Keeper of the Seven Keys II
Keeper Of The Seven Keys Part II capitalized on the success of part one and picks up where part one left off. Rarely do sequels, whether they be books, movies, or music, succeed as greatly as the originals, but Keeper of the Seven Keys Part II is arguably as good if not better than the first. While no Helloween track can compare with the epic “Halloween” from the first installment, there’s no shortage of commercial tinged power metal anthems here. Long rumored to have been written and recorded during the same sessions that produced part one (this has been declared false by Michael Weikath-only a few songs here were originally kicked around during those sessions), the feel of the album is pretty similar. Dueling neo-classical guitars, speedy rhythms, lyrics that deal with humor, fantasy, and sci-fi, and the histrionic vocals of Micheal Kiske, remain the formula here, and it all works very well.
Perhaps no song stands out more than “Eagle Fly Free”, a song penned by guitarist Weikath. This is power metal through and through, and a song that no doubt influenced hundreds of young metal musicians over the years. Filled with raging double bass drums, the lightning quick guitars of Weikath and Kai Hansen, and the soaring pipes of Kiske, this song starts this album off with a vengeance. “You Always Walk Alone” is a catchy, uptempo metal rocker, and “Rise and Fall” is a blistering, speed metal number with flashy drum work. One of the album’s favorites among the fans has always been “Dr. Stein”, a quirky piece with witty lyrics, hooks aplenty, bubbling keyboards, and some wild guitar solos from Hansen and Weikath. Kiske lets his vocals soar into the heavens on “We Got the Right”, a powerful ballad that also contains some impressive dual harmony guitar work from the two axe masters. “March of Time” is a symphonic power metal number with great melodies and super charged rhythms-listen closely to this one and you’ll hear how current bands like Sonata Artica, Edguy, and Dragonforce got their sound. “I Want Out” will be remembered by many as the single and one of the videos from the album, a Hansen piece with crunchy guitar riffs and memorable hooks. Weikath’s “Keeper of the Seven Keys” is another grand epic piece, containing many progressive elements (see if you detect a little Styx influence in spots) as well as passages for the band to really stretch out, especially Kiske, Hansen and Weikath. Less heavy than its sibling “Halloween” from Part One, this one is more symphonic and has catchier melodies, but is still loaded with plenty of guitar firepower.
Keeper Of The Seven Keys Part II is one of the most influential metal albums of all time, and really shows off the band’s talent during this period. Success bloomed all over Europe, Asia and even the United States.
There is a double CD version with all the songs from Keeper 1 and Keeper2 on it, as well as all of the Keeper 2 b-sides.
Track listing:
1. Invitation (Weikath/Tommy Hansen) 1:06
2. Eagle Fly Free (Weikath) 5:08
3. You Always Walk Alone (Kiske) 5:08
4. Rise And Fall (Weikath) 4:20
5. Dr. Stein (Weikath) 5:03
6. We Got The Right (Kiske) 5:07
7. Save Us (Hansen) 5:12
8. March Of Time (Hansen) 5:13
9. I Want Out (Hansen) 4:39
10. Keeper Of The Seven Keys (Weikath) 13:38
Total Running Time: 54:46
All song arranged by HELLOWEEN
Engineered by Tommy Newton and Tommy Hansen
Mixed by Tommy Newton for “I Got Confused” productions except for “Invitation” engineered by Tommy Hansen
Recorded & Mixed at Horus sound studio, Hannover, May/June 1988
Cover design by Edda & Uwe Karczewski, Hamburg
Front Cover concept by Michael Weikath
Markus Grosskopf (Bass)
Michael Kiske (Vocals)
Michael Weikath (Guitars)
Kai Hansen (Guitars)
Ingo Schwichtenberg (Drums)
