HANSI KÜRSCH - BLIND GUARDIAN - On album art for A NIGHT AT THE OPERA, and fantasy in heavy metal.

Hansi Kürsch, lead singer of legendary German power metal band Blind Guardian, discusses the album artwork of A Night at the Opera, the relationship between Heavy Metal and Fantasy literature, art and games, and more. After changing the sound and style a bit for their follow up to Nightfall in Middle Earth, they turned to painter Paul Raymond Gregory for a cover art work. It was a real pleasure to spend so much time with Hansi at the Blind Guardian studios in the German countryside, and our shared love of Tolkein, fantasy and heavy metal was a joy to discuss with him.