The last week has really been a shitty one. Work and other things in life included. So, what is the average fella to do under these circumstances? Of course, go to a Metal show! We have been planning to go to the Symphony X/Blind Guardian show for about two months now. Got tickets and everything, so no wonder we were fretting having learned that shows in Houston and San Antonio got cancelled because of drunk promoters or incompetent engineers. For a whole week we kept our fingers crossed and kept checking Blind Guardian’s official website for the news. As no bad news surfaced we left for Cleveland about two hours before the show.

The Agora Ballroom is in downtown Cleveland, and it is a big enough place to have its own parking lot. We got very lucky to have a parking spot near the entrance as it was very cold. With our asses only slightly frozen we made our way into the venue. The building is not a club, but rather an old theater with the lobby serving as the place for CD/T-shirts vendors and the bar. The ballroom itself can probably fit up to 1,000 people. The old orchestra pit right underneath the stage was for those who wanted to stand and be close. There were tables with chairs spread around the amphitheater and there was also a balcony.

When I got there Symphony X had just started their set. They opened with Evolution. An awesome song to kick things off. I am not that familiar with Symphony X. Admittedly, it is a gap in my metal education. I have Twilight to Olympus and V, and I was planning to get Odyssey soon. Well, this show will make me move faster. One thing I can tell you – Symphony X spent their money not on posing as heavy metal musicians, but on music lessons. All of the band members are very professional and are good at what they do. The rhythm section was extremely steady and powerful. And they had to be as the guys shift rhythms and do syncopated riffs half the time. The keyboards in Symphony X music are very appropriate. The keyboard interplay with Michael Romeo’s guitar creates the illusion of twin guitar harmonies. I thought keyboards actually could have been higher in the mix, as sometimes they were difficult to hear. Michael Romeo is an arpeggio master and could easily qualify as New Jersey’s Malmsteen. The guys don’t headbang much on stage, but they are very involved and passionate about their music, and, most importantly, they seemed very relaxed and had a boatload of fun that night playing for the audience. Frontman, Russell Allen, is the main magnet of the band on stage. He is a huge man. He could have easily played linebacker in college. His persona is very playful, as he walked around a lot, made funny faces, did robot twitches, rolled out his tongue and eyes, etc. Most importantly, though, what a voice, guys! Powerful, yet so melodic. Symphony X is definitely an underrated band, and it is a shame it took them so long to secure a US tour.

While Blind Guardian were setting up we were loading up at the bar. A necessary part of Metal show going, I guess. As soon as the lights were off the words from War of Wrath (Nightfall) were recited over the loud speaker. Blind Guardian followed up with Into the Storm as the opening track just like on the Nightfall album. Yelling “… we are following the will of the one …” I could not believe I was seeing Blind Guardian live. When I brought myself back down to Earth, the song was over. Hansi Kursch greeted Cleveland audience and Welcomed … to Dying. I bet the band plays this song in every concert. I’d say that the live version is very close to the album original, however, Hansi’s voice wasn’t heard as well. As the show went on it improved, as the board engineer definitely adjusted. The title track from Nightfall from Middle Earth followed. Tough to pull this one off without some keyboards. Blind Guardian actually has a bass player and keyboardist hired for the tour. On Nightfall is where keyboards were the most relevant. I heard that Hansi hasn’t been playing bass in shows for a long time. The bass lines were actually fairly simple (at least compared to Symphony X where the bass player has to compensate for the lack of a rhythm guitar). In the middle of Nightfall my little sister who went with me to the show leaned over and said that she couldn’t hear a damn thing from where we were sitting in the amphitheater. So, I took her advice and we went straight into the pit to stand about 20 feet away from the stage. What can I say! Thanks to my brave sister I have experienced the show fully with a much better sound. We quietly made our way right next to the audioengineer board, so we heard Guardians’ music from his perspective. Just in time to experience The Script for My Requiem. Excellent song “ … returning of the miracles, it’s my own requiem …”, I screamed my lungs out. Imaginations from the Other Side is my favorite BG album I must admit. The show would be incomplete without Blind Guardian playing some acoustic ballad songs. The first one was Harvest of Sorrow from the new album. Both Andre Olbrich and Marcus Siepen grabbed a chair, sat down and used electro acoustic guitars. “Are you familiar with Scandinavian heavens?” – asked Hansi when the ballad was over. Valhalla from Follow the Blind followed. Catchy chorus which used to be sung in duet with Kai Hansen on the album itself. This is as far in the past as the band went. Continuing to sing songs from my favorite album the band did Mordred’s Song. I love this piece, and was very happy that another friend of mine who was with me at the show was able to rediscover it for himself. Time Stands Still was not my favorite track on Nightfall. However, the solo in the live performance was absolutely amazing. To all those who say that Andre Olbrich’s solo playing isn’t good – you are wrong. Yes, the man does not run up and down the fretboard, so it looks as if he is not using the full range of scales. The thing is, though, the solo sounded piercing and the perceived impression was that of someone playing an Irish flute very loudly. This is the way to achieve Celtic atmosphere without samplers or electronic gimmicks. Blind Guardian’s drumming is a work of art. It never relies on the double bass, but I swear Thomas Stauch has more tom drums than any other drummer. He is all over them which makes the rhythm sound so percussive and not monotonic. He had been kicking the drums so hard during the show that one of them either ripped or got a crack in the rim. A whole bunch of roadies ran out and fixed the problem. Stauch never missed a beat and the band continued on. I never thought that Bright Eyes off Imaginations could sound so catchy. In fact, after the show was over I felt the need to play this song for several days in a row. Under the Ice was the only fast song from the latest album played in the show. Either the music is too complex to be done in a live setting, or the band doesn’t think it sunk in yet with people. Honestly, I am yet to fully embrace Night At The Opera (sorry, Chris), so it was perfectly cool with me. Things started to wind down with Bard’s Song – In The Forest – another acoustic offering. The supposed finisher was Imaginations from the Other Side. By this time I was too exhausted to be happy, so I simply leaned on my sister’s shoulder and yelled “imaginations from the other side” uncontrollably. In a predetermined sort of way, Hansi came back out and asked whether people wanted another song. His whole demeanor throughout the concert was a little strange. Dressed in blue jeans and a hooded non-descript sweatshirt he was either standing by the mic or slowly walking the stage. He just didn’t seem excited or caught up in the flow. His stage persona was even in a bigger contrast with Symphony X’s Russell Allen who was very audience oriented. Now, the quality of singing (after the vocals level was fixed) was very good. Anyway, the band played “the bonus encore” which was Mirror, Mirror from Nightfall. The crowd right underneath the stage started moshpitting, so we had to step away a tad, so we wouldn’t get caught up in it. I guess I am a little old for this now at 32.

Throughout the show I was standing not far from a teenage boy who had crutches and is stricken by some very degenerative disease. Clad in his Blind Guardian T-shirt, once in a while he would raise one of the crutches as tears flowed down his face uncontrollably. Thank you, Blind Guardian, for making this poor boy happy. I am willing to bet my house that he will remember this show for as long as he lives. And so will I. Thank you, Blind Guardian.

Your devoted reviewer, Alex