Avantasia has got to be one of the most interesting bands around. So much talent and amazing songwriting. Especially love The Raven Child and Draconian Love.
Good to see you have positive things to say about Tobi, Mr Li! Avantasia have changed my life honestly, and Tobi is not only a genius he's a humble down to earth dude who interacts a lot with his fans, class act
I saw Edguy open for Hammerfall and Edguy did the same sort of thing where they played Hearts On Fire a Farts On Fire. Hammerfall kept calling Edguy “Helloween” in response.
Tobi is the single most funny and entertaining front man I've ever had the pleasure to witness live, and I say this as an old fart (50+) who's into metal since his early youth. Having the advantage of being German and witnessing both Edguy and Avantasia multiple times, I more than once literally laughed myself to tears because of his unscripted between-songs comentary. One show especially sticks in my mind, which was in his hometown of Fulda and apparently his parents were there. The amount of joking going on there was at least as good as the brilliant set.
Get the feeling that the power metal & prog metal genres look after eachother and aren't afraid of complimenting their peers. You don't seem to hear too much about beef, and there's always lots of collabs going on.
Avantasia... almost instantly became one of my most favorite bands. They are probably the band I love the most songs from, percentage wise- lots of artists out there I only like half or less of their songs, but Avantasia... I love them.
Tobi answered on Facebook. But, if there was any bad blood, it didn't last long. I was at the 2009 Vancouver Edguy show where DragonForce was playing literally across the street at the same time. Tobi cracked a few good-natured jokes about it (like when the keyboard intro for Vain Glory Opera started, he jokingly said they had to prerecord it because the keyboardist was playing with DF across the street). But he also made a point of saying it was in good fun, he was being goofy, and that he liked DF. Like many of us, he just thought it was really funny the promoters and tour managers didn't schedule better so no one would have to choose between attending one over the other.
Two of my absolute favorite Powermetal bands I had no idea! Anyway, Herman is such a stand up guy just clearing the air, all respect while telling interesting (blast from the past) story. Im sure Tobi feels the same level of respect for you guys and everything you've done. I've seen Dragonforce, Edguy and Avantasia multipule times and you guys both do amazing shows would love to see a tour with both you someday!
I also want to hear Tobias' side of the story also Ayreon also falls under the "metal opera" genre you described and i highlly reccomend any metal fan, especially Avantasia fans, to give them a listen
Ayreon is fantastic! But as Herman says, its vocalists paradise =) Altho Arjen have had several different guitarplayers and keyboardsplayers doing solos and so on aswell.
My top two metal bands are Avantasia and Ayreon. Like they just do everything so well and with good variety, it never gets old or trite, they never fall into the "it all sounds the same" category nor do they do the "earth-shattering reinvention period everyone hates", like it's beautifully consistent but different all the time.
Ralf Scheepers actually auditioned for Judas Priest and he formed Primal Fear after he was not chosen as Rob Halford's replacement (which Tim "Ripper" Owens was), and actually their first official studio album was Kingdom Of Salvation which was released a year before Vain Glory Opera, but prior to that they had a demo release titled Savage Poetry which was re-recorded and became their fourth official studio album as The Savage Poetry in 2000
I love Avantasia, probably my favourite band that's still active. Tobi is fairly active on facebook, so hopefully he'll see this video and post his thoughts there
Guest vocals on that song is just beyond anything. Hansi's vocals are surreal and Jorn is as powerful as it gets. Sublime song writing and composing just too good
@@thiagoguimaraes3437 Same here. The Metall Opera Pt. 1 & 2 are still my favorite Avantasia albums. But the one song that gives me the most chills and goose bumps is Farewell.
Edguy's been my favorite band since.... 2004 at least. My first live show was precisely Edguy with Dragonforce + Sabaton. This video revived more memories than I expected. Thank you Herman!
In my humble opinion, Avantasia is the best metal band ever. Heavy, melodic, virtuosic, symphonic and progressive elements. It does almost literally everything metal is supposed to do (until death metal came along in the late 80s and everyone wanted more growls and more grunts and now "real metal" is some sorta black/death/thrash stuff)
I don't like Avantasia y tried to force myself to like it but it is boring for me. Even so I don't like none a single song maybe 2. I prefer Edguy but everyone has its thoughts
Avantasia's music saved me from going off the deep end in my twenties. Tobias Sammet is my favorite musician of all time. Is he perfect no, but I love his imperfection.
@@analiliapatrongonzalez2869 Totally fair. Don't force yourself to like something. I just find that Avantasia hits every mark for me. But they don't for you, which is cool.
I've seen smaller bands than Edguy and Dragonforce play to 200-300 people and still be looked after really well with catering etc. That must surely come down to the organisers of the shows. Tobi has now clarified they were annoyed with the unprofessional tour management on the tour. Tobi is a top dude and has a great sense of humour. Have a beer if you happen to play one of the same festivals.
I want to hear Sabaton's side of the story! Seriously though, I saw that tour in Leeds. One of my favourite ever concerts! Met the Sabaton boys and have been a fan ever since! Edguy were great as well, and I ended up getting "Rocket Ride" a couple of weeks later, and then Avantasia after that! Always remember Tobias saying "the next's one's a fast one... well for us, maybe not for DragonForce!"
Tobi is truly a genius! Avantasia is such an amazing project and as you said "the best of its kind" by far. Tobi is a magician with lyrics and his voice somehow pairs perfectly with every voice in the world. It's actually kinda freaky 😂 No matter who he collabs with it ends up being yet another masterpiece. Funny story btw! But Tobi seems like a genuine nice guy and I doubt he actually hates you. Would be awesome to hear a "dragonforce" solo on the next avantasia album!
