NIGHTWISH Mainman On Singer's Decision To Hire Personal Manager: 'I Had A Feeling Of Déjà Vu'

In an exclusive interview with Classic Rock's Dave Ling, NIGHTWISH keyboardist/mainman Tuomas Holopainen admitted that he had "a feeling of déjà vu" when the band's vocalist Anette Olzon, echoing her predecessor, recently announced her decision to hire a personal manager. An excerpt from the chat follows below.

Classic Rock: The "Dark Passion Play" tour began in October 2007. Is the finish line in sight?

Holopainen: "It's on the far horizon, maybe. There's only another five months to go. It's been the band's longest and most exhausting tour; a real roller-coaster ride."

Classic Rock: By that you must mean Anette bursting into tears and walking off stage at a gig in Brazil last November (see video footage below),later claiming in an interview that "the stress and bad vibe within the band had reached a boiling point?"

Holopainen: "Yes, but I disagree about the bad vibe part. It was a combination of many different things. Everyone was getting along, but the schedule was too hard. The whole band, the technicians, everyone, was on the verge of collapse."

Classic Rock: What was meant by the explanation that Anette was "really not up to this kind of heavy shit right now"?

Holopainen: "She was being affected by a smoke machine, which isn't great for a singer. There were middle fingers in the front row, and some jerks were screaming the name of our former vocalist (Tarja Turunen). It all kind of closed in on her. But everybody's relaxed again now. We went home and had three months off the road. As simple as that."

Classic Rock: Did alarm bells ring when, echoing her predecessor, Olzon recently hired a personal manager (Swedish management company Hagenburg Management, which also represents EUROPE and THE CARDIGANS)?

Holopainen: "At the beginning I had a feeling of déjà vu. But when we discussed it I understood that she needs somebody who speaks her own language [Swedish]. Her manager is a very, very reasonable guy."

Classic Rock: How is she handling the fame?

Holopainen: "She has told me a couple of times that she might not be able to handle it, on top of her divorce. I've seen her close to collapse and it has scared me, so we are protecting her. There will be no more interviews."

For more information, visit Classic Rock.

In a recent interview with MeNaiset, the most popular women's magazine in Finland, Olzon stated about her decision to hire a personal manager, "It was a hard decision for me because I didn't want problems with the band. I said that I have different needs in these areas than the rest of the guys. I, for example, need clothing sponsors which doesn't interest the rest of the band. Now I have a person who will be able to take care of that kind of stuff."

Anette Olzon walking off stage in Belo Horizonte, Brazil on November 10, 2008 (from two different angles):

Marco addressing crowd after Anette walks off stage: