(Rated this album with 8 out of 10) Reviewed by
Stanley Runk
from Madison, WI United States
It's nice to see so many positive reviews of the album here, coz outside Amazon this album seems to get slammed. I really don't think it should be slammed coz I really don't think it's bad at all. Sure, it's a bit different, but not nearly as much as people make it out to be. There isn't alot of that "more modern sound" as you've probably heard. I don't see Limp Biskit fans embracing this. True, I'm not too excited about the darker approach, you can find that kind of lyrical content and imagery in a billion other metal bands. One of Helloween's largest trademarks are their positive lyrics and sound, so it kind of defeats the point. It really is an entertaining listen though regardless. Michael Weikath would rather you throw it into the trash because he was basically booted to the side and Roland and Uli pretty much tried to assume control of the band here. Sure, Weikath was pretty much obligated to say good things about the album upon it's release in order to assure sales, but lets face it: He despises this album. I don't think he should be that hard on it though, regardless of being dethroned for most of it. It's an ego thing I guess. Also, I think Roland an Uli(I never liked or trusted Roland) were kinda being schmucks for wanting to take Helloween in this direction for future albums. I don't think fans would have liked it coz they'd be losing what attracted them to Helloween in the first place. By not choosing this path, they once again seperate themselves from the rest of the scene. But this is a good, rockin' album. It was a successful experiment(much better than some of their other experiments) and a good ride. Now they have Rabbit(a return to form) and continue their winning streak since Master Of The Rings. The positive reviewers aren't pulling your leg-if you like Helloween give this a shot and enjoy it for what it is.
