Customer Reviews

Rabbit Don't Come Easy

5 star:		(26)
4 star:		(15)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I think this is the one that'll change the minds of the Andi Deris haters out there. This is one solid album, the best Helloween have done in a long time. I know alot of people tuned out when Deris came into the picture, but I don't see why exactly. Sure he's not the singer Michael Kiske was(not many are), but he's suited for the sound of the band now. I mean, you're doomed if you compare him to Kiske-Deris does have some pretty big shoes to fill there. I've grown to like him myself. But this album rocks, let me tell you. Helloween have gone back to their "happy metal" style that we all love so much after giving us The Dark Ride. There's a tad bit of the Dark Ride left over for this album as well as Better Than Raw. Most of the songs here tend to go the route of the heavier songs on Better Than Raw like "Push." In fact, this album gets really heavy, moreso than I've come to expect from Helloween. Bits of it sound like something off of the newer Overkill albums! I was a little skeptical at first after hearing the guitar player(Roland)and drummer(Uli)had left-I thought the album wouldn't be that good. But this Sascha guy is quite good, and who doesn't like Mickey Dee? Roland always rubbed me the wrong way anyhow, I don't know about you folks. I guess it was subconscious-he replaced Kai Hansen and I held a grudge or something. Plus, he just didn't seem like Helloween was his kind of band-like he didn't really belong there. Anyhow, Roland or not, Uli or not, Kiske or not, everything falls into place perfectly here. Helloween should be proud.

First of all, I really do not understand the criticism that Helloween is taking for this album. If people are put off by the album title, they shouldn't be. Rabbit Don't Come Easy is NOT like the experimental Pink Bubbles or Chameleon albums (both of which I like anyway). Rabbit is solid German power metal, made by power metal's inventors and played infinately better than the legions of imitators. As you know by now, the Rabbit title just refers to phrase "like pulling a rabbit out of a hat".

Anyway, the songs, there really is not much of a dud here. Occasionally there are some funny phrases, and some weak lyrics, but nothing too distracting. The best songs are going to be the fast ones like Just A Little Sign, Listen to the Flies, Open Your Life, Sun 4 The World and Liar. The new guitarist Sascha Gertsner immediately makes his presence felt by cowriting some of the best tracks.

I liked the Roy Z sinister brand of Helloween found on The Dark Ride, but I also welcome the return of the more classic sounding Helloween. Dark Ride broke the band apart and I will miss Uli and Roland's writing and playing, but Roland's replacement does a great job on Rabbit. Lastly, unlike a few opinions, I think that Wieki's Nothing To Say is really a cool song. Catchy melody, funny lyrics and very different. The song features several tempo changes and a raegae section. Judas Priest did something like that on The Rage, so if Priest does it, you know its cool. If you like Helloween, you will like this.

One of the Top 10 Metal Bands is back, with an excelent cd, the voice of frontman A. Deris its excelent and this album prove it (not as good as M. Kiske voice...thats true) but this cd was made for his voice, all the songs are excelent, they took back the old 80 elements of true metal, and put it together with some other stuff like heavier riffs, more agressive voice, the drumming its.....well what can i say, courtesy of the master Mikkey Dee (King Diamond, Dokken, Motorhead)...superb, but they still have the melodies, the choruses trademark of this band....so do you a favor and BUY THIS CD!!!! its worth every $$, don't download it, buy the original!!! STAY HEAVY.

PD
Stay away from the new Faketallica!!!!!!!!

Well, I first was a little bit skpetical after the Dark Ride. I was so impressed by the wonderful Better Than Raw and previous Time of the Oath. But actually this Rabbit don't Come Easy is not a return to the roots. It is really a great NEW album. I wanted to rate it 4.5 but it not possible. It is full of great surprises. The songs are very different, the influences come from dark heavy metal to popy music and the prod is so fine (but lack of bass guitar... masked by the huge drums). If you don't know Helloween and are looking for talented muscians it is the album to buy (and avoid the new Metallica. They are in their Dark Ride period these guys...)
If you like speed rock you'd better buy Better Than Raw. It has not so much details and diversity but really rocks!

