Nemo (song)

"Nemo" is the eighth single by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish and the first from the album Once.[2] A big-budget video was made for the song, the director was Antti Jokinen,[3] who had previously worked with Shania Twain, Celine Dion and Eminem.[3] The video was n° 1 on MTV Brasil Video Chart.[4] The song was nominated for the Kerrang! Award for Best Single. Although Nightwish already enjoyed a solid fan base in Europe and South America by the time of the single's release, it is considered their breakthrough song since it helped them reach a wider audience.[1]

"Nemo"
Single by Nightwish
from the album Once
B-side
  • "White Night Fantasy"
  • "Live to Tell the Tale"
  • "Planet Hell"
Released19 April 2004 (2004-04-19)[1]
GenreSymphonic metal
Length
  • 3:45 (radio edit)
  • 4:36 (album version)
LabelSpinefarm
Songwriter(s)Tuomas Holopainen
Producer(s)
  • Tuomas Holopainen
  • TeeCee Kinnunen
Nightwish singles chronology
"Bless the Child"
(2002)		 "Nemo"
(2004)		 "Wish I Had an Angel"
(2004)
Music video
"Nemo" on YouTube

The song can be heard in the ending credits of the 2005 film The Cave.[5]

Composition

Keyboardist and songwriter Tuomas Holopainen says the song was "one of the most difficult songs" the band's ever done. It took them months to work on the arrangement. The first version was faster and two minutes longer, but recording engineer Tero Kinnunen suggested they cut off a certain section and slowed it down by about 10 bpm.[1]

Lyrics

Holopainen has stated that the title is Latin for "nobody" or "no name"[1] and the song is based on his occasional feelings of being lost, longing for the past and feeling nameless.[1][6] This contradicts speculations that the song simply borrows on a Nemo character of an earlier work, such as J. Verne's Captain Nemo, Homer's Ulysses alias Nemo, C. Dickens’ Captain Hawdon alias Nemo, W. McCay's Little Nemo, or the Disney Studio's film Finding Nemo.[1] Asked about that, Holopainen responded:[6]

Not the fish! I cannot believe how everyone seems to be convinced it's that. Nemo, which is Latin for "nobody," has nothing to do with the Disney film. It revolves around the feelings I have from time to time. I feel nameless and do not know who I am or where I will go. I only know my past and I long to be back there. The song is about being lost, not knowing where to go or what to do, yet desperate for everything in life. That’s not always me, but when I wrote Nemo, that's the way I felt. Now I feel better. (Translated from the German)

— Tuomas Holopainen, Underground Empire interview

In a 2016 interview, he said he "was just a much darker person then than I am now" and that he "would never do a song like that again".[1]

Music video

The song received a video that cost around €80,000, which is much more than most heavy metal videos cost at that time. It was directed by Finnish director Antti Jokinen and shows the band performing among snowy mountains. Then vocalist Tarja Turunen is wearing a red coat, which she admits to be different from other symphonic metal female vocalists, who usually dress in black.[1]

The video was heavily played on TVs around the world, but according to Turunen, some channels were reluctant at first due to the video having been shot in the snow.[1] Also, she said the video helped the band gain more attention from gothic fans, even though she doesn't believe they have ever considered themselves to be a gothic band.[1]

Track listing
Radio- & Club-Promo
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Nemo" (radio edit)Tuomas Holopainen3:50
2."Nemo" (orchestral edit)Holopainen3:51
CD1
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Nemo" (w/ fade out)Holopainen4:28
2."Planet Hell"Holopainen4:42
3."White Night Fantasy" (non-album bonus track)Holopainen4:05
4."Nemo" (orchestral version)Holopainen4:37
5."Enhanced Part" (studio report / photo gallery) 4:05
CD2
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Nemo" (w/ cold end)Holopainen4:36
2."Live to Tell the Tale" (exclusive bonus track)Holopainen5:02
3."Nemo" (orchestral version)Holopainen4:37
4."Nemo promotional video" (m-peg) 4:05
10"
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Nemo" (w/ cold end)Holopainen4:36
2."White Night Fantasy" (non-album bonus track)Holopainen4:05
3."Nemo" (orchestral version)Holopainen4:37
4."Planet Hell"Holopainen4:42
5."Live to Tell the Tale" (non-album bonus track)Holopainen5:02
DVD
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Nemo" (video / stereo & 5.1)Holopainen4:05
2."Nemo" (audio / stereo & 5.1)Holopainen4:36
3."Planet Hell" (audio / stereo & 5.1)Holopainen4:42
4."The Making of Nemo" (video / stereo)  

