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Helloween - Live On 3 Continents
Release: 2007Label: Steamhammer / SPV
By: Tordah
Posted: Apr 9, 2007
A quick look at the tracklist for this live release made me very happy. Most of Helloween's classic tracks from the original Keeper albums are present as well as all the epics from their latest studio album, which makes sense since this was recorded during their Keeper of the Seven Keys – The Legacy World Tour 2005/2006. With songs like 'Eagle Fly Free', 'Dr. Stein', 'I Want Out' and 'Halloween' you can't really go wrong, can you? The only disappointment with the setlist was that no song from "Walls Of Jericho" was featured. I would've loved to hear 'Victim Of Fate' or 'How Many Tears' but I guess you can't get everything. With a huge back catalogue like Helloween it's understandable they will always have to leave out many classic songs in their shows.
If I sound overly negative in this review it's because this is a live album and I'm judging the performance of the band and the quality of the recording - not the music itself. I'll jump right into my major complaint about the performance and that is without a doubt Andi Deris singing. Don't get me wrong here, I like his voice on the studio albums but live he doesn't come even close to the same level. He's always had a tendency to sound quite bit strange from time to time and live even more so. It's obvious that he has trouble singing some of the vocal-lines, especially when it comes to the songs from the original "Keeper Of The Seven Keys"-era. Deris simply cannot reach the same high notes that Michael Kiske sang flawlessly so many years ago. Instead he sort of "jokes" them away by doing some annoying sound with his voice whenever there's a really high note to be sung ('Future World' most notably). This adds a dreadful cringe-factor which is extremely annoying and definitely affects the enjoyment of some songs. I wouldn't go as far as to call it butchery but I wouldn't argue if someone were to call it that. However, Deris does a pretty good job with 'Keeper Of The Seven Keys' and 'A Tale That Wasn't Right' so he doesn't completely ruin all the classics. He sounds pretty decent on the songs he sung in the studio himself with the exception of 'Mr. Torture' where he also struggles to reach the highest notes of the chorus and fails.
The other major problem with this album is the production which could've been so much better. It sounds almost like the show wasn't even recorded with hi-fi equipment. The guitars sound muddy and are too far back in the mix. The drum-sound is quite horrible, to be honest. The only thing you can hear "clearly" is the snare drum and the hi-hat and neither of them sound very good. All the instruments just kind of blurs together into this big messy sound-picture. It gets very dull to listen to fast. I'm sure the band played a tight show but it's impossible to judge for sure. The energy of the band can't really be heard either, which is a big shame. I'm sure it was a killer gig if you were there but something went really wrong in the transfer process between the show and the printing of the actual CD. Part of the reason for this problem is probably because the crowd is constantly so high in the mix. I guess it does enhance the feeling of "being there" more but when the band itself is mixed so poorly it doesn't help much.
In conclusion, "Live On 3 Continents" is a mixed bag and I had a hard time making up my mind about it. As a Helloween fan myself I must say I'm more disappointed than satisfied with what we get here. The setlist is awesome and the band performs well but the music itself lacks power due to poor production values. Andi Deris singing isn't always that stellar either which drags down the overall impression of the release. I'm not really sure if I would recommend this album to anyone else other than hardcore fans. It's a sad fact but there are much better live albums out there that I would rather listen to than this one. I had expected more from a huge name like Helloween.
If I sound overly negative in this review it's because this is a live album and I'm judging the performance of the band and the quality of the recording - not the music itself. I'll jump right into my major complaint about the performance and that is without a doubt Andi Deris singing. Don't get me wrong here, I like his voice on the studio albums but live he doesn't come even close to the same level. He's always had a tendency to sound quite bit strange from time to time and live even more so. It's obvious that he has trouble singing some of the vocal-lines, especially when it comes to the songs from the original "Keeper Of The Seven Keys"-era. Deris simply cannot reach the same high notes that Michael Kiske sang flawlessly so many years ago. Instead he sort of "jokes" them away by doing some annoying sound with his voice whenever there's a really high note to be sung ('Future World' most notably). This adds a dreadful cringe-factor which is extremely annoying and definitely affects the enjoyment of some songs. I wouldn't go as far as to call it butchery but I wouldn't argue if someone were to call it that. However, Deris does a pretty good job with 'Keeper Of The Seven Keys' and 'A Tale That Wasn't Right' so he doesn't completely ruin all the classics. He sounds pretty decent on the songs he sung in the studio himself with the exception of 'Mr. Torture' where he also struggles to reach the highest notes of the chorus and fails.
The other major problem with this album is the production which could've been so much better. It sounds almost like the show wasn't even recorded with hi-fi equipment. The guitars sound muddy and are too far back in the mix. The drum-sound is quite horrible, to be honest. The only thing you can hear "clearly" is the snare drum and the hi-hat and neither of them sound very good. All the instruments just kind of blurs together into this big messy sound-picture. It gets very dull to listen to fast. I'm sure the band played a tight show but it's impossible to judge for sure. The energy of the band can't really be heard either, which is a big shame. I'm sure it was a killer gig if you were there but something went really wrong in the transfer process between the show and the printing of the actual CD. Part of the reason for this problem is probably because the crowd is constantly so high in the mix. I guess it does enhance the feeling of "being there" more but when the band itself is mixed so poorly it doesn't help much.
In conclusion, "Live On 3 Continents" is a mixed bag and I had a hard time making up my mind about it. As a Helloween fan myself I must say I'm more disappointed than satisfied with what we get here. The setlist is awesome and the band performs well but the music itself lacks power due to poor production values. Andi Deris singing isn't always that stellar either which drags down the overall impression of the release. I'm not really sure if I would recommend this album to anyone else other than hardcore fans. It's a sad fact but there are much better live albums out there that I would rather listen to than this one. I had expected more from a huge name like Helloween.
Rating: 6/10
Helloween website
Review of "Keeper Of The Seven Keys - The Legacy"
Distributed in Denmark and kindly supplied by Target
Review of "Keeper Of The Seven Keys - The Legacy"
Distributed in Denmark and kindly supplied by Target
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