Personally, my favorite metal opera song is “Dawn of a Million Souls” by Ayreon. It has Russell Allen on lead vocals, Damian Wilson on backing vocals, and a guitar solo by Michael Romeo. Freaking amazing lineup, amazing song writing, and phenomenal performances all around.
So I actually got into metal through dragonforce in my early teens, then I migrated to Edguy, Avantastia, Nightwish, etc but yet now approaching my 30s I find myself drawn back to dragonforce and other heavy guitar bands simply because the guitars are so good.
I’m a fan of Edguy. Would be cool if Tobias did a reaction video. I’d like hear his side of the story…I’d also like to hear Sam’s juvenile humor version of the songs though haha 🙈
The first time I hear your band I had taken some bad ac1d that made me feel like I was permanently stuck to the inside of a wall socket. 8 am they played through the fire and the flames. I certainly hated every second of it. But that more had to do with the ac1d. Thanks for the memories.
Edguy are great, I think their best album by far is Mandrake. When you mentioned him sounding like Bruce Dickinson, it really shines through on 'All the Clowns', the first part of that song could be Bruce singing for them. It's a shame Edguy has been somewhat put aside for the time being, although I can understand it's sad having nothing new from them.
No, Tobias has always been a big Helloween fan, and his singing style is so similar to and influenced by Michael Kiske. Kiske is also a regular guest singer on the Avantasia albums. And we can be happy about this, because there was a time when Michael was fed up with metal but Tobias kind of brought him back. Also Kai Hansen, co-founder, guitarist and singer on the the first Helloween album, appeared on the Avantasia albums. I really loved that Tobias convinced his own idols to work him back in the mid 90s.
@@1BioMarco lol, who do you think Kiske copied his style from? No one got more inspired by Tate than Kiske himself :D Tobias said more than once that Geoff started it all, for example go listen the video "Avantasia - Seduction Of Decay - Live @ Z7, Pratteln (CH), 28.06.2017"
I saw the London show on this tour, which I believe was Sabaton's first tour as well, and due to a BnB snafu my friends and I had to trek across the whole city in a taxi. We got to the Astoria just as Sabaton were finishing, and I kinda forgot about them for years afterwards and then suddenly they were one of the biggest metal bands on the planet! It was a great show all the same, and if there was any friction it did not come through in the performances \m/
You're both good guys. And it's good to see this respectful brotherhood. I was in Paris on this unforgettable tour where i discovered and fell in love with DragonForce. Since I first came for missed Edguy. Hail to two great bands!
Love Tobi, Love Avantasia, Love Eguy, Love Sabaton, Love DragonForce! What a show that must have been to see! Would be cool if Tobi came on to tell some stories with you Herman. New Avantasia Song slays! You nailed it. Ralf and Tobi on this track remind me of the Halford song "The one you love to Hate" with God, I mean Bruce.
I love Edguy and Avantasia. The most recent song Avantasia did that I LOVE was "Raven Child" (2019) because it featured Hansi Kursch. Did you ever meet Hansi? I love Demons and Wizards and Blind Guardian. You mentioned a lot of great bands. Sabaton is an excellent band. I'm a huge fan of theirs too. Angra is another band I love. Almost every band you mentioned are great bands. :) Welp, edited this comment because someone said Tobias already responded to your inquiry.
When I interviewed Herman backstage at Wacken ages ago he was ALWAYS walking around with a Blind Guardian T-shirt, so, yes, he knows Hansi... who is a great guy as well, I actually did my 80-page NLP thesis on him and Markus and I were in constant contact. That being said, Demons & Wizards were amazing, but I seriously doubt we'll ever see a D&W record again after the moronic and serously fucked up stuff Jon pulled during the Capital riots... I interviewed Jon years before that and I gotta say... it didn't surprise me all too much.
It could have been Andre Mattos that talked about it to you. He was the lead singer and a pianist/keyboard on Angra and he also sang a few times with Avantasia. Sadly he passed away in 2019.
I don't think Herman would forget André's name, since he was someone very meaningful in the Heavy Metal scene. Maybe it was Rafael or Kiko himself. Anyway, by 2006, André was in Shaman and he left later that year.
There's a lot of things I was thinking while watching this, and absolutely none of those things were "Bruce Dickinson". Makes sense with Ralf Scheepers, he clearly has modelled his style after Rob Halford, and in fact left Gamma Ray to audition for Judas Priest after Halford left, forming Primal Fear when Priest ultimately decided to go with Ripper Owens. But I don't hear any of Bruce in Tobias Sammett whatsoever. Not even close. Also, going to be highly disappointed if the new DragonForce album isn't called Grandad's Ballbag.
@@adaher Maiden and Avantasia are probably my top 2 bands of all time, and I wouldn't say Tobi has a Dickinson edge to him really, aside from the influence that Bruce has on all of power metal, which is hard to ignore
My opinion is that Tobias RESEMBLES Bruce Dickinson, but Tobias's and Bruce's singing styles are different. I think the first time I heard that Tobias sounded like Bruce was in an interview w/ Arjen Lucassen from Ayreon. He had Bruce as a guest in one of his albums and he mentioned something about Tobias sounding like Bruce. As for Ralf Scheepers, he sounds like Halford so much that he auditioned to replace him in Priest, but Tim "Ripper" Owens was chosen instead.
Met the band during the hellfire tour at a V.I.P meet. All the band members were amazing guys except Tobias didnt want to be there and stood in a corner while we played pool. Think the dude was shocked at how small the crowd was during the Aus tour. Was like coming to a backwater convict land.
Huge fan of especially the first 2 albums and The Mystery of Time. But most of all am I a huge fan of Sammet himself, both as a singer and songwriter/composer.
Edguy and DragonForce were my jams back in high school. I remember seeing DragonForce first US tour when they played The Agora in Cleveland. Edguy and Kamelot played Peabody's in 2008. Those were the good old power metal days!
