TARJA TURUNEN To Release 'Falling Awake' Single In July

Former NIGHTWISH singer Tarja Turunen will release a new single, "Falling Awake", in the U.K. on July 19 exclusively as a 10-inch vinyl via Spinefarm Records. This highly collectible format will be limited to 1,000 copies, all of them pressed onto "marbled" vinyl and numbered by hand, and will be available exclusively from online retailer What Records.

"Falling Awake" is the first track to be released from the forthcoming Tarja outing, "What Lies Beneath" — her second full album to be made available under the Tarja banner and the follow-up to 2007's "My Winter Storm". This version of the track differs from the one that will appear on "What Lies Beneath" in that if features a special guest appearance from FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH guitarist Jason Hook. Mixing was handled, as with much of the new album, by renowned U.K. producer Colin Richardson, whose track record includes work with such artists as SLIPKNOT, MACHINE HEAD and BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE.

The B-side of the "Falling Awake" 10-inch single is "The Good Die Young" — a specially mixed version of the song from the new SCORPIONS album, "Sting In The Tail", with Tarja's vocals now more prominent overall.

"What Lies Beneath" is scheduled for release on September 3 via Spinefarm Records, preceded by follow-up single/video, "Until My Last Breath", on August 16.

A two-and-a-half-minute video teaser for "What Lies Beneath" can be viewed below. Also available is the CD's cover artwork.

The session that produced the cover photo took place in Finland in February. Jens Boldt took the pictures and Dirk Rudolph created the actual artwork.

With production handled by Tarja herself and selected tracks mixed by U.K. producer Colin Richardson, the follow-up to 2007's "My Winter Storm" "looks set to take Tarja's unique musical mix of drama 'n' decibels to a whole new level of success," according to a press release.

"We worked on 33 songs this time around from which I decided to record 17," Tarja explained. "It has been great to have the freedom to produce my own record for the first time; these sessions have been such a gift, a real learning process and a true joy. In many ways, it feels like the first time…"

ALL THAT REMAINS singer Phil Labonte has contributed guest vocals to "What Lies Beneath". Labonte appears in the track "Dark Star", which Turunen described as a "duet." Tarja stated, "I haven't been really working with such impressive vocals before. With [Phil's vocal contributions], the song reached another dimension."