Let’s tell some truths, at least the way I understand things through the years and the course of Blind Guardian. The Greeks embraced Guardian (relatively) early on. Personally, I remember a few pirate stations playing Guardian tracks as early as 1993/94. Typically people started to get to know them mainly with “Somewhere Far Beyond” but the absolute apotheosis happened in 1995 with “Imaginations…”. The phenomenal concert at the legendary Rodon Club in 1995 laid the foundation for an unbreakable love affair with Guardian who in turn returned that love in all the tours that followed. However, where the Germans became commercially gigantic was in 1998 with “Nightfall…” and it is no coincidence that there is a whole generation of fans out there that considers this album as the best of the band…an opinion that I don’t share but I fully understand the logic behind it.
And if “A Night At The Opera” has gone down in history as the transitional album between the…glory days of the 90s and the…symphonic period of 2006-2019, last year’s “The God Machine” came to restore the previous order or to be more precise, almost to restore it. No shit, guys! From “A Twist In The Myth” and onwards, Hansi and Andre chose to drive the Guardian vehicle into more technical and symphonic paths that alienated their old fans. I have unlimited respect for the concerns of the individual artist but when those last for almost 15 years then there is an issue. Not that Guardian didn’t write good songs in that time but most of them were lost due to their complex nature and full on over-production. So, it made sense that old fans of the band would be especially happy with “The God Machine” since they saw their favorite band return to the classic 90’s style of composition. The smiles were back and the Guardian themselves frankly stated that they were especially happy to be back in a more familiar compositional environment.
Let’s be honest here; “The God Machine” is no masterpiece! But it is a very good album from a band that has been on the scene for over 35 years. And that alone is a significant achievement. Needless to say, the concert on October 7 at the Floyd Club* will again be a milestone for all Guardian fans and we will be there to capture – as much as possible – the unique atmosphere but most importantly to create memories…on a journey through the dark!
Sakis Nikas
* the show at Floyd club sold out and an extra show was added for October 6th. Blind Guardian also play in Thessaloniki on October 8th at Principal CLub Theater
