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""The Dark Ride" is probably Helloween's most difficult record to access, but it's well worth a listen as it brings real depth to the band's music."
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4/5
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In three albums, Helloween managed to come back to the forefront of the melodic heavy metal scene, the last one, "Better Than Raw", even allowing them to find a large audience by opening for Iron Maiden. After all this, the band logically took a break, this last one being just cut for the release of "Metal Jukebox", a very uneven cover album. The band did not get back to work until 2000, and once again recorded their album in Andi Deris' personal studio in Tenerife.
While it was logical to expect musically a logical continuation of "Better Than Raw", it is not. The band, under the impulse of Roland Grapow and Uli Kusch, chooses to partially change its musical formula. Like the title and its dark cover, Helloween innovates by changing its sound. The guitars are tuned lower, the production is partly entrusted to Roy Z (Bruce Dickinson, Halford) who gives the record a very heavy and fat sound.
From the introduction of the record, Helloween takes us in a rather gloomy universe and definitely less speed metal. 'Mr Torture' offers a rather crushing rhythmic and a very varied vocal, in a rather low register on the verses followed by 'Escalation 666', very dark and 'Mirror Mirror' whose chorus and general rhythm moves away from the usual Metal Speed Melodic. This rather heavy atmosphere is only interrupted by 'All Over The Nations' which is in a heavy melodic vein with a very high-pitched vocal.
The second part of the record follows the same pattern, lighter on 'Salvation' before getting darker again with 'The Departed', solo work of Uli Kusch. This track is a pure marvel, epic and heavy at the same time, rising slowly in power and with a very strong chorus. To finish, Helloween offers us the excellent mid tempo 'I Life For Your Pain' with a very strong bass line as well as the very long eponymous track with varied ambiences on which Andi Deris does once again wonders.
"The Dark Ride" is a deep and intelligent record, which is really tamed after several listenings. It will then divide the fans of the band but such a will to evolve can only be worthily greeted. - Official website
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TRACK LISTING:
01. Beyond The Portal (00:45)
02. Mr. Torture (03:27)
03. All Over The Nations (04:54)
04. Escalation 666 (04:24)
05. Mirror Mirror (03:43)
06. If I Could Fly (04:09)
07. Salvation (05:42)
08. The Departed (Sun Is Going Down) (04:36)
09. I Live For Your Pain (03:59)
10. We Dawn The Night (04:06)
11. Immortal (Stars) (04:04)
12. The Dark Ride (08:48)
LINEUP:
Andi Deris: Chant
Markus Grosskopf: Basse
Michael Weikath: Guitares
Roland Grapow: Guitares
Uli Kusch: Batterie
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(0) MIND(S) FROM OUR READERS
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(0) COMMENT(S)
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READERS
3/5 (7 view(s))
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STAFF:
3.8/5 (5 view(s))
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IN RELATION WITH HELLOWEEN
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OTHER REVIEWS
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OTHER(S) REVIEWS ABOUT HELLOWEEN
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