Hi Dan,

Quite a coincidence that you brought up this topic...as I have been listening to Helloween all day!

I will try my best to list Helloween's discography (full length albums only) and give you an idea of which ones you might prefer:

Walls of Jericho (1985) - Typical power metal, lots of very high pitched (and not so good) vocals by Kai Hansen. Not a bad album, but not for you, if you are an AOR fan.

Keeper of the Seven Keys Part 1 (1987) - Their first album with superstar singer Michael Kiske, and one of the most influential power metal albums of all time. This one is quite melodic but not it is not hard rock

Keeper of the Seven Keys Part 2 (1988) - This one is even better than the last one, mainly because Michael Weikath began writing more of the songs. This is "catchier" than the previous one, and if you buy only one of Keeper-era cds, get this one.

Pink Bubbles Go Ape (1990) - This is where Helloween became really hard rock-ish. Many Helloween fans hated this album but I personally think it's great. If you like melodic hard rock you MUST get this one!! Plenty of catchy tunes in here

Chameleon (1993) - This is an excellent album and shows just how diverse this band is. Michael Weikath really establishes himself as an excellent songwriter in this album. Full of Melodic Hard Rock tunes, this might be their best album if you like hard rock

Master of the Rings (1995) - This is the first album with singer Andi Deris (who by the way is an excellent frontman!) and is definitely heavier than the previous album, but does not lose ANY of the melody. This is VERY melodic power metal with hard rock influences

Time of the Oath (1997) - This one is similar to the previous one but heavier and darker. This is for fans of power metal, but there are some songs in here which will appeal to fans of "soft" music like us

Better than Raw (1999) - Mixed opinions on this one. I personally love it to death but I must admit it is quite heavy. There is still plenty of melody in here and there are a few songs in here which qualify as all time great heavy metal songs. "Laudate Dominum" is about the catchiest power metal song I have heard in years. Also, "Hey Lord" is on this album. Try listening to some sound samples first as it is quite heavy (but a great album nonetheless)

So in conclusion Dan, for you, I would recommend the albums in this order:

1. Chameleon
2. Pink Bubbles Go Ape
3. Master of the Rings
4. Keeper of the Seven Keys Part 2
5. Better than Raw
6. Time of the Oath
7. Keeper of the Seven Keys Part 1
8. Walls of Jericho

Always glad to see another Helloween fan!

Cheers

Vince


Dan wrote:
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I have always assumed that Helloween was to heavy for my tastes (although I do prefer the "harder" side of melodic rock). I recently heard the song "Hey Lord" and thought it was awesome! Could anyone give their opinions as to which Helloween albums are the best (and most melodic)? Thanks in advance!

Dan