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StillDeath
Metal newbie

Joined: Fri Jul 25, 2003 7:47 am
Posts: 269
PostPosted: Mon Jan 14, 2013 6:22 am 
 

Too much emphasis seems to be placed in media (I read some early reviews ) on happy or dark, light or heavy. The band themselves love to reassure fans that this will be heavy and such. In my opinion it doesn't matter. Unsuccessful albums were such because they were bland. They can, or in Helloween's case probably not, make an atmospheric light album with build up and dramatic conclusion. And that would be great, it's just that would be asking too much realistically speaking. In the past band members left over disagreements over direction but quality trumps style in the end.

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ShadeOfDarkness
Metal newbie

Joined: Sun Nov 30, 2008 3:45 pm
Posts: 360
Location: Norway
PostPosted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 9:01 am 
 

That is very true. Helloween did great before they released Gambling too. I will say that Rabbit had a good deal of hits and misses, but apart from that one, I won't be complaining. This new album can at certain points remind me more of Keepers II and The Dark Ride. They did keep enough elements from the 2 last albums to make me happy too of course.

My favorites from the new record are "Make Fire Catch The Fly", "Far From The Stars", "Nabataea", and the title track. These songs are just plain awesomeness right down to the core. The other ones are good too, but "Asshole" and "Hold Me In Your Arms" were my least favorites. "Asshole" was kinda weird, with it's poppy chorus, and grooving verses. "Hold Me In Your Arms" is a song I felt they could have done more with. The chorus should have been bigger, and more epic (if that makes any sense). I just feel that that song never really had a high point in it, which Helloween songs should normally have in them.

But yeah, great album, and a hell of an addition to the new year!

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Twisted_Psychology
Metal freak

Joined: Sat May 16, 2009 8:22 pm
Posts: 6260
Location: United States
PostPosted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 5:34 pm 
 

Maybe it's just the first listen but this one isn't quite blowing my mind the way the last two did. I'll probably still end up getting it but it hasn't quite grabbed me yet.
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mjollnir
Metalhead

Joined: Sat Jul 17, 2004 4:14 pm
Posts: 2056
Location: United States
PostPosted: Thu Jan 17, 2013 9:28 pm 
 

Twisted_Psychology wrote:
Maybe it's just the first listen but this one isn't quite blowing my mind the way the last two did. I'll probably still end up getting it but it hasn't quite grabbed me yet.


The first few songs and the last few songs really grabbed me but the rest was meh. I'll give it a few more listens. The ballad is SUPER cheesy though.

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StillDeath
Metal newbie

Joined: Fri Jul 25, 2003 7:47 am
Posts: 269
PostPosted: Sat Jan 19, 2013 3:15 am 
 

I don't think Hold Me In Your Arms is bad, at least not in the sense the title would imply. It would fit the ending credits of a modern horror movie right after the scene surveying the slaughtered bodies just waiting to be discovered. Good album, quite unpredictable in places but lyrics maybe somewhat awkward.

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Empyreal
The Final Frontier

Joined: Thu Nov 30, 2006 6:58 pm
Posts: 35179
Location: Where the dead rule the night
PostPosted: Sat Jan 19, 2013 2:09 pm 
 

I like this. It's not their best work ever, not as good as Keepers III or Dark Ride for epic songwriting, but it's a great, fun romp from a band that sounds about 20 years younger than they are. Electric performances, huge energy and songs that sound like they came from 2000 instead of 2013 - seriously this is their most old school power metal in a long time.
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FantomLord17
Metal newbie

Joined: Sun Jan 09, 2011 3:41 pm
Posts: 125
Location: Chile
PostPosted: Sun Jan 20, 2013 3:19 pm 
 

I'm on my second listen and loving the hell (heh) out of it. The whole thing is just hook after hook. The riffs are a bit better, less modern than 7 Sinners and there are loads of classic Helloween leads. And the choruses - damn. This might just be Deris best performance yet. The title is killer, and I actually enjoyed Asshole and the ballad a lot (much better than the one on 7 Sinners, at least).

I didn't really expect much of this, just a few great songs and some filler, but if it holds up after multiple listens I wouldn't be surprised to see it among 2013's best lists. Hopefully Gamma Ray's new release will be on par at least!

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metroplex
Metalhead

Joined: Mon Oct 30, 2006 1:28 am
Posts: 1030
Location: Peru
PostPosted: Mon Jan 21, 2013 12:06 am 
 

This is the best material of the new line-up. The masters giving a lesson on how to write the style they created. Sascha Gerstner finally getting his shit together, same as Andi's songs. Weiki and Markus delivering as always. Probably their best along The Dark Ride.

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VirginSteele_Helstar
Metal newbie

Joined: Fri Aug 10, 2012 2:26 pm
Posts: 397
PostPosted: Mon Jan 21, 2013 11:00 am 
 

I'm really not digging it too much, guys sorry. It is not really drastically different from Gambling and yet it just doesn't appeal to me. Not yet anyway.
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MEGANICK89
Metal newbie

Joined: Tue Feb 27, 2007 12:15 pm
Posts: 94
Location: Cleveland, OH
PostPosted: Tue Jan 29, 2013 3:11 pm 
 

This new album is very impressive, much more melodic than the last album. Only clunker is "Asshole" though the way Deris says "motherfucker" is amusing. Also, does anyone know why "Wanna Be God" is dedicated to Freddie Mercury?

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