Age of the Joker
2011 studio album by Edguy
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Age of the Joker is the ninth studio album by the German power metal band Edguy. It was released on 26 August 2011 through Nuclear Blast.
| Age of the Joker | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Cover art by Dan Frazier | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 26 August 2011 | |||
| Recorded | Peppermint-Park, Hannover Gate Studio, Wolfsburg, Germany, April–May 2011 | |||
| Genre | Power metal, hard rock | |||
| Length | 65:34 | |||
| Label | Nuclear Blast | |||
| Producer | Sascha Paeth | |||
| Edguy chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Blabbermouth.net | 8/10[2] |
| Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles | 7.5/10[3] |
| The Metal Critic |  [4] |
| Metal Hammer (GER) | [5] |
| Metal Storm | [6] |
| Time For Metal Magazin (GER) | [7] |
Alongside the normal release, a double disc digipak edition was also issued, featuring b-sides, single versions of two album songs, as well as a cover of the Slade hit "Cum on Feel the Noize".[8] A music video was shot for "Robin Hood", featuring German comedian Bernhard Hoecker and parodying the film The Adventures of Robin Hood.[9]
The album was listed at many charts throughout Europe, reaching No. 3 in Germany, No. 10 in Czech Republic, No. 13 in Switzerland, No. 30 in Austria and No. 63 in France.[10]
Critical reception
In a review for AllMusic, critic reviewer Jon O'Brien wrote: "Age of the Joker makes little concession to anything remotely close to the 21st century, but it's difficult to dislike a record that both wears its retro intentions so boldly on its sleeve and displays a sense of humor that's lacking in many of their fellow over-earnest hair metal revivalists."[1]
Track listing
All lyrics are written by Tobias Sammet except for "Cum on Feel the Noize" by Noddy Holder; all music is composed by Tobias Sammet except for "God Fallen Silent" by Jens Ludwig and "Cum on Feel the Noize" by Noddy Holder and Jim Lea.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Robin Hood" | 8:24 |
| 2. | "Nobody's Hero" | 4:31 |
| 3. | "Rock of Cashel" | 6:18 |
| 4. | "Pandora's Box" | 6:45 |
| 5. | "Breathe" | 5:03 |
| 6. | "Two Out of Seven" | 4:27 |
| 7. | "Faces in the Darkness" | 5:22 |
| 8. | "The Arcane Guild" | 4:58 |
| 9. | "Fire on the Downline" | 5:47 |
| 10. | "Behind the Gates to Midnight World" | 8:56 |
| 11. | "Every Night Without You" | 4:52 |
| Total length: | 65:34 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "God Fallen Silent" | 5:04 |
| 2. | "Aleister Crowley Memorial Boogie" | 4:34 |
| 3. | "Cum on Feel the Noize" | 3:53 |
| 4. | "Standing in the Rain" | 4:02 |
| 5. | "Robin Hood [Single Version]" | 4:54 |
| 6. | "Two Out of Seven [Single Version]" | 3:39 |
Personnel
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Chart positions
| Chart (2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[12] | 30 |
| Belgian Heatseekers (Ultratop Flanders)[13] | 9 |
| Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[14] | 72 |
| Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[15] | 15 |
| French Albums (SNEP)[16] | 98 |
| German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[17] | 3 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon)[18] | 74 |
| Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[19] | 29 |
| Spanish Albums (Promusicae)[20] | 44 |
| Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[21] | 10 |
| Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[22] | 13 |
| UK Independent Albums (OCC)ERROR in "UKIndependent": Invalid date format. Expected: YYYYMMDD or YYYY-MM-DD.[23] | 35 |
| UK Rock & Metal Albums (OCC)[24] | 14 |
| US Top Heatseekers Albums (Billboard)[25] | 22 |