| Written by Alex Stojanovic TRACK LISTING Deliver Us From Evil Damnation Secrets Of The American Gods Violent Shadows Life Beyond The Spheres Architects Of Doom Let It Be No More Blood Of The Elves Destiny BLIND GUARDIAN IS: Hansi Kursch - Vocals Andre Olbrich - Lead guitars Marcus Siepen - Rhythm guitars Frederik Ehmke - Drums Johan van Stratum - Bass |  |
In the seven years since we last got a serious studio album, Blind Guardian were busy touring and tying up a couple of loose ends, with the biggest loose end being their ambitious orchestral album, which has been in the works for 2.5 decades. The resulting album: Legacy Of The Dark Lands was finally released in 2019. At the same time, Hansi Kursch also re-teamed up with Jon Schaffer of Iced Earth for some new Demons & Wizards activity, with some European and North American touring, and releasing their long-awaited, and unfortunately final, studio album: III in 2020 before disbanding in early 2021 due to you-know-what (say no more). As the pandemic began to slowly subside, Blind Guardian started becoming active again, and after 7 years since Beyond The Red Mirror, are back with their long-awaited heavy studio album The God Machine, and by heavy, they truly mean "HEAVY" this time around.
Now, the past few records like Beyond The Red Mirror, At The Edge Of Time, A Twist In The Myth, A Night At The Opera, Nightfall In Middle Earth and Imaginations From The Other Side, saw the band go in a much more symphonic and orchestral direction. This caused some fans to believe that they were losing their way from their power/speed metal roots from the first four records. They never lost their traditional power metal sound, and they always incorporated songs with their speed metal roots, but the symphonic element was definitely more prevalent on the last bunch of records. Now that they've gotten their orchestral album out of the way, they saw that the time was right to bring back some of the intensity.
Getting into The God Machine, it doesn't take long for things to get heavy right at the start. The last few records had a big long build-up in the intro before the band kicks in. This time around, on "Deliver Us From Evil", it only takes about 30 seconds for things to get off and running. Right off the bat, we're casted back to the Battalions Of Evil and Follow The Blind eras with tommy-gun riffs and Hansi Kursch's signature high-pitched gritty vocals. "Damnation" continues in that direction, which feels like an even more aggressive track compared to the opener. It's when we get to "Secrets Of The American Gods" that the tempo goes down a few notches to more mid-paced territory, but the track doesn't lose any of the intensity experienced in the first two tracks.
I don't really know what rattled Blind Guardian's cage, but "Violent Shadows" is the band's most aggressive track in a long time. It's by far my favourite track on the album, and the one that has gotten the most replays by me. The album's "Bard Song" is "Let It Be No More", showing that even on album full of speed metal blazers, Blind Guardian haven't forgotten about the ballads. At the same time, if you are someone who loves the more epic style from the last bunch of records, you can hear traces of that style in "Architects Of Doom" and the album's closer: "Destiny", the most.
Bards rejoice and prepare yourselves, because you haven't heard Blind Guardian this heavy and aggressive since Nightfall In Middle-Earth. With the biggest musical loose end tied up, that being Legacy Of The Dark Lands, the German power metal legends sound more rejuvenated than ever. Now, is The God Machine the crowning achievement in a long and impressive career? I wouldn't exactly say that, but given the fact that this beast came out nearly decades after their formation, it's proof that Blind Guardian are still standing strong atop the iron hill.
Now, the past few records like Beyond The Red Mirror, At The Edge Of Time, A Twist In The Myth, A Night At The Opera, Nightfall In Middle Earth and Imaginations From The Other Side, saw the band go in a much more symphonic and orchestral direction. This caused some fans to believe that they were losing their way from their power/speed metal roots from the first four records. They never lost their traditional power metal sound, and they always incorporated songs with their speed metal roots, but the symphonic element was definitely more prevalent on the last bunch of records. Now that they've gotten their orchestral album out of the way, they saw that the time was right to bring back some of the intensity.
Getting into The God Machine, it doesn't take long for things to get heavy right at the start. The last few records had a big long build-up in the intro before the band kicks in. This time around, on "Deliver Us From Evil", it only takes about 30 seconds for things to get off and running. Right off the bat, we're casted back to the Battalions Of Evil and Follow The Blind eras with tommy-gun riffs and Hansi Kursch's signature high-pitched gritty vocals. "Damnation" continues in that direction, which feels like an even more aggressive track compared to the opener. It's when we get to "Secrets Of The American Gods" that the tempo goes down a few notches to more mid-paced territory, but the track doesn't lose any of the intensity experienced in the first two tracks.
I don't really know what rattled Blind Guardian's cage, but "Violent Shadows" is the band's most aggressive track in a long time. It's by far my favourite track on the album, and the one that has gotten the most replays by me. The album's "Bard Song" is "Let It Be No More", showing that even on album full of speed metal blazers, Blind Guardian haven't forgotten about the ballads. At the same time, if you are someone who loves the more epic style from the last bunch of records, you can hear traces of that style in "Architects Of Doom" and the album's closer: "Destiny", the most.
Bards rejoice and prepare yourselves, because you haven't heard Blind Guardian this heavy and aggressive since Nightfall In Middle-Earth. With the biggest musical loose end tied up, that being Legacy Of The Dark Lands, the German power metal legends sound more rejuvenated than ever. Now, is The God Machine the crowning achievement in a long and impressive career? I wouldn't exactly say that, but given the fact that this beast came out nearly decades after their formation, it's proof that Blind Guardian are still standing strong atop the iron hill.
FINAL RATING
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