Hell yeah! Finally we have a brend new Helloween album to make our own. Ok, it is true that “Giants and Monsters” is not the first Helloween album we have here. There was the 2024s alive album “Live at Budokan,” but as you all know it is not the same.
Honored! Pleased! Out of words! Flattered!
Well, it is never enough to say Helloween are one of the most influential Metal ever. As you all know, I use to say all Power Metal bands should honor Helloween every day and thank them for being here. It is always fair to say they exist because of Helloween. It means a lot if you ask me. Very few bands reach this level. And I will tell one more thing; Power Metal bands of the world unite to listen to “Giants and Monsters” and learn one more lesson the masters are teaching you.
I am aware that all existing adejectives are not enough to measure this album, but majestic is the one which instantly comes to mind to express what “Giants and Monsters” delivers the fan. Not coincidentally, grand finale “Majestic” is the track that sums up everything the fan will listen on the album. Its eight minutes is a trip throughout al the sonancies Helloween have tried for all these years. Coming to think of it, my guess is that the album has absolutely this intent from day one.
The muscular Helloween paramount guitars are present in all the album especially with album welcomer “Giants on the Run” which is a living homage to the band’s early years. To some extent, its guitar riff addresses to “Eagles Fly Free.” The track also presents the fan Helloween’s epic verve with the fast and emotional chorus followed by that omniscient drums velocity, which is one of the band’s trademarks. This is a constant in “Giants and Monsters” as it would be expected from all the band represents. “Giants on the Run” also adds those typical Accept’s choruses tt give the songs lots of melody and emotional content. Everything a Helloween fan loves. The same happens with “Savior of the World,” another top notch emotional moment full of speed. “A Little Is a Little Too Much” takes a little Nightwish’s instrumentals turn with some vocals that remind Kiss “Psycho Circus.” No, no, I am not kidding. I do not kid with serious things. This is a pure Helloween thing to play with the fans. But the song is good. Following track “We Can Be Gods” takes a Judas Priest “Defenders of the Faith” turn. The track is pretty muscular with some grave vocals and fast guitars a lots of emotion breaking the ice giving the song an expected melodic verve. Helloween are one of the bands that can do it so perfectly. Maybe, in retrospective, the band is trying to homage their Metal gods. The track is followed by the epic power ballad “Into the Sun” whose initial moments sound a little near Frank Sinastra (?), but that’s the impression it gets. There is also a homage to a city that has been welcoming the band since day one with “This Is Tokyo.“ “Universe“ is as Helloween as it can get with lots of passages and moments that are a homage to the band’s career.
In general, it is possible to say “Giants and Monsters” is made by three different blocks which are linked by the traditional emotional content ony Helloween can imprint to their music. The first block would be the tracks that are homages to their early years as album welcomer “Giants on the Run.” The other block would the tracks that are a little far from the band’s style and, probably, might be a homage to bands that came before them as Judas Priest – by the way, there is a lot of Judas Priest inside Helloween’s music. “We Can Be Gods” mark this block perfectly. And the last, but not least, the block of epic songs as the power ballad “Into the Sun” showcases the very enthusiastic Helloween fan.
With “Giants and Monsters” Helloween exercise their most melodic moments showing also some Progressive Metal instrumental features and songwriting. There are slight differences from their early years, but they are visible. One of them, for instance, is the length of the songs. There are four tracks bigger than five minutes.
It’s a fan talking, but “Giants and Monsters” is one of Helloween‘s best in many years. From where I am standing it borders the perfection. But it is only a fan speaking.
“Giants and Monsters” Helloween will be released on August 29th via Reigning Phoenix Music.
Track Listing:
1. Giants on the Run
2. Savior of the World
3. A Little Is a Little Too Much
4. We Can Be Gods
5. Into the Sun
6. This Is Tokyo
7. Universe
8. Hand of God
9. Under the Moonlight
10. Majestic
Watch “Universe” official lyric video here:
I’m just a lucky guy who has chosen metal to live with for a long time. Metal changed my life for good. It made me more confident and stronger. Metalheads are naturally far away from the mass mediocrity and don’t accept impostures from anybody else. Metal is more than music, it’s a life changing oportunity!