Blind Guardian
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 Blind Guardian facts

• They are often credited as one of the seminal and most influential bands in the power metal and speed metal subgenres
• Ten musicians have been a part of the band's line-up in its history, which has consisted of singer Hansi Kürsch, guitarists André Olbrich and Marcus Siepen, and drummer Frederik Ehmke since 2005
• Blind Guardian is a part of the German heavy metal scene that emerged in the mid-1980s
• The band was formed in 1984 as Lucifer's Heritage by Kürsch (then also bass guitarist), Olbrich, other guitarist Markus Dörk and drummer Thomas Stauch
• Dörk and Stauch both left the following year, and were replaced by Christof Theißen and Hans-Peter Frey respectively, who left as well before the end of the year
• In 1987, Siepen joined and Stauch returned; under this line-up, which lasted 18 years (the longest in the band's history), the band changed their name to Blind Guardian and released their first album, Battalions of Fear, in 1988
• Over the releases, Blind Guardian established themselves as a notable successful band and as pioneers of the power metal movement
• In 1996, Kürsch stopped acting as the band's bass guitarist to focus on vocals
• Various session members replaced him, mainly Oliver Holzwarth
• However, in 2005, Stauch left the band, disapproving of Blind Guardian's transition into a more complex progressive sound with a heavy use of backing vocals, and was replaced by Ehmke