German medieval metallers Saltatio Mortis recently released their new album, Finsterwacht, which includes special guests Hansi Kürsch (Blind Guardian), Cristina Scabbia (Lacuna Coil), Peyton Parrish and Tina Guo. Kürsch recorded vocals for the title track and it's English counterpart, "Darkenguard", and now Blind Guardian have shared a new recording session video accompanied by the following message:

"The song 'Darkenguard' – the English version of 'Finsterwacht' – has been out for a good week and a half now. Hand on heart, how often have you played the song on loop, whether it was the German or English version?"

 

Following is an overview of Finsterwacht  from Saltatio Mortis:

"The original idea to publish 1-2 songs at the start of our castle tour, we threw it over the pile nicely! Terrified by our own creativity, we have been working more and more over the past weeks and months... and now we can lace you up a really fat package:

Eleven new songs, from hard to soft, it's all there. It's rocking, there are virtuoso bagpipes and great choruses to sing along to. However, the gentle, almost fragile sounds also find their place on this album - just like traditional folk-medieval sounds, which may, above all, make the fans' hearts beat faster for the first hour. And because we were simply in the mood, we thematically engaged in our passion for fantasy and role-playing games. Released is an exciting concept album in the cosmos by DSA, Das Schwarze Auge, that pushes the boundaries between worlds and is not only for fantasy and role-playing nerds. If you just want to enjoy the music, this is the place to be. 

Have we already mentioned that we have the Prague Symphony Orchestra with us on some of the songs? And lots of great musical guests? Yup we do. Let yourselves be surprised!

Dive into the next adventure with us! See you at the Finsterwatch!"

Tracklist: 

"⁠Finsterwacht" (feat. Hansi Kürsch/Blind Guardian)
"⁠⁠Schwarzer Strand" (feat. Faun)
"⁠Vogelfrei"
"⁠Grimwulf" (Interlude)
"Der Himmel Muss Warten"
"Aurelia"
"⁠We Might Be Giants" (feat. Cristina Scabbia & Peyton Parrish)
"Feuer und Erz"
"⁠Genug Getrunken" (feat. Knasterbart)
"⁠Carry Me" (feat. Tina Guo)
"⁠Oh Treues Herz"