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)
The Piper Never Dies
Edguy Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Thirsting for salvation
You're off to find the stairway
Novice on your never ending ride
Whatever you may find dare to take it higher
Here's your instigation on your trip into the light
Standing at the temple
You listen to the beauty of a song
A melody of promise calling from the dark
Tear down the portal and then go on and
Come and fly away with me
And your eyes are gonna see it all
And sleep with the fire - do you feel me
Go obtain divinity, be the one you want to be
And don't be afraid to give in
And ride into the shadows
The piper never dies, never dies
Ride into the shadows
The piper never dies, never dies
Entities are screaming, enticing from inside
Creatures you had never ever seen
And on the back of haughtiness
You leave into the light
The spirit on a mission in the shell of a beast
The ferryman is gentle
And promises are made
The other side may hold a lot to see
He's gonna take you over
And then he'll name the fare
Oh you gamble with the devil, fool
The ferryman is me
Come and fly away
Balance on the edge of day and night
Not afraid of falling
Time has come to see all wrong from right
Something's calling
Heaven and hell is it all the same
And just a different grade
Now I gotta know the point of change
Where live turns to hate
Balance on the edge of day and night
Dive into the haze and kiss the light
Many of the tales you've been told
Never written for the brave and bold
Come and take my hand tonight
Come and sleep with me tonight
Certainly I'm gonna take you there
Showing you around everywhere
Oh
Do you believe that you're devil-may-care
As you jump into the fire
Do you believe that you're devil-may-care
As you jump into the fire
Dreamer, dreamer, dreamer
Ride into the shadows
You go on - into the night
Alright, the piper never dies, I got you hypnotized
Come with me and witness, see Babylon arise
The whore is fading light, let us step inside
O got you paralyzed child, the piper never dies
The pied piper plays the song, beautiful but strong
He was never born, never he'll be gone
Oh the pied piper never dies
He never dies, never dies
"The Piper Never Dies" by Edguy is a song that speaks to the innermost desires of our hearts to find salvation and to be saved. The lyrics describe the journey of a novice who embarks on an endless ride in search of a stairway to heaven. As he stands at the threshold of the temple, waiting for the wizard to arise, a beautiful melody beckons him to tear down the portal and come fly away.
The entities begin to scream and entice him from inside, but on the back of haughtiness, he leaves for the light. The ferryman is gentle, and promises are made as he crosses over to the other side, but he must gamble with the devil before he can pass. The song invites us to come along with the Piper as he shows us the wonders of the world and takes us to experience heaven and hell, where we can find the point of change and see all wrong from right.
The message behind "The Piper Never Dies" is that we must dare to take higher whatever we find on our journey to the light. We must let go of our fears and embrace our innermost desires without being afraid to give in. The piper never dies and is always willing to take us on a journey into the shadows, and with him, we can find salvation and divinity.
Line by Line Meaning
Oh yeah
Expression of excitement and anticipation as the journey begins
Thirsting for salvation
Seeking redemption or freedom from a troubled past
You're off to find the stairway
Embarking on an adventure to achieve a higher level of enlightenment
Novice on your never ending ride
Inexperienced but determined to continue the journey no matter how long it takes
Whatever you may find dare to take it higher
Encouragement to push beyond one's limits and strive for greatness
Here's your instigation on your trip into the light
Motivation to keep moving forward towards a brighter future
Standing at the temple
Arriving at a place of great significance and mystery
Where the wizard shall arise
Where someone powerful and wise will reveal themselves
You listen to the beauty of a song
Enchanted by the beauty and power of music
A melody of promise calling from the dark
A hopeful tune beckoning from shadowy depths
Tear down the portal and then go on and
Break through a barrier and continue moving forward
Come and fly away with me
Invitation to leave behind the past and soar into a new future
And your eyes are gonna see it all
Promise of experiencing great wonders and sights on the journey
And sleep with the fire - do you feel me
Invitation to feel the intense passion and power that burns within
Go obtain divinity, be the one you want to be
Encouragement to strive for greatness and become the best version of oneself
And don't be afraid to give in
Advice to let go of fears and surrender to the journey
And ride into the shadows
Embark on a dangerous journey into the unknown
The piper never dies, never dies
The mysterious guide will always be there to lead the way
Entities are screaming, enticing from inside
Unknown forces are calling out from within, enticing and terrifying
Creatures you had never ever seen
Encountering strange, otherworldly beings on the journey
And on the back of haughtiness
Feeling a sense of pride and overconfidence
You leave into the light
Venturing forth towards a brighter future
The spirit on a mission in the shell of a beast
The soul works towards a great goal while in the material world
The ferryman is gentle
The guide on the journey is kind and compassionate
And promises are made
Various vows and commitments are made during the journey
The other side may hold a lot to see
The destination may hold many secrets and wonders waiting to be discovered
He's gonna take you over
The guide will take control and guide the way
And then he'll name the fare
The price for the journey will be revealed at the end
Oh you gamble with the devil, fool
Taking a great risk to achieve one's goals
The ferryman is me
The guide in charge of the journey is revealed
Come and fly away
Invitation to leave behind one's earthly worries and soar into the unknown
Balance on the edge of day and night
The journey takes place at a time of great change and uncertainty
Not afraid of falling
Fearless in the face of danger and potential failure
Time has come to see all wrong from right
Realization that the journey is about discovering the truth and rectifying past mistakes
Something's calling
Feeling drawn towards a mysterious force or presence
Heaven and hell is it all the same
Wondering if the destination is worth the journey
And just a different grade
Realizing that different paths lead to different destinations
Now I gotta know the point of change
Curiosity and a desire to learn about the guiding forces behind the journey
Where live turns to hate
Recognizing the moment when life takes a turn towards darkness and despair
Dive into the haze and kiss the light
A call to embrace the unknown and step into the light of the future
Many of the tales you've been told
Realizing that previous stories and myths may not hold the whole truth
Never written for the brave and bold
Recognizing that the journey requires more than just courage and daring
Come and take my hand tonight
Invitation to trust in the guide and take the next step forward
Oh you believe that you're devil-may-care
Embracing the adventurous spirit and fearlessly taking risks
As you jump into the fire
Jumping into the unknown with reckless abandon
Dreamer, dreamer, dreamer
Calling out to those with a sense of imagination and wonder
Ride into the shadows
Continuing into the unknown, even if it's dangerous or frightening
You go on - into the night
Pressing forward through darkness and uncertainty
Alright, the piper never dies, I got you hypnotized
Assurance that the guide will always be there to lead the way
Come with me and witness, see Babylon arise
Invitation to bear witness to great change and upheaval
The whore is fading light, let us step inside
Entering a place of great significance that is undergoing a dramatic transformation
O got you paralyzed child, the piper never dies
Reassurance that the guide will always be there to protect and guide, even in times of fear and paralysis
The pied piper plays the song, beautiful but strong
The mysterious guide's music is powerful and compelling
He was never born, never he'll be gone
Implying that the guide is eternal and beyond the boundaries of life and death
Oh the pied piper never dies
Stressing the idea that the guide is a constant presence and guide
He never dies, never dies
Assurance that the guide will always be there, even after the journey is over
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: JENS LUDWIG, TOBIAS SAMMET
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind