Nightwish Album: “Over The Hills And Far Away”

Here on Amazon.com, there are two versions of Over the Hills and Far Away, by Nightwish. This one, the 'red' version, is superior to the 'white' version -- which features snowcapped mountains on the cover.

First of all, the CD being reviewed is cheaper than the 'white' version. Perhaps this will change by the time you read this review, but by getting this version you have a better deal. (The price difference is, however, declining). Secondly, the tracks on the CD are different.

Both CDs have 3 completely new songs -- the cover Over the Hills and Far Away, 10th Man Down, and Away. All three songs are good, although the first, a Gary Moore cover, is definitely the star of the CD. Astral Romance as well is included on the CD -- an in-studio remake version of one of the band's earliest songs. Astral Romance was not an exceptional song on Angels Fall First, where it was first released, but is an amazing song on OTHAFA. These four songs make either mini-CD definitely worth buying.

However, the difference is in the later songs -- the live ones.

I didn't -really- like most of the live songs. I own every full Nightwish CD, and none of the live songs -- with one exception -- compared at all to the on-CD ones. However, the very last song was different. This was Deep Silent Complete, an awesome song and one of the best tracks on the CD. Deep Silent Complete was great on Wishmaster, but is even better here on OTHAFA! Tarja's voice sounds haunting in the very beginning, and does credit, and more, to this wonderful song. It's the only worthwhile live track on the CD.

The 'white' version substitutes Deep Silent Complete with Beauty and the Beast -- not at all my favorite Nightwish song. Making the 'red' version definitely preferable.

Overall, this is a great CD (like any Nightwish album, really). The band is easily the best female-vocalist metal band out there. Highly recommended!

Nightwish is my favorite heavy metal band. I have been a fan for almost three years now. Last summer I had the joy of seeing the band in concert on their first US tour. One of the songs they performed during the concert was the Gary Moore song "Over the Hills and Far Away" which is about a man who is sent to prison for a crime he didn't commit and yearns to be free with the ones he loves dearly. I just love the infectious melodies. Tarja's vocals sounds amazing. This song alone was the reason why I bought the cd of the same title. The import version I bought includes a bonus track which is a heavy version of "Sleepwalker" from the band's classic "Oceanborn" (which really is their first album, "When Angels Falls" is a demo tape). For a long time "Over the Hills and Far Away" was only available as an import until late last year when it was finally released in the states but without the bonus track. Most of the songs on this album are live tracks but the first four songs are all studio tracks. The first three are previously unreleased songs while track #4 "Astral Romance" was remade by the band in 2001. The production is a lot better on these songs gives the listener a taste of a heavier, more aggressive sound on albums like "Century Child" and "Once" than what was on "Oceanborn" and "Wishmaster".

I love the first four tracks. Besides the title track, "10th Man Down" is my other favorite track. It is a midtempo song with some really great guitar riffs from Emppu. Like I said before, It this album was a precursor to the aggressiveness of "Century Child" and "Once". The guitars are really upfront than on the band's previous albums. "Away" is a gorgeous ballad. I was never really fond of the band's demo tape "When Angels Fall" but one of the few songs on the album I did like was "Astral Romance". I think the 2001 version is even better if that's possible. The credit has to go to better production IMO.

The remaining six tracks are all live tracks. After seeing the band perform live, listening to these live songs brings back memories of their concert. Nothing can compare to seeing the band live but this cd is pretty much the next best thing to seeing them live. "Over the Hills and Far Away" is certainly worth owning for fans of the Finnish metal band.

I'm not usually that crazy about buying albums that are mostly live stuff, but for the second time with Nightwish I've done it and not been disappointed. I figured if nothing else, the first four songs which are the studio cuts and can't be found anywhere else would be worth it alone, but even the live songs are great too. The only thing I could live without would be the weird growling spoken parts on "10th Man Down", an otherwise excellent song (thank God they don't use that technique anymore now that they have a really good male vocalist). Also, as an added bonus, if you happen to be a Sonata Arctica fan, like I am, Tony Kakko joins the band on three of the songs. All I can say is, your Nightwish collection is not complete without this CD!

One of the best albums I've ever heard. The band has creativity, performance is exceptional. "Nightwish" is very much underestimated by the general audience - unfortunately. Very high standard - whether you call it "symphonic" or "female fronted" - it's just top quality music.

Over the Hills and Far Away is a great sounding album. It has three studio tracks one remake of Astral Romance and six of their more well known songs in a live version.

What can I say this is another hit by one of my favorite bands of all time. Although I cannot say it is my favorite album, it is a great album for anyone who enjoys Nightwish's other albums.