Demons & Wizards | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | February 8, 2000 | |||
Recorded | Mid–late 1999 | |||
Studio | Morrisound Studios | |||
Genre | Progressive metal, power metal | |||
Length | 57:43 | |||
Label | Steamhammer/SPV | |||
Demons & Wizards chronology | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Metal Rules | [2] |
Demons & Wizards is the self-titled debut album of the power metal supergroup Demons & Wizards (a side-project of Hansi Kürsch of Blind Guardian and Jon Schaffer of Iced Earth), [3] released in February 2000. The album was recorded with the help of Jim Morris, who plays lead guitar on almost all tracks, and by Mark Prator on drums.
Distributed in Europe and North America by SPV and in Japan by Victor Entertainment.
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Rites of Passage" | (instrumental) | Jon Schaffer, Hansi Kürsch | 0:54 |
2. | "Heaven Denies" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 5:20 |
3. | "Poor Man's Crusade" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 4:02 |
4. | "Fiddler on the Green" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 5:56 |
5. | "Blood on My Hands" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 4:45 |
6. | "Path of Glory" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 4:59 |
7. | "Winter of Souls" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 5:47 |
8. | "The Whistler" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 5:15 |
9. | "Tear Down the Wall" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 4:48 |
10. | "Gallow's Pole" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 5:22 |
11. | "My Last Sunrise" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 4:44 |
12. | "Chant" | (instrumental) | Schaffer, Kürsch | 0:48 |
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
13. | "White Room" (Cream cover) (also in limited edition and vinyl releases) | Pete Brown | Pete Brown, Jack Bruce | 5:01 |
14. | "The Whistler" (alternate version) | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 5:21 |
Distributed in Argentina by NEMS Enterprises.
No. | Title | Lyrics | Music | Length |
---|---|---|---|---|
1. | "Rites of Passage" | (instrumental) | Jon Schaffer, Hansi Kürsch | 0:54 |
2. | "Heaven Denies" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 5:20 |
3. | "Poor Man's Crusade" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 4:02 |
4. | "Fiddler on the Green" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 5:56 |
5. | "Blood on My Hands" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 4:45 |
6. | "Path of Glory" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 4:59 |
7. | "Winter of Souls" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 5:47 |
8. | "The Whistler" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 5:15 |
9. | "Tear Down the Wall" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 4:48 |
10. | "Gallow's Pole" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 5:22 |
11. | "My Last Sunrise" | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 4:44 |
12. | "Chant" | (instrumental) | Schaffer, Kürsch | 0:48 |
13. | "White Room" (Cream cover) | Pete Brown | Pete Brown, Jack Bruce | 5:01 |
14. | "Heaven Denies" (demo version) | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 5:09 |
15. | "The Whistler" (demo version) | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 5:21 |
16. | "Tear Down the Wall" (demo version) | Schaffer, Kürsch | Schaffer, Kürsch | 4:46 |
Blind Guardian is a German power metal band formed in 1984 in Krefeld, West Germany. They are often credited as one of the seminal and most influential bands in the power metal and speed metal subgenres. Nine musicians have been a part of the band's line-up in its history, which has consisted of singer Hansi Kürsch, guitarists André Olbrich and Marcus Siepen, drummer Frederik Ehmke since 2005, and bassist Johan Van Stratum since 2021.
Nightfall in Middle-Earth is the sixth studio album by German power metal band Blind Guardian. It was released on 28 April 1998 through Virgin Records. It is a concept album based upon J. R. R. Tolkien's The Silmarillion, a book of tales from the First Age of Middle-earth, recounting The War of the Jewels. The album contains not only songs but also spoken parts narrating parts of the story. The cover depicts Lúthien dancing in front of Morgoth.
Demons & Wizards was a power metal band conceived as a side-project by Blind Guardian vocalist Hansi Kürsch and Jon Schaffer, the guitarist for Iced Earth. Schaffer wrote the music and Kürsch wrote the lyrics. The band's line-up during the recording of their first album in 1999 featured Mark Prator, who was the drummer on a few Iced Earth albums, and Jim Morris, who has engineered for Iced Earth before, on lead guitar. The personnel for the second album, released in 2005, included Morris on lead guitar and Bobby Jarzombek on drums. The band released a third studio album, III, in 2020, and disbanded in early 2021.
Iced Earth is an American heavy metal band formed in Tampa, Florida, and currently based in Columbus, Indiana. They were formed in 1984 under the name the Rose, then Purgatory, by guitarist and main songwriter Jon Schaffer and original drummer Greg Seymour. Iced Earth released their debut album in 1990 and have since released twelve studio albums, four EPs, three compilations, three box sets, three live albums and eleven music videos.
Hans Jürgen "Hansi" Kürsch is a German singer, songwriter and former bass guitarist, best known as a member of the power metal band Blind Guardian. One of the founders of the band, he has been its lead vocalist since its creation in 1984, and also acted as the band's bass guitarist until 1996.
