Edguy | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Origin | Fulda, Germany |
Genres | Power metal, heavy metal |
Years active | 1992–2020 (currently on hiatus [1] ) |
Labels | |
Spinoffs | Avantasia |
Members | Tobias Sammet Jens Ludwig Dirk Sauer Tobias Exxel Felix Bohnke |
Past members | Dominik Storch |
Website | edguy |
Edguy is a German power metal band formed in Fulda in 1992.
Edguy was founded in 1992 [2] by 14-year-old students Tobias Sammet, Jens Ludwig, Dominik Storch and Dirk Sauer. The name "Edguy" was an affectionate epithet for their math teacher at the time. In 1994, the band released two demos, Evil Minded and Children of Steel. These tapes were sent to many record labels, all of whom rejected the band, believing they would be unsuccessful in the music business. [3]
Undeterred, they self-released their "unofficial" debut album, Savage Poetry , in 1995. They signed with AFM Records shortly after, who offered to re-release Savage Poetry with more widespread distribution. The band rejected this proposal in favour of recording a new album, Kingdom of Madness , which was released in 1997, but drummer Dominik Storch left the band shortly after. 1998 saw the release of their second album, Vain Glory Opera , with friend Frank Lindenthal filling in on drums. This album helped expose Edguy to a wider audience, thanks in part to guest appearances from Timo Tolkki (Stratovarius) and Hansi Kürsch (Blind Guardian). [4] The band was joined by new drummer Felix Bohnke and bassist Tobias 'Eggi' Exxel later that year, allowing Tobias Sammet to solely focus on vocals (he had previously played bass as well handling vocal duties).
In 1999, Theater of Salvation was released. That same year frontman Tobias Sammet conceived the idea for the Avantasia project, a metal opera featuring well known vocalists and musicians from the rock and metal scene. While Tobias focused on Avantasia, the band took the opportunity to re-record Savage Poetry, to make it widely available to newer fans, as the original had become a much sought after rarity. [5] [6]
Following The Savage Poetry re-recording was the band's fifth album, Mandrake , in 2001. The album was accompanied by their first promo video, for the track "All the Clowns", as well as the Painting on the Wall single. The Mandrake album also led to the band's first headlining tour. [7] Three shows were recorded in Europe and were the basis for Edguy's first live album, Burning Down the Opera – Live. [8]
The band's contract with AFM had expired by this point, which led to them signing with Nuclear Blast in late 2003. [9]
Edguy's first release for Nuclear Blast was the King of Fools EP in 2004. This preceded the Hellfire Club album, released shortly after. [10] The song "Lavatory Love Machine" was also released as a single. The band's productivity continued into 2005 with the Superheroes EP and DVD, the latter featuring footage of the band live and in the studio, as well as a making of documentary for the video of the title track. This was followed by the full-length album Rocket Ride in January 2006.
Sammet spent much of 2007 relaunching the Avantasia project. Edguy returned to the studio in 2008 and recorded Tinnitus Sanctus , with a video being shot for the track "Ministry of Saints" in Belgrade, Serbia. [11] [12] After a contract renewal with Nuclear Blast in late 2008, [13] the band released their first live DVD, Fucking with Fire – Live , in 2009. This featured live footage of the band shot in São Paulo, Brazil, on their Rocket Ride world tour in 2006. [14] The band supported Scorpions on the German dates of their farewell tour in 2010. [15]
Edguy released their ninth studio album, Age of the Joker , in August 2011. [16] The band toured Europe and South America in support of the record, including dates with Slash [17] and Deep Purple, [18] as well as an appearance on the 70000 Tons of Metal cruise. [19]
On 13 February 2013, Sammet did an interview promoting the latest release from his Avantasia project. In the same interview, he revealed that Edguy was to have a new album released, planned for mid-2014. [20] On 28 January 2014, Edguy revealed that the album would be titled Space Police: Defenders of the Crown and released on 18 April. [21]
On 13 March 2017, 2-CD/DVD-package Monuments, consisting of both old and new material, was announced for release on 14 July.
In 2018, Edguy released a remastered version of their first album Kingdom of Madness as an Anniversary Edition.
In March 2020, Sammet announced via Facebook page that Edguy was on hiatus because he has "been working on a new Avantasia record for a while now, and not on a new Edguy record because that's what feels right to me". Sammet also explained that while he considered Space Police to be a great album, the production of it had been "exhausting". [1]
Edguy's lyrics are often metaphorical, alluding to metaphysical or social themes: conformity ("The Headless Game", "Mysteria", "King of Fools"), dictation by the church ("The Kingdom", "The Pride of Creation", "Theater of Salvation"), and dangers of modern civilization ("Navigator", "The Devil and the Savant"). To express such themes, Edguy sometimes use esoteric and hermetic expressions. Yet some of their songs are light-hearted or comedic ("Das Reh", "Save Us Now", "Lavatory Love Machine", "Life and Times of a Bonus Track", "Trinidad"). Edguy does not claim to represent any ideology; Tobias Sammet claimed "[the band is] not political and we are not religious; at least there is no key message in our songs telling you what to think in terms of anything".
