Blind Guardian: as good as all the reviews claim? Or pure cheese?

[SoundMaster]

So I've been on a power-metal kick lately, having discovered the majesty of Falconer, Virgin Steele and, to a lesser extent, Kamelot.

So, naturally, I'm already looking for similar bands. All the reviews point to Blind Guardian, who apparently have been around for 15+ years and were jamming PRIOR to the late 90s flower metal movement.

My question is this: are they the real deal? Or, are they so much cheese?
I'm interested in either Nightfall in Middle Earth or A Night At the Opera. Worthy purchases? Or over-hyped nonsense?

 

[Jean-Pierre]

Nightfall In Middle Earth is a classic for sure. Easily one of the best Power Metal discs of all time. All the albums preceeding that have traces of Speed Metal, their first two actually being full on Speed Metal. I highly recommend Blind Guardian, as they're one of the best bands of all time, bar-none.

What he said. Power Metal with actual Power, and actual Metal!

 

[ElectricWiz]

Actually, my vote is in the middle somewhere. I never really got friendly with the guy's voice - maybe just me. Plus, all of the choruses have an epic/choral quality I never liked. I think, in the end, I felt they were overproduced. That said, I did like Nightfall in Middle Earth, and still own it. In particular the song Thorn was fantastic.

A little too polished maybe.

 

[No-Mercy]

blind guardian is probably the best melodic/power metal. they fuckin kick ass...and id suggest NIME. it is my favorite album by them, as well as one of my favorites overrall of all-time. a truely amazing band man. after that, id suggest Somewhere Far Beyond, than Imaginations From The Other Side, A Night At The Opera, and then choose yourself.

 

[Evil?]

I love BG earlier speed stuff. You should definatly check that stuff out as well. Battalions Of Fear is great IMO.

 

[T.I.E.]

BG became big when metal became "little" (i.e. after Kurt Cobain killed metal). they're not bad but not as essential as previous leaders of the metal scene. I prefer their earlier speedy thrashy PM to the ful cheese version they evolved into... still, it's not that bad but not that good either...

 

[Hawk]

Actually, my vote is in the middle somewhere. I never really got friendly with the guy's voice - maybe just me. Plus, all of the choruses have an epic/choral quality I never liked. I think, in the end, I felt they were overproduced.

Same here. To Euro-power metal sounding for me i guess. They just have a style that does not click with me.

 

[SavaRon]

Actually, my vote is in the middle somewhere. I never really got friendly with the guy's voice - maybe just me. Plus, all of the choruses have an epic/choral quality I never liked. I think, in the end, I felt they were overproduced. That said, I did like Nightfall in Middle Earth, and still own it. In particular the song Thorn was fantastic.

A little too polished maybe.

I pretty much agree with you here. I like them, but something about the vocals. Not his voice so much, but the endless amount of overdubs and the choruses kind of turn me off a bit. I need to check out the early stuff. If it's heavier and thrashier I would probably dig those albums more.

 

[Wyvern]

Blind Guardian rules! Most possible one of the best power metal bands around these days.

I'm still amazed how hard they hit me when I first heard SFB and IFTOS (still my favorite albums til this day). There's not a nanogram of cheese in their work and moreover to me they're the real shit when it come to symphonic metal specially in ANATO. A truly amazing band not another Helloween clone, and considering how much I dislike harsh vocals it amazes everyday the fine work by Hansi (also check Demons & Wizards one of the top albums of 2005).

 

[Fangface]

Well,

Battalions of Fear, Follow the Blind -> german speed metal bordering on thrash at times
Tales from the Twilight World, Somewhere Far Beyond, Imaginations from the Other Side -> their best records IMO, furious and catchy!
Nightfall in Middle Earth -> very well done concept-album, many more arrangements and interludes
Night at the Opera -> even more orchestral arrangements, less metal and overproduced but I like it

 

[#1_Droogie]

I have Battalions of Fear, Somewhere Far Beyond, and A Night At The Opera, and I love all three. If you like power metal, get these albums. BAF is definately most thrashy, seeing as it was released in the late 80's, but you can hear foreshadowing of their sound to come. On SFB the songs are pure brilliance. As far as ANATO...I can't get enough of that album. It's a refreshing change from a lot of metal, and the songs are just so....epic. I recommend those three, but once I get more I'll tell you what I think.

