HELLOWEEN / Unarmed – Best of 25th Anniversary (2009)

Helloween celebrated their 25th year by re-recording some of their classics in an acoustic/symphonic style. The addition of piano works nicely, but my initial reaction was that the majority of the arrangements weren't particularly well-suited to the change. That is until I got to the seventeen minute Keeper's Trilogy (a medley of  Halloween, Keeper of the Seven Keys, and The King for a 1000 Years), which is aided by a seventy-piece Prague Symphony Orchestra and choir. When the strings and percussion kick in for real, when the choir soar and the cymbals crash, I began to think that YES, it was a damn good idea after all. But it doesn't last. Things begin to slump again afterwards. Curses. Still, it was fun while it lasted.

Songs of Note: The Keeper's Trilogy; A Tale That Wasn't Right

2½ withered pumpkins out of 5

HELLOWEEN / Metal Jukebox (1999)

A collection of cover songs in the Helloween style. Some of the choices I'd have thought unsuitable to their cheesy power metal (ABBA? Really?) but they occasionally do interesting things with the works. Whereas others are less out of the ordinary; e.g. Bowie's Space Oddity was a complete waste of time. But, as usual, points for trying. The cover of Hocus Pocus (originally by Focus) is fun but not nearly daring enough, which is something that can be said for the majority of the tracks. Before you ask, yes, there's yodelling.

Songs of Note: Locomotive Breath (Jethro Tull); Faith Healer (Alex Harvey)

2 coins in the slot out of 5

HELLOWEEN / Keeper of the Seven Keys: The Legacy (2005)

What do you do when your band (and livelihood) is slipping into the pit that swallows once-great pioneers? You plunder past glories like a bottom feeder.
Keeper of the Seven Keys: The Legacy (at least they had the good sense not to call it Part III) is a double album that invites comparison to the previous works by name alone. That's perhaps its biggest crime but not its only one: the music is prog metal.
It was an impossible task to replace Michael Kiske and Kai Hansen; I give them credit for trying, sincerely, but I can't recommend the album. It's repetitive and uninspired. Sorry, guys, it was maybe a good idea on paper, but it doesn't live up to the majestic Keeper name in the ways that matter most.

Song of least fail: The King For 1000 Years

1 exciting title, boring music out of 5

HELLOWEEN / Pink Bubbles Go Ape (1991)

After the first two Keeper of the Seven Keys albums it seemed like Helloween could do no wrong, and then they did wrong. The absence of founding member and wizard guitar player Kai Hansen is painfully apparent. He left to pastures new and the pumpkin rolled downhill. For most of Pink Bubbles the melodies are boring, the drumming limp and the vocals lazy. When a comedy song is one of the best tracks your album has to offer, maybe it's time to change tactics, again.

Songs of Note: Kids of the Century; Heavy Metal Hamsters

2 once bought, quickly regretted out of 5

HELLOWEEN / Keeper of the Seven Keys Part II (1988)

A sequel that's better than the original. 0_0 The same speedy rhythms, dramatic vocals and extravagant guitar solos that made the first part so good are once again firmly placed herein, and there's some wonderfully enthusiastic drumming beneath the furore, if you care to listen. Though it may be too long for some people, for me the thirteen minute titular track is a masterclass in lengthy orchestration that I never tire of. It's Helloween's best work. The two parts of Keeper of the Seven Keys are the only power metal albums I class as essential.

Songs of Note: I Want Out; Dr Stein

5 clones upon a shelf out of 5

HELLOWEEN / Keeper of the Seven Keys Part I (1987)

Helloween basically invented European Power Metal on Keeper and its sequel, but I can forgive them because they did it properly. The much-maligned bollocks revival that happened a few years back isn't worthy to wipe Helloween's collective asses. Their music is frantic and melodic, with choruses that you can't help but enjoy. It's packed with varied twists and turns, which leave little room to get bored. It's peppered with widdly solos that work - a rare thing, in my book. Vocalist  Michael Kiske has a unique voice that's part operatic and part Bruce Dickinson. The album is just under thirty-seven minutes long, but it has a vitality that means it lingers in the mind for much longer.

Songs of Note: Twilight of the Gods; Future World

4½ pumpkins and ticking clocks out of 5