Nightwish founder / keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen in featured in a new interview with Metal Wani, conducted at Hellfest 2018 in Clisson, France. In the clip below he discusses the band's Decades tour, their forthcoming studio album due in 2020, drummer Jukka Nevalainen's ongoing health issues, songwriting inspiration, and more.

On the new album

Tuomas: "It is still in the songwriting process. I have about, I don't know, 70% - 80% of the material written, but nobody else has heard a single bar. They have no idea about the song titles or the themes or anything, so it's still in the very early stage, but it's looking really good and I'm really excited about what's come up so far. The idea is next summer, in June of 2019, we're going to go to the rehearsal camp once again, start working with the album, record it, and, if everything goes as scheduled, we're looking at a 2020 springtime release, followed by a massive tour, of course."

Nightwish released their brand new best-of compilation Decades on March 9th via Nuclear Blast to celebrate more than two decades of their career. It's only right, then, that this milestone should be celebrated with an extensive world tour. Currently touring North America, the band has announced that their special guests for the upcoming European shows this November and December will be up and coming heavy metallers Beast In Black, led by former Battle Beast guitarist Anton Kabanen.

"There's absolutely no better way to wrap up the year than this massive tour with Nightwish," says Anton. "Moreover, this is beyond words and our wildest dreams. We promise to give you our very best and to make these shows unforgettable!"

November
2 - Gothenburg, Sweden - Partille Arena
5 - Berlin, Germany - Max-Schmeling-Halle
6 - Hamburg, Germany - Barclaycard Arena
7 - Antwerp, Belgium - Lotto Arena
9 - Oberhausen, Germany - König-Pilsener-Arena
10 - Paris, France - AccorHotels Arena
11 - Geneva, Switzerland - Arena
13 - Bratislava, Slovakia - Incheba Expo Arena
14 - Munich, Germany - Olympiahalle
16 - Leipzig, Germany - Arena
17 - Krakow, Poland - Tauron Arena
20 - Budapest, Hungary - Arena
22 - Zurich, Switzerland - Hallenstadion
23 - Nuremberg, Germany - Arena
24 - Stuttgart, Germany - Schleyer-Halle
27 - Saarbrücken, Germany - Saarlandhalle

December
4 - Milan, Italy - Medionalum Forum
5 - Frankfurt, Germany - Festhalle

More tour dates are listed below.

March
23 - Niagara Falls, NY - Rapids Theatre
24 - Cleveland, OH - Agora Theater
25 - Pittsburgh, PA - Stage AE
26 - Covington, KY - Madison Theater
28 - Kalamazoo, MI - State Theatre
29 - St. Louis, MO - Touhill Performing Arts Center
30 - Minneapolis, MN - The Myth
31 - Chicago, IL - Aragon Ballroom

April
2 - Omaha, NE - Sokol Auditorium
3 - Denver, CO - Paramount Theatre
5 - Edmonton, AB - Northern Alberta Jubilee Auditorium
6 - Spokane, WA - Knitting Factory
7 - Vancouver, BC - Queen Elizabeth Theater
8 - Portland, OR - Roseland Theater
10 - Las Vegas, NV - Brooklyn Bowl
12 - Ventura, CA - The Majestic Ventura Theatre
13 - San Jose, CA - City National Civic
14 - Anaheim, CA - City National Grove
15 - Tempe, AZ - Marquee Theatre
17 - Dallas, TX - The Bomb Factory
18 - Memphis, TN - Minglewood Hall
19 - Mobile, AL - Saenger Theater
21 - St. Petersburg, FL - Jannus Landing
22 - Miami, FL - Olympia Theater

May
18 - Tallinn, Estonia - Saku Suurhall

June
1 - Pilsen, Czech Republic - Metalfest Open Air
2 - Nijmegen, Netherlands - FortaRock
21 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Copenhell
24 - Clisson, France - Hellfest

July
6 - Kvinesdal, Norway - Norway Rock Festival
13 - Joensuu, Finland - Ilosaarirock
21 - Lahti, Finland - Mukkulan Tapahtumapuisto

August
3 - Wacken, Germany - Wacken Open Air
7 - Schaffhausen, Switzerland - Stars in Town
9 - Villena, Spain - Leyendas del Rock
12 - Derby, UK - Bloodstock Open Air

(Photo - Tim Tronckoe)