Rabbit Don't Come Easy is definitely a great triumph in Helloween's career. After Roland and Uli quitted the band I was worried about the future of the band. Not only they were excellent musicians, but also great song writers ( specially Uli). This album is a return to their sound and style that made them the legends that they are. Some people are complaning that it contains happy songs, well let them complain also about Dr. Stein, Raise and Fall, Power and other great Helloween classics. Sure The Dark Ride was a much more darker album but no one can deny that it wasn't exactly their style. Sascha
(Previously the guitar player from Freedom Call)co-wrote perhaps one of the best songs of the album, Open your life, and wrote 2 more songs that are just awesome. Mikkey Dee's playing is great. Listening to him playing the double drums brought good memories from his King Diamond years (Mansion in Darkness, No present for Christmas).Markus came out writing and co-writing the two heaviest songs. And that's exactly what they needed for this album, "collective song writing", with Andi and Weikath writing the rest of the album's songs. The bottom line is this: If you are a true Hellowen fan, and what I mean is, if you consider Keepers I & II classics and the birth of Powermetal as we know it and really liked the albums from Masters to Dark Ride with Better than Raw being their best effort since the Keepers era ...

You think that helloweeen would slow down and do a bad album, well they still know how to make great albums. I loved rabbit don't come easy. Every song is great. Great harmonies and awesome riffs.

As originally written (by me) for RoyalCarnage.com:

The legendary HELLOWEEN has finally returned after a 3-year absence and they've proven once again that while a rabbit might not necessarily come easy, that good, even great things come to those who wait.

A seemingly everchanging lineup, the backlash of old-school fans who for some reason still cannot get over the fact that Michael Kiske is not ever coming back, the complete and total disappearance of their popularity in North America. These are but a few of the challenges HELLOWEEN has had to overcome throughout the years. And thus the reason behind the album title. According to Nuclear Blast's promo material, the meaning is simple. A magician may pull a rabbit out of a hat and it might look incredibly easy to the audience. But there is a tremendous amount of hard work and dedication that goes into the magician making this relatively simple trick work. HELLOWEEN has persevered throughout the years and have more than stamped their mark on the metal scene. After nearly 20 years of conquering the metal scene, they've pulled yet another rabbit out of their proverbial hat.

So what about the new record? I know firsthand that some allegedly "knowledgeable" music-insider types read the title of the album and automatically dismissed the band, thinking in their infinite wisdom that this would be another "Pink Bubbles Go Ape-like" career hiccup. As a lifelong fan of the band, I'm incredibly happy to say that the naysayers couldn't be more wrong. HELLOWEEN is back. The HELLOWEEN, the band that gave you so much metal happiness in the 1980s, the band that perplexed you but stayed true to their vision throughout the 1990s, and the band that came roaring back with a vengeance with 2000's The Dark Ride. Yeah, THAT HELLOWEEN. Gone are Kai Hansen, Michael Kiske, Roland Grapow, Uli Kursch. The Keepers... era ended 15 years ago.

Get over it people.

Rabbit Don't Come Easy is a testament to the originators of European power metal, it's a testament that HELLOWEEN can not only still put out viable music in 2003, but can still top 99.9% of all their imitators. While bands like HEAVENLY, HAMMERFALL, ARTHEMIS, BRAINSTORM, LOST HORIZON and hordes more have all put out some excellent power metal over the past years, the masters have returned. Guitarist Michael Weikath & bassist Marcus Grosskopf have stuck around all these years and still to this day comprise the core of the HELLOWEEN sound. Weikath's trademark lightning-fast melodic guitar leads still exist, and Grosskopf's dancing basslines still drive the songs to new heights, exploring new places. Vocalist and integral songwriter Andi Deris seems as comfortable as ever, as if he's finally the only HELLOWEEN vocalist that matters today. Rabbit Don't Come Easy is in no way, shape or form anywhere near as dark - both musically & subject matter-wise - as the band's last album. Quite the contrary. I haven't felt such a familiarity with the songs in a long, long time. You Pumpkin-heads out there know exactly what I'm talking about. For those who don't, the classic HELLOWEEN "feel" is intact, so worry not. Songs like "Just A Little Sign," "Open Your Life," "Liar" and "Hell Was Made In Heaven" will have you scratching your head and wondering exactly when they were written: 1987 or 2003?

