Nemesis (Stratovarius album)

Former Sonata Arctica guitarist Jani Liimatainen, who released the collaborative acoustic album Blackoustic in 2012 with singer Timo Kotipelto, guest performs on Nemesis, having also co-written two songs in "If the Story Is Over" and "Out of the Fog". The band considered hiring an orchestra to perform in the album, but they abandoned the idea in the end. The name of the album came up when guitarist Matias was sitting on the airport of Madrid and suggested it to his bandmates. At that point, most of the lyrics were already done. The woman on the cover may be a savior, an avenger or the author of all the destruction, according to Jens. ==Track listing==

LA Weekly named its cover as the most ridiculous metal album cover of 2013. As for the album itself, it received generally positive reviews from critics, Metal Storm wrote “Even after all their previous dramas Stratovarius have made Nemesis their most expressive return to form.” James Monger writing for AllMusic wrote “Nemesis delivers musically what it does visually, offering up 11 well-honed slabs of propulsive, stadium-ready, non-specific adversity anthems,” “resulting in another riveting, ludicrous, ornate, hammy, and explosive set from one of the genre's finest practitioners.” The album won best Power Metal album at the 2013 Metalstorm awards. ==Personnel==

Stratovarius • Timo Kotipelto – vocals • Matias Kupiainen – guitar, mixing, production • Jens Johansson – keyboard • Rolf Pilve – drums • Lauri Porra – bass Guest musicians • Jani Liimatainen – acoustic guitar, background vocals • Joakin Jokela – whistling • background vocals by the "Shark Finns" – Susana Koski, Anna Maria Parkkinen, Anna-Maija Jalkenen, Alexa Leroux, Tipe Johnson, Hepa Waara, Ari Sievälä, James Lascelles, Dane Stefaniuk, Koop Arponen Production • Mika Jussila – mastering ==Charts==