Further establishing Blind Guardian's position among the second generation of power metal elite, Follow the Blind -- the group's sophomore release -- represents a significant step forward for the metal outfit.
The music kicks off appropriately enough with some spooky medieval chanting on "Inquisition" that quickly gives way to song after song of sweeping power metal.
Production is at a premium for music as spastic and detailed as this, so even though this early-career effort is more than a modest improvement over the debut, Battalions of Fear, the bigger-budget efforts that came after Follow the Blind capture Blind Guardian's epic musical vision.
That is not to say that the record is without its moments.
Standouts like "Banish From Sanctuary," "Hall of the King," and "Don't Break the Circle" deliver all the first-rate guitar changes and double-kick and vocal workouts that fans of this genre insist on.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | InquisitionHansi Kürsch, Marcus Siepen, Thomen Stauch | Blind Guardian | Play | 00:41 | 1 MB | 3 MB |
| 2 | Banish From SanctuaryAndré Olbrich, Marcus Siepen | Blind Guardian | Play | 05:28 | 12 MB | 41 MB |
| 3 | Damned for All Time | Blind Guardian | Play | 04:59 | 11 MB | 36 MB |
| 4 | Follow the Blind | Blind Guardian | Play | 07:13 | 16 MB | 53 MB |
| 5 | Hall of the King | Blind Guardian | Play | 04:17 | 9 MB | 31 MB |
| 6 | Fast to Madness | Blind Guardian | Play | 05:59 | 13 MB | 43 MB |
| 7 | Beyond the Ice | Blind Guardian | Play | 03:30 | 8 MB | 25 MB |
| 8 | ValhallaHansi Kürsch, André Olbrich, Marcus Siepen, Thomen Stauch | Blind Guardian | Play | 04:57 | 11 MB | 36 MB |
| 9 | Don't Break the Circle | Blind Guardian | Play | 04:20 | 9 MB | 32 MB |
| 10 | Barbara AnnFred Fassert | Blind Guardian | Play | 01:42 | 3 MB | 12 MB |
| 43 mins | 98 MB | |||||
| 43 mins | 316 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Blind Guardian | Primary Artist |
| 2 | Fred Fassert | Composer |
| 3 | Kai Hansen | Featured Artist |
| 4 | Hansi Kürsch | Bass, Composer, Vocals |
| 5 | André Olbrich | Composer, Guitar, Vocals (Background) |
| 6 | Marcus Siepen | Composer, Guitar, Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 7 | Thomen Stauch | Composer |
| 8 | Kalle Trapp | Engineer, Mixing, Producer |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |
| CD Quality | FLAC | 16bit 44.1kHz | FLAC is an audio coding format which uses lossless compression. Digital audio in FLAC format has a smaller size and retains the same quality of the original Compact Disc (CD). |