Ironically enough, one of the reasons a happier sound exists on this album is because of the addition of new guitarist Sascha Gerstner. Gerstner comes to HELLOWEEN from FREEDOM CALL, a band no doubt influenced by the classic Keepers... era. His impact is immediately noticeable, as he co-wrote a few of the strongest tracks on this new album: "Open Your Life," "Sun 4 The World" and "Listen To The Flies." Which leaves only the revolving door drumming situation as a question mark. The band hired Mark Cross from METALIUM, but he unfortunately took ill soon after. So who should come to the rescue but none other than Mickey Dee of MOTORHEAD and KING DIAMOND fame. Dee provided all the drumming for the recording of Rabbit... and does a wonderful job, although it should be noted that the official new permanent drummer is now Stefan Schwarzmann (RUNNING WILD, ACCEPT).

Lastly, the production is worth mentioning. Legendary metal producer Charlie Bauerfeind (BLIND GUARDIAN, ANGRA, FREEDOM CALL) had the honors of twisting the knobs on this, HELLOWEEN'S important new chapter. Bauerfeind knocks the ball out of the park, as every note, every lick is exquisitely pronounced. Turn this record up to `11' and let the hair fly. Sure, there are a couple of duds - most notable the odd Weikath number "Nothing To Say" - but on the whole, this is by far the most complete, consistent HELLOWEEN record in 15 years. Now if they'd only tour North America again...

This album us fast, aggressive, catchy, melodic, and everything else you could possibly ask for in a Helloween album. The Dark Ride was more dark and mystical with an overall slower pace. It is an amazing album, but Rabbit Don't Come Easy is a return to form for Helloween. Helloween returns their happy, cheery, powerful style and intensifies it. You have your happy, happy songs like Just A Little Sign and The Tune. You have a dark, experimental track such as Back Against The Wall. We have one nice ballad that Andi Deris wrote for his beloved wife, Don't Stop Being Crazy and more. To me, the albums highlite is the epic Nothing To Say which even experiments with some Reggae elements. This album is the perfect mix, the perfect blend...the perfect recipe for Power Metal perfection! This is the very best Helloween album to date and a true gem. If you want the ultimate in Power Metal, purchase Rabbit Don't Come Easy...you won't regret it!

I hear people saying Helloween are "returning" to their older happier sound on this album but I think they are progressing because you have heavier material like "Liar" which kicks ass and more melodic classic stuff like "The Tune" and creative/weird/different like "Nothing to Say" (yes I know that was a major run-on sentence). Guitars and double bass drums going the speed of light with heaviness and melody in perfect harmony. Don't listen to those who put down singer Andi Deris. He is, in my opinion perfect for Helloween's style because he seems to be able to transform his voice from a gritty sound for heavier moments, to a clear and melodious sound for the melodic moments. I've been searching for a band who can put all of these sounds together, and with confidence style and gusto, and I've found it with this band. I challenge you to name a band that is better at this style than Helloween because I would love to hear it! One last comment for audiophiles; the production values, mix, and overall sound quality are outstanding on this album. Fans of True Metal Unite!!!!

Rabbit Don't Come Easy is definitely a great triumph in Helloween's career. After Roland and Uli quitted the band I was worried about the future of the band. Not only they were excellent musicians, but also great song writers ( specially Uli). This album is a return to their sound and style that made them the legends that they are. Some people are complaning that it contains happy songs, well let them complain also about Dr. Stein, Raise and Fall, Power and other great Helloween classics. Sure The Dark Ride was a much more darker album but no one can deny that it wasn't exactly their style. Sascha
(Previously the guitar player from Freedom Call)co-wrote perhaps one of the best songs of the album, Open your life, and wrote 2 more songs that are just awesome. Mikkey Dee's playing is great. Listening to him playing the double drums brought good memories from his King Diamond years (Mansion in Darkness, No present for Christmas).Markus came out writing and co-writing the two heaviest songs. And that's exactly what they needed for this album, "collective song writing", with Andi and Weikath writing the rest of the album's songs. The bottom line is this: If you are a true Hellowen fan, and what I mean is, if you consider Keepers I & II classics and the birth of Powermetal as we know it and really liked the albums from Masters to Dark Ride with Better than Raw being their best effort since the Keepers era then...You won't regret it!!