Awaken The Guardian

About

"Awaken the Guardian" is the third studio album by American progressive metal band Fates Warning, released in 1986 through Metal Blade Records. It was the band's first album to enter the US Billboard 200, peaking at number 191 and remaining on the chart for four weeks. It was also the first Fates Warning album to feature guitarist Frank Aresti and the last to feature original vocalist John Arch, who was replaced by Ray Alder for the band's subsequent album, "No Exit" (1988). "Awaken the Guardian" has been reissued several times. The first reissue appeared in 1992 as part of a double album with "No Exit", followed by a remastered edition in 1994. A deluxe Digipak edition was released on 28 June 2005, featuring a bonus disc of demos and live recordings, as well as a DVD containing footage of a concert performed on 28 December 1986 at the Sundance Club in Long Island, New York. The concert is the only known video footage of the "Awaken the Guardian" line-up performing live. The album develops the sound established on Fates Warning's previous album, "The Spectre Within" (1985), with greater attention to detail. Decibel described its music as "arcane, literate, doom-laden metal", characterising its guitar riffs as "bewitching knots of magic code". Music journalist Martin Popoff described the album as "a serpentine and doomy metallic journey through prog soundscapes", noting its powerful but relatively straightforward instrumentation and mournful, doom-laden melodies. Robert Taylor of AllMusic considered its song structures too rudimentary to qualify as progressive metal. The album's lyrics explore themes including witchcraft and the devil, using allegorical imagery. Robert Taylor of AllMusic awarded "Awaken the Guardian" three out of five stars, describing it as "a closet classic from the underground metal years of the '80s". He identified "Guardian" as a highlight and, as with "The Spectre Within", recommended the album primarily to heavy metal fans rather than progressive metal enthusiasts, citing its relatively straightforward song structures. Adrien Begrand of PopMatters awarded the 2005 reissue eight out of ten stars, describing it as the best album in Fates Warning's catalogue. He argued that the combination of traditional heavy metal and progressive elements was not subsequently replicated by the band, concluding that the album remained relevant and reinforced Fates Warning's place in metal history. In 2003, Martin Popoff included "Awaken the Guardian" in his book "The Top 500 Heavy Metal Albums of All Time", writing that the album had aged well and potentially improved over time. In 2016, the album was inducted into Decibel magazine's Hall of Fame, where it was ranked at number 134. Jeff Wagner described it as one of the genre's celebrated masterworks. Loudwire ranked it fourth on its list of the "Top 25 Progressive Metal Albums of All Time". In 2017, Fates Warning reunited its 1986 line-up for two festival performances featuring the album performed in its entirety. The performances were subsequently released as a live album. Original vocalist John Arch described the reunion as a surreal experience and expressed gratitude to the fans, family and friends who had supported the band during the three decades since the album's release. The album also influenced other musicians. German power metal band Blind Guardian drew inspiration from "Awaken the Guardian" when changing its name from Lucifer's Heritage. Blind Guardian guitarist Marcus Siepen included the album among ten records that had changed his life, describing it as his favourite album of all time.

via Last.fm