Hellfire Club revealed Edguy's interest in experimenting within music by integrating an orchestra into the production. The album featured a variation on Edguy's style, with a less grandiose, more progressive metal approach being embraced. The band's album Rocket Ride features even less power metal elements, and is arguably more oriented towards hard rock. Their next album, Tinnitus Sanctus , contains even more hard rock oriented songs; a large reduction of double bass drumming is evident, in contrast to Edguy's older albums such as Vain Glory Opera where there is very fast double bass which is common in the power metal genre. When asked if the term "happy heavy metal band" applies to the band, Tobias rejected it and added: [22]
We are a Heavy Metal band. We play angry, powerful, sometimes tongue-in-cheek Metal. We are flamboyant and we don't take ourselves too seriously, but that goes for Van Halen too, right? Are they Happy Rock? No, they have a sense of humor and kick ass! Just like we do...
Year | Title | Record label | Peak chart positions | |||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GER [24] | AUT [25] | FIN [26] | FRA [27] | SPA [28] | SWE [29] | SWI [30] | ||||||||||||
1997 | Kingdom of Madness | AFM | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | |||||||||
1998 | Vain Glory Opera | AFM | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | |||||||||
1999 | Theater of Salvation | AFM | 66 | - | - | - | - | 50 | - | |||||||||
2000 | The Savage Poetry | AFM | 79 | - | - | - | - | 60 | - | |||||||||
2001 | Mandrake | AFM | 19 | - | - | 47 | - | 32 | - | |||||||||
2004 | Hellfire Club | Nuclear Blast | 26 | 68 | 22 | 54 | - | 6 | 81 | |||||||||
2006 | Rocket Ride | Nuclear Blast | 8 | 50 | 25 | - | - | 8 | 50 | |||||||||
2008 | Tinnitus Sanctus | Nuclear Blast | 19 | 50 | - | 85 | - | 28 | 41 | |||||||||
2011 | Age of the Joker | Nuclear Blast | 3 | 30 | 15 | 98 | 44 | 10 | 13 | |||||||||
2014 | Space Police: Defenders of the Crown | Nuclear Blast | 2 | 27 | 12 | 72 | 59 | 28 | 13 |
Year | Title | Peak chart positions [31] | |||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GER | AUT | FIN | FRA | ITA | SWE | SWI | |||||||||||
2004 | King of Fools | 39 | 67 | 12 | - | - | 16 | 98 | |||||||||
2005 | Superheroes | 25 | - | - | 96 | 48 [32] | 10 | 52 |
Avantasia is a German supergroup metal opera project created by Tobias Sammet, vocalist of the band Edguy. It has been characterized as a rock opera, as it features the contributions of various vocalists and musicians and it consists of concept albums. The name is a blend of the words Avalon and fantasia ('fantasy') and describes "a world beyond human imagination".
The Metal Opera is the first full-length album by Tobias Sammet's German supergroup project, Avantasia. It is a concept album and a metal opera. The album is followed by the sequel The Metal Opera Part II. Both were written over the course of a year, starting in the last quarter of 1998, and both were produced from October 1999 to June 2000, with the works being interrupted for some weeks so Sammet could produce The Savage Poetry with his other band Edguy.
Hellfire Club, released on 15 March 2004, is the sixth album by German power metal band Edguy. The music of the band is supported by a German orchestra, the Deutsches Filmorchester Babelsberg. It is the band's first album released via Nuclear Blast.
Tobias Sammet is a German musician, singer, songwriter, music producer and radio host best known for being the singer and primary songwriter of the power metal band Edguy, and the founder of the metal opera project Avantasia.
Superheroes is an EP by the German power metal band Edguy, released in 2005. On this EP, the band has moved away from the sound they had developed on their previous album Hellfire Club. The songs on "Superheroes" are much less akin to the band's native style of power metal, but tends towards the direction of hard rock.
Rocket Ride is the seventh full-length album by German power metal band Edguy, released on 20 January 2006. It features a style that differs from their usual power metal style and is more oriented towards hard rock.