Live performances

Nemo is the most played song by Nightwish, with well over 500 times as of March 2018.[7] After Turunen left Nightwish, "Nemo" became one of the songs from the band that she would perform live in her solo shows.[1]

Charts performance

Once topped the album charts in Finland and Hungary.[8] In the UK it could only chart at #87 after a chart entry of #101 the week before, but spent over 20 weeks on the top 200 plus a few re-entries.[9] However it has been in the top 10 of the UK Rock Chart as recently as May 2008, highlighting the recent acclaim the band has had in the United Kingdom.[9]

Nemo was certified with Gold Disc in Finland one week after release, with more than 5,000 sold copies,[10] and got Platinum disc after two weeks, with more than 10,000 sold copies.[10]

Chart
(2004-2008)		 Peak
position
Brazil (ABPD)[11] 51
Finnish Top 40 Singles 1[12]
Brazilian MTV Top 10 Charts 1[4]
Hungarian Singles Chart 1[13]
Greek Singles Chart 2[9]
Portuguese Top 50 Singles 3[9]
Norwegian Singles Chart 4[14]
German Top 100 Singles 6[15]
Slovakian Singles Chart 8[9]
UK Rock Chart 8[9]
European Hot 100 Singles 11[9]
Austrian Ö3 Top 40 12[16]
Swedish Top 60 12[17]
Swiss Top 100 Singles 14[18]
Dutch Mega Single Top 100 64[19]

Sales and certifications
Country Certification
(sales thresholds)
Finland Platinum[20]

Personnel[21]

The band

Main crew

  • Engineers and recorders: Tero Kinnunen, Mikko Karmila and Emppu Vuorinen
  • Mixing: Mikko Karmila and Tuomas Holopainen
  • Mastering: Mika Jussila
  • Orchestral and choral arrangements: Pip Williams
  • Conducted: James Shearman
  • Orchestra Leader: Gavyn Wright
  • Band photographer: Toni Härkönen

References
  1. Lawson, Dom; Scharf, Natasha (6 October 2016). "The Story Behind The Song: Nightwish's Nemo". Metal Hammer. Future plc. Retrieved 15 September 2020.
  2. "Once: Nightwish". Allmusic. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
  3. Ollia, Mape."Once Upon a Nightwish: The Official Biography 1996–2006". Bazillion Points, 2008, ISBN 978-0-9796163-2-7, p. 222
  4. ""Nemo" #1 on Brazilian videocharts". Nightwish's Official Website. 2004-06-02. Archived from the original on 2020-01-24. Retrieved 2009-11-15.
  5. http://www.soundtrack.net/albums/database/?id=3772 “The Cave: Music theme” at Soundtrack.net Retrieved 2011-7-14
  6. Klaudia Weber: Nightwish Interview Archived 2007-09-30 at the Wayback Machine at Underground-Empire.com (German) Retrieved 2011-7-14.
  7. Nemo by Nightwish
  8. "Nightwish Label Information". Spinefarm Records. Archived from the original on 2020-01-24. Retrieved 2009-11-15.
  9. ""Nemo" charts positions". Nightwish's Official Website. 2004-04-14. Retrieved 2009-11-15.
  10. "Tilastot: Nightwish". IFPI Finland. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
  11. "Brazil" (PDF). ABPD. October 6, 2001. Retrieved April 1, 2014.
  12. "Extended Search: Nemo". Allmusic. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
  13. "Archive: Nightwish". Mahasz. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
  14. "Extended Search: Nemo". Allmusic. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
  15. "Charts- Nightwish/Single". PhonoNet. Archived from the original on 2013-07-08. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
  16. "Extended Search: Nemo". Allmusic. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
  17. "Extended Search: Nemo". Allmusic. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
  18. "Extended Search: Nemo". Allmusic. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
  19. "Extended Search: Amaranth". Allmusic. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
  20. "IFPI Tilastot: Nightwish". Retrieved 2010-01-03.
  21. "The Band - Releases: Once (2004)". Allmusic. Nightwish's Official Website. Archived from the original on 2010-04-18. Retrieved 2010-06-01.
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