My solo album SHINE will be one month delayed due to some problems with the mastering and also that we need more time for the video and so on. Totally normal when it comes to releasing albums that dates are pushed. So the new release dates are as follow:Germany 28.03.2014 France 31.03.2014 Italy 01.04.2014 Benelux 31.03.2014 Poland 31.03.2014 Czech 31.03.2014 Sweden 26.03.2014 Finland 28.03.2014 Norway 31.03.2014 Denmark 31.03.2014 Russia 28.03.2014 Spain 28.03.2014 UK 31.03.2014 USA 08.04.2014
o my dear Readers, dont feel bad if you dont see your question answered, i'll use it in a future interview! TAOG : First of all, Congrats with this solo project!, Good-Luck & My Best Wishes for you in this proyect!! it Will Be Succesful! - Thanks so much, I sure hope so;=) 1.-How Anette Olzon Feels in this moment of her life, now that's a Married Girl with 3 Beautiful Kids, being in one of her most happy times of her life? (presonally i see you happier than before)- Hi and yes, I feel really blessed and happy. It´s exciting times and also a bit scary.2.-Forgive me for saying this but....Now we see a ''Bitch'' Anette Olzon, being her true-self, and I like It!!, and that you dont have just 1 Style to be on, are you going to keep just 1 style or will continue trying different ones (talking about clothes)?- Thanks. Well, sometimes being a bitch can be good. It´s important to be tough in this business for sure so a little bit tougher skin is good to have. And I think my style will be as it is now but of course I´ll try different things cause it´s always nice to try out new things now and then.3.- Now that you're by your own & Free, what we can expect from Anette Olzon? Are we going to see her Dark Side, Shining?- I think the opposite - I will be more LIGHT and shiny, different from what I´ve been before. My lyrics may be darker but my appearance will be lighter and shine brighter.4.- You're a Swedish Girl singing in English, but, have you thinked on Singing in Swedish for your solo career?-Me and Petri my manager talked about it but I actually do not feel comfortable writing lyrics in Swedish so I think I´ll stick with English.5.- Also have you considered that your mom sings in any of your future solo projects?, that will be so nice! or Even Working, Together With Johan?- I don´t think mum will sing with me, she has her own things. But I would love to have Johan with me for some gigs.6.- Apart From Niclas, Who are going to be your Musicians for Shine & Upcoming Tours?- Niclas won´t come since he has his own things at home. I haven´t decided upon musicians yet even if I have some persons in mind. Most important for me is that they are doing music from the heart and that I like being in their company.7.- And Talking about Tours, as you can see, you have a BIG latin-american fan-base, are you considering touring there?- Yes, if there is an interest for me over there.8.- Can you tell us a bit about Shine song's?, what does all the songs means for you? (it's real that tracklist that's around the web?)... also when we can see the cover/artwork?- I don´t know which track list you are talking about so can´t say anything about that but the songs are written from my life stories. They are about love, sorrow, happiness and the harder things I´ve been through.9.- Are you going to have ''guest singers'' on Shine?- No, I won´t.10.- Let's talk about something different from Music.... What you'll be doing if you weren't a musician?- I´ve done so many things and have had many jobs but I would love to be a midvife or a leadership consultant.¨11.- Do you left your studies or you're continuing them?, you were studying nursery isn't, as you said one day on your blog?- I am trying to study and I am in one class right now but the problem is that I am releasing my album and that take a lot of my time so it´s hard to get the studies into my schedule. But I hope I can finish my sometime in the coming years.12.- I'm Blushed to say this.... You're so Sexy!, what do you do apart from excercising to stay Fit? Any diet or kind of food?- Oh, thanks. I don´t feel so sexy but nice if someone feel I am, haha! I exercise, try to eat well. I follow Weight watchers at the moment to loose the weight I´ve gained during my pregnancy and nursing. I like it since it´s not a diet but learning how to eat and I lost a lot of weight with them after my first son so I know it works.13.- Which languages you're fluent on? apart from English & Swedish, and which ones you wanna learn?- Those are the ones. I do know some French and German and I understand Danish and Norwegian. I am ok with the languages I know, I don´t think I´ll learn more languages in this age.14.- You have a very musical family, will you make that your kids continue that path?- If they want to, but I won´t make them do music if they don´t want to. 15.- Have you ever thought in studying to be something like chef?, i ask cuz well, i see that you LOVE to cook!- I actually have gone to Restaurant school but I became a waitress and we learned how to cook too but no, Johan is a head chef and he says to stay away from that job.16.- Also some fans were asking, about if you knew that Amy Lee it's going to have her first baby? (like you like her music)- Yes, I read that and I wish her all the best! Being a mum is the best! And yes, I like Evanescence.17.