Rabbit Don't Come Easy
Helloween
(Nuclear Blast)

After a split in the "Wennie" camp, that saw two members booted who went on to form the critically acclaimed Masterplan, this band had alot to prove. While no where near as good as Masterplan (notably because Andi Deris is no Jorn Landis), this is a decent album. Those worried that the title might see a return to the mistakes that were Chameleon and Pink Bubbles Go Ape, needn't have. The rumoured move towards Pantera-like aggression was bollocks as well. This is more upbeat than 'The Dark Ride' and is far more melodic than there last few efforts. This is a 12 song collection of melodic Teutonic power-metal that you expect from a band that pretty much invented the genre. With Mickey Dee (Motorhead) behind the kit, you know the drumming is going to be powerful. Forget the rubbish that is the new Metallica album, if you want some damn good catchy metal (A good example being 'Never be A Star', I defy you to keep that one from sticking in your head.) you could do a hell of a lot worse than this affair. Masterplan laid a challenge down, Helloween took it, and produced a decent result.

Rating: 4