Blind Guardian Week on Metalfans (June 21-27, 2010)

Which band shall we dig into next week?

  • The Who (SMX)

    Votes: 7 77.8%

  • Grunge (Wasted CLV)

    Votes: 1 11.1%

  • Kreator (Albie)

    Votes: 1 11.1%
  • Total voters
    9
SinisterMinisterX

SinisterMinisterX

Illuminatus
Staff member
As demanded by pilau, it's Return Of The Son Of Band Of The Week!

Nominations are open.
And since it's been a while, bands we have done previously are eligible again!
Rules for the n00bz: you nominate one band. First 3 good bands go in the poll next week.
Don't pick obscure bands. Guideline is 4 albums minimum, and a reasonable confidence that people know the band.

I'm obviously voting Who, but I'd love a Grunge Week too.

It is now Blind Guardian Week, as suggested by cornfedhick.

As to BG: been awhile since I listened to them extensively. I love their sound, but most of their stuff sounds the same to me. Still, if you're gonna have one main sound, they got a winner for theirs.

As is my custom for these threads, I'm going to take another listen to all their albums. Just fired up Battalions Of Fear.
 
OK, sad admission here, but I haven't listened to Blind Gaurdian.  So, this week gives me opportunity.

Thanks for doing this again, SMX!!
 
I haven't listened to these guys for years, but I remember Tales from the Twilight World as a solid power metal album. After that they went a little overboard with layered choruses and bombastic arrangements.
 
I've just finished listening to "And Then There Was Silence" which was actually recommended on another forum but I'd thought I'd listen to it because of Bling Gaurdian week over here.

I was very impressed. I've been tempted to get "Nightfall in Middle Earth" for ages because I like my Tolkien but never got around to it.
 
The first album I'd recommend that you buy (because certainly you wouldn't illegally download it, right?) if you're interested in exploring this great band is Live, which was recorded during its tour following the A Night at the Opera album.  Among studio albums, I'd recommend either Imaginations from the Other Side or Nightfall in Middle Earth.

A few things to know about this group:

1.  They are heavily influenced by Queen, and their album A Night at the Opera is so named in part as an homage to Queen's famous album.  Their later studio albums have a very heavily layered sound, including many different vocal tracks to simulate a large chorus -- akin to "Bohemian Rhapsody."  I wouldn't exactly call them "operatic metal," but they have an over-the-top sound.  Shadow's description as "bombastic" is an apt one.  On some songs, "frenzied" would also be a decent description.  This is most exemplified in the epic song, "And Then There Was Silence," from the Opera album, which is fucking awesome in its excess.  In too many instances, however, this layered sound obscures the terrific musicality of the group, in my opinion, which is why I recommend the Live album -- the sound is more stripped down, with the crowd singing along to fill in the choral parts on the album (which is a nice effect), and the musicianship really shines through.  Plus, Live serves as a pretty good "best of" collection.  It's a great hard rock record, one of my "desert island" choices, and I listen to it often.  (There is a companion DVD called Imaginations Through the Looking Glass from the same tour, which has a few additional songs and which I also recommend.) 

2.  These guys are geeks.  They sing about Tolkein characters, dungeons & dragons, bards, elves, wizards, and other Renaissance Faire-type subjects.  For example, Nightfall in Middle Earth is a concept album based entirely on The Silmarillion, with voice-acted interludes between songs.  Maybe this stuff appeals to you, maybe it doesn't.  Just sayin'.

3.  Their earlier music is more thrash, and they evolved into more of a power metal band after the first few albums.  Both phases are good, although the production on the first couple albums sounds like it was recorded in my closet. 

4.  What sets this band apart from other metal bands, in my view, is their melodies.  Like Iron Maiden, they are very heavy, but they are also very musical and melodic at the same time.  Good band to "sing along" to the music, and as is obvious from their live albums, the crowds do so throughout the show. 

Enjoy
 
While Nightfall is hands down their best album, I'd still recommend folks to start in order with Batallions of Fear and Follow the Blind, because they are very straightforward without the layered vocals and "bombastic" sound.
 
While Nightfall is good, it never impressed me quite as much as the earlier albums. The three album stretch Tales From The Twilight World - Somewhere Far Beyond - Imaginations From The Other Side seems to be their peak IMO.
 
See, I'd disagree. Nightfall is easily my favourite album by them, followed by Imaginations, Somewhere Far Beyond, and Tales...in that order. Nightfall is a bit less new, perhaps; the sound is less of an evolution and more of a refinement, but adding perfect subject material for both Blind Guardian to create and me to listen to, involved with that refinement, makes it the apex of their work. As far as I'm concerned.
 
