The Metal Crypt on Facebook  The Metal Crypt's YouTube Channel
Review: Blind Guardian - A Twist In The Myth
Blind Guardian
www.blind-guardian.com
A Twist In The Myth

Label: Nuclear Blast Records
Year released: 2006
Duration: 50:11
Tracks: 11
Genre: Power Metal

Rating:
5/5


Review online: August 26, 2006
Reviewed by: Sargon the Terrible
Readers' Rating
How do you rate this release?

Rated 3.57/5 (71.43%) (70 Votes)
Review

I'm not a big-time Blind Guardian fan, so this was a really nice surprise. Make no mistake, I like them, but I've always thought they were overrated, especially A Night At The Opera, which I thought was overproduced and pretty self-indulgent. I wasn't expecting to like their new one much at all. But A Twist In The Myth, the band's eighth full-length album, finally hits the nail right on the head.

This is the sound BG have been aiming for ever since Nightfall On Middle Earth, but have never yet managed to get quite right. This is the culmination of what they were going for, and it was worth the effort. Myth combines the intricately layered choral vocal style of Opera with complex songwriting and pulls back in some of the heaviness of their old days. This is a much heavier, more metallic album than this band has made in years, and the combination of punchier guitars with Hansi's vocal weavings produces a sound that's both driving and epic. BG cram a lot of riffs and vocal parts into their songs, and each one is a huge tapestry of carefully mapped-out sounds. Rather than being overproduced, Myth sounds just right, smooth and clear without the emasculated sound of music that's been washed through the Pro Tools too many times. Album high points are the kinetic "Otherland", the advance single "Fly", and the absolute killer "Lionheart", which may be their best song ever.

I'm only a marginal BG fan, and I haven't been able to pry this out of my player for days. There's so much to this album that I hear something new every time I spin it, and like Nightfall On Middle-Earth this disc has a lot of replay value. If you like the more recent BG works, then get ready, because this is their best album yet. And if you're a fan of their old stuff, well this album is good enough that it might win you over. Blind Guardian albums almost always end up on year-end 'best of' lists, and I'm sure this one will be no different. The only difference will be that this time, it will be completely deserved. Highly Recommended.

More about Blind Guardian...
Review: A Night At The Opera (reviewed by Christian Renner)
Review: And Then There Was Silence (reviewed by Christian Renner)
Review: At the Edge of Time (reviewed by Adam Kohrman)
Review: At the Edge of Time (reviewed by Hermer Arroyo)
Review: At the Edge of Time (reviewed by MetalMike)
Review: Battalions of Fear (reviewed by Nahsil)
Review: Beyond the Red Mirror (reviewed by Edward T. Head)
Review: Beyond the Red Mirror (reviewed by MetalMike)
Review: Follow the Blind (reviewed by MetalMike)
Review: Imaginations From the Other Side (reviewed by Larry Griffin)
Review: Imaginations Through The Looking Glass (reviewed by 4th Horseman)
Review: Live (reviewed by Baldr)
Review: Nightfall In Middle Earth (reviewed by Larry Griffin)
Review: Nightfall In Middle Earth (reviewed by Sargon the Terrible)
Review: Somewhere Far Beyond (reviewed by Larry Griffin)
Review: Tales From The Twilight World (reviewed by 4th Horseman)
Review: The God Machine (reviewed by MetalMike)
Review: The God Machine (reviewed by Michel Renaud)
Click below for more reviews
Latest 0-9 A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z Various Books/Zines 



The Metal Crypt - Crushing Posers Since 1999
Copyright  © 1999-2024, Michel Renaud / The Metal Crypt.  All Rights Reserved.