 

[#1_Droogie]

I highly recommend that you get Nightfall In Middle Earth next, and then Tales From The Twilight World.

alright.....I'll get them after I get Nuclear Assault's latest, and a couple Voivod albums.

 

[#1_Droogie]

I've sampled it on amazon.com.....but the quality was horrible. Give it quality from the 2000's and I think I would love it....but I wont know unless I hear it for myself. I dont know, I'll probably buy it for collectors reasons anyways.

 

[CF87]

I'd avoid the last two but you can't go wrong with the older,middle stuff. 'Follow The Blind' is killer.

 

[tsorl]

They're worth the praise. And I don't consider their stuff cheesy at all, at least by power metal standards. Recommended albums: Tales From The Twilight World and Imaginations From The Other Side. That's power metal. Their two latest records, Nightfall... and Night At The Opera are a bit more "light-weight" and orchestrated, but great nevertheless. Still, maybe not the place to start in case you're worried about the cheese factor (you know, NIME being a Tolkien themed album and all). Also Hansi's singing has taken a more high-pitched tone recently compared to the earlier, rougher delivery.

So, I'd say get Tales/Imaginations first.

 

[Fangface]

If you ever happen to like BG Soundmaster, you might also dig this swedish band :

They're like a thrashier Blind Guardian

-> http://www.persuader.nu

 

[SickBoy]

They're like a thrashier Blind Guardian

Like early BG (when they were thrashier) to be precise...
A band worth checking out would be Savage Circus as well.
Guess what they play, the drummer is ex-BG Thomen Stauch and the rest of the band are the guys from Persuader.
Damn, they're more BG than the band itself nowadays!

 

[Fred B]

Im glad soundmaster started this thread . I myself havent had the pleasure of checking out any BG yet....A lot of great suggestions for my next cd shopping spree

 

[No-Mercy]

Im glad soundmaster started this thread . I myself havent had the pleasure of checking out any BG yet....A lot of great suggestions for my next cd shopping spree

ill list their albums in what i think is best to worst, (although the worst is still amazing)

1) Nightfall In Middle-Earth: a very very well put together concept album. many interludes, and it kicks ass. some of their best music ever, my favorite album. it's got almost a bit of everything from Blind Guardian in here. a true classic.
2) Somewhere Far Beyond: this is a great album. it's got some real different things...bagpipes, organ-type sounds, very good. their 4th album, but i think its the one that made that big punch to get them as well known as they are today.
3) Imaginations From The Other Side: this title track is one of the most brilliant things ever to go through my mind. it's simply got all their talent in it, its fuckin awesome!! by far the best track on here. the rest is great as well.
4) A Night At The Opera: this is their latest album, (not counting the live one). may i say they are still blind guardian, and still kick ass. they've got amazing percussion throughout. very well done.
5) Tales From The Twilight World: this is a classic, needless to say. some very very good tracks.
6) Follow The Blind: this is awesome, got some very strong tracks like beyond the ice, banish from sanctuary, hall of the king, and of course follow the blind. a good album at any time.
7) Battalions Of Fear: this is their first album. it's a great debut album i think. it's got "guardian of the blind"....what i percieve to the bands "title track", as well as other strong ones that have lasted such as wizards crown, trial by the archon, and majesty.

all of them are supremely kick ass, this is the order i prefer them in. enjoy!!!

 

[SoundMaster]

So, I went out and purchased "A Night at the Opera".

Awesome record! I LOVE it. More melodies than the Beatles! The lead vocals are a bit annoying, but when he overlaps them for the choruses, it sounds magnificent! Too many melodies to count! The track "Battlefield" is pure genius.

They are clearly not the Helloween rip-off flower metal a la Hammerfall, etc.
I will certainly purchase Nightfall next. Everyone says it's better than this one....I cant even imagine how good it must be!

Thanks for recommendations, everyone!

Buy this album....you will NOT be disappointed.