Description
Original first press with different cd layout compared to the re-issue
Starting off as a young band that genuinely understood what made their idols Metallica great, that being their melodic sensibilities and sense of grandeur, Blind Guardian ran with those ideas as far as they could and were not interested with the singular minded rhythmic onslaught that others derived from Metallica. Albums like Battalions Of Fear and Follow The Blind featured fast riffs and double bass drumming but as a vehicle for the melodies to shine from. Come Somewhere Far Beyond the band had started to experiment with acoustic guitars and the inclusion of folk melodies while still maintaining the ferocious pace of their previous releases. The 1995 album, Imagininations From The Other Side, saw the band fully embracing those ideas and shed away the speed metal-isms in favour of a much more brooding album that relies more than ever on the band’s fantastic sense of melody. Many of the song titles mislead the listener into believing that these are whimsical songs about dragons, magic and drinking ale in dwarven tarvens. while the fantasy influence is undeniable, the themes presented here revolve around the decline of sanity, isolation, fear, mind control and more importantly partial triumph in a broken world. Back in 1995 Blind Guardian were the uncontested kings of European power metal. This album features a show at Docks in Hamburg on the 14th of May 1995 just a month from the release date of Imagininations From The Other Side. Here you can hear the band perform many of their new tracks live. And as if that wasnt enough we also have 3 bonus tracks taped at an unplugged performance the band did at a record store in Västerås, Sweden on the 10th of October 1996. A must have for fans of this band
Track list:
1. Intro
2. Welcome To Dying
3. Time What Is Time
4. The Quest From Tanelorn
5. I’m Alive
6. And The Story Ends
7. Lord Of The Rings
8. Imaginations From The Other Side
9. Piper’s Calling
10. Somewhere Far Beyond
11. Lost In The Twilight Hall
12. Barbara Ann
13. A Past And Future Secret-live unplugged
14. Bright Eyes-live unplugged
15. The Wizard-live unplugged