FOLLOW THE BLIND

Well, Follow the Blind is the fist transitional album for Blind Guardian. Much like Battalions of Fear, this is a speed metal album, but the power metal influence is getting increasingly bigger, and that is very clear when you see the length of the songs (they are all generally much bigger), see the total time of the album (the album is almost 4 minutes longer) and notice that there is 1 song less (there are 8 songs here and 9 in Battalions). Also the songs start to have more of that epic feeling, something that will follow Blind Guardian probably until the end of the band. However, this album have a big problem that cannot go unnoticed, specially when compared to Battalions of Fear: it is way repetitive and because of that it sounds boring and dull many times (like in the songs Damned for all Time and Follow the Blind), so i think the guys should have followed themselves and make smaller songs where the ideas could be better developed and worked, without making the songs sound bigger than they should nor boring neither dull like they do. Maybe the real problem is that this album is mostly a straightforward speed metal with way - to - long songs.

The good news is that there are terrific songs in this album such as Inquisition + Banished from Sanctuary and Valhalla (Valhalla got some special highlights on their live DVD, when the audience sang it even after the band finished the it and at the end of The Last Candle and before Bright Eyes). Strangely enough these songs sound a lot like older Guardian, and therefore are very power metal influenced, being the best songs of the album, at least in my opinion.

About the songs, musicianship and other features there are some thing i would like to state:

Although this album sound a lot more cooked than Battalions rawness, meaning that technically they are better but it is still no Niccolò Paganini Moto Perpetuo, if you know what i mean. I mean, they here show some really good progress, but there are still a long road to walk. Both the solos and the riffing are way more competent and their notes are much clearer and also Hansi's singing got a lot better, or maybe they just got a better production, but i rather believe they became better musicians. Also, in 89' their bassist, both studio session and live bassist, was Hansi, who still played bass for Guardian until Imaginations from the Other Side, but that is another story.

Grade and final thoughts:

Unlike Battalions, i actually think this is a fair grade for Follow the blind, that is a good album, but its not THAT good also. Of course, for the hardcore fan this album is a must have, for it contains some classics like Valhalla and Banished from Sanctuary, but for the average fan this album is just a good release.

On a personal side note, i would like to say that this album MUST be listened loud, or it will just loose its goodness away.

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