PPUSA's Visa Guy here. Saw NW in San Francisco last night and thought I would give my review of it given the "new vocalist" situation and start a thread (my first ever) that specifically deals with live reviews. I admit that I do hope the band itself reads this thread in making its considerations and decisions as to their future options, etc.
This also comes on the heels of my having seen NW both nights at PPUSA XIII this year. I do not mean to "bash" or "attack" any previous singer.
All I can say about the show last night is that I am truly and deeply sorry that each of you did not get to see NW with Floor. The the NW triumph of PPUSA XIII was that we got to see the last shows with Annette--a then-unknown close of that chapter of the band. The tragedy is that we did not get to see NW with Floor.
I saw NW with Tarja 2x (once at PPUSA) and with Annette 4x (2 at this year's PPUSA). Tarja had "the voice" and no one will be able to replicate that or sing the NW songs just the way she did. Her stage presence was powerful, commanding and larger than life but she came across as aloof, distinct and even distant from the rest of the band and the audience. Don't get me wrong, I loved the shows with Tarja and they were AMAZING. In my opinion, Annette had a mediocre voice at best--though I thought she was a lot better at PPUSA this year than she had been the previous times I had seen her during the Dark Passion Play tour. Her stage presence, however, was a joke. Her stage presence reminded me of an 8 year old girl performing on Star Search (for those of us old enough to remember that show) who was going through the forced motions her mom had told her would endear her to the adult audience. She was awkward. I will say that at PPUSA I thought the band seemed to be having fun and it seemed that everything was fine in their camp. However, after seeing them last night, I can now so obviously see what the band was lacking during the Annette years.
Floor was EVERYTHING Annette wasn't--and a lot of what Tarja wasn't either. Her voice was amazing. She could hit the high notes that made her perfect for the Tarja-era songs and just gave t he Annette-era songs more life and dynamics than Annete could ever have dreamed of doing live. In doing the Tarja-era songs, Floor was not a Tarja clone or even trying to be--she could just hit the high notes in her own voice and style. I actually got chills during Dark Chest of Wonders and a few other songs when she just nailed the high notes in a clear and pristine voice that just cut through all of the other noise of the band and the crowd. (My only complaint was that they did not do Ghost Love Song which I have been desperately waiting to hear done right since the Tarja days.) When she lowered the tone, e.g., Slow. Love, Slow and the slowed-down Nemo, it was hypnotizing and sensual. This was only Floor's 3rd show with the band and I did feel that she was somewhat restraining herself at times--I assume as she continues to work with the new-to-her material, remembering the lyrics and finding where and how she wants to best use tones and inflections, etc. My wife read on Floor's blog that she has been fighting a cold and there were times when you could tell that her throat was "tickling", etc., and she would grab a drink of water and rub her throat mildly. There were a very few times it appeared she didn't quite remember the lyrics for a split-second only. I do not raise these as complaints in any way; only to say that her voice and performace was amazing despite these things and I would love to see NW near the last shows of this tour after Floor was comfortable and knowledgeable about the material and she was just operating on instinct and not thinking as much as I have to assume she is now. Hard to believe that it could be better than last night but I bet it would be.
As to stage presence, Floor was it. As I stood in the crowd with my beautiful and loving wife, I would have given it all up to run away with Floor (not really). She was beautiful, seductive, sensual and sexy at the same time as she was powerful, commanding and compelling. She was strutting the stage and swinging/swaggering with confidence and made the moves of a "female metal" singer/frontwoman. She was doing the head/hair "swirl", swinging her head and hair from side to side and just being sexy as Hell the whole show. Her interaction with the band was easy and natural. She came across as open and approachable and there was none of the aloofness, etc., of Tarja. She was intimate with the audience. During her brief statements about how she felt about being able to sing with NW, she was sincere and appeared gracious and even amazed to be there.
As for the band, they had an ease and an energy I never would have thought missing at PPUSA until I saw them last night. They were joking around and screwing around amongst themselves during the entire show--both during songs as well as during breaks between songs. There was an "extra spring in their step."
Despite a packed house, I did not hear a single word, action or attitude that indicated that anyone missed Annette or was disappointed she was not there. The crowd fully embraced Floor from the first song and all I heard post-show from the crowd was how amazing the show was.
In the end, Floor is the perfect vocalist/frontwoman for NW. If there is any way this can become a permanent roster for the band, I cannot help but think that they will become even bigger than they already are.
