03/02/03

MASTERPLAN / MASTERPLAN

When Helloween virtually split in half last year I was worried about the band and the departing Roland Grapow and Uli Kusch, however what will become of Helloween is yet to be seen Roland and Uli however have a new band and a Masterplan.

The sound of the band is not too dissimilar to Helloween but closer to the last solo effort he put out a few years ago and with singer John Lande, of Jorn (who has a great emotive voice) they have plenty of Power and Melody to spare. The guitar playing is spot on as you would expect and the keyboards put in a very good supporting role, throw in an ex member of Iron Saviour and you have the masterplan.

This is as good as anything Helloween have done for quite awhile and heavier than Jorn, that John was in but it suits his powerful voice, all this is underpinned with Uli’s drumming and makes for a very listenable and Rocking sound, Euro Metal at it’s best.

Stand out tracks include, "Enlighten Me", "Spirit Never Die", "Soulbun" and "Into The Light". There are a couple of very good ballads on here as well which will keep everyone happy, they have a very bright future indeed, sigh of relief. Initial copies come in a very nice Hard back cover with an extra disc containing an interview, the video for Enlighten and a screensaver, what more could you want.

TOTAL PLAYING TIME = 52 mins + 11 TRACKS