HELLOWEEN

A seminal, pioneering force in heavy metal since 1985, HELLOWEEN are celebrating their 40th anniversary in the traditional way. Their career retrospective, "March Of Time" is much more than a straightforward greatest hits package, in essence this is a history lesson, told across 42 tracks and many, many minutes of barnstorming, perpetually exuberant melodic metal. For longtime fans of the band, this could all be a redundant exercise, as all of these songs are available elsewhere and appear here in familiar form, but when viewed through the prism of celebratory nostalgia, "March Of Time" is an immense proposition. HELLOWEEN have had their ups and downs over the years, and the occasional album that received a critical kicking, but one thing that has defined the Germans — irrespective of lineup changes — is that they have been a consistent and prolific presence. Effectively the godfathers of modern power metal, HELLOWEEN deserve a thousand plaudits for their contribution to metal over four decades, and this three-disc set takes a comprehensive look at precisely why they have endured.

Disc One is the old-school motherlode. It would be easy to underestimate HELLOWEEN's significance in metal history, but these songs are so fundamental to the later development of European power metal that they remain essential listening. From the furious speed metal splendor of tunes from the Kai Hansen-fronted, "Walls Of Jericho" era, to the surprise chart success and subsequent ubiquity of the two "Keeper Of The Seven Keys" albums, the young HELLOWEEN were irrepressible, and the songs they wrote remain joyous and unassailable. "Future World", "Eagle Fly Free", "Halloween", "Dr. Stein", every one of them a certified classic, and still tasting as fresh as a ripe pumpkin.

Disc Two is, legendarily, where it gets tricky. After the all-conquering brilliance of "I Want Out", we are deep into controversial album territory. In truth, neither "Pink Bubbles Go Ape" (1991) nor "Chameleon" (1993) are remembered fondly, but neither are they as bad as often described. Although hardly comparable to the classics, "Kids On The Street" (from "Pink Bubbles…") and the disco-tinged "Number One" are great songs that deserve a second look, but "Windmill" (from "Chameleon") is still terrible. You can't win 'em all.

Thereafter, the forgotten gems and prized deep cuts keep coming. The '90s were not particularly kind to bands that sounded like HELLOWEEN, but that didn't prevent them from maintaining their status in Europe and releasing several genuinely great and underrated records, not least "The Time of the Oath" (1996): represented here by three stone-cold classics in "Forever and One (Neverland)" , "Power" and the ferocious "Steel Tormentor". Meanwhile, "Mr. Torture" and "If I Could Fly" are from "The Dark Ride": HELLOWEEN's first album of the new millennium and their heaviest studio record of all. Both songs still slay.

Disc Three is the clincher. It begins with "The Invisible Man", a fabulous highlight from 2005's weirdly overlooked "Keeper Of The Seven Keys: The Legacy". It ends with "Skyfall", the miraculous, epic opening statement from HELLOWEEN, circa 2016 and the band's flawless reunion with Kai Hansen and Michael Kiske, the voice of the original "Keepers…" albums. Audaciously released as a single, the self-titled record was unveiled two months later, and surprised everybody, perhaps including the band themselves, by being their strongest record in decades. There are many other killer songs here, too, including the brutal "Kill It", the splendidly silly "Are You Metal?" , and the eccentric, expansive "Nabataea", but nothing explains HELLOWEEN's more clearly than the fact that their most recent material is among their best. As some combination of Andy Deris, Michael Kiske and Kai Hansen sings on "Best Time": "Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery / I will have the best time of my life!" Here's to another 40 years of pumpkins and power. You never know.