Maximum Metal Rating Legend

Helloween - Rabbit Don't Come Easy - reviewed by: EC

Track Listing1. Just A Little Sign 2. Open Your Life 3. The Tune 4. Never Be A Star 5. Liar 6. Sun For The World 7. Don't Stop Being Crazy 8. Do You Feel Good 9. Hell Was Made In Heaven 10. Back Against The Wall 11. Listen To The Fly 12. Nothing To Say

With the lineup changes that Helloween has gone through in the past year, I wasn't sure what to expect from this new album. Gone are Roland Grapow and Uli Kusch, and along with them all signs of the band's darker, modern sound, evident on the last studio output, "The Dark Ride" in 2000.

With the first track's opening guitar passages, the sound beckons a triumphant return to the classic Helloween sound. "Just A Little Sign" opens the album with a fast twin guitar frenzy with "funny" lyrics we have come to expect from these German veterans. The fast guitar melody, the big chorus, and the operatic vocals are now the revolving element once again.

I love to sing along with this band, and one can easily do that with tracks like "The Tune", "Never Be A Star", and "Son Of The World". Andi Derris is back with his classic vocals stylings and he has yet another outstanding vocal performance on this record. This release also has hints of a hard rock sound, perhaps from Andi's Pink Cream 69 background.

I really enjoy this new Helloween lineup and I believe this is a welcome return to the band's trademark sound, a sound that is somewhat like the band's "Better Than Raw" recordings. Old fans worldwide can embrace this release and throw away all doubt that Helloween has been modernized. Very good album and cheers to THE RETURN!

Rabbit Don't Come Easy? Pink Bubbles Go Ape? Maybe we can come up with better album titles, however?

--Reviewed by EC 4.10.03