At the Edge of Time

by Blind Guardian

Overview

Over the years, metal has demonstrated that it can be quite flexible, incorporating everything from punk (thrash metal, death metal, black metal) to hip-hop (rap-metal) to goth-rock (gothic metal) to traditional European folk (folk-metal). And on At the Edge of Time, Blind Guardian's influences range from Euro-folk to classical to progressive rock; the end result is a fairly diverse album, which is not to say that the disc is groundbreaking by 21st century standards. These German power metal/progressive metal veterans have been around since the mid-'80s, and whether they are being influenced by Euro-classical or Euro-folk, At the Edge of Time maintains a stubbornly pre-'90s outlook -- both musically and lyrically. The lyrics are strictly fantasy-based, as were so many pre-'90s metal lyrics -- and when they incorporate Euro-folk on occasion, they don't do it in the black metal-ish or death metal-ish way that, say, Finntroll do. Blind Guardian continue to live and breath the '70s and '80s, reminding us that they enjoy the pomp of Queen as much as they enjoy the pomp of Iron Maiden and Judas Priest. Some will complain that this 63-minute CD sounds dated, but then, dated is exactly what Blind Guardian are going for; they don't run away from it, they embrace it. Besides, one man's dated is another man's classicist. Although not quite essential, At the Edge of Time is an engaging disc that not only achieves a fair amount of diversity within a power metal/prog-metal framework -- it is also one of the more consistent releases that Blind Guardian have provided in the 21st century. ~ Alex Henderson

Product Details

Release Date:	10/20/2023
Label:	Nuclear Blast
UPC:	0727361315115
Rank:	15982

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Blind Guardian   Primary Artist
Eberhard Hahn   Flute,Guest Artist
Oliver Holzwarth   Bass,Guest Artist
Olaf Senkbeil   Choir/Chorus,Guest Artist
Hansi Kuersch   Vocals
Frederik Ehmke   Drums,Flute,Bagpipes,Percussion
Adam Klemens   Conductor
Marcus Siepen   Guitar (Rhythm)
Andre Olbrich   Guitar,Guitar (Rhythm),Guitar (Acoustic)
Jen Majura   Choir/Chorus,Guest Artist
Thomas Hackmann   Choir/Chorus,Guest Artist
FILMharmonic Orchestra Prague   Orchestra
Klaus Marquardt   Violin,Guest Artist
Matthias Ulmer   Piano,Keyboards,Guest Artist
Stefan Schmidt   Choir/Chorus,Guest Artist
Irish Heartbeat   Guest Artist
The Choir Company   Guest Artist
Dirim Ceseroglu   Violin,Guest Artist
William "Billy" King   Choir/Chorus,Guest Artist
Bach Choir Bremerhaven   Guest Artist

Technical Credits

Blind Guardian   Producer
Keith Reid   Composer,Lyricist
Charly Bauerfeind   Mixing,Engineer,Producer,Mastering,Orchestra Production
Maggie Ryder   Composer,Lyricist
Hansi Kuersch   Composer,Lyricist,Group Member
Carsten Heusmann   Orchestra Production
Frederik Ehmke   Group Member
Marcus Siepen   Group Member
Andre Olbrich   Composer,Lyricist,Group Member
Cenda Kotzmann   Studio Technician
Felipe Machado Franco   Artwork,Cover Art,Booklet Design
Jan Kotzmann   Engineer
Jan Rubach   Bass Engineer
Petr Pycha   Music Contractor
Andy Qunta   Composer,Lyricist
Matthias Ulmer   Engineer,Orchestra Production
Chris Thompson   Composer,Lyricist
Oganalp Canatan   Engineer
Gueney Oezsan   Engineer
Herr Buchta   Photography,Photo Design