- So, to finish this, Anything else you want to share or say?- No, thanks for the questions and take care!FANS QUESTIONS :What or Who was your influence for writing Shine?- Hi! It was my life and everything and everyone I have around me. Both sad things in life as well as my love for others.*Is Shine, the real shine from Anette Olzon or exist more shine from her?- it´s the shine from me and there are so much more SHINE that will come from me also in the future.*What is your favorite color to define Shine? - Crispy white.*what is your biggest fear on stage and in your life?- On stage it´s my stage fright I always have to fight against and in life I am afraid of loosing my loved ones or to having to leave this Earth to early.*We could see any memory from Alyson Avenue on Shine?- Not any memory, no, but as in Alyson the melodies are what defines me. For me, a good melody is so important and that´s what Melodic rock, as Alyson springs from, also defines the music. So the legacy from all those Alyson years are for sure in my music.*what do you think about the 'tags' the people create in music for destroy it and not for enjoy it?- I´m sorry I do not understand your question.*do you like some indie bands? For example, Florence and The Machine.- Yes, I do! I actually LOVE indie bands and I listen to a lot of them and Florence and the Machine are amazing.*do you had any Bjí¶rk's inspiration on SHINE? - I love Bjí¶rk but I didn´t think about her when writing the music so if there is any influences it´s due to me having liked her for years. What do you hope this year for your musical career?- I hope for a good response of my album and that I can go out and play some smaller tours and gigs with the music and meet the audience. It would be awesome to do a smaller club tour and also I would love to play my music in concert halls with an orchestra as well as in some churches.What do you think its the biggest reason, for when others try to tear down your dreams? - Jealousy. How do you feel now with Shine release? Like its your first Album as soloist-I feel so happy and excited! Proud and I feel so much more complete now when I sing my own songs.Will you travel to Suramerica on your first soloist Tour?- We haven´t planned any tours yet but are starting to talk to agents and booking agencies now and I´ve gotten some nice requests from South America so let´s hope I can come. I would love to visit Chile again!With the release of Shine, there is the possibility of having a show your in our country (Brazil)?-I sure hope so! See my previous answer.What is your kind of voice: soprano, mezzo-soprano or which one?- I am a soprano.What are the most representative feelings in your album "Shine"?(I would luv that u do a cover of Anthem, Kamelot. I love that song)- Oh yes, Anthem is my favourite Kamelot song too so maybe I´ll ask Thomas in Kamelot if I can re-do it. The feelings in my album are divided between melancholy /sadness and love and warmth. I mix those feelings so the album are both dark as well as light.How possible is a collaboration with Yulia Volkova, Lena Katina or both from t.A.T.u for your solo work? That would be great!- Yeah, they are both awesome and I love T.a.t.u! Would be fun for sure!-On the interview to Menaiset you said that you finally could die your hair the colour you wanted (purple).... So, when you were in the band the guys didn't let you die your hair any colour that wasn't black or blonde? Why was that?-No, that wasn´t exactly what I meant. I said that when I applied to be in NW Tuomas asked me to dye my hair black instead of my light blond I had. But they never said I couldn´t color it in any other color after that, but since I sang in a metal band the black hair was more in the style of the band and its music. Now I can have any color since my music isn´t metal.For you what is better, have a solo career or a band? - I´ve always loved to be in bands and have never felt I wanted to go solo, but at the moment and with all the events with my former band, I must say I feel better to go solo at this time. I have more control, I can decide everything myself and I can do as long tours as I feel and can still be a good mum to my boys.*How 'Shine Tour' will work with your ''mother'' life?, are you bringing your kids to the tour?- We´ll see how we do it. Mio is still so small so I can´t be away from him for a longer period so we might bring the kids but first we need to see where and how long tours I´ll do.*In your life you sang for a lot of music styles as Musicals, Gospel, Big band, Jazz, AOR, hard rock, metal, In your first solo album, you will sing in some of this styles or you will adventure yourself in new paths?- My album has been said by those who have listened to it already, that my music has it´s own genre and I think that has a lot to do with the fact that I have done so many different music styles during my life. I listen to all different music, I am an all-eater and I have never only been a singer who sings one thing, so when doing my songs there are influences from all these styles and that´s what I will continue with and I don´t want to put a label on my music cause that would only strain me when making new songs.*Which bands/singers inspired you in this record?- Not anyone, I didn´t think of sounding like anyone else, I have done my songs from my heart and from where I feel comfortable singing.