What I noticed most in my first couple of listens was that the keyboards are toned down compared to their previous release - they are still there, but just not as prominent - and that this tends more towards heavy metal than the power metal style.
The album kicks off with the single "Nabataea", continuing the band's tradition of the lengthy album opener to drag you in. The blinding speed of the anthemic "World of War" is reminiscent of any of a number of the best speed metal songs that have been written and performed by Helloween, and really gets the album moving. "Live Now!", while not a bad song, doesn't quite seem to gell with the two opening songs. You tend to bop along with the song rather than bang along with it, if you get my meaning. "Far From the Stars" almost tends to mix pieces of Pink Bubbles Go Ape and Rabbit Don't Come Easy which is no mean feat, but all ends well. "Burning Sun" returns the album to its glory, a great song in all respects, and this is followed by the piano-driven "Waiting for the Thunder", which almost steals the show as one of the best songs on the album. While not losing its identity with the album, it has a great mood and feel that really pushes home the point that this band can do just about anything.
And then, smack bang in the middle of a rocking album comes "Hold Me in Your Arms", the power ballad that not only halts the whole momentum that has been built up by the first half a dozen songs, it just changes the whole listening mood. I'm not suggesting the song is done badly, its just that I can't see the point in moving this rapidly between fast paced action and sit down quietly ballads. This song is a floor-cleaner at the local disco, the song that empties everyone back to their seats. It is certainly no "In the Middle of a Heartbeat".
Following the short and also slightly misplaced "Wanna Be God (Dedicated to Freddie Mercury)", where the lads seem to be doing a Helloween-ish version of "We Will Rock You", the album returns to fourth gear with the title track, "Straight Out of Hell", a classic Helloween happy-guitar song that still has the strength and metal behind it. This is followed by the aptly named "Asshole", a title that immediately can bring together a number of emotions. I mean, how do you approach a song with a title and lyrics like this and do it well without losing credibility? The possibility was there that this song could just become a parody of itself, and even affect the whole album to its detriment if it didn't work. Thankfully that isn't the case. The song is strong enough musically in the first place, and then lyrically it all falls into place, with Andi's marvellously emphatic vocals sealing the song such that it actually ends up lifting the album into a more powerful status.
While to me the back end of the album doesn't quite match the first half, there are still good pieces to it. I think "Years" doesn't quite live up to its predecessors, but both "Make Fire Catch the Fly" and "Church Breaks Down" are good songs, probably deeper lyrically than the actual music around them shows them off to be.
There are two bonus tracks, depending on what format you have purchased, with the rocker "Another Shot of Life" followed by a second version of "Burning Sun" dubbed the Hammond version, as a tribute to Jon Lord of Deep Purple, who had passed away not long before the release of the album.
The fabulous musicianship of the band is in its element on this album, something that is their credit given their length of service. Dani Loble's drumwork is exceptional, pounding through each song at a sometimes exhilarating rate, and the drum sound they have got on this release is fantastic. Sascha Gerstner continues to impress, and his duels with veteran Miki Weikath continue to belt out those happy Helloween guitar tunes that make the band so identifiable. Marcus Grosskopf still gets the most amazing bass riffs out of his guitar, wrapping those enormous hands and fingers into remarkable positions, while Andi Deris has never sounded better than he does here, his vocals still so powerful no matter what range he is expected to sing in.
30 years on and Helloween are still able to produce such a super album as this. Another terrific album from one of the best bands of all time.
No comments:
Post a Comment