Jukka Nevalainen was Nightwish's drummer from 1997 to 2019, present through the whole building of the band — from the three singers to the orchestral expansion that defined symphonic metal as a genre. Born in Kitee, Finland, in 1978, he joined just after the group formed and recorded from Angels Fall First (1997) to Imaginaerum (2011). His function is among the hardest to notice and the most demanding: in an arrangement where orchestra, choirs and keyboards occupy almost the whole spectrum, the drums have to mark with absolute clarity without filling space, and sustain long structures that change tempo and character like film music. He stepped away from touring in 2014 because of chronic insomnia, remaining formally in the band until 2019, when he announced his definitive departure. He stayed connected to Nightwish, working on the management of the group's business rather than on stage — a continuity of another kind.
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