STILL WAITING FOR YALL TO CO E TO LEXINGTON KY SO I CAN MOSH FOR YA IN FRONT OF MY HOMETOWN 🤘 IF you remember me from Columbus you know I'm always down just gotta gimme the open door. Also I just love how you appreciate his music even after saying you felt like he hated you. So much respect for your sense of respect lol.
you know it takes real guts to go back and reconsider the past mistakes a let alone admit it and even say sorry even without actually know the fault,the essence of being human in this case a Man.
Avantasia is a great band with amazing theatrics. Ghost in the Moon is an amazing song. They lean more towards hard rock than power metal at times, but you should check out Edguy, his other works. His lyrics though, they don't often make sense.
Tobi is my all time favourite lyricist, he's a genius. Avantasia hasn't released a single song that I don't love, they're all so different. I've discovered sooo many new singers and bands through Avantasia and looking up who his guests are and their bands.
oh I know right? finding avantasia was absolutely game changing for me I was listening to some random metal, and the scarecrow came on, since I forgot autoplay was on And god DAMN was that influental they're fucking awesome, the lyrics are cool, the imagery is cool, the ideas are all super cool
Heya Herman 🫶💖🙏. Vain Glory Opera was Edguy's 2nd album (first with Felix on Drums). The first album from Edguy was Kingdom of madness. A lighter album with single kick drum but still classic (to me) 💖🤘.
Saw you guys on that tour, somewhere in scotland(glasgow maybe?). No idea that was going on in the background, so this comes as a surprise! But it was a great show. Was there to see you guys but also liked edguy from before, never heard of them sabaton fellows(but after the fact figured they may be going places) and then it was just 3 amazing and fun live bands one after another!
Tobi is just amazing at squeezing out everything that a person's voice can do. Man, if Freddie Mercury was alive and he guest starred in Avantasia... Tobi sounds like "wait... I can hire Michael Kiske? Hell yeah, but he's not doing only backing vocals."
Huge fan of Avantasia. Also partly because Kiske did so many vocals on it, for decades I thought they where better than Helloween was after him and Hansen left. Lol, now I have to listen to some Gammaray again today. :)
Would love to hear you and Tobi talk the tour and also your composition philosophies. A singer's and guitarist's perspectives would make a great discussion.
I love Avantasia and Edguy, i was on that 2006 european tour, where i learned about you (inhuman rampage) and Sabaton (Primo Victoria). It's still one of my favourite concerts ever, fu**ing seriously great. Nice video man.
i know this story from my brothers side, he was a guitar tech for edguy . all i can rember that he was very pissed about the "arrogant" behavior by the dragonforce crew or something like that.
Hi there Herman Li, in my opinion, who "gave" indirectly the Metal Opera idea to Tobias was Brazilian singer André Matos from Viper, Angra, Shaman, etc... But Freddie Mercury and Queen started "The Rock Opera"! Yeah huge hug and you rock! ;)
I remember your tour manager from back at that time being like one of the lads from boys brigade who had found his dad's whiskey stash 😂 The funny lyrics were something that happened for all 3 bands on that tour though as Primo Victoria became "Teabag your grandma"
Early Avantasia/Edguy Was fucking incredible. Tobi went a little too, "commercial" for my liking with both bands, especially Avantasia at some point but that last Avantasia song was sick and brought me right back to the Scarecrow days and before.
Avantasia & Edguy are awesome! Would love to hear Tobias Sammet’s version of the story! DragonForce touring with Edguy / Avantasia, would be a dream come true! Great tour story! Thank you for sharing!
Crazy to hear about Sabaton BUYING onto a tour only 14 years ago to now headlining some of the biggest festivals and venues around the world... Buying onto tours is what kills off alot of bands though, back in the day my old band was offered a few European dates with Motorhead and Anthrax.. 20k just to play. Nothing else included, just literally to play and be on the line up.
It was probably the right move though! I was lucky enough to see one of the shows on that tour and Sabaton came out of nowhere(I hadn't heard of them but was there to see df and hyped to also see edguy at the same time) but sabaton blasting into primo victoria there immediately changed my impression from them from "some opener" to "hey these guys are going places"
Decir que alguna de las dos bandas es mejor que la otra sería un error 🤷🏻♂️ las dos son magníficas y influyen positivamente en mi estado de animo😊 hay días en que mi alma solo está para escuchar y sentir Avantasia otros días solo quiere escuchar y sentir Dragon force. Y algunos días está para escuchar Scorpions 🤷🏻♂️ y así sucesivamente con muchas otras bandas que al igual que Avantasia y dragon force son únicas... Gracias dragón force por todo lo que aportas y gracias Avantasia por todo lo que también haz aportado 😌 son los mejores.. y la anécdota que cuentas solo es historia😂 cosas que pasan hasta en las mejores familias 😂.. y suerte leyendo en español 😂😂
Thank you for sharing this story. agree the actions sound juvenile and you presented the story in a balanced way; I see Tobias already gave a classy response on Facebook so a nice parlay all-round!
I saw the Edguy/Dragonforce show at Astoria, London in 2006. I had gone there to see Edguy, as I had no idea what Dragonforce's music was like. I stayed for the whole show and yes, then I began to follow Dragonforce too. Good memories!
