Liverpool Sound and Vision Rating 9/10
Time was…and time remains in the hands of those willing to be than a bystander, a voyeur, an observer of events, and whilst it is noble to be a credible witness to Time’s passing, to actively get involved in its storm, to pursue an agenda in which your name or your art adds the eddy and the wake, to the whirlwind above and the whirlpool below…that is the gift, and the curse of Time, we are addicted to its allure and if we are not participating fully, then it will leave as nothing more than an onlooker drowning in the very air supplied by the drum that marks its passing.
March Of Time: The Best Of 40 Years is Helloween’s proof of being an accomplice and collaborator to the pauses between the tick and the tock. From their seismic introduction and to the point where they are acknowledged as one of the most influential European bands to ply their name and talent under the heavy metal banner, the music between the pauses of the clock has been one of celebration and loud extremes of salute; never once mincing words or appealing to the mealy mouthed, they have struck true arrows of perception in their ongoing, and thankfully seemingly inexhaustible appreciation of their fans and the music they play.
Three cd’s full to the brim of music that confirms the band’s longevity, that showcases the dramatic, the almost near at times operatic feel, and quite often humorous detail in which they have approached their music from the moment they released their self-titled debut E.P. in April 1985, and through to the forthcoming new studio album Giants & Monsters later this year, the group have continued to educate and illuminate the fans whilst at every moment give Time its blessing in a way that few could, or indeed have, matched.
From the onset of this new ferocity of spirit in the opening disc that contains Walls Of Jericho/Ride The Sky, Eagle Fly Free, the superb Dr. Stein, and the dynamic Keeper Of The Seven Keys and those that followed with serious intent in I Want Out, Sole Survivor, Mr. Torture, Pumpkins United, Hey Lord!, Light The Universe, and Heroes, what may be considered past is actually Time’s present and unrelenting fury; and the listener, the fan, is left in no doubt of the immensity of the 40 years that the band, in each incarnation, have lived through, and produced as they give to Time itself.
A truly endearing and fascinating reminder of the power of one of Europe’s godfathers of the metal genre…The March Of Time continues unabated and secure.
Ian D. Hall