Jon Ryan Schaffer is an American heavy metal musician. He is the rhythm guitarist and principal songwriter of the Indiana-based heavy metal band Iced Earth, which he formed in 1985 under the name Purgatory. He is also the lead singer in his political side project Sons of Liberty and, until 2021, played guitar for Demons & Wizards, his collaboration with Blind Guardian frontman Hansi Kürsch.
The Blessed and the Damned is a double CD best of compilation album by the American heavy metal band Iced Earth. The CD-booklet can be reversed, to show either angels or demons on the cover. The booklet also includes Jon Schaffer's comments on previous albums and his life. Even though the CD was released after The Glorious Burden, the biography in the booklet makes no mention of it. This is probably because Iced Earth left their record label Century Media Records prior to The Glorious Burden, and signed with SPV. In turn, Century Media released this compilation album.
Imaginations from the Other Side is the fifth studio album by German power metal band Blind Guardian, released in 1995. The atmosphere of this album is darker in comparison to their earlier works, such as Battalions of Fear, which had a relatively light tone. This album also marks the first since Battalions of Fear which Kai Hansen did not contribute guest vocals or guitar, and the last album to feature vocalist Hansi Kürsch as bassist. It was also their first album to spawn singles, namely "A Past and Future Secret" and "Bright Eyes". It was remastered and re-released on 15 June 2007, with bonus tracks and videos.
The Dark Saga is the fourth studio album by American heavy metal band Iced Earth. Released on May 20, 1996, it was the band's first album to feature drummer Mark Prator, as well as the last with bassist Dave Abell and lead guitarist Randall Shawver. The Dark Saga was also the first Iced Earth album to be co-produced by Jim Morris, who since then has worked on all of the band's releases.
Follow the Blind is the second studio album by German power metal band Blind Guardian. It was released in 1989 and is more in the vein of speed metal, compared to the style that would later define the band's unique sound. Guitarist Marcus Siepen stated that they were "listening to a lot of thrash metal bands like Testament or Forbidden, and that's why Follow the Blind was a bit heavier".
Battalions of Fear is the debut studio album by German power metal band Blind Guardian, released in 1988. The album is a raw and unpolished speed metal effort that touches on thrash metal. It lacks many of the stylistic flourishes that would mark the band's music in later years, focusing more on speed and aggression. The opening track "Majesty" remains a fan favorite and is often featured in the band's live performances. This album was remastered, remixed and re-released on 15 June 2007, with the whole first demo tape, Symphonies of Doom, of the band as part of the bonus tracks. The album was again re-released as part of the A Traveler's Guide to Space and Time boxset with minor adjustments to the mixing and with new mastering.
Touched by the Crimson King is the second album by the power metal supergroup Demons and Wizards, released in June 2005. The album contains a cover of Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song." It was also released as a limited edition digipak in Europe with an alternate cover and four bonus tracks on a second disc. For the North American release, all fourteen songs appeared on one disc, which had the limited edition cover in the form of a sleeve around the jewel case.
Temple of Shadows is the fifth studio and a concept album by the power metal band Angra and was released in 2004 by Paradoxx Music in Brazil and SPV label Steamhammer in the rest of the world. SPV also released a limited edition containing a bonus DVD with the complete video material of the concert that was previously released on their album Rebirth World Tour – Live in São Paulo. The record was classified as the 21st best power metal album of all time by the metal magazine Loudwire.
"And Then There Was Silence" is a song by German power metal band Blind Guardian. It was released in November 2001 as the lead single from their album A Night at the Opera.
Demons and Wizards is the fourth studio album by British rock band Uriah Heep, released 19 May 1972 by Bronze Records in the UK and Mercury Records in the US.
At the Edge of Time is the ninth studio album by German power metal band Blind Guardian. A two-CD version of the album was released, with the second disc containing eight tracks. The artwork for the album was created by Colombian artist Felipe Machado Franco. The album was released in Europe on 30 July 2010. A music video for "A Voice in the Dark" was released on 3 August 2010.
Tales from the Twilight World is the third studio album by German power metal band Blind Guardian, released on 2 October 1990.
Jake Dreyer is an American musician who is the lead guitarist and songwriter for the progressive metal band Witherfall and former lead guitarist for Iced Earth. He was also a touring and session guitarist for the bands Demons and Wizards, White Wizzard, and Kobra and the Lotus.
Unity is the 16th studio album by the German heavy metal band Rage, released in 2002 by SPV/Steamhammer.
Plagues of Babylon is the eleventh studio album by American heavy metal band Iced Earth. Released in January 2014, the album is the group's first studio release with bassist Luke Appleton and the only with drummer Raphael Saini, who was a guest on the album. According to rhythm guitarist and band leader Jon Schaffer, half of the album is focused on his "Something Wicked" concept, while the other half are stand-alone songs.