I randomly stumbled across Avantasia very long ago and through this I have found my favorite artist Jorn Lande. I've been to 1 concert from Avantasia and it was the BEST. I've always appreciated the lyrical depth and love for detail also in the compositions and use of instruments. Tobias is a very creative guy and writes the best lyrics, melodies and songs overall. Though, I've never been a big fan of Tobias singing voice I absolutely love their songs. I think my favorite is Lucifer or Piper at the Gates of Dawn. I'm sure YT suggested me Avantasia back in the day because I was listening to so much DragonForce ;)
I totally remember this tour man, seen you guys play in Edinburgh! Had a warm up party the day before, me and the lads randomly hired a limo to take us to the gig so we could get wasted on the way into town in style ...when we pulled up outside the Liquid Rooms everyone thought we were you guys lmfao. I was rough as fuuuuuucccckkk at the gig, spent the entirely of Sabaton's set in the toilet trying to cling onto the walls lmfao. Also a fan of Heavenly, Dust to Dust was an awesome album ...was a wee bit gutted Fred wasn't on the next Heavenly album btw, think he really added some meat to their sound, Virus was still epic without him but wasn't as heavy? Good sport bringing up the issues with Edguy man, be nice is Tobias was cool about things and possibly you guys could do a fun interview?? Especially with the new Avantasia album due out!
Looks like everything is all good. Glad to hear it, because Avantasia and DragonForce are easily my top bands. Moonglow was a phenomenal album. Would definitely like to see the two interacting more.
Oh no I love Avantasia. I remember hearing the tower for the first time in highschool high out of my mind when my friend’s older brother was listening to it and it blowing my mind.
Hi Herman, There is a lot to be said for your marketing rant there, I would say without your hard work and activism to promote DF I wouldn't be a current fan. I also just subscribed because I didn't realize I hadn't, your youtube vids are always entertaining. I obviously can't say how well your marketing has worked but I would say 1.19M to 71k subscribers does illustrate that quite well. I know at least personally speaking that you roped me back in with Extreme Power Metal even though I only loved Valley of the Damned. That just wouldn't have happened without your online presence. I'm not slamming Tobi either because Edguy and Avantasia are awesome. Hopefully you guys can work together in the future. Cheers
I also like the first album most, for me its nostalgia also. Funny how i came to your vits from a reaction video, NEVEr heard anyone spoke about avastasia before.
I love dragonforce so much (i can't wait to see you with powerwolf in Paris) and I like Avantasia and Edguy too. And yeah a reply from Tobias should be great. It should be awesome to see all the dragonforce's guys in Avantasia
Avantasia has got to be one of the most interesting bands around. So much talent and amazing songwriting. Especially love The Raven Child and Draconian Love.
I agree. The only thing I would change about "Raven Child" is to add more Hansi. Such a great song.
@@SomethingWickedLives i agree. Unfortunately you can never have enough Hansi
@@prashantsarkar821 don't forget about alone I remember! Draconian love and alone I remember my 2 fav songs of all time
@@MagicMerlin688 With Jorn!
I understand You, +
Good to see you have positive things to say about Tobi, Mr Li!
Avantasia have changed my life honestly, and Tobi is not only a genius he's a humble down to earth dude who interacts a lot with his fans, class act
"The Piper Never Dies" is the best song Tobi has ever written. The whole Hellfire Club album is a masterpiece!
Yes indeed and agreed!
I don't know I kind of prefer Let the Storm Descend Upon You.
Agreed
If you've heard the Scarecrow, I definitely gotta listen to it then
Hellfire club ... Eddie from Stranger Things would agree.
I saw Edguy open for Hammerfall and Edguy did the same sort of thing where they played Hearts On Fire a Farts On Fire. Hammerfall kept calling Edguy “Helloween” in response.
I find both that lyric and response hilarious
Tobi is the single most funny and entertaining front man I've ever had the pleasure to witness live, and I say this as an old fart (50+) who's into metal since his early youth.
Having the advantage of being German and witnessing both Edguy and Avantasia multiple times, I more than once literally laughed myself to tears because of his unscripted between-songs comentary. One show especially sticks in my mind, which was in his hometown of Fulda and apparently his parents were there. The amount of joking going on there was at least as good as the brilliant set.
I saw a show with Into Eternity Hammerfall and EdGuy. Epic night
Herman’s always full of genuine praises towards other bands. Such a rare trait in this highly competitive industry. Kudos to you sir!
Get the feeling that the power metal & prog metal genres look after eachother and aren't afraid of complimenting their peers. You don't seem to hear too much about beef, and there's always lots of collabs going on.
Tobias should invite you on the next Avantasia album. Just to play a solo. That would be great!
or invite marc hudson to sing a song
I think that's why Herman posted this or he wants to open for Avantasia... 😏
Nooooooo
Savege Union🤘
Avantasia... almost instantly became one of my most favorite bands. They are probably the band I love the most songs from, percentage wise- lots of artists out there I only like half or less of their songs, but Avantasia... I love them.
I feel the same way! Love this band so much!
Tobi answered on Facebook. But, if there was any bad blood, it didn't last long. I was at the 2009 Vancouver Edguy show where DragonForce was playing literally across the street at the same time. Tobi cracked a few good-natured jokes about it (like when the keyboard intro for Vain Glory Opera started, he jokingly said they had to prerecord it because the keyboardist was playing with DF across the street). But he also made a point of saying it was in good fun, he was being goofy, and that he liked DF. Like many of us, he just thought it was really funny the promoters and tour managers didn't schedule better so no one would have to choose between attending one over the other.
Two of my absolute favorite Powermetal bands I had no idea! Anyway, Herman is such a stand up guy just clearing the air, all respect while telling interesting (blast from the past) story. Im sure Tobi feels the same level of respect for you guys and everything you've done. I've seen Dragonforce, Edguy and Avantasia multipule times and you guys both do amazing shows would love to see a tour with both you someday!
Heavenly is definitely one of the most underrated power metal bands in existence
They had amazing albums.
Sadly the last album "carpe diem" was released more than 10years ago.
I also want to hear Tobias' side of the story
also Ayreon also falls under the "metal opera" genre you described and i highlly reccomend any metal fan, especially Avantasia fans, to give them a listen
I keep laughing thinking about Li's story
'they were, singing about, you know, grandpa'a ballbag and all that.'
