Introducing: Blind Guardian!

Chus wrote: MikeEnRegalia wrote: ^ "Sounds like all these other prog metal bands" ... which ones actually sound like Blind Guardian? I can't think of any, even the other prog power metal bands in the archives (Symphony X, Kamelot, Angra) sound completely different.   You're right, and in a way I'm glad this band is added, surely the last albums have a flair to them, I think this addition opens the doors for more pompous bands like Rhapsody, though

The jawdroppingly pompous and silly Rhapsody are already here. I think their naivety is very charming, but they've shouldn't be here either. I do like 'em a lot when I'm drunk. Even more than AC/DC.

Rocktopus wrote: Chus wrote: MikeEnRegalia wrote: ^ "Sounds like all these other prog metal bands" ... which ones actually sound like Blind Guardian? I can't think of any, even the other prog power metal bands in the archives (Symphony X, Kamelot, Angra) sound completely different.   You're right, and in a way I'm glad this band is added, surely the last albums have a flair to them, I think this addition opens the doors for more pompous bands like Rhapsody, though The jawdroppingly pompous and silly Rhapsody are already here. I think their naivety is very charming, but they've shouldn't be here either. I do like 'em a lot when I'm drunk. Even more than AC/DC.

micky wrote: interesting discussion here.... I have a question to ask, that I asked in another thread... which went unanswered... but since this addition happened...I'll ask again. first some background.... from Mike's own website that he wastes no opportunity to promote hahhaha 1 2 3 4 5 6 ... 19 20 21 Items 41-60 of 402   HP MS Artist Country TP MR AV UI At Tr iv ho Ra Status Genre Battlefields United States               New <no genre assigned> Battle of Mice United States           Rejected Weird/Minimalistic Post Rock/Metal Becoming the Archetype United States     Added Heavy/Aggressive Modern Prog-Related Metal Beecher United Kingdom               New <no genre assigned> Behind the Curtain ?         Cleared <no genre assigned> Behold... the Arctopus United States         Added Quirky/Technical Modern Prog Metal Believer United States       Cleared <no genre assigned> Bella & Putana Chile               New <no genre assigned> Between the Buried and Me United States       Added Quirky/Technical Modern Prog Metal Beyond Twilight Denmark       Added Dark/Emotional Modern Prog Power Metal Biomechanical United Kingdom     Rejected <no genre assigned> The Black Mages Japan     Added Prog Space Metal Black Sabbath United Kingdom   Rejected Dark/Heavy Classic Hard Rock/Doom Metal Blind Guardian Germany   Added Melodic/Symphonic Modern Power Metal/Folk/Speed Metal note that of the three yes votes.... 2 are no longer active members... of this site.. and I would assume the PM team.  The only yes vote...being you Mike... in fact.  Blind Guardian was rejected even as a Prog Related potential PR addition by the other members of the team.  I note that because... again... from your chart. 1 2 3 ... 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 ... 19 20 21 Items 161-180 of 402   HP MS Artist Country TP MR AV UI At Tr iv ho Ra Status Genre Gorguts Canada   Discuss <no genre assigned> Grayceon United States             Added Prog Metal Hammers of Misfortune ?       Added Melodic/Heavy Modern Prog-Related Alternative Metal Helstar ?         Discuss <no genre assigned> Hexatonica Argentina                 New <no genre assigned> Hidden ?                   New <no genre assigned> Hidden Path Colombia         Cleared Melodic/Technical Modern Prog Metal Hortus Animae Italy                 New <no genre assigned> House Of Spirits ?                 New <no genre assigned> Iced Earth United States     Rejected Classic Metal Ihsahn Norway       Added Heavy/Dark Retro Prog Black Metal Illogicist Italy               New <no genre assigned> Illusion Suite ?         Cleared <no genre assigned> Insomnium Finland       Rejected <no genre assigned> Intronaut ?               Discuss <no genre assigned> Ion Dissonance Canada           Added <no genre assigned> Irepress United States       Added <no genre assigned> Iron Maiden United Kingdom       Added Classic Prog-Related NWoBHM/Power Metal 4 voting members of the PM team at the time of that debate voting for PR... yet you INSIST that IM's addition was an ADMIN mistake. I have two questions... my first being my original question? micky wrote: I can see why some people have such a bee up their ass about Maiden... yet as a pragmatist .... I don't understand it.  I think I understand why Maiden was rejected...  it simply doesn't fit the vision of prog-metal if groups like Mastadon are symbolic of it.  Yet for the prog fan who has a passing interest in it.. yet a complete passion for prog.  I meerly see them  as two halves of the same.  The complexity is there...the emphasis on both composition and  virtuosity is there...ie. the prog is  there.  The metal is there... maybe being older I can relate to the 'metal' of Maiden better since that is the 'goofy' style of metal I use to listen to (alluded to in my first post).  Is simply a matter of not being.... cool ...enough?  For some reason I do have some innate curiousity about PM that are obscured by the smartass comments and jokes.  that is my first question..  that is out of curiosity.. since I have come to find ...I don't hate Prog-Metal. Only one particular group...I've liked other stuff I've heard. My second question.... just what the hell is going on? I ask that as a member of the site. Your own team voted for Prog Related Mike... yet you blame it on the admins... and just who approved the addition of Blind Guardian.

