Biography
Demos, AFM years (1992-2003)
Edguy was founded in 1992 by 14-year-old students Tobias Sammet, Jens Ludwig, Dominik Storch and Dirk Sauer. The name "Edguy" was an affectionate epithet for their math teacher at the time. In 1994, the band released two demos, Evil Minded and Children of Steel. These tapes were sent to many record labels, all of whom rejected the band, believing they would be unsuccessful in the music business. Undeterred, they self released their ‘unofficial' debut album, Savage Poetry, in 1995. They signed with AFM Records shortly after, who offered to re-release Savage Poetry with more widespread distribution. The band rejected this proposal in favour of recording a new album, Kingdom of Madness, which was released in 1997, but drummer Dominik Storch left the band shortly after. 1998 saw the release of their second album, Vain Glory Opera, with friend Frank Lindenthal filling in on drums. This album helped expose Edguy to a wider audience, thanks in part to guest appearances from Timo Tolkki (Stratovarius) and Hansi Kürsch (Blind Guardian). The band was joined by new drummer Felix Bohnke and bassist Tobias ‘Eggi' Exxel later that year, allowing Tobias Sammet to solely focus on vocals (he had previously played bass as well handling vocal duties).
In 1999, Theater of Salvation was released. That same year frontman Tobias Sammet conceived the idea for the Avantasia project, a metal opera featuring well known vocalists and musicians from the rock and metal scene. Whilst Tobias focused on Avantasia, the band took the opportunity to re-record Savage Poetry, to make it widely available to newer fans, as the original had become a much sought after rarity.
Following The Savage Poetry re-recording was the band's fifth album, Mandrake, in 2001. The album was accompanied by their first promo video, for the track “All the Clowns”, as well as the Painting on the Wall single. The Mandrake album also led to the band's first headlining tour. Three shows were recorded in Europe and were the basis for Edguy's first live album, Burning Down the Opera. The band's contract with AFM had expired by this point, which led to them signing with Nuclear Blast Records in late 2003.
Nuclear Blast years (2004-present)
Edguy's first release for Nuclear Blast was the King of Fools EP in 2004. This preceded the Hellfire Club album, released shortly after. The song "Lavatory Love Machine" was also released as a single. The band's productivity continued into 2005 with the Superheroes EP and DVD, the latter featuring footage of the band live and in the studio, as well as a making of documentary for the video of the title track. This was followed by the full-length album Rocket Ride in January 2006.
Sammet spent much of 2007 relaunching the Avantasia project. Edguy returned to the studio in 2008 and recorded Tinnitus Sanctus, with a video being shot for the track “Ministry of Saints” in Belgrade, Serbia. After a contract renewal with Nuclear Blast in late 2008, the band released their first live DVD, Fucking with F***, in 2009. This featured live footage of the band shot in São Paulo, Brazil, on their Rocket Ride world tour in 2006. The band supported Scorpions on the German dates of their farewell tour in 2010.
Edguy released their ninth studio album, Age of the Joker, in August 2011. The band toured Europe and South America in support of the record, including dates with Slash and Deep Purple, as well as an appearance on the 70000 Tons of Metal cruise. In a recent interview promoting the latest release from his Avantasia project, Sammet revealed that a new Edguy album will be worked on in the summer of 2013, with a release tentatively scheduled for mid-2014.
On January 28, 2014 Edguy revealed that the album would be titled Space Police - Defenders of the Crown and released on April 18.
Style
Edguy's lyrics are often metaphorical, alluding to metaphysical or social themes: conformity ("The Headless Game", "Mysteria", "King of Fools"), dictation by the church ("The Kingdom", "The Pride of Creation", "Theater of Salvation"), and dangers of modern civilization ("Navigator", "The Devil and the Savant"). To express such themes, Edguy sometimes use esoteric and hermetic expressions. Yet some of their songs are light-hearted or comedic ("Das Reh", "Save Us Now", "Lavatory Love Machine", "Life and Times of a Bonus Track", "Trinidad"). Edguy does not claim to represent any ideology; Tobias Sammet claimed "[the band is] not political and we are not religious; at least there is no key message in our songs telling you what to think in terms of anything". Edguy also employs lengthy and epic sections in almost every album.
