Thomen out of Blind Guardian

Yngvai X

Dark Emperor
Jul 18, 2002
3,466
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Woodland Park, NJ
www.myspace.com
the following is taken from www.blind-guardian.com:

No news is good news...

Hi there,

No news is good news. This obviously is bad news. After walking along the same musical paths for about 20 years and after several long, open and honest discussions between the four band members, we have all (including Thomen) come to the same conclusion that it is now best for Thomen to leave the band.

Since we developed different musical and personal directions for quite a while now, it turned out to be more and more difficult to find acceptable and suitable solutions for everyone in the band. Such circumstances would have eventually caused severe internal problems. Therefore, to avoid any damage to our close relationship this difficult step is essential. In terms of creativity or progression neither one of us would like to hold the other one back. Due to that fact the split seems to be a sad, but reasonable solution. We wish Thomen all the best for the future and hope to come up with more positive news in the near future.

…and day shall come again

Hansi


Dear Bards,

As you may have read in Hansi's statement, I am no longer the drummer of Blind Guardian. From now on we are going our separate ways, at least musically. I must admit it is quite a sad, but necessary decision in order for us to remain friends.

I stand fully behind Hansi's declaration, so I will keep my statement as short as possible, and wish Blind Guardian all the best for the future, hoping that they find another drummer without any hassle.

I would also like to use this opportunity to thank each and everyone of you who stood by us through all those years, especially our fans. You are the best!!! I hope to see you again soon!

A big thank you to my old colleagues, Hansi, Andre and Marcus, for all the amazing times we've shared.

Take care,
Thomen


This really sucks...Thomen's very powerful and creative drumming was such an integral part of Blind Guardian's sound. This also brings an end to the original lineup...one they've had since their first album, Battalions of Fear, from 1989.

I hope whoever replaces him is as rock solid of a drummer as he always was. :(
 
very bad news.. hopefully bg can come up with someone as talented as thomen without taking him from another big band
 
Where do you find the guy to replace him???? Oh boy, I wouldn't want to have to set out to accomplish that mission.
 
This is definitely bad news. I'm sure they'll find a worthy replacement, but they have been one of the very few bands that have kept the same lineup over such a long period of time...its sad to see this end. Lets see who they get as replacement. (I could imagine someone like Alex Holzwarth)
 
Silent Song said:
...which says nothing about the cause of these tensions that made them split. i'm speculating. issues?

"Since we developed different musical and personal directions for quite a while now, it turned out to be more and more difficult to find acceptable and suitable solutions for everyone in the band. Such circumstances would have eventually caused severe internal problems. Therefore, to avoid any damage to our close relationship this difficult step is essential. In terms of creativity or progression neither one of us would like to hold the other one back."

It's really not ambiguous.
 
I'm heartbroken. Simply heartbroken.




The only thing I could think, would be to get Patrick Rafling out of retirement. But that won't happen.

I can think that maybe Mike Terrana would easily handle that job, but he's happy as hell in Rage.

Can anyone think of any free-lance drummers that would want to be in BG? Perhaps Brent Smedly or Mark Prator? That bastard Richard Christy is doing comedy now, so that's screwed. And I'll punch the first Tommy Lee remark..... Heh heh.

Damnit. Heartbroken. Thomen was such an innovative and creative drummer. None of his drumming was ever straightforward or simple or easy. Not one BG song ever had "good" drumming. It was always "Two notches higher" than what a song would need for a backbone.

Damnit.
 
Curufin said:
"Since personal directions for quite a while now,
It's really not ambiguous.
i'm sorry. but it is...

you even have it in your quote. what personal directions? its not clear. i hope they discuss the matter.

and that psychopath better be in jail. people take music too seriously
 
Silent Song said:
i'm sorry. but it is...

you even have it in your quote. what personal directions? its not clear. i hope they discuss the matter.

and that psychopath better be in jail. people take music too seriously

Thomen wanted to do other things musically, like the side projects he is working on. As for personal directions, I think he just put that there because it sounded good. Their parting was a friendly one; Thomen just wanted to go a different musical path. Thomen also lives in Spain with his wife, so I guess the distance between Spain and Krefeld could have been a factor.