Ayreon is a favorite of mine, particularly Into the Electric Castle
Ayreon is fantastic! But as Herman says, its vocalists paradise =) Altho Arjen have had several different guitarplayers and keyboardsplayers doing solos and so on aswell.
My top two metal bands are Avantasia and Ayreon. Like they just do everything so well and with good variety, it never gets old or trite, they never fall into the "it all sounds the same" category nor do they do the "earth-shattering reinvention period everyone hates", like it's beautifully consistent but different all the time.
Ralf Scheepers actually auditioned for Judas Priest and he formed Primal Fear after he was not chosen as Rob Halford's replacement (which Tim "Ripper" Owens was), and actually their first official studio album was Kingdom Of Salvation which was released a year before Vain Glory Opera, but prior to that they had a demo release titled Savage Poetry which was re-recorded and became their fourth official studio album as The Savage Poetry in 2000
That's why Scheepers left Gamma Ray. Everyone thought he'd get the Judas Priest gig, so he left in preparation for a job he never got.
Imagine what Judas Priest would be like if Ralf were chosen.
Also, it's Kingdom of Madness.
@@prussianpolydactyl836 Still glad Gamma Ray became what we know them for with since a back catalog with amazing vocals from Kai Hansen
@@eduardogomez4275 Oh yes I DID mean Kingdom Of Madness, I think I got Salvation from a few other things
I love Avantasia, probably my favourite band that's still active. Tobi is fairly active on facebook, so hopefully he'll see this video and post his thoughts there
And so he has! Very positive guy. He said he had some "Funny memories. No harsh feelings. You were young, we were young. All the best to you guys!"
You should look into Blind Guardian or Beast in Black they are still putting out wicked cool albums
The Raven Child from Moonglow is my favorite song tbh, highly recommend, please react to it
Guest vocals on that song is just beyond anything. Hansi's vocals are surreal and Jorn is as powerful as it gets. Sublime song writing and composing just too good
Excellent song ...I like it as well.
My favorite song is Seven Angel 😀
@@thiagoguimaraes3437 Same here. The Metall Opera Pt. 1 & 2 are still my favorite Avantasia albums. But the one song that gives me the most chills and goose bumps is Farewell.
From that album my favorite is ghost in the moon, but I always listen raven child after moonglow
Edguy's been my favorite band since.... 2004 at least. My first live show was precisely Edguy with Dragonforce + Sabaton. This video revived more memories than I expected. Thank you Herman!
EdGuy for life!
Hellfire Club and Rocket Ride! 🤘
Indeed rocket ride 🚀
Hellfire club is one of my favorite albums
Rocket Ride is criminally underrated
Sascha Paeth played the opening solo.
In my humble opinion, Avantasia is the best metal band ever. Heavy, melodic, virtuosic, symphonic and progressive elements. It does almost literally everything metal is supposed to do (until death metal came along in the late 80s and everyone wanted more growls and more grunts and now "real metal" is some sorta black/death/thrash stuff)
Esa banda es pop, no metal, le falta mucho para ser la "mejor" saludos..
I don't like Avantasia y tried to force myself to like it but it is boring for me. Even so I don't like none a single song maybe 2. I prefer Edguy but everyone has its thoughts
Avantasia's music saved me from going off the deep end in my twenties. Tobias Sammet is my favorite musician of all time. Is he perfect no, but I love his imperfection.
@@dutchmcgee101 Nice. Tobias has a grasp of melody that for some reason I can only compare to Mozart, which is ridiculously high praise.
@@analiliapatrongonzalez2869 Totally fair. Don't force yourself to like something. I just find that Avantasia hits every mark for me. But they don't for you, which is cool.
Yeah, it would be great if Tobias saw this, reacted, agreed it's all under the bridge, leading to an EPIC tour of both bands again! 🤘🏻🔥🤘🏻
I've seen smaller bands than Edguy and Dragonforce play to 200-300 people and still be looked after really well with catering etc. That must surely come down to the organisers of the shows. Tobi has now clarified they were annoyed with the unprofessional tour management on the tour. Tobi is a top dude and has a great sense of humour. Have a beer if you happen to play one of the same festivals.
That singer is pop, avantasia is pop..
Each to his own ofc, but I thought we metalheads are chilled and tolerant.
@@josephbruce9747 in Greece we call it affectionately ''Smurf Metal''
@@josephbruce9747 Watch out, real metal fan here! Gotta make sure everyone that listens to anything softer than me knows its POP and not METAL!
@@fenixdown2396 lmao got em'
I asked my father to show this to Tobias Exxel the guitar player of Edguy - singe Corona he works at his school :D
Let us know what happens! I really miss Edguy
Absolutely loved the new song. Can't wait for the whole album to drop
I want to hear Sabaton's side of the story!
Seriously though, I saw that tour in Leeds. One of my favourite ever concerts! Met the Sabaton boys and have been a fan ever since! Edguy were great as well, and I ended up getting "Rocket Ride" a couple of weeks later, and then Avantasia after that! Always remember Tobias saying "the next's one's a fast one... well for us, maybe not for DragonForce!"
Sabaton is GREAT. Got me into metal. As a history enthusiast and now metal lover, there is nothing better than Sabaton.
Tobi is truly a genius! Avantasia is such an amazing project and as you said "the best of its kind" by far. Tobi is a magician with lyrics and his voice somehow pairs perfectly with every voice in the world. It's actually kinda freaky 😂 No matter who he collabs with it ends up being yet another masterpiece. Funny story btw! But Tobi seems like a genuine nice guy and I doubt he actually hates you. Would be awesome to hear a "dragonforce" solo on the next avantasia album!
I believe you and Tobi should sit down and have a beer together!
