HELLOWEEN – The Time of the Oath (2xCD 2024 Remaster) *HQ*
HELLOWEEN continue the reissue of their back catalog on CD with fresh remasters and bonus tracks. ”The Time of the Oath (Remastered 2024)” is the band’s seventh studio album, and as part of the 40th anniversary of the band, the record has been remastered by Sascha Bühren at TrueBusyness Music Productions Berlin. The reissue includes an extra disc of bonus tracks with B-sides and cover songs of Judas Priest, Status Quo and Jean Michel Jarre (!).
Despite the difficulties that had plagued them in recent years (including lineup changes, and even the suicide of founding drummer Ingo Schwichtenberg), Helloween had been gradually finding their way back to the glory of their early days with each succeeding release.
And with 1996’s ”The Time of the Oath” they pretty much arrived, delivering some of their best collection of songs in almost a decade. Arguably one of the finest moment of the band’s latter-day career, while still melodic and commercial, ”The Time of the Oath” also offers a fond welcome back for old-school fans.
”The Time of the Oath” basically takes the ball that ‘Master of the Rings’ kicked out onto the field and then maintains possession for well over an hour with another set of inspired songs that help prove that this is, score-for-score, one of the greatest Euro metal bands – come on, Helloween pretty much invented this stuff, and the hundreds of disciples they inspired into existence simply couldn’t be wrong.
The album delivers lots of heavy, thundering songs spiked through with the traditional melodies and harmonies on the guitars, and Andi Deris’ voice which some might consider more fragile sounding until he starts hammering out the high points on opening numbers like “We Burn” and “Steel Tormentor”.
“Wake Up the Mountain” is a highlight with its face-melting shred intro and an incredible progression through verse, glinting melodic pre-chorus and then a potent chorus which has never left my memory since. “Power” does bring back a bit of a Keeper of the Seven Keys vibe, but with that Deris magic replacing Kiske, and “Kings Will Be Kings” is an absolute scorcher, another chorus that just flattens you.
For a commercial, hard rocking side, “Anything My Mama Don’t Like” is really goddamn catchy despite all its flashier riffs.
This is the Helloween that fans remember from the late ’80s who were more concerned with writing great songs rather than trying to mix genres in innovative ways or delve into abstract philosophical concepts with their lyrics. Additionally, Hellowen modernized their production sound here, which benefited their second decade in the business.
Highly Recommended
Disc I
01 – We Burn (2024 Remaster)
02 – Steel Tormentor (2024 Remaster)
03 – Wake Up the Mountain (2024 Remaster)
04 – Power (2024 Remaster)
05 – Forever and One (Neverland) (2024 Remaster)
06 – Before the War (2024 Remaster)
07 – A Million to One (2024 Remaster)
08 – Anything My Mama Don’t Like (2024 Remaster)
09 – Kings Will Be Kings (2024 Remaster)
10 – Mission Motherland (2024 Remaster)
11 – If I Knew (2024 Remaster)
12 – The Time of the Oath (2024 Remaster)
Disc II – Bonus Tracks
01 – Still I Don’t Know (2024 Remaster) [Japan bonus]
02 – Take It to the Limit (2024 Remaster) [Japan bonus]
03 – Electric Eye (2024 Remaster) (Judas Priest Cover) [B-side]
04 – Magnetic Fields (2024 Remaster) (Jean Michel Jarre cover) [B-side]
05 – Rain (2024 Remaster) (Status Quo cover) [B-side]
06 – Walk Your Way (2024 Remaster) [B-side]
07 – Light in the Sky (2024 Remaster) [B-side]
08 – Time Goes By (2024 Remaster)
Andi Deris – vocals
Michael Weikath – guitar
Roland Grapow – guitar
Markus Grosskopf – bass
Uli Kusch – drums
BUY
www.amazon.co.uk/Time-Oath-2024-Remaster/dp/B0DCH7HD3T
