen is doing well enough to put out both a Nightwish record and a solo record. Jansen was diagnosed with breast cancer in October 2022 and, after a tumor removal surgery, has been declared cancer free. Jansen revealed the good news in November and stated at the time that the "surgery took everything cancerous out and it hasn't spread."
In a previous interview, Nightwish keyboardist and main songwriter Tuomas Holopainen said the new record will feature some "major surprises" and is the end of the trilogy.
"I immediately knew after getting [Endless Forms Most Beautiful] done that, 'Okay, we have to do more songs about this, because there's so much more to explore and tell the world. We're not done with this.'," Holopainen said.
"And the same thing happened after Human. :II: Nature.; we're still not done. So let's do one more. At least one more. In a way, [the next album] is the third part of a trilogy, which started with Endless Forms… and then Human. :II: Nature. There are some major surprises there again, but it feels like a natural continuation to Human. :II: Nature."
Holopainen continued saying, "The wonderful thing is that we have had the demo [of the album] done since last spring. So it's been done for six months now. We really have all the time in the world to go through it all, and we have had a such great time with the band, just listening to the demo in our hotel rooms — me singing the lyrics and the melodies to Floor [Jansen, vocalist]. She's recording them and then she's seeing them and throwing ideas to each other."
