Artist: EdGuy Title: “Tinnitus Sanctus” Label: Nuclear Blast Records Release Date: 1/27/2008 Genre: Melodic Power Metal Rating: 4/5
Now that singer/composer Tobias Sammet has released his latest epic Metal masterpiece with Avantasia, the killer album from 2008 entitled “Scarecrow”, the time has come for him to once again have the kind of fun that he always seems to have with his main band EdGuy. It seems as though while a couple of years have passed since we last saw a release from these dudes with “Rocket Ride” and not too long before that “Hellfire Club”, that there is a relative consistency in their ability to release high quality Melodic Hard Rock or Power Metal (depending on how you see them the most). Clearly we will not wait for sixteen years between EdGuy releases and in my mind that is a welcome thing. Listening to “Tinnitus Sanctus”, a great play with Latin phrasing about that ringing in the ear one gets after sitting in front of their speakers for too long listening to the Metal, the band has picked up where they left off and not lost an ounce of creative steam since the last go round. My first exposure to EdGuy was with “Vain, Glory, Opera” and I admit that I was quite hooked from the moment that I first heard what they delivered to the Metal head of the time. Their music is always catchy and sounds not only fun to the listeners ears, but also in its composition and one can imagine the guys having a blast playing this for a room full of energetic fans. Having seen them a number of times since that first listen I can honestly say that there are few performers who look like they are having a better time than their audience is. “Tinnitus Sanctus” is loaded with that type of Metal energy that the band excels at and while the opening track “Ministry Of Saints” is a standard tempo groove, it seems to be setting you up for the rest of the adventures inside the CD. The tune reminded me just a little too much of “Sacrifice” but that was more based on the way the chorus flowed than the entire tune. I liked “Sex, Fire, Religion” as that had some crunch to it and had some tasty heaviness in the riffing from Dirk and Jens that I enjoyed. My first favorite on the new release came with “The Pride Of Creation” because the boys just cut it loose here and let Felix Bohnke drive the tune with knockout double bass drumming before the big EdGuy sing along chorus came in. Continue reading “Tinnitus Sanctus” by EdGuy→
Kamelot had quickly become one of my favorite bands to catch in concert when they come to NYC and this time around they would bring along EdGuy as direct support for the tour and offer the local openers in Arctic Flame the chance to start things off properly. We were on point for this show and delivered commentary and photos of all the performers for your reading pleasure. Scroll past the logo below to see the article.
Artist: Kamelot Venue: B.B. King Blues Club (New York, NY) Opener: EdGuy, Arctic Flame Date: 10/15/2008 Label: SPV Records
Since they released “The Black Halo”, I think that I have caught the band Kamelot in concert every time they bring their wares to New York City. The bands first time in the Big Apple was in 2005 and since then they have become like visiting family for lack of a better description. The bands music is always received well and their shows seem to pack the place no matter what else might be going on. Tonight the band would continue their touring support for the “Ghost Opera” CD, which by this time has had a re-release to include a number of live tracks and the sold out show would find special guest openers coming by way of Arctic Flame and EdGuy. Should you have missed out on this great night of Melodic Power Metal, here is how the evening progressed. Continue reading Kamelot @ B.B. King Blues Club (10/15/2008)→
EdGuy is a lot of fun in concert and this gig was considered a co-headlining appearance with Into Eternity. The show brought along Echoes Of Eternity and Light This City as well and all four bands piqued our interest greatly so we got inside early enough to be able to document it properly. For more information and photos of all the groups just scroll past the logo below.