I much prefer their later work.  As noted in my earlier post, I like Nightfall and Imaginations the best.  I actually think the first couple albums are less accessible to new fans, primarily because the production is so bad, and therefore I disagree with Onhell that they are good starting points for exploring the band.

I like Tales and Opera a great deal, too, but for some reason, Somewhere Far Beyond falls flat for me.  I think the songwriting just isn't as good.  A Twist in the Myth, their most recent album, is underrated in my opinion.  Not as consistently excellent as the other albums mentioned above, but it has some really great songs.

SMX and LC, I'm interested to know if you share my enthusiasm for Live.  Again, if I had to choose just one to keep, that would be it.     
 
I thoroughly enjoy Live, but I haven't heard it in years. Nonetheless, I have recommended it to people interested in Blind Guardian before as a great starting point. Some of the live songs are easily better than their album counterparts - especially "Mirror, Mirror".
 
cornfedhick said:
I much prefer their later work.  As noted in my earlier post, I like Nightfall and Imaginations the best.  I actually think the first couple albums are less accessible to new fans, primarily because the production is so bad, and therefore I disagree with Onhell that they are good starting points for exploring the band.   
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Bad production does not a bad album make. And I don't think they are "less accessible." Quite the opposite. They may be less accessible to people new to metal, but not to people fully acquainted with metal and it's subgenres. Many metal fans can't stand Power Metal ( it is no secret I freaking LOVE this genre for all it's gayness and cheesiness :D), preferring more aggresive genres (speed, thrash, death, etc.) I made my recommendation with this in mind and also seeing the bands progression into their recent sound.
 
Fair enough, though I disagree with your first point:  bad production can totally fuck up the listening experience of an album.  Some albums -- Iron Maiden, for instance -- are so good they can overcome it, but music is art out of sound, and if the sound is bad, the art often suffers as a result. 

P.S.  Opeth wants its logo back!  (Did you see them on last tour?) 
 
Onhell said:
Many metal fans can't stand Power Metal ( it is no secret I freaking LOVE this genre for all it's gayness and cheesiness :D)
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Then you should be checking out When Prog And Power Unite, an internet radio show which alternates blocks of prog rock and power metal. Every Monday from 6:30pm to 9:30pm Eastern time. (But no show tonight, the DJs are at the NYC Maiden show. Check it out next week.)

Generally speaking, they play new music (stuff released in the last year or two) and few classics. It's a great way to keep up with the new power metal. It's how I've been hearing the new Avantasia double album, since they play a song off that almost every week.

Also the show has a chatroom, where you can make requests, and the DJs are very good about playing as many requests as they can (as long as it's in the format). Plus the power metal DJ is a Maiden / Savatage / Avantasia nut, he'll play those at the drop of a hat.
 
cornfedhick said:
Fair enough, though I disagree with your first point:  bad production can totally fuck up the listening experience of an album.  Some albums -- Iron Maiden, for instance -- are so good they can overcome it, but music is art out of sound, and if the sound is bad, the art often suffers as a result. 
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Oh, true, but those albums' production is not THAT bad. When I DJed at the University's station we would get cds with REALLY bad production that make these CDs sound like a BOSTON output lol. But you are right, shoddy production can make or break an album.

P.S.  Opeth wants its logo back!  (Did you see them on last tour?) 
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I did! The one cool thing about Tucson is it's tiny venues so not only did I see them, but I was up close. Akenfeld is one funny mofo. They are the only death metal band I consider myself a fan of.

SinisterMinisterX said:
Then you should be checking out When Prog And Power Unite, an internet radio show which alternates blocks of prog rock and power metal. Every Monday from 6:30pm to 9:30pm Eastern time. (But no show tonight, the DJs are at the NYC Maiden show. Check it out next week.)

Generally speaking, they play new music (stuff released in the last year or two) and few classics. It's a great way to keep up with the new power metal. It's how I've been hearing the new Avantasia double album, since they play a song off that almost every week.

Also the show has a chatroom, where you can make requests, and the DJs are very good about playing as many requests as they can (as long as it's in the format). Plus the power metal DJ is a Maiden / Savatage / Avantasia nut, he'll play those at the drop of a hat.
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Will do! I've been playing "Wicked Symphony" none stop for the past week, will review it later this week. I ordered "Angel of Babylon," because WS really impressed me. It's what I invisioned for this outfit from the start.
 
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