The Vision, the Sword and the Pyre – Part I

Contents
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
ArtRock[1]
Background Magazine[2]
Get Ready to Rock![3]
HellfireFavorable[4]
Musik Reviews[5]
PowerMetal.de[6]
progVisions[7]
ProgwereldFavorable[8]
Rock Hard[9]
Rocking.grFavorable[10]
RockmachineUnfavorable[11]
Sea of Tranquility[12]

The Vision, the Sword and the Pyre – Part I is the eighteenth studio album by German rock band Eloy, released in 2017.

It is the first part of a rock opera about the life of Jeanne d'Arc, the realization of which had been a wish of frontman Frank Bornemann's since the 1990s.[13] The second and final[14] part of the concept was released in 2019.

Bornemann described the research that led to the rock opera's realization as follows: "I actually really did invest a lot of time in getting this work off the ground. There were many conversations with qualified historians to get the details of her story and I read countless works of literature, even the documents on the legal process in order to get a profound knowledge. Naturally, I visited all the locations and places of significance to her story -and that really inspired me and gave me deep insight into the events, which can't be gained from reading books alone."[15]

Practical proof that Bornemann's interest in Jeanne d'Arc dates back to the 90s is that she had already appeared in Eloy's music twice during that decade: firstly in Destination with the song "Jeanne d'Arc", and secondly in The Tides Return Forever, where the song "Company of Angels" is dedicated to her.[16]

Track listing

All lyrics and music by Frank Bornemann.

Personnel

All information according to the album's liner notes, numbers in parentheses indicate specific tracks.

Charts

Chart (2017)Peak position
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[17]22
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[18]46
UK Progressive Albums (Official Charts)[19]27

References

  1. 1.Horyszny, Paweł (1 September 2017). "Eloy — The Vision, The Sword and the Pyre, Part I". ArtRock.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  2. 2.van Os, Erik. "Eloy – The Vision, The Sword And The Pyre (Part 1)". Background Magazine. Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  3. 3.Geesin, Joe (17 August 2017). "Album review: ELOY – The Vision, The Sword and The Pyre (Part 1)". Get Ready to Rock!. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  4. 4.Sieger, Gernot. "Eloy – The Vision, The Sword And The Pyre (Part 1)". Hellfire-Magazin (in German). Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  5. 5.Schiffmann, Andreas. "Eloy: The Vision, The Sword And The Pyre (Review)". musikreviews.de (in German). Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  6. 6.Backes, Björn. "ELOY – The Vision, The Sword And The Pyre – Part 1". powermetal.de (in German). Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  7. 7.Fledderus, Douwe (September 2017). "Eloy – The Vision, The Sword and The Pyre (Part 1) – 2017". progVisions. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  8. 8.Goossensen, Maarten. "Eloy – The Vision, The Sword And The Pyre". Progwereld.org (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  9. 9."ELOY – The Vision, The Sword And The Pyre – Part I". Rock Hard (in German). Holger Stratmann. Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  10. 10.Koukas, Spyros (10 January 2018). "Eloy – The Vision, The Sword And The Pyre (Part I)". Rocking.gr (in Greek). Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  11. 11.Richardos, Alexandros. "ΑΚΟΥΓΟΝΤΑΣ ΤΟ ΚΑΙΝΟΥΡΓΙΟ ΑΛΜΠΟΥΜ ΤΩΝ ELOY". Rockmachine (in Greek). Retrieved 3 September 2024.
  12. 12.Pardo, Pete (20 January 2018). "Eloy: The Vision, the Sword and the Pyre (Part 1)". Sea of Tranquility. Retrieved 9 July 2018.
  13. 13."Eloy | MIG". Mig. Retrieved 9 July 2019.
  14. 14.Fatouros, Dimitrios (21 October 2019). "Home / Interviews / Eloy". Grande Rock. Retrieved 9 September 2024. part 2 of "The Vision the Sword and the Pyre" completes the work
  15. 15.Buzzetta, Tomm. "Interviews 2: Frank Bornemann". Creative Tech Nerds. Retrieved 9 September 2024.
  16. 16.Bornemann, Frank (August 2023). "Eloy – Biography". German Rock e.V. (in German). Retrieved 30 August 2024.
  17. 17."Offiziellecharts.de – Eloy – The Vision, The Sword And The Pyre - Part I" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved May 21, 2025.
  18. 18."Swisscharts.com – Eloy – The Vision, The Sword And The Pyre - Part I". Hung Medien. Retrieved May 21, 2025.
  19. 19."Official Progressive Albums Chart on 12/10/2017 – Top 30". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 21, 2025.