The Greatest Show on Earth - Troy Donockley of Nightwish

[@thephalcon9501]

It' great to hear 'my best friend Troy' has finally found his true spiritual and musical home and is also clearly influencing Nightwish musically (as I've known of him since his days with Iona - no Wembley for them me thinks). Nice to see him where he's recognised, at home musically, and amongst a fantastic team. Great interview. "Troy mate your kitchen is looking lovely from this tree".

[@folkme3042]

I remember seeing Troy a few times back in the late nineties/early 2000's when he was part of Maddy Prior's band.He really impressed me then with his imaginative use of pipes and whistles but I could never have imagined the direction he would take as an integral part of Nightwish. You must be very proud to be able to call him your friend.He seems like such a warm, genuine,down to earth guy who has certainly not let success go to his head.Good luck to him. He deserves it.

[@DrRipp667]

Great interview! And great job also, it's one of the few where the interviewer is actually enjoyable too. Troy sounds like a fantastic guy as always, I'm really glad Nightwish is the way it is now!

[@MetalBlast]

Thank you very much for your very kind comment. I'm glad you enjoyed it! Hopefully you'll find more things to like!

[@o2boutdoors]

Loved this interview! Always great when an interviewer can create a conversation rather than just engage in a session of questions and answers. Sounds like both you and Troy had a fun conversation.

[@MetalBlast]

I'm glad you liked it!

[@jetranger6159]

Well, this is the most informative Nightwish interview I've ever come across, and pretty fun to watch as well. It brings to light many details that I've been really curious about since the "Endless Forms Most Beautiful" release.

[@MetalBlast]

Thank you very much the words, I'm glad you liked it! I hope you'll subscribe and check out what comes next! ;)

[@calanor4130]

Superb interview with lots of interesting information! Troy is such a genuinely nice and intelligent fellow! Many thanks!

[@MetalBlast]

Thank you for checking it out!

[@tonymingo179]

Brilliant, Troy and the band are right.

[@phraun]

Great interview, thanks!

[@js5760]

Wonderful interview mainly because it sounded more like two friends chatting with each other than these dull interviews where the conversation is inactive and discussion ends at the next question

[@lilo5437]

That part about Richard Dawkins was hilarious 😂 Great interview!

[@michaelstamper5604]

A genuinely fascinating interview. Troy is obviously not only a hugely talented musician, he's obviously a highly educated man. Any time you've passing through my part of England, Troy, it'd be lovely to sit down with a coffee or a pint and have a natter.

[@Shads62]

He's a Workington lad. Like myself. Were very proud of him

[@folkme3042]

With very good reason.He seems like a very warm,humble and genuine guy .Nightwish were lucky to find him.

[@joaojr7918]

Troy has a great voice.

[@John-ri6ky]

Very good, intelligent interview.

[@MetalBlast]

John 27 you're very kind, thank you very much

[@JohnG228]

Great interview.

[@MetalBlast]

Thanks John, it's great to hear that you liked it. Hopefully you'll subscribe for some more stuff! :)

[@janusvb]

I really like this interview, about Dawkins, the carefully formulated thoughts about religion, secularism, humanism, christmas-songs, arabian melody, and the open vision about music, ... and the 'illustrations' inside it ... very informative ... and even important ... I think ... Did mr. Donockly thank the Los Angeles guy for the meme of "Vehicle of Spirit?" ... You have to stay modest ...

[@caroonate9582]

Nice interview! Guileless/candid conducted (despite those 3 bullet points 😂) and purehearted answered.

[@MetalBlast]

I think those 3 bullet points are accurate! :P

[@aguilarjulianandres]

Excelent job.

[@MetalBlast]

You're very kind Julian, thank you so much!

[@yashamill]

Part where Troy describes how the idea of inviting Richard Dawkins came up: @10:13

[@rodgill9376]

this is an interesting interview

[@MetalBlast]

+Rod Gill we're glad you like it!

[@rodgill9376]

indeed

[@jumpin4smoke2]

If you'd have to make a playlist of only 10 Nightwish songs for a friend who never heard of them, which songs would you choose?

