Helloween

The band enters the heavy metal scene with a bang, producing the very good Walls of Jericho. The rhythm is extremely fast, the solos are melodic, and the critics already praise the invention of a new genre, the melodic speed, which will soon become power metal. This first opus was soon followed by Keeper of the Seven Keys, Part 1 (1987) and Part 2 (1988), which confirmed the band's success, also signing its best sellers and its most famous songs, Halloween or I Want Out.

It is only one year after their worldwide success that the group begins its descent into the underworld. In 1989, Kai Hansen, founder and guitarist of the band, decided to leave the band due to tensions with the other members. The albums that followed received a frosty reception from critics and fans, this time pushing singer Michael Kiske towards the release. He left the band in 1993, followed by drummer Ingo Schwichtenberg, who suffered from schizophrenia and committed suicide two years later.

The group is then moribund and rumours of separation are going around. It is without counting on the resilience of the remaining members who recruit Andi Deris on vocals and Uli Kusch on drums. The band finally stabilizes and resumes its success with the very good Time of the Oath (1996) followed by Better than Raw (1998). Helloween then seems to find its cruising rhythm after this series of big turbulences.

This is a thunderbolt in the world of metal. After years without having played together, the band announces that Kai Hansen and Michael Kiske will join the current members for an exceptional tour called Pumpkins United, to the delight of their fans. The concert series is a huge success, as is the eponymous single. Following this success, the seven members of the reunited band entered the H.O.M.E. studios in Hamburg, where it all began, to record a new album.