The Official Blind Guardian Thread v. Yup, Still a Necrothread

[Perpetual Change]

Listening to A Twist In The Myth for the first time.

Wow, is it me or does this album sound like shit? The song's are good but hot damn is the mix awful.

EDIT: I can't take this anymore. This is physically painful. Blind Guardian and Nuclear Blast you should know better. 

Same. I have NO IDEA how the album made it out like that. ATEOT was such an improvement thankfully.

[gazinwales]

I have had the box set for a few weeks now. The actual CD's are in super glossy cardboard gatefold sleeves, sadly missing are the album's lyrics, nowhere to be found in the box. Which for people like myself, who don't own a lot of the albums already, is disappointing.
But the sound of ANATO is amazing, that is the first CD I put on.
The only other negative about the box, the back of the box, the actual box contents has a glued on sheet that is already coming off.

So I think I got the bargain of the century with this, $110 including postage from the UK.

[LudwigVan]

Anyone dig their first two albums, Battalions if Fear and Follow the Blind? I was amused to find that these were essentially thrash albums.

[Nekov]

Great albums but I wouldn't call them thrash. They're heavier than anything they've done after that but it's still power metal if you ask me.

[wolfking]

Yeah, definitely not thrash.  They are kind of in the vein of Walls of Jericho from Helloween.  Follow the Blind is especially special.

[Jaq]

Since power metal as we knew largely didn't exist at the time, early Helloween and Blind Guardian did pretty much take traditional metal and weld it to the speed and aggression of thrash metal, so it's kind of fair to see their early works as being thrash of a sort. German metal of that period was very thrash influenced, even with the bands that weren't nominally thrash in the first place.

[Perpetual Change]

They are definitely thrashy. Of course it's easy to split hairs now, since what BG and other bands were doing turned into a whole new subgenre.

[cramx3]

The production of those albums make it hard to listen to although I haven't tried listening in years. Maybe I should have another listen.

[Scorpion]

Follow the Blind might just be my favourite BG album, just concentrated awesome from start to finish.

[Zook]

Majesty
Run for the Night
Banish from Sanctuary
Valhalla

These are the only songs worth a damn from the first two albums.

[Perpetual Change]

Speak of the devil,

Surprise, surprise,
 
I am sure no one expected me to be back with news about a band called Blind Guardian so quickly. The reason is quite simple, I’m a workaholic and I have no idea what to do with all my remaining energy at the moment. Therefore I have decided to spend some time with thoughts about Blind Guardian’s future plans. Here is my remarkable output (scroll to the end for the German version)…
 
Like the majority of you, I was also very surprised when our show in Geiselwind was announced for May 2014. I suppose that I, or one of the other guys, have agreed to this show. I’ll probably never figure out who did it, but that’s not important now, the show itself is of importance. To be honest, all of us cannot wait to get back on stage. Our stage abstinence seems much longer to us than “just” 2 years. Since we were asked to do a “Best Of” show we do not even have to rehearse, this is more or less the type of show we have done in the past anyway. I still hope we can put in some surprises since no one really knows what we consider our “Best Of” songs at the moment. It might differ from Memories of a Time to Come though. Right now I’m working on a possible set list and I’ll cross my fingers that this will be approved when the others have a look at it.
 
By announcing this live appearance we also secretly announced the intended termination of our album production for the end of May. We obviously have progressed quickly, in Blind Guardian terms that is. Indeed, everything looks very promising with regards to our songwriting and our production. We have good reasons to believe that the album is going to be completely finished at that point.  Let’s hope I will not be proven to be the reincarnation of good old Münchhausen again. Anyway, even the worst case scenario would have us not being too far away from completion at that point. Since we have already completed several production steps on the new album the picture gets clearer and clearer. Although not necessarily clear enough to decide whether I’ll go lyrically for individual topics on each separate song or instead for a conceptual album. On one hand the concept would have a strong fantasy link and on the other hand it would contain some typical Dystopian elements, because this is also what I musically find in most of the songs. They will all feature an almost magical grandeur but will present some very harsh disturbing elements as well. Therefore such a concept might be very suitable. I will have to sleep on it for a while until I’m able to make a decision.
 
Whenever we start songwriting I try to create a plan in my mind detailing which qualities I would love to feature on the next BG album and what general impression I would like to create. Very often at the end things come out quite different and I’m surprised which qualities or preferences have shown up then. This time there seems to be a collective urge (without even having talked about it) among all members to feature the more aggressive side of Blind Guardian this time.
 
Right now, we are working on 5 faster songs. As far as I remember last time I have mentioned “Encrypted Time” and “Holy Grail” (which are both proceeding well in the album production), so I am going tell you a little bit about “Winter’s Coming”, “Outcast” and “Song 9″. The first one is based on Marcus’ idea of a 90′s orientated speed/thrash song. We have finished a good two thirds of this one. It’s fast and heavy, or was it heavy and fast? I have no idea how he came up with the title “Winter’s Coming”… “Song 9″ is a fresh one which used to be a collection of parts at first, but then developed into something very special. I would describe it as a refreshing combat between “Guardian of the Blind”, “The Script for My Requiem” and “Ride into Obsession” only disturbed by a fairly straightforward chorus. If you ask me this one is born to become a “classic, but first underrated by the band” song. My favorite among the fast ones certainly would be “Outcast”. A song full of surprises. The old school die hard fan will probably complain later that this one has a soft intro (epic and sad), but even this person would have to agree that afterwards we keep up the speed on this one to the very end. The song is a roller coaster ride through the last three decades of metal. I love it!
 