Nothing like an Avantasia video to bring out all the Ayreon fans XD
Ayreon*
@@seraph1690 funny how auto correct still can't spell it right. Must be because I don't go to completely unrelated videos to bring up some other band
Personally, my favorite metal opera song is “Dawn of a Million Souls” by Ayreon. It has Russell Allen on lead vocals, Damian Wilson on backing vocals, and a guitar solo by Michael Romeo. Freaking amazing lineup, amazing song writing, and phenomenal performances all around.
Glad to see you guys have set things straight. Life is too short to harbor bad feelings. I like your idea of a collaboration. Make it so!
So I actually got into metal through dragonforce in my early teens, then I migrated to Edguy, Avantastia, Nightwish, etc but yet now approaching my 30s I find myself drawn back to dragonforce and other heavy guitar bands simply because the guitars are so good.
I’m a fan of Edguy. Would be cool if Tobias did a reaction video. I’d like hear his side of the story…I’d also like to hear Sam’s juvenile humor version of the songs though haha 🙈
Me too hahahaha
Tobias posted something on his avantasia FB page in response
If you didn't tell me Tobias was singing it I would have thought Rob did a duet. Crazy vocal talent!!!
The first time I hear your band I had taken some bad ac1d that made me feel like I was permanently stuck to the inside of a wall socket.
8 am they played through the fire and the flames. I certainly hated every second of it. But that more had to do with the ac1d. Thanks for the memories.
This is such an amazing song. And I really enjoy your energy and positivity, Herman!
Edguy are great, I think their best album by far is Mandrake. When you mentioned him sounding like Bruce Dickinson, it really shines through on 'All the Clowns', the first part of that song could be Bruce singing for them.
It's a shame Edguy has been somewhat put aside for the time being, although I can understand it's sad having nothing new from them.
Tobias is more inspired by Geoff Tate rather than Bruce Dickinson
No, Tobias has always been a big Helloween fan, and his singing style is so similar to and influenced by Michael Kiske. Kiske is also a regular guest singer on the Avantasia albums. And we can be happy about this, because there was a time when Michael was fed up with metal but Tobias kind of brought him back. Also Kai Hansen, co-founder, guitarist and singer on the the first Helloween album, appeared on the Avantasia albums. I really loved that Tobias convinced his own idols to work him back in the mid 90s.
@@1BioMarco lol, who do you think Kiske copied his style from? No one got more inspired by Tate than Kiske himself :D Tobias said more than once that Geoff started it all, for example go listen the video "Avantasia - Seduction Of Decay - Live @ Z7, Pratteln (CH), 28.06.2017"
I saw the London show on this tour, which I believe was Sabaton's first tour as well, and due to a BnB snafu my friends and I had to trek across the whole city in a taxi. We got to the Astoria just as Sabaton were finishing, and I kinda forgot about them for years afterwards and then suddenly they were one of the biggest metal bands on the planet! It was a great show all the same, and if there was any friction it did not come through in the performances \m/
Avantasia is awesome. Been listening to them for over a decade now and love most of their stuff!
You're both good guys. And it's good to see this respectful brotherhood. I was in Paris on this unforgettable tour where i discovered and fell in love with DragonForce. Since I first came for missed Edguy. Hail to two great bands!
Love Tobi, Love Avantasia, Love Eguy, Love Sabaton, Love DragonForce! What a show that must have been to see!
Would be cool if Tobi came on to tell some stories with you Herman.
New Avantasia Song slays! You nailed it. Ralf and Tobi on this track remind me of the Halford song "The one you love to Hate" with God, I mean Bruce.
I love Edguy and Avantasia. The most recent song Avantasia did that I LOVE was "Raven Child" (2019) because it featured Hansi Kursch. Did you ever meet Hansi? I love Demons and Wizards and Blind Guardian. You mentioned a lot of great bands. Sabaton is an excellent band. I'm a huge fan of theirs too. Angra is another band I love. Almost every band you mentioned are great bands. :) Welp, edited this comment because someone said Tobias already responded to your inquiry.
do you know where we can find the response?
When I interviewed Herman backstage at Wacken ages ago he was ALWAYS walking around with a Blind Guardian T-shirt, so, yes, he knows Hansi... who is a great guy as well, I actually did my 80-page NLP thesis on him and Markus and I were in constant contact. That being said, Demons & Wizards were amazing, but I seriously doubt we'll ever see a D&W record again after the moronic and serously fucked up stuff Jon pulled during the Capital riots... I interviewed Jon years before that and I gotta say... it didn't surprise me all too much.
I totally agree that part. Tobias is really good at making Rock Opera stuffs!!! And the guitarist is Sascha Paeth
It could have been Andre Mattos that talked about it to you. He was the lead singer and a pianist/keyboard on Angra and he also sang a few times with Avantasia. Sadly he passed away in 2019.
I don't think Herman would forget André's name, since he was someone very meaningful in the Heavy Metal scene. Maybe it was Rafael or Kiko himself. Anyway, by 2006, André was in Shaman and he left later that year.
There's a lot of things I was thinking while watching this, and absolutely none of those things were "Bruce Dickinson".
Makes sense with Ralf Scheepers, he clearly has modelled his style after Rob Halford, and in fact left Gamma Ray to audition for Judas Priest after Halford left, forming Primal Fear when Priest ultimately decided to go with Ripper Owens.
But I don't hear any of Bruce in Tobias Sammett whatsoever. Not even close.
Also, going to be highly disappointed if the new DragonForce album isn't called Grandad's Ballbag.
As Herman points out, to the untrained ear it does sound similar. Most classic metal fans I play Avantasia for think he sounds like Dickinson.
@@adaher Maiden and Avantasia are probably my top 2 bands of all time, and I wouldn't say Tobi has a Dickinson edge to him really, aside from the influence that Bruce has on all of power metal, which is hard to ignore
My opinion is that Tobias RESEMBLES Bruce Dickinson, but Tobias's and Bruce's singing styles are different.