love Blind Guardian , their music is good and solid but i dont think that thay even prog related . Maybe in some moments ....they are... but that is just couple of songs .
If we going in that direction thousands of metal bands are prog too

M@X wrote: Nice additions guys !!!!!! Thanks Mike

BG is moving in a progressive direction, every album since Nightfall has been more complex and not just pure cheese...excuse me, power metal. I think they should be included in the archives, with Sym X, and Kamelot, but it is a very close call.

Edited by king of Siam - July 08 2007 at 20:18

TheProgtologist wrote:   With only three members currently in the PMT the majority of two votes gets a band accepted for addition.I had initially rejected BG but decided to change my vote,I just forgot to do it on the chart.

that makes all the difference

Wow ... let me try to answer some recent posts very briefly here ... I'll have more time in 12 hours (after work).

@Single Coil: I don't think that there are many similarities between Sonata Arctica and Blind Guardian other than their speed/power metal influences. I think that both bands have myspace pages - have a listen to their samples and compare for yourself!

@The T: Sonata Arctica really surprised me with Unia - a very nice album, very symphonic and mature, and they moved away from the stereotypical ultra fast speed metal (which I happen to enjoy, but it's not prog). I think that while they might some day be included, their current discography does IMO not contain a complete album of  "prog compatible" material ...

@Max: Thanks - it's a pleasure to serve!

@Jody: Thanks for the support!

@king_of_siam: Yes, the addition was a very close call for me also ...

@komodo_dragon: There aren't a thousand bands similar to BG ... don't worry, it's not like this addition opens the flood gates for any other complex metal band.

@KeleCablell: I guess mainstream music fans could say the same about prog rock: "From what I've heard it's just cheesy rock/pop". And if you inquired as to how they came to that conclusion they would probably say that they listened to Owner of a Lonely Heart and Turn it on Again. What I'm trying to say is: We need to discuss specific albums in order to get ahead. If you think that all power metal albums sound the same, then I doubt that you listened to them in detail.

@Man Overboard: No offense taken ... however, I can't see how Blind Guardian are a "archetypical power metal band". It's not like they created a genre or something ... and european power metal was dominated by other bands in the late 1980s. In fact early BG can be seen as offsprings of the original Power Metal movement - but even with their third album they began to develop their own style.

@Rocktopus: Why are all your posts so hateful towards ... heavy music in general? Now you've arrived at statements like "you can only enjoy metal when drunk" ... are you sure that this leads to something useful?

@micky: A couple of things:

1. I don't know about Jody, but for me the votes by retired members still count when considering additions. It's not like these members were expelled or anything - they simply didn't have any time for team activities. So while - like Jody said - we currently can go for a "2 out of 3" votes strategy, we can also take the older votes as an indication. So even with Jody's outdated "no" vote we would have 3 "yes", 3 "no" and one prog-related vote. This situation was the reason why the addition got postponed back then ... 3 yes votes would have been enough, but we were waiting to see if someone changed his mind in order to get a more definitive result.

2. Not sure whether I understand the "question" that you posted as a quotation ... I'll simply pick this statement: "I think I understand why Maiden was rejected...  it simply doesn't fit the vision of prog-metal if groups like Mastadon are symbolic of it.". Well, Mastodon are certainly not symbolic for the genre of prog metal. They are a bit like Blind Guardian in that respect ... although they have little in common musically, they both were added because they are "progressive" in nature. Progressiveness is not a style of music ... it's a pattern, an approach, a way of thinking ... it can be found in many styles or genres. I don't see it in the music of Iron Maiden, at least not to an extent which would make me want to add them here ... but I have made my peace with it.

3. For the record: At the time when Iron Maiden were added, the prog metal chart showed a different situation: They had been rejected almost unanimously. Later many chart members changed their vote to prog related ... I won't, but of course it doesn't matter anymore since prog related bands are handled by the admins, not the prog metal team.

Well, now that Blind Guardian are on here, will that pave the way for other "prog-metal" groups that are similar? The only one that comes to my mind at the moment are Sonata Arctica and, from what I've heard of both, Sonata Arctica are much more progressive than Blind Guardian. Pretty good synth solos too, I might add.

Edited by JasonVoorhees - July 09 2007 at 05:29

no, thank you. probably good, if you like that sort of stuff (i do at times),
but not progressive in any way imaginable. i'll have to re-eevaluate
my membership.