Back in 1987 I was still discovering what Thrash Metal was. I was familiar with Metallica and Megadeth and when the opportunity came, I found myself buying Helloween’s Keeper of the Seven Keys part 1 at the local mall in Shreveport, Louisiana.

Holy shit, not only were these guys fast as a fucking shark; they were from Germany which was even cooler because back then the Cold War was still going on and Germany had this air of mystery and intrigue to it. I give all credit to Helloween because without them I never would have heard Kreator and Destruction, thus only feeding my growing hunger for Teutonic Thrash.

Now as far as live albums go, I covered Amorphis and their “live” Tales From The Thousand Lakes album recently and was less than thrilled with the “live” claim. Hearing the crowd and the band interaction is the heart of a great live album. Judas Priest did it with Priest…Live, King Diamond’s Abigail… Live 1987 is considered a classic for me, and I can’t leave out Iron Maiden and KISS.

Six live albums later Helloween have come back with a seventh and I’m here to tell you constant reader, it’s a beast. Four discs if you get the physical copy, there’s also a live video so that you can get the full experience of playing both at the same time for total aggressive immersion.

This is a career spanning experience kicking off with opening intro “Orbit” and once that’s out of the way it’s time for the 12:51 minute epic “Skyfall”. Maybe it’s about the James Bond movie, maybe it’s not; it doesn’t matter because it’s such a killer song. They smack right into a blistering rendition of “Eagle Fly Free” Michael Kiske sounds phenomenal as does Kai Hansen on “Kai’s Medley”, 16:07 minutes of a dive into the bands early albums so we get bites of “Savage” and “Ride the Sky” to name two.

I’m going to get it out of the way, just get it off my chest, this is an enjoyable in the moment live album. You’re literally there, listening (or watching) and cheering along with the Nippon Budokhan crowd. There’s a banter between Kiske, Andi Deris and Hansen that shows how current and former vocalists can share a stage and be friends with each other.

The production and mastering work is godly, each and every instrument stands out; especially the triple guitar attack from Michael Weikath, Kai Hansen, and Sascha Gerstner is just fucking massive. Slashing their way through “Mass Pollution” and “Future World” you can actually hear the crowd singing along; a sold-out crowd I might add.

There’s even a ballad thrown in with a funny introduction and “Forever and One (Neverland)” takes control. I would’ve liked to hear “A Tale that Wasn’t Right” from Keeper of the Seven Keys part 1; but whatever it’s the only slowdown that happens on an otherwise magnificent Power Metal album. Helloween are Power Metal, period.

After the ballad they blow through the rocking hard “Best Time”, “Dr. Stein” from Keeper of the Seven Keys part 2 and “How Many Tears” from Walls of Jericho. Having to pick songs out of such a fantastic back catalog must’ve been a great undertaking, but the show flows with hot blooded intensity; each song bringing more and more nostalgia for the glory days of German Power Metal.

“Keeper of the Seven Keys” gets a 20:46 minute rendition that’s captivating. “Perfect Gentleman”, and “I Want Out” round out the last of the album; “I Want Out” is by far one of my favorite Helloween songs; among others obviously but that riffing is absolutely hypnotic.

Alright, this album kicks ass; if that wasn’t apparent enough. If you love Power Metal, if you love Helloween (and the offshoot from them, the mighty Gamma Ray) then this is the album (and Blu-ray) for you! Hoch lebe Power Metal!

 

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