Having played in various local rock bands, Bay moved to Hamburg in 1990 and got his first serious gig when he worked with Zed Yago. From 1993 to 1996 Chris was a member of former Victory guitarist Hermann Frank's band Moon Doc, with whom he recorded the albums "Moon Doc" (1995) and "Get Mooned" (1996).
Founding (1997–1998)
In 1998 Chris Bay and old friend Daniel Zimmermann formed Freedom Call during an off-period for the latter's main band, Gamma Ray. The two had started writing songs together towards the end of 1997. They eventually completed a six-song demo Freedom Call with well-known producer Charlie Bauerfeind, who offered the tape to several record companies.
At the same time, the Freedom Call line up was completed by Ilker Ersin on bass guitar and Sascha Gerstner on guitar. In 1998 Chris and Dan had seen Sascha playing in a cover band.
Stairway to Fairyland and Crystal Empire (1999–2001)
Freedom Call's debut album, Stairway to Fairyland was released on 7 May 1999 by NTS Records. Stairway to Fairyland would sell over 35,000 copies. On 25 May 1999 Freedom Call made their live debut during a tour of France as support band for Angra and Edguy. At the end of August, Freedom Call commenced recording of the five-track mini LP Taragon. It featured new songs, a cover version of Ultravox's "Dancing With Tears in My Eyes", a new version of "Stairway to Fairyland", a new version of "Tears of Taragon" with Biff Byford, singer with Saxon narrating the "Tale of Taragon" on it. There was also a bonus track for Japan called "Kingdom Come".
By the end of 1999, Freedom Call had entered the studio again to record their second album Crystal Empire, this released on 22 January 2001. Crystal Empire was promoted as the logical musical continuation of Stairway To Fairyland. In March 2001 Sascha Gerstner left Freedom Call (he would later join Helloween). Gerstner was eventually replaced by Cédric "Cede" Dupont, the Swiss guitarist of Symphorce.
Eternity and The Circle of Life (2002–2006)
In the middle of January 2002 the new lineup began recording a new album called Eternity. Dan and Chris produced Eternity on their own this time as Charlie Bauerfeind was not available. He was, however, responsible for the drum recordings and the final mix. Eternity was released on 3 June 2002 by Steamhammer.
Later that year, Freedom Call was invited on tour with Blind Guardian. During this tour they recorded the live album, Live Invasion together with Charlie Bauerfeind in Düsseldorf, Stuttgart and Munich. Live Invasion was released on 10 May 2004 by SPV.
The keyboard player on this tour, Nils Neumann, was soon invited to become the fifth member of the band. After an extended break, the next album The Circle of Life was recorded at Hansen Studio, Hamburg and FC Studios, Nuremberg from August to October 2004. The album was released on 21 May 2005 by SPV.
Shortly after the release of The Circle of Life, both Cédric "Cede" Dupont and Ilker Ersin decided to leave Freedom Call (independently of each other). Replacements were eventually announced in the respective form of the unknown Lars Rettkowitz and Armin Donderer, formerly of Paradox.
Dimensions (2007–2008)
A new album with the title Dimensions was released on 20 April 2007. Commenting on Dimensions, Daniel Zimmerman said: Even if the two predecessors, Eternity and The Circle of Life, took very different directions, both albums had a number of strong moments. Dimensions combines the most successful elements from both albums, in other words: we included our penchant for fast and very melodic numbers from Eternity with the more contemporary, bombastic components of The Circle of Life.
The songs "The Wanderer" and "Dimensions" were also used in the online rhythm game "Flash Flash Revolution".
Legend of the Shadowking and Land of the Crimson Dawn (2009–2012)
In March 2009, the band announced that they were putting the finishing touches to a new album, Legend of the Shadowking, and that they had parted ways with bassist Armin Donderer, who would be replaced by Samy Saemann. Legend of the Shadowking was released on 29 January 2010 by SPV.
For the 2010 touring cycle, Dan Zimmerman announced that he would be replaced by Klaus Sperling as during this time he [Zimmerman] would be on the road with Gamma Ray. It was later confirmed on the band's website that Zimmermann had officially left the band. Live in Hellvetia was the first live DVD by Freedom Call. It was released on 20 May 2011 by SPV. Live in Hellvetia was recorded on 29 December 2010 in Z7 Pratteln, Switzerland.
The title of the next Freedom Call studio album, Land of the Crimson Dawn, was announced in September 2011. Chris Bay had previously announced that the band was working on the album and it would be released sometime in February 2012. Land of the Crimson Dawn was released 24 February 2012 by SPV.
Beyond and Master of Light (2013–present)
Ages of Light (1998–2013) is the first best-of compilation by Freedom Call. It was released on 26 April 2013 by SPV. The band announced on 15 September 2013 that they were working on a new album, Beyond, with a new lineup. Ilker Ersin returned to the band to resume bass duties and Ramy Ali joined the band on drums. A music video was filmed on 15 December 2013 for the song Union of the Strong. The shoot took place in the vicinity of Nuremberg and Franconia, the song was taken from the album Beyond that was released on 21 February 2014. A vinyl version of the album was released on 14 March 2014. It was produced by Chris Bay and Stephan Ernst at the Separate Sound Studios in Nuremberg and at Freedom Call's own studio.
