Demons & Wizards - Demons & Wizards
SMV - 2000
By Master Of The Blind
/images/covers/demonswizards_rev.jpg
After a few good listens one immediately notices a few things: that the production of the album is great, that the songwriting is indeed good (but who was expecting otherwise?), and that Hansi sounds better than ever. These are three random observations that I'm sure were made by almost everyone who got this album. Hansi's voice sounds especially incredible, and at times he really sounds 'angelic'. Jon's typical and very characteristic rhythm playing is of course omnipresent, but quite remarkable is the fact that he also played the bass guitar on D&W. The drums (Mark Prator) roll, pound, rumble, and thunder throughout the album, and the production, courtesy of Mr. Jim Morris, is very clear and above all very thick and very heavy.
The album sounds, as was to be expected, like a mix of (newer) Blind Guardian and (older) Iced Earth and combines a lot of elements of both bands. The folk-element of Blind Guardian is particularly present on the album, an element that manifests itself in numerous acoustic passages. The guitar riffs are clearly Iced Earth, while the great vocal melodies are reminiscent of Blind Guardian. I could go on analysing the album and extracting every element, placing it either in the Iced Earth or Blind Guardian jar, but suffice it to say that overall Demons & Wizards is a great cd with loads of memorable tracks and virtually no weak moments.
The trilogy at the end is especially impressive. Although I did notice that certain people were a bit disappointed with D&W, they were mostly people who just had expectations that were too high. Granted, there is no 'Dante's Inferno' on the album and no 'Mirror Mirror' or 'Time What is Time', but after all, this is 'just' a side-project, an album by two friends who wanted to work together on something, and I'm sure it wasn't their intention to write a colossal album that sounded like it was crafted by the hand of God himself.
Demons & Wizards is definitely a great album that you all should have in your collection, especially if you're a Blind Guardian or Iced Earth fan...
RITES OF PASSAGE: The instrumental intro to the album. I have to say this is one impressive intro though... Hansi 'chants' over Jon's raw guitar playing, and this really sounds very atmospheric. They couldn't have written a more suitable introduction to the rest of the album...
HEAVEN DENIES: This has to be one of the most impressive tracks I've ever heard. Really powerful stuff with a chorus that huffs and puffs and blows your house down! The song has a big outro on bass guitar with Hansi doing more chanting over it. They couldn't have picked a better album opener.
POOR MAN'S CRUSADE: A pretty simple song with galloping rythms and bit of a weird chorus, but with some nice melodies. Nothin too special, just...nice. The outro is quite original though.
FIDDLER ON THE GREEN: A pure folk song with a heavy electric outro. It has an eerie overdubbed electric guitar part in the middle, but the rest of the song is completely acoustic and has simply beautiful vocal melodies, courtesy of Hansi of course.
BLOOD ON MY HANDS: A simply astounding track! A driving guitar riff and a very, very powerful chorus. The pre-chorus has a beautiful vocal melody-line as well. Definitely one of the many highlights on the album...
PATH OF GLORY: Starting out very folky and evolving into mid-tempo electric, Path of Glory features some powerful singing and a good 'vibe'. Maybe not one of the better tracks on the cd, but certainly not the worst either.
WINTER OF SOULS: Could be the weakest track on the album. It has some good parts in it but overall nothing special.
THE WHISTLER: What a great song! This is the last track before the trilogy and it 'closes off' the album quite nicely. Nothing but great melodies in this one.
TEAR DOWN THE WALL: Featuring some acoustic passages and a 'swinging' chorus, Tear Down the Wall is definitely a highlight on Demons & Wizards. Nothing more to say about this one, it's just awesome.
GALLOW'S POLE: Atmospheric intro and quite a few different parts to this song. A very good track but nothing truly amazing.
MY LAST SUNRISE: The last song on the album, and possibly also the best! Interesting vocal melodies, some really killer parts, and a magnificent outro who could ask for anything more? Hansi really does some powerful singing on this one. Definitely one of the reasons why you should buy this album.
THE CHANT: Closes off the album nicely. Hansi mimicks an entire choir, something he's become good at over the years...
Now, if you have the digi-pack version of the album you might notice that there's an extra track on there. It's 'White Room', a Cream cover. They really made this song heavy, but it sounds good that way. The Japanese release also features a second bonus-track I believe, which is an alternate version of 'The Whistler'. I haven't heard it, but I thought I'd mention it.
Finally I can only say what so many people already know: that Demons & Wizards is a great album. The booklet speaks of more to come in the future so that's definitely something to look forward to. The only real mystery about D&W is what the hell Hansi is whispering at the end of 'My Last Sunrise' he whispers something in German, but it's so soft and so quiet that nobody can understand it.
Hopefully someday we'll find out.
SMV - 2000
By Master Of The Blind
/images/covers/demonswizards_rev.jpg
After a few good listens one immediately notices a few things: that the production of the album is great, that the songwriting is indeed good (but who was expecting otherwise?), and that Hansi sounds better than ever. These are three random observations that I'm sure were made by almost everyone who got this album. Hansi's voice sounds especially incredible, and at times he really sounds 'angelic'. Jon's typical and very characteristic rhythm playing is of course omnipresent, but quite remarkable is the fact that he also played the bass guitar on D&W. The drums (Mark Prator) roll, pound, rumble, and thunder throughout the album, and the production, courtesy of Mr. Jim Morris, is very clear and above all very thick and very heavy.
The album sounds, as was to be expected, like a mix of (newer) Blind Guardian and (older) Iced Earth and combines a lot of elements of both bands. The folk-element of Blind Guardian is particularly present on the album, an element that manifests itself in numerous acoustic passages. The guitar riffs are clearly Iced Earth, while the great vocal melodies are reminiscent of Blind Guardian. I could go on analysing the album and extracting every element, placing it either in the Iced Earth or Blind Guardian jar, but suffice it to say that overall Demons & Wizards is a great cd with loads of memorable tracks and virtually no weak moments.
The trilogy at the end is especially impressive. Although I did notice that certain people were a bit disappointed with D&W, they were mostly people who just had expectations that were too high. Granted, there is no 'Dante's Inferno' on the album and no 'Mirror Mirror' or 'Time What is Time', but after all, this is 'just' a side-project, an album by two friends who wanted to work together on something, and I'm sure it wasn't their intention to write a colossal album that sounded like it was crafted by the hand of God himself.
Demons & Wizards is definitely a great album that you all should have in your collection, especially if you're a Blind Guardian or Iced Earth fan...
RITES OF PASSAGE: The instrumental intro to the album. I have to say this is one impressive intro though... Hansi 'chants' over Jon's raw guitar playing, and this really sounds very atmospheric. They couldn't have written a more suitable introduction to the rest of the album...
HEAVEN DENIES: This has to be one of the most impressive tracks I've ever heard. Really powerful stuff with a chorus that huffs and puffs and blows your house down! The song has a big outro on bass guitar with Hansi doing more chanting over it. They couldn't have picked a better album opener.
POOR MAN'S CRUSADE: A pretty simple song with galloping rythms and bit of a weird chorus, but with some nice melodies. Nothin too special, just...nice. The outro is quite original though.
FIDDLER ON THE GREEN: A pure folk song with a heavy electric outro. It has an eerie overdubbed electric guitar part in the middle, but the rest of the song is completely acoustic and has simply beautiful vocal melodies, courtesy of Hansi of course.
BLOOD ON MY HANDS: A simply astounding track! A driving guitar riff and a very, very powerful chorus. The pre-chorus has a beautiful vocal melody-line as well. Definitely one of the many highlights on the album...
PATH OF GLORY: Starting out very folky and evolving into mid-tempo electric, Path of Glory features some powerful singing and a good 'vibe'. Maybe not one of the better tracks on the cd, but certainly not the worst either.
WINTER OF SOULS: Could be the weakest track on the album. It has some good parts in it but overall nothing special.
THE WHISTLER: What a great song! This is the last track before the trilogy and it 'closes off' the album quite nicely. Nothing but great melodies in this one.
TEAR DOWN THE WALL: Featuring some acoustic passages and a 'swinging' chorus, Tear Down the Wall is definitely a highlight on Demons & Wizards. Nothing more to say about this one, it's just awesome.
GALLOW'S POLE: Atmospheric intro and quite a few different parts to this song. A very good track but nothing truly amazing.
MY LAST SUNRISE: The last song on the album, and possibly also the best! Interesting vocal melodies, some really killer parts, and a magnificent outro who could ask for anything more? Hansi really does some powerful singing on this one. Definitely one of the reasons why you should buy this album.
THE CHANT: Closes off the album nicely. Hansi mimicks an entire choir, something he's become good at over the years...
Now, if you have the digi-pack version of the album you might notice that there's an extra track on there. It's 'White Room', a Cream cover. They really made this song heavy, but it sounds good that way. The Japanese release also features a second bonus-track I believe, which is an alternate version of 'The Whistler'. I haven't heard it, but I thought I'd mention it.
Finally I can only say what so many people already know: that Demons & Wizards is a great album. The booklet speaks of more to come in the future so that's definitely something to look forward to. The only real mystery about D&W is what the hell Hansi is whispering at the end of 'My Last Sunrise' he whispers something in German, but it's so soft and so quiet that nobody can understand it.
Hopefully someday we'll find out.
