Metal Reviews

It's out in the wild guys

IMO, after one spin it's mediocre and very similar to previous album.
Didn't expect anything really, just hoped for something better.

Well if it's similar to the last album then it will be kick ass!

...just listened to it once. It's a very solid album, not at all mediocre as the poster above wrote. I 'm getting sick of people bitching about albums that are good and solid... I mean what do you expect? another Kotsk like the one back in '88?... But I don't fault directly the poster above, it seems like today ,in the more "crowded" genres like melo-death and powermetal everybody expects a "new Messiah" of an album, "the album to end all albums" and dismisses everything else as mediocre or unoriginal. (I have this gripe also with the new Compos Menthis,but this story on another forum)
To return to the album: The first thing I observed is a more pronouced use of keyboards and orchestration (don't be afraid it's not Kamelot ). Also Dani Loeble does a perfect job on the drums, i like him a lot, he reminds me very much of Uli Kusch my favourite Helloween drummer.
The first song remind me a little bit of Push from the Better Than Raw album.IMO this album is better than KOTSK 3, it's better structured, the songs are all solid with highlights like Dreambound, Paint a new world,Kill it ...
I'm very pleased with this release which I rate as second/third best in the Deris era after The Dark Ride and The Time Of the Oath.My rating for this one is a solid 85.

1. Crack The Riddle (Intro)
2. Kill It
3. The Saints
4. As Long As I Fall
5.Paint A New World
6. Final Fortune
7. The Beels Of The Seven Hells
8. Fallen To Pieces
9. I.M.E.
10. Can Do It
11. Dreambound
12. Heaven Tells No Lies

I wil listen to it on the way to work this morning and I will report back on it.

It's "bells". The ripper who distributed the mp3s made a mistake, let's not repeat it.

It's not like the last album because the last album was fairly unique in the Helloween catalog. Stop downloading music, maybe you'll listen better when you have to actually work for it.

However, it is Helloween, and you know what you're going to get. But "Kill It" should blow you away. Heaviest Helloween song to date.

I'll be getting it end of next month when it's released. They still release good albums even with so many changes in the band.

Well, you're in for a long sick ride then mate, because people rate their music subjectively and something "solid and good" for you is bleak and unexcited for another. Regardless, it didn't excite me whatsoever unlike some previous albums and I shared my opinion.



I always try out my music before I buy it and it doesn't affect my senses. This is a ridiculous thing to say.

@Allanon: I already said that this is not pointed directly at you, it's more of a general problem, so don't take it personally. And if you are saying that it's mediocre, please explain what exactly did you find so mediocre about this album.? vocals, songwriting, instrumentation, general ideas? I'm not trying to change your opinion, but I think you just wrote your first impression down, and with time, it could change.

@Afro Lint:Downloading doesn't affect one's judging of music. And "working" for an album does not enhance or diminish its quality. We all download, AND we also BUY music, because that's one BIG way to support the artists. But, as GALDAR (OMC) said in an interview, downloading is ok for getting the music to the masses, after that if you like it you buy it. I for myself will surely buy this HELLOWEEN album, as I did with lots of other albums that I downloaded and liked.
P.S. My BIGGEST problem is: I like A LOT of music and I'm no millionaire...Go figure :):)

Mate, this is exactly what I've written in the first post. After one spin, i.e. after listening to each song once, I found the album solid but not groundbreaking/earthshuttering/exciting in any possible way for me. I translate this to mediocre work that doesn't stand head and shoulders above even their previous albums not to mention others in the genre. That's just my take on it, after one spin. Obviously, if I'll ever get to listening to it again, my opinion might change.

Just to make it clear, the point of the post was to inform all the interested parties that they can demo the music to decide whether to buy it later or not and not to bring my opinion to the masses.

The songwriting is at the high Helloween standard you'd expect, however, I am suprised to say that this is probably the worst production they ever done. This is by far the worst vocal performance of Andy Deris in Helloween. His vocals are left too much in the background and they do not sound otherwise either sound even closesly as powerful and strong as in Kotsk3. What the heck are those Halford wannabe screams on Kill It? Deris has not suitable vocals for this kind of screams, making it really sound rather pathetic. The other thing that really shocked me is the lack of bass. Grosskopf is one of the best bassists in metal, but where the heck is the bass on this album?!?! Has Grosskopf left the band or something???

I was very suprised to read that it was Charlie Bauerfeind that produced this album since this does not at all sound like his productions. Charlie usually produce albums with a thick and solid sound, but this lack of thiness, mostly due to lack of bassguitar and too weak vocals.

Ok, its not really that bad, but at Helloween standards the production really blows. I really hope that this release is a demo and not the fully mastered version since I do not like the production at all. On the bright side is that we once again has some amazing songwriting and very catchy and memorable choriouses and some nice guitar work, even though I had hopen for more twin guitar solos. The songwriting is not bad and I am sure that at least live many of these new songs will kick some serious ass

Well, I just heard KIll It and thought it was awesome. I'm getting this tomorrow... err I mean when it comes out.

@Allanon: It's ok, I didn't read your post very carefully, and to be honest, the word mediocre just "jumped" in my eyes, considering I had a very good opinion about the album after my first spin.

About the production, it didn't seem so bad. I mean compared to the awfull production Helloween had on TTOTO and BTR, this one seems clear and pristine. And Deris tried the screams earlier on BTR on the song PUSH, so it's not THAT far out for him to use them. But it's true that the vocals don't stand out, and he seems to use his falsetto/whine a little bit too much on some songs, and we all know he can't control that in a convincing manner.(just listen to Halloween on the Live album in the chorus where he uses that falsetto.) This version that leaked is an early one so let's hope they fix the production problems (if there are any to each his own)

I don't know this ain't all that good after a couple of spins...
And this is coming from a Helloween fan. But I'll def listen to it more..

I just heard the new album and it kicks ass. I hear little of The Dark Ride in this, mostly in the intro and overall dark feel, which is good since TDR is my fav. Helloween album. I don't know why some people were complaining about Deris vocals or the production, both sound great to me. The only song I don't like so far is The Saints. It reminds me All Over The Nations from TDR, which was the only song that didn't fit on that album. And it could have been a lot shorter. Helloween release much better music than your average pm band. It's fresh and interesting so even if it's not groundbreaking you know it's going to be worth it.

I actually really like this album. It's growing on me more and more with each listen. And The Saints fucking owns!

It's a killer album. Deris-era > Kiske/that other guy-era.

That other guy would be Kai "Power Metal" Hansen, cretin.

I'm looking forward to this...can't believe its been 2 years since Keeper III came out. Whats that about?

I'm just going to wait for it to come out instead of downloading for a change.

This is my album of the year so far. So damn awesome this is. Deris sounds better than ever.

Ahah, i had to quote this.
Because, I saw that when it was first posted, but I didn't tell anything, because I HAD to listen it more than one time me too.

because you HAVE TO listen it 3, 8, 25 times in two days like I did.
Analyse each song, study the structure of each (yea Helloween is my fav band).

then...
you can realize that The Saints is just EXCELLENT.
That Kill It is refreshing and delicious.
That 7 Bells is not the best.
That EVERY song is enjoyable, even the cheesy As Long as I fall!

Can do It, Dreambound, with its gorgeous neo-classical sounding harmonies, Heaven tells no lies, FINAL FORTUNE! wow!

This album is great, greater after each listens, the greatest of the year, and the best of Helloween so far, in my opinion.

Can't wait to see a Metalreviews review!
hehe.