In May 2015 Freedom Call released 666 Weeks Beyond Eternity, a reissued edition of their 2002 studio album, Eternity. As the title suggests, 666 Weeks Beyond Eternity was released 666 weeks after the release of the original album. The re-issue is a two disc set featuring the original album which has been remastered, plus bonus content on the second disc including live tracks, acoustic tracks, special versions of their songs, as well as a new song written exclusively for this release. In support of the album release, the 666 Weeks Beyond Eternity Tour 2015 occurred between October 2015 (Glasgow, UK; 9 Oct) and December 2015 (Augsburg, Germany; 22 Dec).
Freedom Call's next album, Master of Light was released on 11 November 2016 (18 November in USA). The first single taken from the album, Hammer of the Gods, was released on 8 July 2016. A promotional video for the track Metal is for Everyone became available on 2 November 2016. Following a release party at Rockcafe Brown Sugar in Nürnberg on 10 November 2016, the four-city Master of Light Latin America tour ran from 25 November until 2 December 2016. The tour commenced in 2016 and continued through 2017 and concluded in 2018. Countries visited (or to be visited) as part of the 2017–2018 legs of the tour include Argentina, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Colombia, the Czech Republic, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Thailand and the UK. A number of festival dates also took place, with others scheduled for 2018 that included 70,000 Tons of Metal from 1 to 5 February 2018, and include Metalfest Open Air 2018 and Leyendas Del Rock 2018.
The band's most recent studio offering, M.E.T.A.L., was released on 23 August 2019.
Chris Bay solo
In November 2017 Chris Bay announced that he would be releasing his first solo album, Chasing the Sun, on Steamhammer/SPV records on 23 February 2018. The first single from the album, Radio Starlight, was released on 1 December 2017. Of the album and its content Bay commented: "I permanently write songs and am constantly working on ideas in the studio... ...that's why I've collected a whole lot of tracks over the years that on the one hand don't really suit Freedom Call and on the other are just too good to gather dust in my archive." The second single from the album, Hollywood Dancer, was released on 2 February 2018.
Full Wikipedia article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_Call
Studio albums
Stairway to Fairyland (1999)
Crystal Empire (2001)
Eternity (2002)
The Circle of Life (2005)
Dimensions (2007)
Legend of the Shadowking (2010)
Land of the Crimson Dawn (2012)
Beyond (2014)
Master of Light (2016)
M.E.T.A.L. (2019)
The Shadowking
Freedom Call Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm running through the shadows of the night
I'm sensing he will take my soul forever
I'm praying to the guardian of my fate
Freedom now or never, oh I'm going insane
Times have changed forever free me forever
Over the rainbow
One last time no return
No more tears to cry
Into the shadows
No more lies it's the final way to paradise
I'm tortured by the demon of desire
I'm drowning in my dreams and fantasies
The raging storm is feeding on the fire
I'm praying for an answer to my pleas
Freedom now or never oh I'm going insane
Times have changed forever free me forever
One more time I fly
Over the rainbow
One last time no return
No more tears to cry
Into the shadows
No more lies it's the final way to paradise
Welcome to the afterworld I'll be there
Center of the universe take me there
Drowning in seas of desire
I'm dwelling in sadness and pain fear
I end up in silent surrender
I'm resigning myself to my fate
The lyrics of Freedom Call's song The Shadowking explore the battle between good and evil, with the singer feeling trapped and tormented by dark forces. The opening lines describe the overwhelming sensation of being under the control of the devil, running through the shadows of the night, and sensing that he will take the singer's soul forever. The usage of powerful imagery is evident, whereby the lyrics equate the night to darkness and fear, invoking feelings of helplessness and vulnerability. The singer, however, is fighting back by praying to the guardian of their fate, signifying a belief in a higher power and a willingness to seek help in the face of adversity.
The chorus contains the key message of the song, emphasizing the need for freedom, which is now or never. The singer is going insane and is tortured by the demon of desire, drowning in dreams and fantasies. They seek freedom from these negativities, envisioning a life of bliss, where they can finally fly over the rainbow and reach the final way to paradise.
The bridge of the song takes on a spiritual tone, welcoming the singer to the afterworld, center of the universe, inviting them to seek a higher meaning and purpose beyond their earthly troubles. The singer's final surrender signifies acceptance of their fate, with the prospect of a greater spiritual reward.
Line by Line Meaning
Spellbound by the power of the devil
Enchanted and captivated by the devil's immense power
I'm running through the shadows of the night
I'm frantically running through the darkness trying to escape
I'm sensing he will take my soul forever
I have a premonition that the devil will claim my soul for eternity
I'm praying to the guardian of my fate
I'm requesting assistance from the divine protector of my destiny
Freedom now or never, oh I'm going insane
I urgently need my freedom or else I will go mad
Times have changed forever free me forever
The current circumstances have permanently altered life, please permanently free me
One more time I fly
Over the rainbow
One last time no return
No more tears to cry
Into the shadows
No more lies it's the final way to paradise
It's my last flight beyond the rainbow, with no return. No more crying, no more deceit, heading into the final route towards paradise.
I'm tortured by the demon of desire
My demon of desire is inflicting unbearable pain upon me
I'm drowning in my dreams and fantasies
I'm submerged in the depths of my own imagination and desires
The raging storm is feeding on the fire
The violent storm is fueling my internal fire
I'm praying for an answer to my pleas
I fervently hope for a resolution to my appeals
Welcome to the afterworld I'll be there
Center of the universe take me there
I'm ready to enter the afterlife, to be at the center of the universe
Drowning in seas of desire
I'm dwelling in sadness and pain fear
I end up in silent surrender
I'm resigning myself to my fate
I'm overwhelmed by my own wants, dwelling in sadness and pain, leading to a silent surrender and resignation to my fate.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: CHRIS BAY, DANIEL ZIMMERMANN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind