Marko Hietala - "Roses from the Deep" : Ex-Nightwish man returns

They may have emerged from the metal scene, but Nightwish have always been a band with a progressive heart. The Finns have explored concepts that swing from the whimsical fantasy of Imaginaerum to the hard science of Endless Forms Most Beautiful, the latter complete with an appearance from evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins. They’ve done so with a compositional approach to songwriting that incorporates symphonic and folk elements, complex layers of melody and expansive banks of keyboards.

When long-time Nightwish bassist and co-vocalist Marko Hietala released his debut solo album, Pyre Of The Black Heart, in 2019, he referred to it as 'hard prog’. Now that he’s left the band he was an integral part of for two decades, he’s freed himself up to explore whatever avenue he chooses and it appears his enduring love remains that same mix of prog and vintage metal that marked his solo debut.

Not all of it is overly ambitious. Opener Frankenstein's Wife is a hard rock anthem that could have been sprung from latter-day Alice Cooper, complete with spooky theremin effects. The equally crunching Proud Whore rides a big metallic riff and The Devil You Know combines folkloric metaphors with equally big bluesy licks to fine effect. There are little flourishes everywhere though, like the intricate basslines and shimmering synths that inform Impatient Zero or the epic spiralling keyboard and guitar duel that rides Rebel Of The North to its conclusion. And then there’s the eight-minute centrepiece Dragon Must Die with its deft blend of electrified folk, progressive polyrhythms and chugging metal riffs.

Hietala has put together some impressive musicians but the pairing that will be of most interest to existing fans will be Left On Mars, featuring former Nightwish vocalist Tarja Turunen. The structure and riffs are evocative of prog-metal progenitors Fates Warning but the main draw is still the vocal duet. Turunen reins in her full operatic range while Hietala is at his most bombastic, letting the pair meet beautifully in the middle. It’s a definite high point but Hietala lets loose throughout, as might be expected on a solo album. His vocals were often trammelled for the sake of the song in Nightwish but he wails away here in a way that might be more familiar to fans of his classic metal band Tarot or symphonic metal supergroup Northern Kings. Roses From The Deep is a diverse and expertly constructed album, but it also sounds like it was made with love and instinct. There’s a joy to that, and it’s the heart in this collection of songs that really shines through.