As for the epic tracks I love “Irish Hill” the most. I have decided to entitle this “Grand Parade” as “Irish Hill” never really fit the song. Imagine a mixture of “Wheel of Time” and “Nightfall” and you might be there. We have a beautiful orchestration for this. This one certainly demands a lot of time during production simply because there really is a massive amount of elements in it. Not as much as in “And Then There Was Silence”, but a lot…
 
“Midtempo Song” is the most “commercial” song on the album so far. “Commercial” in a positive way, of course. It would deserve a title like “Irish Hills” more than “Grand Parade” did when it was called “Irish Hills”, but who said that life is always fair… To give justice to the song I also have to say that it is very progressive but also very catchy. “The Throne” is another epic piece we are working on. I have just started working on vocals for this one last Friday. It is too early for me to describe this one more precisely. What I can say is that this one is the perfect link between “Grand Parade” and “The Ocean”. This last one is already completely recorded except for the vocals. “Prophecies” and “Encrypted Time” are completely recorded and the same can be said about some older B-songs, which we have decided to finalize with this session as well. The BG pundit knows about which songs I am talking.
 
The songwriting period is almost finished by now and the final production session is going to start next week and will keep us busy until Geiselwind. As I think about that I better stop thinking and start songwriting instead.
 
All the best,
 
Hansi, or “Hieronymus Carl Friedrich von Münchhausen” as my friends call me.

tl;dr: Album finished by the end of May probably, music is mostly finished for a lot of songs, Hansi isn't sure yet whether he wants to do a concept record or not.

[cramx3]

I had just saw that on Facebook before I came here. Sounds pretty cool but is it normal to have all the music ready before you decide to make it a concept album? I would have thought the music would need to go with the concept?

[Perpetual Change]

I had just saw that on Facebook before I came here. Sounds pretty cool but is it normal to have all the music ready before you decide to make it a concept album? I would have thought the music would need to go with the concept?

It is pretty normal. Lots of bands do all music first, and then let the music dictate where the songs need to go lyrically.

[cramx3]

I had just saw that on Facebook before I came here. Sounds pretty cool but is it normal to have all the music ready before you decide to make it a concept album? I would have thought the music would need to go with the concept?

It is pretty normal. Lots of bands do all music first, and then let the music dictate where the songs need to go lyrically.

I know that's the case normally but I wasn't sure for concept albums if that was the norm

[Zook]

Home » News » Back with a vengeance, “Twilight of the Gods” out on December 5, 2014!
Back with a vengeance, “Twilight of the Gods” out on December 5, 2014!
Posted on Friday, October 10th, 2014

The wait is over! Blind Guardian is back! The world’s most popular fantasy metal band gives us Twilight of the Gods; the first single from their long-awaited new album, to be unleashed upon the world in January 2015.



Twilight of the Gods

“Twilight of the Gods”, the first creation of the Krefeld, Germany based band in more than four years will be released on December 5, 2014 via Nuclear Blast. Blind Guardian vocalist Hansi Kürsch assures, “this song is a statement about Blind Guardian. The pure definition of all that the band stands for: it is innovative, melodic and brutal.” And thus a perfect choice to get fans into the proper mood for the upcoming album.

“Twilight of the Gods” is a “neck breaker” in the true tradition of Blind Guardian “that will captivate you with the most epic and catchy chorus we’ve ever written,” says Kürsch.

In “Twilight of the Gods” Blind Guardian is singing about the deities’ waning power; no such times are in sight for the band. Blind Guardian is back with a vengeance; with an impressive single from an overwhelming record!

Twilight of the Gods will be available in three formats.

CD digipack with three tracks:

    Twilight of the Gods
    Time Stands Still (At the Iron Hill) – Live in Wacken 2011
    The Bard’s Song (In the Forest) – Live in Wacken 2011

7″ Vinyl:

    Side A: Twilight of the Gods
    Side B: Time Stands Still (At the Iron Hill) – Live in Wacken 2011

Digital:

    Twilight of the Gods

Pre-order your copy here: https://smarturl.it/BLIND-GUARDIAN-Gods

Also be sure to check out Blind Guardian on tour in 2015 in a city near you! The constantly-updated list of shows can be found here: www.blind-guardian.com/tour

[Ultimetalhead]

*BREATHING INTENSIFIES*

[Zydar]

Niiice

[Evermind]

Yep, I've already got the tickets for 5th of June concert.

Regarding the single, I guess they couldn't have come up with a bit more interesting title, but as long as the song will be good, I don't care.

[wolfking]

Hell yeah, this is some great news. 