Hellfire Club revealed Edguy's interest in experimenting within music by integrating an orchestra into the production. The album featured a variation on Edguy's style, with a less grandiose, more progressive metal approach being embraced. The band's album Rocket Ride features even less power metal elements, and is arguably more oriented towards hard rock. Their next album, Tinnitus Sanctus, contains even more hard rock oriented songs; a large reduction of double bass drumming is evident, in contrast to Edguy's older albums such as Vain Glory Opera where there is very fast double bass which is common in the power metal genre.
When asked if the term "happy heavy metal band" applies to the band, Tobias rejected it and added:
We are a heavy metal band. We play angry, powerful, sometimes tongue-in-cheek metal. We are flamboyant and we don't take ourselves too seriously, but that goes for Van Halen too, right? Are they happy rock? No, they have a sense of humor and kick ass! Just like we do...
Studio albums
Savage Poetry (1995)
Kingdom of Madness (1997)
Vain Glory Opera (1998)
Theater of Salvation (1999)
The Savage Poetry (2000)
Mandrake (2001)
Hellfire Club (2004)
Rocket Ride (2006)
Tinnitus Sanctus (2008)
Age of the Joker (2011)
Space Police - Defenders of the Crown (2014)
England
Edguy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
You may be grey-green but matchless and wide
I wanted to sniff at every inch of you
Went to Birmingham New Street to take a ride
Over aqueducts on a suspiciously panting train
High on Diesel fumes I pondered on my way
But nothing compares to you, England
'Cause England's got Steve Harris
England, I know
I may have explained it somewhere before
But I swear it wasn't my idea to contrive that silly way
OK, I've got to admit this was, uhm, an improper try of a joke
But it rhymed and talking humour:
You've got to know I'm just anosser German bloke
Who loves afternoon tea
And Bob Catley and Mr. Bean
Who loves to but miniature phone booths
And cute little snow globes raining snow
On a cute little queen
Mostly you're jolly
At times you're frustrated, England
Then rest assured:
I also think penalty shootouts...
...are highly overrated
Vienna has got Mozart
Chopin they had in Paris (kind of)
The Catholics got the Pope
England's got The Beatles
And eve more so:
England's got Steve Harris
England's got Steve Harris
And as if that was not enough for you:
England's got Bruce Dickinson
And on top of it the other ones...
...in Iron Maiden too, yes, it's true
Vienna's got the Mozart ball
The Frenchies they got Paris
In Rome they got the Pope
Who in turn they don't have in England
But England's got Steve Harris
I may like New York, Bavaria or Paris
But nothing compares to you, England
'Cause you got the magic bullet
England's got Steve Harris
England: inventors of Def Leppard...
Shakespeare...
Indian food... Gary Lineker...
That bloke who did away with Braveheart
Et cetera... and so forth... good night
The lyrics of Edguy's song "England" are a tribute to the country and a celebration of the things that make it unique. The singer describes his love for England, despite the fact that he has been away from it for a long time. He states that no matter where he has been or where he may go in the future, nothing compares to the magic of England. The singer references his visit to Birmingham New Street and the train ride he took over aqueducts on a suspiciously panting train, high on diesel fumes, pondering on his way.
The song goes on to list some of the things that make England special, such as its afternoon tea, Bob Catley, Mr. Bean, miniature phone booths, snow globes raining snow, and cute little queen. The singer also mentions that England has its own frustrations, such as penalty shootouts, but ultimately it is a place of joy and magic, reflected in the fact that England has Steve Harris, Bruce Dickinson, and the other members of Iron Maiden. The song concludes with a list of other things that make England unique, including its inventors, Shakespeare, Indian food, Gary Lineker, and the person who did away with Braveheart.
Overall, the lyrics of "England" celebrate the unique culture and spirit of England, while also poking a bit of fun at some of its quirks and frustrations. The song is a tribute to the country and its people, as well as a reflection of the singer's own personal connection to it.
