Edguy

Edguy is a power metal^{Heavy metal music} band from Fulda, Germany that was formed in 1992.

Edguy was founded in 1992 by 14-year-old students Tobias Sammet, Jens Ludwig, Dirk Sauer, and Dominik Storch. The name "Edguy" was an affectionate epithet for Mr. Edgar Siedschlag, their math teacher at the time.

After two demo^{Demo (music)}s the band received a contract with AFM Records in 1995. Their first two albums were not very successful, but with Vain Glory Opera in 1998 they achieved a breakthrough, thanks in part to production (and additional lead guitar work) by Timo Tolkki of Stratovarius, as well as guest vocals by Hansi Kürsch of Blind Guardian. After another two albums they received a contract with the German label Nuclear Blast in 2004.

In 2001, Tobias Sammet released the first album of his side project Avantasia, a wide-scope metal opera including the participation of many well-known heavy metal musicians and vocalists.

Since signing with Nuclear Blast, Edguy has released two full-length albums, followed by their latest, Tinnitus Sanctus, and has extended their contract for three more albums.

Edguy has agreed to be Wacken Open Air tour held in Wacken in Schleswig-Holstein, northern Germany. This festival includes more than 60 bands and is one of the biggest summer heavy metal tours in the world.Edguy's lyrics are often metaphorical, alluding to metaphysical or social themes: conformity ("The Headless Game", "Mysteria", "King of Fools"), dictation by the church^{Catholic 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^esotericism and hermetic^hermeticism 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^{Hellfire Club (album)} 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 traditional heavy metal^{heavy metal music} approach being embraced. The band's album, Rocket Ride, features even less symphonic^{symphonic metal} and power metal elements, and is arguably more oriented towards hard rock. Their latest album, Tinnitus Sanctus, contains even more hard rock oriented songs, as the obvious lack of double bass drumming is evident, in contrast Edguy's older albums such as Vain Glory Opera.
Current members

*Tobias Sammet – vocals^singer (1992-present), bass guitar (1992-1998)
*Jens Ludwig – lead guitar (1992-present)
*Dirk Sauer – rhythm guitar (1992-present)
*Tobias Exxel – bass guitar (1998-present)
*Felix Bohnke – drums^{drum kit} (1998-present)

Former members

*Dominik Storch – drums (1992-97)

Guest performers

*Frank Lindenthal – drums (session musician) on Vain Glory Opera
*Andy Allendorfer – backing vocals on Vain Glory Opera
*Ralf Zdiarstek – backing vocals on Vain Glory Opera
*Hansi Kürsch – vocals on Vain Glory Opera
*Timo Tolkki – guitar on Vain Glory Opera
*Frank Tischer - piano on The Savage Poetry
*Markus Schmitt - backing vocals on The Savage Poetry
*Mille Petrozza - vocals on Hellfire Club^{Hellfire Club (album)}
*Michael Kiske - vocals on Superheroes^{Superheroes (EP)}
Demos

*Evil Minded (1994)
*Children of Steel (1994)
* Savage Poetry (1995)

Studio albums

Live albums

*Burning Down the Opera (2003)
**** With Fire - Live (2009)

Singles

* "La Marche Des Gendarmes" (Enhanced Cardsleeve, 2001)
* "Painting on the Wall" (2001)
* "Lavatory Love Machine" (2004)

EPs

* King of Fools^{King of Fools (EP)} (2004)
* Superheroes^{Superheroes (EP)} (2005)

Compilation albums

*Hall of Flames (2004)
*The Singles^{The Singles (Edguy album)} (2008)

Videos

*"All the Clowns" (2001)
*"King of Fools" (2004)
*"Lavatory Love Machine" (2004)
*"Superheroes" (2005)
*"Ministry of Saints" (2008)

DVDs

*"Superheroes DVD" (2005)
**** With Fire - Live (2009)