Don't care much for singles though, and I probably won't buy a physical copy of this.

[Ben_Jamin]

Ooo the bards song from wacken.

[ErHaO]

Awwwwww, yeah! FINALLY.

Will order the vinyl.

[Dr. DTVT]

I don't do singles either, so I'll wait for the album.  At The Edge of Time showed that ATItM was an aberration and not the norm.

[Zook]

Their singles are usually among my least favorites on the albums.... unless it's And Then There Was Silence, but I still can't believe they made that a single, that charted high no doubt. I want to move to Europe.

[Evermind]

A Voice in the Dark was pretty good I thought.

Well, actually the whole ATEOT was pretty good I thought. I also enjoyed the hell out of singing WHEEEL OOOOF TIIIME when I saw them live.  I hope this new album will be even better.

[cramx3]

Yea At The Edge of Time was a really awesome album IMO and am excited to hear the new album, if its more like that vs A twist in the Myth, then I will be very happy.

[ErHaO]

I think ATEOT is the best BG album to listen as a whole, together with Nightfall. I love all their stuff, also Twist. But ATEOT has it all, the epic stuff, the speed metal, the ballads, their proggy side and it flows really well. The album grew on me over the years and I still listen to it frequently.

Ordered the green and black vinyls of the single (black one goes into the Jukebox) and two tickets for the first concert of the tour. Now that BG is active again they will probably become my moneysink again for the coming year.

Here's hoping that they also finally release that orchestral thing or at least tease it a bit.

Their singles are usually among my least favorites on the albums.... unless it's And Then There Was Silence, but I still can't believe they made that a single, that charted high no doubt. I want to move to Europe.

Yeah, I was reading the book that came with A Travellers Guide to Time and Space and apparently it even reached no. 1 in Spain. 

[cramx3]

Wow that is amazing for a song like that to chart.  Its a really amazing song for sure, just not your typical hit song.

I agree with ATEOT, a really great album overall.  Im glad I got to see them in support of it when they came to the USA a few years ago.

[Ultimetalhead]

Edge of Time is such a great album. Tales From the Twilight World edges it out a bit because it was the first BG album I fell in love with. I'm super stoked for the single because I loved Voice in the Dark when it first came out and it ended up being my least favorite on the album. Of course, that's more of a credit to Edge of Time's quality than the song's lack thereof.

[wolfking]

I still have a real soft spot for ANATO.  Brilliant album.

[Zook]

I still have a real soft spot for ANATO.  Brilliant album.

Indeed.

[Lowdz]

I still have a real soft spot for ANATO.  Brilliant album.

my first BG album and it's a corker.
CRY FOR TANELORN!!! 

[Zook]

Hello Guys,

out from nowhere I came to deliver the Rockhard article! Please don't mind mistakes. Translating is quite hard sometimes.
The album is yet untitled. Working-titles were "The red door" and "Pax Discordia".

Here it goes!

Track by track :

The Ninth Wave

- over 9 minutes long
- pure bombast sounding in the beginning
- power drumming, massive riffs, sci-fi sound effects
- many twists music-wise
- somehow between "Mad max" and "CursePirates of the caribbean"
- good as Blind Guardian can be

Twilight of the Gods

- complex drum patterns
- thrashy
- compact song with anthem like chorus

Prophecies

- mid tempo
- tricky grooves
- great solo

At the Edge of Time

- most innovative sng of the album
- soundtrack-like with orchester
- pace varies often
- hyper bombast chorus
- like a mini-opera
- could maybe appetizer for the upcoming orchstral album

Ashes of Eternity

- catchiest song
- thrash metal riffing
- good combination of old and new syle

Distant Memories

- again cineatic soundtrack with orchester
- more light-footed
- great storytelling by Hansi
- dynamic and dramatic sounding

Holy Grail

- pure Speed Metal
- Hansi is mostly fast shouting
- Bombast chorus

The Throne

- midtempo
- Orchester meets metal again
- epic sounding

Sacred Mind

- Sci-fi sounds in the beginning
- sounds like power ballad in the beginning
- uptempo later in the song with lot of Highspeed eruptions
- like Queen could sound today

Miracle Machine

- ballad
- with strings and piano
- Hansi singing great

Grand Parade

- again a long song
- with orchester
- more warm and harmonic sounding
- hyper bombast chorus (what else? ^^)
- complex song but very well composed


Interesting facts from the interview:

- Ninth wave was the last song finished, took very long
- two choirs (USA and Hungary) were involved. In total 180-200 people were performing because of the hyper bombastic choirs
- orchester was recorded in praque and hungary
- they really worked a lot with no resting the last years

More to come in the next issue of Rockhard.

[Randaran]

Sweet. I'm even more excited now. 

[ErHaO]

That sounds awesome! From the looks of it they try to enter a healthy bit of new grounds too. And if with "complex drums" they mean ANATO like drums, I will be a very happy man. I am sure Fred is up to it. And wasn't it supposed to be a concept album?


And did they actually mention the orchestral album there? 

[Evermind]

What, At the Edge of Time again? Probably a wrong title?

Other than that, I'm excited.