[@taniashushanvd6725]

Ghost Love Score (Wacken version obviously) Last Ride of the Day Amaranth The Greatest Show On Earth Storytime (again, Wacken version) Over The Hills And Far Away Stargazers (in my opinion, it is the most difficult song they have) Nemo Élan The Poet And The Pendulum (Wembley version) I don't have anything against Tarja or Anette but I would like to prioritize my goddess Floor Jansen.

[@isaiahwelch8066]

I would add these songs (and make it a full setlist): 11. 7 Days To The Wolves (Not Wembly, the other known venue) 12. Dark Chest of Wonders 13. Shudder Before the Beautiful 14. Ever Dream 15. Yours Is An Empty Hope (Because Floor is so sexy growling

[@dennislindqvist1265]

It's easier to be a young musician than an old one. I 🎉 not complain.

[@LastofAvari]

What your dissertation was about? Glad to hear you'd succeeded :)

[@MetalBlast]

Thanks for the nice comment, it means a lot. I'm a lawyer, my doctorate is in law.

[@m2duebbie]

@@MetalBlast , you are as versatile as Nightwish: law proficiency, metal music fan, great interview skills, open minded to other belief sets. Good on you, really enjoyed interview, gives me even deeper appreciation of Troy and Nightwish, who I adore!

[@MetalBlast]

You're too kind, thank you

[@dennislindqvist8443]

Secularism and democracy go hand in hand. Just look at Iran, Trump and the evangelists, how John Lennon was treated when he said that "the Beatles are bigger than Jesus" etc, etc. Religion is about money, power and narrow-minded people who want to control what people say or how they live their lives.

[@AndrewMarloweTV]

Ive always wondered about that as far as tuomoas is concerned because he used to write a lot about jesus and christianity and then all the sudden he was an atheist lol

[@calanor4130]

Is he though? I haven't read any article or seen an interview where he explicitly says this. I read an article way back that the members of Nightwish were agnostics and pantheists. This was before Troy (and Floor) became official members. Going even further back, Tuomas said that he was a Christian that doesn't know whether or not God exists, which sounds contradictory, but might possibly mean that he saw himself as an agnostic who agree with Christian values. Of course, Tuomas might have changed his views since then, but I'd be very interested to know if there's an article/interview that confirms this. "Secular" does not necessarily equal atheism. I'm secular in that I feel that church and state should be separated, am critical of organised religion and consider the Age of Enlightenment as one of the greatest milestones in Western history, but I am also an agnostic with some pantheistic leanings, placing me at say 3.5 on Dawkin's spectrum of theistic probability.

[@m2duebbie]

Troy, get your thoughts on fans who go too far on feeling they are your/Nightwish friends. However, I think many of your fans think of various members as folks they could be friends with in real life. For example, Floor seems in her personal life/attitude like the girl next door that would make a great friend! The intelligence, passion, humbleness, fun, joy that comes across from each of you is a huge part of the Nightwish magic. You all have certainly touched my heart, and if I ever ran across any of Nightwish members, would love to share some wine and hear your stories!

[@babatoa]

Hey Troy: Stop washing Tuomas mind with these horrible themes of atheism and Dawkins BS!

[@MetalBlast]

I don't personally care what anybody believes, but your opinion of Tuomas must be very bad if you think his whole mindset would change just because someone told him about Atheism and Dawkins. Also, what part of Dawkins do you think is BS?

[@bleedthegoat]

This band makes me vomit profusely.

[@MetalBlast]

That sounds like the kind of thing you should see a doctor for.

[@isaiahwelch8066]

I'd say you have no taste, since all you know is...well...vomit. It's hard to have taste, when you don't even know the classical elements that Tuomas and Nightwish have combined into something quite unique, as well as something that will endure long after they each "return to the primal state," as Dawkins says. Not sure what you like musically, but give credit where credit is due: They do something that very few people have the talent and experience to accomplish. And that, inherently, makes them worthy of begrudging respect.

[@andrewhutchinson8025]

You are an idiot

[@lekalla]

It was probably just a food poisoning.

[@calanor4130]

@@isaiahwelch8066 Well said! There are plenty of artists/bands that I don't care for musically, but I still try to acknowledge good craftsmanship where I find it.

[@pobesnelikrastavac1]

Very good interview.

[@MetalBlast]

Thank you very much for the support. I hope you'll stick around for more! ;)