Description

Iced Earth founder/composer/guitarist Jon Schaffer isn’t one of those metal musicians who only want to entertain their fans with their music. On the contrary, Schaffer uses his compositions to acquaint his fans with historic events and to kindle their interest in subjects that they probably wouldn’t have access to otherwise. He has proved to be an artist who is fascinated by history and looks beyond the boundaries of his genre, basing his songs on educational objectives. Iced Earth’s 2003 album, The Glorious Burden, was a milestone in terms of music and subject matter. Particularly the concert version of Gettysburg (1863) is a successful opener to a historic chapter that is directly linked to the contemporary US. The new same-named double dvd is about to round off Schaffer’s ambitious project. In three parts (The Devil To Pay, Hold At All Costs, High Water Mark), Iced Earth narrate the historic events that took place in that legendary location in Pennsylvania in July 1863, when the Confederate troops met the Union in the most blood-soaked battle ever on American soil. Iced Earth and their Gettysburg dvd chronicle this dramatic historic subject in language, images and sound more comprehensively than any other rock band before them. "I’ve visited the original battle sites several times and read a lot of books about the subject", says Schaffer. "But I’d never claim to be an expert on the battle of Gettysburg because I realise that one can study the battle for an entire lifetime and learn something new at every opportunity; which proves how very complex this whole thing really is." It’s precisely this complex attitude that Iced Earth explore on their current double dvd. An epic video in three chapters featuring the complete Gettysburg track is at the centre of disc one. The Iced Earth epic (in 5.1 metal mix, 5.1 orchestral mix and stereo sound, as well as the option of blending in the original lyrics of the track) is accompanied by atmospherically dense pictures, telling the story of that monumental battle. The ‘Battlefied Tour’ sequence shows Jon Schaffer at the battlefield with Ted Gajewski, one of the official Gettysburg tourist guides, who explains the different stages of the battle in front of the camera. The dvd also shows important paintings, arms and memorabilia. "Gettysburg was without doubt one of the turning points of the American Civil War. But was it the decisive one?" Schaffer asks, going beyond what most movie classics have told us. "My opinion is: the course of events couldn’t have been stopped, with or without this bloodbath." Track listing: 1. The Devil To Pay 2. Hold At All Costs 3. High Water Mark Disc 2: 1. Battlefield Tour 2. Spirit Of 76 3. Photo Gallery 4. Trailer 5. When The Eagle Cries-video 6. The Reckoning-video 7. Jon Schaffer Interview