Line by Line Meaning
It's been a long time since I've been with you
It has been a long time since I last visited England.
You may be grey-green but matchless and wide
England may have a dull appearance but it has endless beauty and diversity.
I wanted to sniff at every inch of you
The singer wants to explore and experience everything that England has to offer.
Went to Birmingham New Street to take a ride
The singer went to Birmingham New Street station to catch a train and travel around England.
Over aqueducts on a suspiciously panting train
The singer travelled on a train that sounded like it was struggling or not in good condition, over aqueducts.
High on Diesel fumes I pondered on my way
The singer thought about England while breathing in the scent of diesel gas on his train ride.
I may like New York, Bavaria or Paris
Although the singer likes other places like New York, Bavaria or Paris,
But nothing compares to you, England
England remains the singer's favorite destination.
'Cause England's got Steve Harris
The singer's love for England is partly because of Steve Harris, a famous English musician.
England, I know
The singer is acknowledging England.
I may have explained it somewhere before
The singer may have spoken about England previously.
But I swear it wasn't my idea to contrive that silly way
The singer didn't intentionally make a joke about England's love for Steve Harris.
OK, I've got to admit this was, uhm, an improper try of a joke
The singer admits that the joke they made was not appropriate.
But it rhymed and talking humour:
The singer made the joke because it sounded funny.
You've got to know I'm just anosser German bloke
The singer wants people to know that they are just a German person who loves England and its culture.
Who loves afternoon tea
The singer loves the British tradition of afternoon tea.
And Bob Catley and Mr. Bean
The singer appreciates the work of musicians like Bob Catley and comedians like Mr. Bean.
Who loves to but miniature phone booths
The singer likes to buy souvenirs like miniature phone booths.
And cute little snow globes raining snow
The singer enjoys buying snow globes that depict England with snow coming down.
On a cute little queen
The snow globes usually have a depiction of the Queen of England as well.
Mostly you're jolly
England is mostly cheerful and happy.
At times you're frustrated, England
England can be frustrating at times.
Then rest assured:
However,
I also think penalty shootouts...
The singer also has a problem with England's soccer teams' reliance on penalty shootouts to decide games.
...are highly overrated
The singer thinks penalty shootouts are not the best way to determine the winner of a match.
Vienna has got Mozart
Vienna boasts famous musician Mozart.
Chopin they had in Paris (kind of)
Chopin, a famous musician was in Paris, although he was not originally from there.
The Catholics got the Pope
The Catholic Church has the Pope as their spiritual leader.
England's got The Beatles
England has a famous band, The Beatles.
And eve more so:
In addition,
England's got Steve Harris
England has another famous musician, Steve Harris.
And as if that was not enough for you:
As if that wasn't good enough,
England's got Bruce Dickinson
England also has another famous musician, Bruce Dickinson.
And on top of it the other ones...
In addition to the two previously mentioned, England has many other famous musicians in the band Iron Maiden.
...in Iron Maiden too, yes, it's true
More talented musicians can be found in Iron Maiden.
Vienna's got the Mozart ball
Vienna has a famous candy called the Mozart ball.
The Frenchies they got Paris
France has the beautiful city of Paris.
In Rome they got the Pope
The Pope is located in Rome.
Who in turn they don't have in England
The Pope is absent from England.
But England's got Steve Harris
Despite the lack of a Pope, England has another famous musician, Steve Harris.
England: inventors of Def Leppard...
England has been the birthplace of famous rock bands like Def Leppard.
Shakespeare...
William Shakespeare is a celebrated English playwright and poet.
Indian food... Gary Lineker...
English culinary has their own specialties, and Gary Lineker is a popular English footballer and sports presenter.
That bloke who did away with Braveheart
The singer is referencing the historical events depicted in the movie 'Braveheart' inaccurately, and how an English official 'did away' with the historical figure that was depicted in the film.
Et cetera... and so forth... good night
And so on and so forth, good night.
Contributed by Josiah L. Suggest a correction in the comments below.