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Let me start off by saying that I cannot choose a favorite Blind Guardian album. Ever since Somewhere Far Beyond came out, everything this band has released has held a special place in my heart. In fact, at my wedding 4 years ago, our bride & groom first dance was to "The Maiden and the Minstrel Knight" and it couldn't have been more beautiful.
Blind Guardian is more than a thrash/power metal band. Yes there are those elements to their music, but the main focus of their music is composition and in creating music that is cohesive, innovative, and extravagant. Over their past 3 albums, the compositions have gotten progressively more intricate and bombastic. Some critique them as "overdone" and that's a fair statement if you prefer raw metal. This is not raw metal however. You are listening to the wrong band if you want Blind Guardian to sound like they did in the 80's and 90's. In fact, if you're missing that style so much, skip this album and go purchase the latest Persuader or Savage Circus albums. They sound almost exactly like early Blind Guardian.
Before the song by song analysis, At The Edge of Time as a whole complete album is perhaps their best work. This album definitely has the most diversity out of all their previous works. Not one song sounds like it doesn't belong and while there are stronger songs than others, they complement each other perfectly. Case in point, a mid tempo, piano driven song ,"Road to No Release" is sandwiched between two of the fastest, guitar driven songs on the album. Then immediately following a blisteringly brilliant thrash song, you have one of Guardian's finest ballads.
Sacred Worlds (10/10) This may be one of my favorite BG songs of all time, second only to "And Then There was Silence". The orchestral arrangements start the album building intensity and excitement until the band starts. It all flows so seamlessly that you will hardly notice the change. When the band does start in full, the orchestra weaves in and out providing brilliant counter melodies and gorgeous depth to the music. The chorus of this song is in my opinion one of the most powerful chorus ever. The lyrics were originally created for a fantasy game, but have real world applications, particularly the emotion of setting evil things right that have been accepted as the norm.
Tanelorn (9/10) I love this song a lot. The guitars are the driving force and sound incredible. Marcus and Andre are playing at harmonic thirds of each other for much of the song and the guitars are amazingly tight. Hansi sings very aggressively on this one, very similar to his style on Imaginations From the Other Side. The chorus is very good and catchy, however I'm not emotionally taken away as I am with some of their other songs.
Road of No Release (8/10) This is a hard one for me to rate. The intro is beautiful with the piano, guitars and snare drum roll. This song stylistically sounds similar to the A Twist in the Myth album. There are many changes in rhythm and keep this song interesting but not all of it is as moving as the intro. This is one of those songs that will probably need to marinate in my head for many months before I can fully appreciate it.
Ride into Obsession (10/10) My favorite of the fast songs on the album. This song has everything. The lyrics are powerful and really get to the heart of the emotional struggle the dragon is facing. I won't spoil who he is in case you haven't read the first book in Wheel of Time. The chorus is one of the best on the album, but what really gives this song the edge over Tanelorn is the middle section where the music takes an unexpected twist.
Curse my Name (10/10) One of Blind Guardian's best ballads. This song has many celtic sounding instruments and percussions, strings, flutes, and some other things I can't quite identify. Brilliant lyrics and a wonderful chorus that actually inspires me to dance like an idiot hopping around from one foot to the other. The deluxe edition of this album comes with a demo version of this song which sounds just as good, but is the scaled back version featuring acoustic guitars and Hansi's voice. It is very reminiscent of The Bard's Song and time may prove it to be just as classic.
Valkyries (8/10) I have similar opinions about this song as I do "Road of No Release" being a more modern version of their previous album style. It has a very good chorus and is a good mix of heavy and soft features. After about 10 listens of the album as a whole, this song seems to be one of the weaker on the album. It is still an awesome song, but there is some fierce competition on this CD. It may prove to be one of those songs that I'll only fully grasp after I've heard it 100's of time.
Control the Devine (10/10) This is one of my favorite songs as well. Stylistically, it sounds like it could have been released on Nightfall in Middle Earth. This song features great texture from acoustic guitars and one of the best and catchiest choruses on the album. It manages to avoid sounding familiar without actually pushing Blind Guardian's music to the next level.
War of the Thrones (10/10) This song is another great ballad that I absolutely love. It starts off with piano and vocals only and is most appropriate given the subject matter. The chorus is classic and very sing-along-esque. As the song progresses more instruments are introduced, giving rise to the intensity matched my Hansi's delivery.
A Voice in the Dark (8.5/10) This is an awesome song that I was somewhat unimpressed when I first heard it on the single. The vocal phrasing and chorus is very reminiscent of Traveler in Time, or Time What is Time. It is very fast and aggressive but also very clever in the arrangement. The variations are just enough that you don't tire of the standard pop song formula that this song employs. My only criticism is that the guitar solo is not up to par. It sounds "good enough" not to hurt the song but is desperately lacking Andre's usual touch and finesse.
Wheel of Time (1/10) Oh man, the album sure took a dive down the crapper here, this song is just terrible! Just kidding... here we have yet again one of Blind Guardian's greatest musical accomplishments. One thing I recommend doing is listening to the instrumental version on the second disc. The music has been composed with such craft and eloquence that it needs to be heard by itself before you can fully appreciate all that is going on here. It is pure magic. The album version with vocals is amazing too. I was just flabbergasted at how great the song sounded as an instrumental. The vocal arrangement is very complex and will take you many listens before your brain wraps around all the intricacies and wonderful phrasings by Hansi. The chorus is good and matches the music well, but my favorite part of this song is the latter half after the symphonic interlude. It provides the perfect down time before the bombastic finale that is very dangerously overwhelming. (by the way, the real score is 10/10)
This is without a doubt the best use of an orchestra that has been done in metal. I strongly suggest you listen to it and let the music take you on a journey away to a land where monotony does not exist.
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Top reviews from other countries
Light of Earendil
Grandiosa edición de este grandioso álbum.
Reviewed in Mexico on November 29, 2023