I think the first time I heard that Tobias sounded like Bruce was in an interview w/ Arjen Lucassen from Ayreon. He had Bruce as a guest in one of his albums and he mentioned something about Tobias sounding like Bruce.
As for Ralf Scheepers, he sounds like Halford so much that he auditioned to replace him in Priest, but Tim "Ripper" Owens was chosen instead.
@@Aleph3575 Eventually, Tobias appeared as a guest on Ayreon's album The Source... So, I wouldn't say that nothing came out of the Elected EP.
Met the band during the hellfire tour at a V.I.P meet. All the band members were amazing guys except Tobias didnt want to be there and stood in a corner while we played pool. Think the dude was shocked at how small the crowd was during the Aus tour. Was like coming to a backwater convict land.
Huge fan of especially the first 2 albums and The Mystery of Time. But most of all am I a huge fan of Sammet himself, both as a singer and songwriter/composer.
Edguy and DragonForce were my jams back in high school. I remember seeing DragonForce first US tour when they played The Agora in Cleveland. Edguy and Kamelot played Peabody's in 2008. Those were the good old power metal days!
STILL WAITING FOR YALL TO CO E TO LEXINGTON KY SO I CAN MOSH FOR YA IN FRONT OF MY HOMETOWN 🤘 IF you remember me from Columbus you know I'm always down just gotta gimme the open door. Also I just love how you appreciate his music even after saying you felt like he hated you. So much respect for your sense of respect lol.
Big fan of you and Tobias since 2002!
I really like Dragonforce as well , But Avantasia is my favorite band. Each new album is a masterpiece.
you know it takes real guts to go back and reconsider the past mistakes a let alone admit it and even say sorry even without actually know the fault,the essence of being human in this case a Man.
Avantasia is a great band with amazing theatrics. Ghost in the Moon is an amazing song. They lean more towards hard rock than power metal at times, but you should check out Edguy, his other works.
His lyrics though, they don't often make sense.
Yes Avantasia is top
The first time I heard Avantasia I knew I needed more, ever since Avantasia has been my favorite "band" if that words fits them.
Ayreon is the top of the rock concept album. In my opinion, I do like both groups.
Tobi is my all time favourite lyricist, he's a genius. Avantasia hasn't released a single song that I don't love, they're all so different. I've discovered sooo many new singers and bands through Avantasia and looking up who his guests are and their bands.
oh I know right?
finding avantasia was absolutely game changing for me
I was listening to some random metal, and the scarecrow came on, since I forgot autoplay was on
And god DAMN was that influental
they're fucking awesome, the lyrics are cool, the imagery is cool, the ideas are all super cool
I love Avantasia and think Metal Opera part 1 and 2 still are the best albums 🤘😎🤘
Heya Herman 🫶💖🙏. Vain Glory Opera was Edguy's 2nd album (first with Felix on Drums). The first album from Edguy was Kingdom of madness. A lighter album with single kick drum but still classic (to me) 💖🤘.
Saw you guys on that tour, somewhere in scotland(glasgow maybe?). No idea that was going on in the background, so this comes as a surprise! But it was a great show. Was there to see you guys but also liked edguy from before, never heard of them sabaton fellows(but after the fact figured they may be going places) and then it was just 3 amazing and fun live bands one after another!
I remember that tour from 2006, seen you in cologne. That was a great evening. Time flies...
Tobi is just amazing at squeezing out everything that a person's voice can do. Man, if Freddie Mercury was alive and he guest starred in Avantasia...
Tobi sounds like "wait... I can hire Michael Kiske? Hell yeah, but he's not doing only backing vocals."
Huge fan of Avantasia. Also partly because Kiske did so many vocals on it, for decades I thought they where better than Helloween was after him and Hansen left. Lol, now I have to listen to some Gammaray again today. :)
Would love to hear you and Tobi talk the tour and also your composition philosophies. A singer's and guitarist's perspectives would make a great discussion.
Man, this takes me back!! I think it was 2006, maybe? Edguy and DragonForce on stage! That was one hell of a concert
story starts at 10:39
For anyone that likes metal opera, you should check out "Aina -- days of rising doom".
Probably my favorite metal opera album.
Wtf how many guitars do you own? Love your channel and content Herman li.
I love Avantasia and Edguy, i was on that 2006 european tour, where i learned about you (inhuman rampage) and Sabaton (Primo Victoria). It's still one of my favourite concerts ever, fu**ing seriously great.
Nice video man.
i know this story from my brothers side, he was a guitar tech for edguy . all i can rember that he was very pissed about the "arrogant" behavior by the dragonforce crew or something like that.
Dragonforce and Avantasia are my top two favorites in the power metal genre. Y'all got magic in your songs.
Hi there Herman Li, in my opinion, who "gave" indirectly the Metal Opera idea to Tobias was Brazilian singer André Matos from Viper, Angra, Shaman, etc... But Freddie Mercury and Queen started "The Rock Opera"! Yeah huge hug and you rock! ;)
I remember your tour manager from back at that time being like one of the lads from boys brigade who had found his dad's whiskey stash 😂
The funny lyrics were something that happened for all 3 bands on that tour though as Primo Victoria became "Teabag your grandma"
Avantasia is great! But for "metal-opera" i still prefer Ayreon!
Early Avantasia/Edguy Was fucking incredible. Tobi went a little too, "commercial" for my liking with both bands, especially Avantasia at some point but that last Avantasia song was sick and brought me right back to the Scarecrow days and before.
well...co-pioneer (at best). Have you never heard of Ayreon (by Arjen Lucassen)? He's the real pioneer of prog/rock/metal opera.