*What albums of bands that you like that will be released this year are you excited to listen?- I actually don´t know what albums are being released but Within Tempation´s new album are of course something I´ll buy.*Hi Nettie! I'd like to ask you if there's any chance for a concert (or more) in Hungary? - I don´t know any tour dates yet but let´s hope so.*And will you choose Permanent musicians for your ''band'' or just ''session'' musicians during Tour?- I will have session musicians with me. *I wish all the best for you, your carrer and your family!- Thanks so much!Can you recommend me some online clothing stores you like/Shop in, that ships worldwide? Love for you!- Hi! I love Net-a-porter but a bit expensive. My Theresa as well. For cheaper but cool stuff Shopakira, Nelly.com and Asos.com*What kind of music do you like/enjoy listening to? -I love so many different styles depending on day and mood. But Alternative music is one of my favorites.*Is there going to be any pre-sale for SHINE? My 18th b'day is on feb 13 and i would love to have it by then!! -Now my album will be one month delayed, but maybe the single will be out a bit earlier. Pre-sales are already out in iTunes.*Are you going to go on tour to promote SHINE?-Yes, I am planning so if there´s an interest for it.*Which is the most personal song for your upcoming album Shine? - There are a few, actually, but one song called "Moving away" which is written when my mum got ill is very personal for me. *What was the most challenging thing in the making process of this album? - It was quite hard to choose only 10 songs since I did have more songs I felt were good too and also the mixing of some songs were a bit hard to get the "right" sound and feeling to them.*What can we expect from this album?- An album that are far from what you´ve heard from me before and an album that is an album of songs you can sit and relax and just listen to. I hope my older fans from the metal scene have an open mind since it´s not metal.*How do you see yourself in 10 years? - I see myself as a singer who have made several albums and tours, gotten a nice steady audience who like me for me and that i am writing songs also for other artists.*Do you have some fears about starting a career as a solo artist? - No, I believe everything will be just fine.*who is her favorite metal singer? (if you have one)-I like Sharon den Adel, Tarja, Simone Simons and Amy Lee.*What was your inspiration in the writing process? -My life and everyone who has passed in it along the way.*How many albums do you plan to record?- Many! :=)You Can Check Out Anette Olzon's Official Accounts Here :
Only a few hours until the first pre-premiere of the new video for 'Lies'. The song will also be available on iTunes tomorrow! The video will be available worldwide on EarMUSIC's Youtube channel www.youtube.com/earmusicofficial tomorrow at 5pm CET! These are the international pre-premiere dates: Video premieres 13.02.14GERMANY – www.myvideo.de/channel/earMUSIC5pm CET Video premieres 14.02.14FR – Radio Metal (radiometal.com) 11am CET SE – RockNytt (rocknytt.net)11am CETES – Mariskalrock (mariskalrock.com) 11am CETCZ – Spark Magazine (spark-rockmagazine.cz)11am CETPL – Onet (onet.pl) 11am CETIT – Metallus (metallus.it)2pm CET CH – Metal Inside (metalinside.ch) 2pm CETUK – Metal Hammer (metalhammer.co.uk) & Prog Magazine (progrockmag.com)4pm CET FI – Radio Rock (radiorock.fi)5pm CETVideo premieres 15.02.14USA – Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles (bravewords.com) 15.02., 12noon EST//Anette Olzon Webteam
Here's the official tracklist: 1. Like A Show Inside My Head2. Shine3. Floating4. Lies5. Invincible6. Hear Me7. Falling8. Moving Away9. One Million Faces10. Watching Me From Afar
I´ve gotten some requests for the lyrics for LIES so here it is:LIES(Anette Olzon, Stefan í–rn, Johan Glí¶ssner)Verse:Thousand lights passing byStories floating aroundSilence is long gone by nowAll the wishes we hadDreams that we sharedI remember the timeClosing down open doorsMaking fences grow strongBurning the plants that had grownDeep inside from the time when love was our lifeNow it´s goodbyeChorus:All of the LIES just passing us byI´m holding to keep it insideWhy no wrong can´t be rightAll the wonders are goneNo more flowers will fall tonightAll of the LIES just passing us byVerse:Threads of life going byPrecious moments run byTossing and turning our mindsAll the magic is goneNo more feelings of hopeWill we ever forgiveWill the wounds start to healI´m tired of pushing the dayPutting down all behind- moving awayChorus;All of the LIES just passing us byI´m holding to keep it in sightWhy no wrong can´t be rightAll the wonders are goneNo more flowers will fall tonightAll that is gone just passing us byLIES just passing us byI´m holding to keep it in sightWhy no wrong can´t be rightAll the wonders are goneNo more flowers will fall tonightAll that is gone just passing us by
