Maximum Metal Rating Legend
5 Excellent - Masterpiece. A classic.
4.5-4 Great - Almost perfect records but there's probably a lacking.
3.5 Good - Most of the record is good, but there may be some filler.
3 Average - Some good songs, some bad ones at about a half/half ratio.
2.5-2 Fair - Worth a listen, but best obtained by collectors.
1.5-1 Bad - Major problems with music, lyrics, production, etc.
0 Terrible - Waste of your life and time.

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Band
Blind Guardian
Title
Imaginations Through the Looking Glass
Type
DVD
Company
Century Media
YOR
2004
Style
Power
Band / Release Notes
Imaginations Through the Looking Glass is the first DVD from German Power Metal band Blind Guardian. The cover art is painted by Leo Hao. The First Blind Guardian Festival was held in Coburg, Germany, on June 16–17, 2003. It lasted 2 days, with the band playing during both nights. The entire show has been professionally recorded and subsequently released on a DVD entitled Imaginations through the Looking Glass on June 14, 2004.
12/25/2004 - Review by: Frank Hill
One of the Top Metal DVDs of the Year
Aside from those metal grandfathers Maiden and Priest, I'd say that Blind Guardian is the biggest Euro-styled power metal band in the world. These Teutonic titans have passed up Helloween, Gamma Ray and all the others to the top of the mountain and this DVD is a must have for fans of the style.

Taking place at the Blind Guardian festival in Coburg, Germany, on June 13th and 14th, 2003, with 12 overhead cameras, the band paces itself perfectly through 20 songs with a running time of 140 minutes. Whether it's from the raging rhythm guitars, the squeely-squelch lead melodies, the extra length of the songs or the incredible vocal harmonies, after I listen to the music from these guys, my ears feel like they've been given a heavy workout and I was worried that their dense sonics wouldn't translate over to the live show, but I was completely wrong. They still come across with the powerful feel of their records.

The guitarists and bass player usually stick around the same areas so Hansi Kursch in the forward center is the minstril-mage that gets most of the cameras' focus. Though he's not very imposing physically, he's spot-on with the vocals right from the start. The band tears through the opening numbers with all the glory and majesty of their catalog with the added heightening of the tremendous crowd backing them up. By the middle of the show, the concert pace is slowed down with some sit-down guitar work and the epic numbers give you a chance to breath. Then it's back to raging for the final numbers. The only thing I missed in the selection was the recent song "The Soulforged" off of the last CD.

The stage is mainly draped in white allowing for the lights to give it color. Pyro is used a bit in the middle and a good bit with explosions toward the end. The emphasis is always on the band, the music and the crowd interplay. What a sight to see 50,000 fists in the air and voices all in unison!

The second disc is 100 more minutes of mainly the putting together of the festival, behind-the-scenes stuff and some nice parts with the fans who like to have a good time (drinking and grilling mostly) without being overtly rowdy. There's also 4 extra songs from 2002 to finish it out.

The packaging on this DVD is exquisite. Not one to set aside the Lord of the Rings fantasy stuff, they've used colorful outer artwork that would have the band the center attraction of a concert in Middle Earth with all the creatures coming to attend. The video pieces use background illustrations done on old parchement similar to the LotR DVDs that have been out. Each section of the two DVDs is mapped out for easy navigation.

The great thing about this DVD set is that it doesn't feel like any corners have been cut from the sound, the video, the art, the packaging, etc. It's a testament to their success and these guys deserve to be where they are as masters of their genre.

Bottom Line: One of the Top Metal DVDs of the Year

Tracklist:
War Of Wrath
Time Stands Still
Banish From Sanctuary
Nightfall
The Script For My Requiem
Valhalla
A Past And Future Secret
Punishment Divine
Mordred’s Song
The Last Candle
Bright Eyes
Lord Of The Rings
I’m Alive
Another Holy War
And Then There Was Silence
Somewhere Far Beyond
The Bard’s Song (In The Forest)
Imaginations From The Other Side
And The Story Ends
Mirror Mirror

Bonus Songs:
Majesty
Into The Storm
Welcome To Dying
Lost In The Twilight Hall
  • 1 :REVIEW COUNT
    5 :AVE RATING

ALL REVIEWS FOR: BLIND GUARDIAN
TITLE
DOR
COMPANY
REVIEWER DATE MADE RATING
A Twist in the Myth
2006
Nuclear Blast
Eric Compton1/1/2015
3
A Twist in the Myth
2006
Nuclear Blast
Frank Hill10/27/2006
-
At the Edge of the World
2010
Metal Blade
Eric Compton1/1/2015
3.5
At the Edge of Time
2010
Nuclear Blast
Frank Hill9/29/2010
4
Beyond the Red Mirror
2015
Nuclear Blast
Eric Compton2/22/2017
2.5
Beyond the Red Mirror
2015
Nuclear Blast
Anthony Burke3/9/2015
3.5
Fly
2006
Nuclear Blast
Etiam4/21/2006
2.5
Imaginations Through the Looking Glass
2004
Century Media
Frank Hill12/25/2004
5

ALL INTERVIEWS FOR: BLIND GUARDIAN
INTERVIEW INTERVIEWER DATE TAGLINE

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