Obviously, my clear recommendation is that if you have the chance to see NW with Floor, do it. Do whatever you can. Run, don't walk. You will be glad you did.
This also comes on the heels of my having seen NW both nights at PPUSA XIII this year. I do not mean to "bash" or "attack" any previous singer.
All I can say about the show last night is that I am truly and deeply sorry that each of you did not get to see NW with Floor. The the NW triumph of PPUSA XIII was that we got to see the last shows with Annette--a then-unknown close of that chapter of the band. The tragedy is that we did not get to see NW with Floor.
I saw NW with Tarja 2x (once at PPUSA) and with Annette 4x (2 at this year's PPUSA). Tarja had "the voice" and no one will be able to replicate that or sing the NW songs just the way she did. Her stage presence was powerful, commanding and larger than life but she came across as aloof, distinct and even distant from the rest of the band and the audience. Don't get me wrong, I loved the shows with Tarja and they were AMAZING. In my opinion, Annette had a mediocre voice at best--though I thought she was a lot better at PPUSA this year than she had been the previous times I had seen her during the Dark Passion Play tour. Her stage presence, however, was a joke. Her stage presence reminded me of an 8 year old girl performing on Star Search (for those of us old enough to remember that show) who was going through the forced motions her mom had told her would endear her to the adult audience. She was awkward. I will say that at PPUSA I thought the band seemed to be having fun and it seemed that everything was fine in their camp. However, after seeing them last night, I can now so obviously see what the band was lacking during the Annette years.
Floor was EVERYTHING Annette wasn't--and a lot of what Tarja wasn't either. Her voice was amazing. She could hit the high notes that made her perfect for the Tarja-era songs and just gave t he Annette-era songs more life and dynamics than Annete could ever have dreamed of doing live. In doing the Tarja-era songs, Floor was not a Tarja clone or even trying to be--she could just hit the high notes in her own voice and style. I actually got chills during Dark Chest of Wonders and a few other songs when she just nailed the high notes in a clear and pristine voice that just cut through all of the other noise of the band and the crowd. (My only complaint was that they did not do Ghost Love Song which I have been desperately waiting to hear done right since the Tarja days.) When she lowered the tone, e.g., Slow. Love, Slow and the slowed-down Nemo, it was hypnotizing and sensual. This was only Floor's 3rd show with the band and I did feel that she was somewhat restraining herself at times--I assume as she continues to work with the new-to-her material, remembering the lyrics and finding where and how she wants to best use tones and inflections, etc. My wife read on Floor's blog that she has been fighting a cold and there were times when you could tell that her throat was "tickling", etc., and she would grab a drink of water and rub her throat mildly. There were a very few times it appeared she didn't quite remember the lyrics for a split-second only. I do not raise these as complaints in any way; only to say that her voice and performace was amazing despite these things and I would love to see NW near the last shows of this tour after Floor was comfortable and knowledgeable about the material and she was just operating on instinct and not thinking as much as I have to assume she is now. Hard to believe that it could be better than last night but I bet it would be.
As to stage presence, Floor was it. As I stood in the crowd with my beautiful and loving wife, I would have given it all up to run away with Floor (not really). She was beautiful, seductive, sensual and sexy at the same time as she was powerful, commanding and compelling. She was strutting the stage and swinging/swaggering with confidence and made the moves of a "female metal" singer/frontwoman. She was doing the head/hair "swirl", swinging her head and hair from side to side and just being sexy as Hell the whole show. Her interaction with the band was easy and natural. She came across as open and approachable and there was none of the aloofness, etc., of Tarja. She was intimate with the audience. During her brief statements about how she felt about being able to sing with NW, she was sincere and appeared gracious and even amazed to be there.
As for the band, they had an ease and an energy I never would have thought missing at PPUSA until I saw them last night. They were joking around and screwing around amongst themselves during the entire show--both during songs as well as during breaks between songs. There was an "extra spring in their step."
Despite a packed house, I did not hear a single word, action or attitude that indicated that anyone missed Annette or was disappointed she was not there. The crowd fully embraced Floor from the first song and all I heard post-show from the crowd was how amazing the show was.
In the end, Floor is the perfect vocalist/frontwoman for NW. If there is any way this can become a permanent roster for the band, I cannot help but think that they will become even bigger than they already are.
Obviously, my clear recommendation is that if you have the chance to see NW with Floor, do it. Do whatever you can. Run, don't walk. You will be glad you did.