Anette Olzon is due to release her debut solo album, Shine next month. Ahead of the release I spoke to her to talk about the album, whether or not she has any touring plans, and of course I asked her some questions relating to her time with Nightwish. Read on to see what she had to say. Your first solo album, Shine, is due for release at the end of March. When did you first start writing material for it?Anette Olzon. Photo by Patric UllaeusAnette Olzon. Photo by Patric UllaeusI started writing in 2009 in the autumn, so some years ago, and the plan was to release it at that time but then I postponed it because I didn’t find a label that suited me and also I got my second child, so that’s why there have been some years between then and now. This was meant to be a side project between the (Nightwish) tours we had, and that was why I did it in 2009, because we had a bigger break between the albums.You’ve worked with other songwriters for this album. How did it work – did they write songs and present them to you or were you working with them on each song?Mainly I would come up with some melodies and they would help me with the music, but there are also songs like “Shine†where Stefan had made some music and played it for me then I came up with the melody and lyrics. With some of the songs we just sat down and jammed together with the piano and drums and the songs came from that. So, it was a little different for each song actually.What are your inspirations for writing the lyrics?The lyrics are very personal most of them, not all but most of them have some kind of meaning from my life. There is one song about my eldest son and there is one song about my husband at the time, so I’ve taken them from my life, autobiographical songs in a way.“Lies†was written about your divorce wasn’t it?Yes exactly, not totally about it, but in the mood of it, you know, how you feel when you are in that situation.Fans reading the lyrics to “Lies†could easily think it’s about the Nightwish split.Yes but that was also like a divorce, so it suits that situation too. Being in a band is not like a normal job, it’s like a family so it is like a big divorce when you end something like that too, so I think “Lies†does work for the Nightwish thing too.anette_olzon_02_Credit_Patric Ullaeus_RevolverAnette Olzon. Photo by Patric UllaeusThat was with the same two guys, Stefan and Johan [Stefan Orn and Johan Glossner]. Actually that one is one of our favourites, all three of us. We really like that song and it’s a love song. You could also think that it’s about someone who has passed away since I’m singing that you’re watching me from afar, but it’s actually about my current husband, when I was on tour, he wasn’t there but I could still feel his presence, so it’s a love song.Reaction to your video, “Lies†seems to be very positive.Yeah, it’s amazing. I had a great vision when it came to the whole video thing. I knew from the beginning what it was going to look like. I wanted this Nordic feeling because I think my music is a bit in that style and that’s how I see the whole album of “Shineâ€, a bit Nordic and Folkish in many ways, and I wanted something very Nordic to show the best of our nature and also of course the snow. We were lucky enough on the day we were shooting that we got snow because we didn’t have much snow here in the lower part of Sweden but on exactly that day the snow arrived in Gothenburg where we filmed it, so it was great but very cold. I can’t say it was so enjoyable all the time because I was freezing to death but the video looks really nice and I’m really happy that people like it. I think they understood the meaning of it you know, the whole vision I had.A lot of the comments I’ve seen on the video have said how good your voice sounds – I think it sounds fantastic.Thank you. It’s nice because it’s easier now to showcase my voice because I do the song by myself. It’s always easier when you come up with the melodies to make it suitable for my range, and where I find it suitable. In Nightwish I got the songs in a certain key so then I had to adapt my voice to the songs and of course they can be too high or too low. This time it’s also easier to use the dynamics of my voice to sing in different styles, and “Lies†is a great showcase where you can sing with a lower voice and then a raspy rocky voice and everything, so it’s a good song to show your voice in.Are there any plans for live shows later in the year?Yeah I’m really trying to get it together. The thing we’re working on is trying to find a good booking agent which is of course a bit harder when you’re a new artist, to find a suitable one. I’m hoping my manager can find one this week or next week, and then we will try to plan a tour as soon as possible.How difficult was it trying to balance touring with Nightwish with raising your son?When I joined Nightwish I had one child and he was 5 at that time, so it was hard to leave him but at the same time he was not like a little orphan. It was hard in many ways, but it got harder since I had my second child, Nemo, then you have a baby and it is much harder even if I brought him along. Now I have three kids so it gets harder and harder. Of course it depends on the kind of help you get from people around you and your family. I have a very good network, I have a mum who helps me. I think the hardest thing for me is missing my children when I’m away, but that’s something you have to deal with in this business.With three kids, being on tour must be like having a rest for you.Yes exactly, and that was the thing when I had my second child with me on tour, even if his daddy was there it felt like I couldn’t get