Review BLIND GUARDIAN “Somewhere Far Beyond Revisited”

Maybe I’m one of the few who still thinks that Blind Guardian‘s mighty debut is one of the best the band has released in all these years. This might be more of an individual perspective, as there’s no doubt that the band has continued to release great longplayers after “Battalions Of Fear”, with the latest studio album “The God Machine” being a perfect example of the quality songs the German four-piece has to offer.

A cornerstone in the band’s discography is the “Somewhere Far Beyond” album. Not only was it the band’s first release on Virgin Records, but it also marked a shift towards more epic metal sounds that the band would continue to refine on their next release, “Imaginations from the Other Side”.

But already “Somewhere Far Beyond” features those epic moments with choirs that even remind of bands like Queen. “The Quest For Tanelorn” is one of those songs that shows the transformation from a speed metal band to a metal powerhouse with more epic and progressive songs, although the up-tempo metal moments are still present.

With “The Bard’s Song (In the Forest”)” the album also contains a classic that is the sing-along song at every Blind Guardian live show to date, and with “The Bard’s Song (The Hobbit)” the fascination for sagas also became more apparent.

Literature in general became an inspiration for the band, just thinking about the title track, which is based on Stephen King’s novel “The Dark Tower”.

Right in time for their special show at Wacken 2024, Blind Guardian release a re-recorded version of their landmark album. The starting point for the adventure of re-recording the album were the rehearsals for the shows at Rock Hard Festival 2022 and Hellfest 2022. Due to the pandemic, the band couldn’t be sure that the shows would take place, so the guys recorded the rehearsals. Not 100% satisfied with the results, Blind Guardian took the bold step of re-recording the entire album. The result is a blend of experience and the raw energy of the early days. Epic moments and speed metal blasts fuse into a classic album that sounds even better.

The special feature of this release is the included live recording of the Rock Hard Festival/Hellfest shows, which is also included on the Blu-Ray of the anniversary sets.

“Somewhere Far Beyond Revisited” gives new life to a classic of German heavy metal and shows why Blind Guardian have been in the top league of metal bands for almost four decades,