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My God Given Right
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My God Given Right |
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| Helloween are a power metal band from Germany formed in 1984 who were at the forefront of the power metal movement during the late eighties. After releasing their debut album in 1985, founding vocalist/guitarist Kai Hansen relinquished the vocal duties to Michael Kiske and the band released two landmark albums 'Keeper Of The Seven Keys' parts 1 & 2. Kiske left the band in 1994 to be replaced by Andi Deris and the band re-emerged as a dominant force with the release of 'The Time Of The Oath' album in 1996. Subsequent releases have cemented their place as power metal pioneers and the band released a third "Keeper" instalment in 2005, 'Keeper Of The Seven Keys: The Legacy'. Now in their 31st year, the band have released fifteen albums, with their sixteenth 'My God Given Right' due for release in 2015. | ||||||
| When other bands change their sound to reflect current trend, Helloween have stayed true to their roots and always deliver their unique blend of melodic power metal. The opening salvo off their new album is a triple whammy of bombastic power and speed. 'Heroes' opens the album in typical Helloween style, thunderous melodic metal with duelling guitars and powerful, clean vocals. 'Battle's Won' ups the pace and is rampant as it sets off like a rocket and never looks back, with the title song 'My God Given Right' a superb hard edged, hard rock romp that will have you smiling and nodding your head in appreciation that "Helloween are here". | ||||||
| "We wanna stay crazy, As fresh as a daisy" is not the kind of lyric you would associate with the heavy metal genre, but here it is, tucked into the chorus of 'Stay Crazy', a catchy, infectious song that just oozes the foot tapping, melodic power metal style that Helloween have made their own. 'Lost In America' and 'Russian Roule' are two raucous, catchy, foot stomping romps that are guaranteed to keep that smile on your face. Pace slows a little as 'The Swing Of A Fallen World' opens with heavy guitars and an almost doom style chug as it stomps majestically into life. Midway through and there is a dramatic change of pace as the guitars scream and duel ferociously. In the power metal genre it is almost obligatory to have one ballad and Helloween do not buck this trend as 'Like Everybody Else' meanders in and is a power ballad, too heavy to get the lighters out but light enough to raise your arms and swing them from side to side. | ||||||
| 'Creatures In Heaven' swings the album back to pace, power and head banging. Thunderous riffing, memorable hooks and an all too infectious chorus will have you punching the air with your fist and singing along as though your life depended upon it. Helloween have produced many epic anthemic songs over the years, the kind of songs that make you stand up, take notice and yell "Yeah!". 'If God Loves Rock 'N' Roll' is one of those songs. It is foot tappingly addictive, head bangingly involuntarily and has one of the most catchy choruses ever heard. | ||||||
| Hard edged, top notch hard rock, 'Living On The Edge' romps in and is pure Helloween as it rocks and rolls like an out of control speed boat across rough waters. Pace returns in the form of the speed metal tinged 'Claws'. With a blistering pace, 'Claws' is reminiscent of the early eighties thrash influenced Helloween style. Ending the album is the seven minute plus epic 'You, Still Of War'. Majestic and brash, 'You, Still Of War' mixes a slower heavy style with pace and power, flowing effortlessly between the two styles. Thunderous and raucous, it is a great ending to a good album. | ||||||
| Overall, bombastic and infectious melodic power metal with pace, speed and authority, everything you would expect from a Helloween album. | ||||||
| Review by Iron Mathew Collins | ||||||
| Reviewed for Metal Gods TV | ||||||
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