AVANTASIA – The Scarecrow

Avantasia – The Scarecrow (2008, Nuclear Blast Records)

Track Listing:
1. “Twisted Mind”
2. “The Scarecrow”
3. “Shelter from the Rain”
4. “Carry Me Over”
5. “What Kind of Love”
6. “Another Angel Down”
7. “The Toy Master”
8. “Devil in the Belfry”
9. “Cry Just a Little”
10. “I Don’t Believe in Your Love”
11. “Lost in Space”

Band:
Tobias Sammet – Vocals, Bass
Sascha Paeth – Guitars
Eric Sing – Drums

I just got into Edguy about 2 years ago. I was looking for CDs at FYE and stumbled across Rocket Ride. A sticker on the cover said something like “for fans of Scorpions, Judas Priest, and KISS”. It was only $10 or so, so I picked it up. I loved it, I went and bought more Edguy and loved those albums too. So here I am now, a loyal follower of Edguy frontman Tobias Sammet, so I picked up his latest solo project’s offering.

Avantasia, for all intents and purposes, is basically Sammet himself writing the songs and then bringing in friends to play and share vocals on it. This is the third Avantasia release, I’ve only head bits and pieces of the first two (The Metal Opera and The Metal Opera Part II) but I’ve never gotten around to getting them.

Anyway, I heard “Lost in Space” and “Carry Me Over” online and that was enough to make me want this album. A lot of fans are claiming Sammet “sold out” with his look and a few songs here (most notably the two I mentioned), the’re saying he’s trying to be the next Bon Jovi. Tobias has addressed these complaints and dismissed them. What’s wrong with writing catchy rock/pop songs? It’s not like there’s not enough metal to go around on the rest of the album.

I knew upon a second listening to this album when it was originally release that it was already going to be one the year’s best, despite that fact that it was released in January. You simply have to hear “The Scarecrow” is one of the most epic and awesome songs ever, seriously, I think it’s one of the greatest songs EVER. It gives me chills, especially Jorn Lande’s vocals. Amazing job.

Sammet has become one of my favorite vocalists as well. I was listening to an early Edguy album a few weeks ago and he’s really grown as a singer. Soaring vocals, man!

Guest appearances abound! Just to name a few: Rudolf Schenker, Kai Hansen, Michael Kiske, Jorn Lande, and Alice Cooper.

Highlights: “Twisted Mind”, “The Scarecrow”, “Carry Me Over”, “What Kind of Love” (which I can picture on a soundtrack for some Disney animated movie), “The Toy Master” (with Alice Cooper vocals, it would easily fit on his Hey Stoopid album), “Devil in the Belfry”, “Lost in Space”