any relaxation because I was on stage or I did an interview, and normally you can go and sleep in the bus and get a bit of a rest, but if you have your child with you then you have to be the mum so it was quite demanding for me on the European tour. I didn’t feel I could relax like in a normal job where you can relax a bit in the day from the family, so it was nice to have the family there but also hard. I think that’s why many musicians go on tour, because some of the guys in Nightwish go on tour to get away from the family, I know. I didn’t do that but I know some of them did because they felt it was like a holiday. In a way it can be that.On the “Showtime Storytime†Nightwish DVD, you don’t appear in the documentary about the Imaginaerum tour. Why did you request that you not be seen or heard in it?I said I didn’t want to be in that, it was my decision. There were many reasons. First of all we had only talked about the documentary in a loose way before the tour started, that maybe we would do a documentary, and then when everything ended and they kind of fired me in a very bad way, I was quite angry and sad about the situation. Then a few months later they asked my manager if I wanted to pay for this documentary and be in it, and my reaction was Why? There’s a new singer and they’d done this in a bad way so I didn’t want to participate. In many ways it was not only because I was angry but also because I didn’t understand why, and also because I didn’t want to have half of the documentary about me and then half about the new singer – there would be comparisons, and I didn’t know how they would showcase me, would they show me in a bad way or a good way. So the decision has many different layers, but I felt I didn’t want to be part of it, I wanted to leave that part of my life behind me at that point.One thing I find depressing is how many people seem obsessed with championing their favourite singer as the “best†a band has had and criticising the other singers. Rather than simply admitting that each singer is different and has their own strengths and weaknesses they constantly compare and criticise.When I joined Nightwish I had very big shoes to fill and they didn’t make it easy for me, the fans. It was a hard job for me to take because the fans didn’t approve of me. We sold more albums than Nightwish ever had in the past, so in that way I succeeded, but they made me feel very insecure and that I had to work so hard to be liked because of those comparisons with Tarja which I find quite amusing because we are so different. I think music is something where you can’t compete, I don’t think you can say who is best because we are all different and what you like may be something I don’t like and I think we should stop comparing. They are quite fanatical some of these fans, and I don’t know why Nightwish have this type of fan because I don’t think all bands have them, but there’s something about Nightwish that made these people quite fanatical.There is also the fact that different voices work well on different things. I’m not sure how well Tarja’s beautiful soprano voice would work on some of the songs from Imaginarum for instance whereas your voice worked for them.Yes and my voice wouldn’t suit those first songs from “Angels fall firstâ€, and I had some difficulty singing those songs. I think what the boys did when they changed Tarja for a new singer, they wanted something new, a new sound, but at the same time maybe if they had chosen someone similar maybe it would have been easier for everyone in a way, but since the guys wanted a new style, that was the choice and the fans should maybe tried to have accept it a bit more, and many of them did of course, but it was hard for us all in many ways.With any band breakup there are bad memories but also hopefully good ones too. What is one of your best memories from your time with Nightwish?I think it was when we won a big award in Germany called the Echo award which is like a Grammy. The evening was just fantastic, I was there on the same stage with celebrities like Kylie Minogue and Foo Fighters, and we actually won the prize over Within Temptation and Foo Fighters which was just amazing, I couldn’t believe it, so that was a really nice evening, just to be a part of that big occasion, and Germany’s such a huge country you know so it was just wonderful, so I think that is one of the best memories I have.Do you have any plans to join another band?Not at the moment no. I don’t say I will never be in a band again. My old band that I was in before Nightwish, Alyson Avenue, we will probably do a reunion at some point because we have such a good friendship still and we share a studio where I do music with my own keyboard player, but at the moment I’m trying to focus on my solo stuff to get it started. Of course if there were to be a nice band where I feel that my heart is in the music and where I can do songs, be a songwriter then maybe, but I don’t think I’d be just a singer in a band again and not songwriting because now I feel that I like this songwriting thing. Maybe I will start my own band at some point, who knows.First though as you say there’s the solo album to concentrate on. Thank you very much for your time.Thank you so much.Anette Olzon’s solo album, Shine will be released on 31st March 2014 via earMUSIC.