Artist: EdGuy Venue: B.B. King Blues Club (New York, NY) Opener: Into Eternity, Light This City, Echoes Of Eternity Date: 9/16/2007 Label: Nuclear Blast Records
You know that you are always in for a good time at a concert when it is an event that finds Tobias Sammet and his compatriots in the band Edguy at the center of attention. For over fifteen years they have been dishing out some of the most fun that you could legally have at a Power Metal show and their track record has yet to fail in this regard. Tonight’s event at B.B. King Blues Club & Grill would be the third time that they had appeared at the venue but it would only be their second headlining appearance. Their last trip found them as direct support for Germany’s and Nuclear Blast Records label mates Hammerfall. The guys would be continuing to support their latest release “Rocket Ride” and bring with them the might of Century Media’s Into Eternity along with Light This City and Echoes Of Eternity. It was sure to be one of those nights that you regret the next morning and here is how it happened in case you missed it. Continue reading EdGuy @ B.B. King Blues Club (9/16/2007)→
Artist: Nuclear Blast All-Stars Title: “Nuclear Blast 20th Anniversary: Into The Light” Label: Nuclear Blast Records Release Date: 6/19/2007 Genre: Heavy Metal Rating: 4/5
Leave it to Nuclear Blast Records to start off their 20th Anniversary Celebration with a bang like no other and release a thundering CD of music featuring some of their best talent under the Nom de guerre of “Nuclear Blast All-Stars”. All of the music on the album was the result of Metal Mastermind Victor Smolski, that guitar virtuoso from the one and only Rage and with the exception of one track, all lyrics have been penned by Peter Wagner who sings and plays bass in that same band. If this fact didn’t pique your interest then perhaps knowing that all of the tunes feature different singers will do the trick. The CD features rotating vocalists who either are currently part of the labels roster or were at one time in their career. So as a result we find everyone from Tobias Sammet (Ed Guy) to Tarja Tarunen (Nightwish) contributing vocals and it continues to get interesting as you listen to each song. Rather than find this as another Rage album given its creators, the songs seem to have been tailored to the specific vocalist so the song that Tobias sings “On Dirty Wings” could have very well been an Ed Guy contribution. This continues along when it gets to what Tony Kakko of Sonata Arctica sings as it really comes across as something new by that band and while Kakko himself says he does not feel this way in the liner notes, I will have to disagree with him. Such is the ability of Smolski to craft interesting Metal that he seems to have approached this with relative ease. It’s a great listen as each offering brings to the table different levels of solid riffing and interesting vocals. It’s heavy all around and should be since this is a Metal celebration but some artists come up the heavier than the others such as when Marcel from Destruction performs, and also Wagner from Rage who gets his own tune. It was great to find Andi Deris from Helloween present and also the members of Nightwish but I admit that while I love Tarja’s voice her song didn’t do anything for me. There is also some vocal talent who many of the Metal legions should be following more and I am speaking of Mats Leven formerly of Therion and Oddleif Stensland of Communic. These two continually impress me and I am looking forward to their future contributions. The drumming on most of the album comes care of Andre Hilgers who is also a member of Rage. Victor, Peavey, Andre and everyone else you did a great job on this one. Continue reading “Nuclear Blast 20th Anniversary: Into the Light” by Nuclear Blast All-Stars→
Artist: EdGuy Title: “Rocket Ride” Label: Nuclear Blast Records Release Date: 1/20/2006 Genre: Power Metal Rating: 7/10
EdGuy is at it once again. Following their teaser EP release of “Superheroes”, they have delivered “Rocket Ride” to the public. Fans that have purchased the EP need not worry about having too much duplication across the piece; in typical EdGuy fashion, the EP only features one new track. The remainder of it was composed of unreleased live or studio tracks. “Superheroes” is the only song from the EP on “Rocket Ride” and it is definitely a catchy number. As I listened to the album I found that they bring you in slowly to the release instead of in the pounding manner that “Hellfire Club” did. “Sacrifice” is a tricky song which starts slow, then rocks, only to slow again before it kicks in. Tobias is a classic styled Rock Star and takes his creativity to heights on every song. One of the strongest natures of appeal in EdGuy is not only their catchy brand of Melodic Power Metal but also in the level of harmony chorus backups present in most of their songs. Because of this, the songs seem crafted in such a manner that it is very easy to find yourself singing along even at first listen. I felt that with songs like “Superheroes”, “Catch Of The Century” and “Wasted Time”, the group is leaning a little more to the “radio-friendly” side. You can’t blame them in this approach since it will hopefully bring more listeners to their shows and boost album sales. However, there is sufficient ass-kicking on songs like “Rocket Ride” and “Return To The Tribe”. The latter tune has an awesome guitar effect which actually sounds like Tobias is singing the solo. It also has a slight resemblance to “Fallen Angels”, from the must-have release “Mandrake”. The band’s very manic sense of humor and fun are showcased in songs like “Trinidad” and “Fucking With Fire”. Fans of slower numbers will enjoy the softer side Tobias has during “Save Me”, which serves as the Power Ballad of the recording. Continue reading “Rocket Ride” by Edguy→