The Savage Poetry, released in 2000, is a re-recording of the album Savage Poetry, originally launched in 1995 as a demo by German power metal band Edguy. This version is also seen and referred to as their fourth official studio album. The album was originally self-produced and released initially as a demo before the band were signed by AFM. The re-recorded tracks are also slightly re-arranged. Some versions of the album also features the original recording as a bonus disc.
Felix Bohnke is a German musician and the drummer of heavy metal bands Edguy and Avantasia. He joined the band just before they recorded the album Theater of Salvation in 1998. Before joining Edguy he was a member of German band Saints & Preachers. In 2001, he was a guest drummer and later in 2003, a member of the band Taraxacum along with Edguy bassist Tobias Exxel.
Oliver Hartmann is a German metal vocalist, guitarist, songwriter, and producer who performed in various acts, either as guitarist, solo or choir singer. He is best known for his role as vocalist and one of the founders of the band At Vance, his own band Hartmann and his guest appearances on albums of several prominent metal bands, including Freedom Call, Edguy, Rhapsody, Genius rock opera, Iron Mask, Aina's metal opera Days of Rising Doom and the metal opera Avantasia where he participated as a vocalist in 4 albums and also as a guitarist of the live and studio line up. He is also guitarist and vocalist with the Pink-Floyd tribute band Echoes.
Sascha Paeth is a German guitarist, bassist, record producer and mixer known for working with heavy metal bands such as Avantasia, Edguy, Angra, Shaman, Rhapsody of Fire, Kamelot, After Forever and Epica. He owns the "Gate Studios", Wolfsburg previously used for recordings with his former band Heavens Gate.
The Metal Opera Pt. II is the second full-length album by Tobias Sammet's German supergroup project, Avantasia. It is a concept album and a metal opera. The songs carry on the story begun in The Metal Opera, with the same characters. Both albums were written over the course of a year, starting in the last quarter of 1998, and both were produced from October 1999 to June 2000, with the works being interrupted for some weeks so Sammet could produce The Savage Poetry with his other band Edguy.
Tobias "Eggi" Exxel is the current bass player for the power metal band Edguy and for the melodic metal band The Unity. Tobias was hired by Edguy in 1998 when vocalist Tobias Sammet, who had played bass since the band's formation in 1992, decided the band should have someone who could focus on playing the instrument full-time.
The Scarecrow is the third full-length album by Tobias Sammet's German metal opera project Avantasia, released on 25 January 2008 through Nuclear Blast Records. It is the first part of "The Wicked Trilogy" and it is followed by The Wicked Symphony and Angel of Babylon. Sammet explained in a 2016 interview that he managed to have Alice Cooper after drummer Eric Singer asked him. Cooper requested to have a listen to the song first and then accepted to be part of it.
Tinnitus Sanctus is the eighth studio album by German heavy/power metal band Edguy, released on 14 November 2008 on Nuclear Blast. This album combines progressive-oriented hard rock heard on their previous album Rocket Ride with elements of speed metal.
The Singles is a compilation album by German power metal band Edguy. It features all tracks from the EP's King Of Fools and Superheroes and single Lavatory Love Machine on one disc. The compilation was released on 17 November 2008, the same day as Edguy's eighth studio album, Tinnitus Sanctus.
The Flying Opera is a boxed set containing two DVDs and two CDs by the German power metal band Avantasia, released in March 2011. Avantasia evolved from being a side-project of Edguy vocalist Tobias Sammet to a full-fledged band touring all over the world. The tracks of the set were recorded live during their first world tour in 2008, in support of the album The Scarecrow. The DVD contains also a documentary of the tour and various video clips.
The Mystery of Time is the sixth full-length album by Tobias Sammet's german metal opera project Avantasia. The album was released on 26 April 2013. This is the first Avantasia release to feature the German Film Orchestra Babelsberg. The cover artwork was painted by Rodney Matthews.
Space Police: Defenders of the Crown is the tenth studio album by the German power metal band Edguy. It was released on 18 April 2014 through Nuclear Blast. The cover art was unveiled on 1 February, and 15 days later, the band announced the track listing.
Ghostlights is the seventh full-length album by Tobias Sammet's German metal opera project Avantasia. It was released on 29 January 2016. The opening track and first single "Mystery of a Blood Red Rose" was a candidate for the German representative at the Eurovision Song Contest 2016, along with nine other songs. The Digibook edition of the album included a bonus track and a bonus CD entitled Avantasia Live, which featured songs recorded mainly during Avantasia's 2014 performance at Wacken Open Air Festival.
Moonglow is the eighth full-length album by Tobias Sammet's German metal opera project Avantasia. It was released on 15 February 2019 through Nuclear Blast. As with previous Avantasia projects, the album features extensive collaborations with returning and new guest vocalists. It features 11 tracks and was supported by a world tour.