Oh yeah, I think Heavenly toured with Edguy in France for the album Mandrake. I totally had forgot about them, they were quite alright.
Avantasia & Edguy are awesome! Would love to hear Tobias Sammet’s version of the story! DragonForce touring with Edguy / Avantasia, would be a dream come true! Great tour story! Thank you for sharing!
Man when the song started i could hear some sort of king diamond , its sick
I fucking love Avantasia and Edguy. My fav songs from both bands are:
Avantasia - Chalice of Agony
Edguy: Theater of Salvation
Crazy to hear about Sabaton BUYING onto a tour only 14 years ago to now headlining some of the biggest festivals and venues around the world... Buying onto tours is what kills off alot of bands though, back in the day my old band was offered a few European dates with Motorhead and Anthrax.. 20k just to play. Nothing else included, just literally to play and be on the line up.
It was probably the right move though! I was lucky enough to see one of the shows on that tour and Sabaton came out of nowhere(I hadn't heard of them but was there to see df and hyped to also see edguy at the same time) but sabaton blasting into primo victoria there immediately changed my impression from them from "some opener" to "hey these guys are going places"
Decir que alguna de las dos bandas es mejor que la otra sería un error 🤷🏻♂️ las dos son magníficas y influyen positivamente en mi estado de animo😊 hay días en que mi alma solo está para escuchar y sentir Avantasia otros días solo quiere escuchar y sentir Dragon force. Y algunos días está para escuchar Scorpions 🤷🏻♂️ y así sucesivamente con muchas otras bandas que al igual que Avantasia y dragon force son únicas... Gracias dragón force por todo lo que aportas y gracias Avantasia por todo lo que también haz aportado 😌 son los mejores.. y la anécdota que cuentas solo es historia😂 cosas que pasan hasta en las mejores familias 😂.. y suerte leyendo en español 😂😂
Thank you for sharing this story. agree the actions sound juvenile and you presented the story in a balanced way; I see Tobias already gave a classy response on Facebook so a nice parlay all-round!
I saw the Edguy/Dragonforce show at Astoria, London in 2006. I had gone there to see Edguy, as I had no idea what Dragonforce's music was like. I stayed for the whole show and yes, then I began to follow Dragonforce too. Good memories!
I will be on a Avantasia concert in a couple of weeks. If I will get a chance, I will tell him 🙂
I randomly stumbled across Avantasia very long ago and through this I have found my favorite artist Jorn Lande. I've been to 1 concert from Avantasia and it was the BEST. I've always appreciated the lyrical depth and love for detail also in the compositions and use of instruments. Tobias is a very creative guy and writes the best lyrics, melodies and songs overall. Though, I've never been a big fan of Tobias singing voice I absolutely love their songs. I think my favorite is Lucifer or Piper at the Gates of Dawn. I'm sure YT suggested me Avantasia back in the day because I was listening to so much DragonForce ;)
I know what you were talking about when you said he sounded like Rob Harlford, because the first name I thought when I heard it was Tim Ripper
Maybe a little King Diamond/Merciful Fate in there too when he's really in the operatic parts of the song. I heard it, but I could just be grasping
I totally remember this tour man, seen you guys play in Edinburgh! Had a warm up party the day before, me and the lads randomly hired a limo to take us to the gig so we could get wasted on the way into town in style ...when we pulled up outside the Liquid Rooms everyone thought we were you guys lmfao.
I was rough as fuuuuuucccckkk at the gig, spent the entirely of Sabaton's set in the toilet trying to cling onto the walls lmfao. Also a fan of Heavenly, Dust to Dust was an awesome album ...was a wee bit gutted Fred wasn't on the next Heavenly album btw, think he really added some meat to their sound, Virus was still epic without him but wasn't as heavy?
Good sport bringing up the issues with Edguy man, be nice is Tobias was cool about things and possibly you guys could do a fun interview?? Especially with the new Avantasia album due out!
Tobi has been a pioneer and still continues to do amazing work
Metal opera makes me think of Kamelot's Roy Khan era.
I love avantasia , they were in my hometown many years ago. Hoping they coming again to Canada soon
Looks like everything is all good.
Glad to hear it, because Avantasia and DragonForce are easily my top bands. Moonglow was a phenomenal album.
Would definitely like to see the two interacting more.
Oh no I love Avantasia. I remember hearing the tower for the first time in highschool high out of my mind when my friend’s older brother was listening to it and it blowing my mind.
Avantasia and Ayreon are amazing operas. The first Avantasia album was The Metal Opera
I love edguy and avantasia, awesome stuff,
How about Luca Turilli - Kingdom of the Nordic Twilight? Is that considered a metal opera?
Hi Herman,
There is a lot to be said for your marketing rant there, I would say without your hard work and activism to promote DF I wouldn't be a current fan.
I also just subscribed because I didn't realize I hadn't, your youtube vids are always entertaining.
I obviously can't say how well your marketing has worked but I would say 1.19M to 71k subscribers does illustrate that quite well.
I know at least personally speaking that you roped me back in with Extreme Power Metal even though I only loved Valley of the Damned.
That just wouldn't have happened without your online presence.
I'm not slamming Tobi either because Edguy and Avantasia are awesome. Hopefully you guys can work together in the future.
Cheers
I also like the first album most, for me its nostalgia also. Funny how i came to your vits from a reaction video, NEVEr heard anyone spoke about avastasia before.
I've seen Sonata Arctica's tour videos and yup Herman is preaching truth here.
2006 Live Music Hall, Cologne: Sabaton, Dragonforce, Edguy: Best concert ever! 🤘🧒🤘
I love dragonforce so much (i can't wait to see you with powerwolf in Paris) and I like Avantasia and Edguy too. And yeah a reply from Tobias should be great. It should be awesome to see all the dragonforce's guys in Avantasia