Vampiro

After a long string of mediocre albums like King Of Hell and Glory Of Chaos, 80s underground stalwarts Helstar finally won old fans back with Vampiro in 2016 – an album so thoroughly old school in its technical power/thrash riffing bonanza and vampiric lyrical themes that it almost feels like pandering. Like if they could've done this all along, what took them so long? But honestly, unlike other such returns-to-form by bands like Black Sabbath or Carcass, Vampiro is a convincing listen, albeit not a perfect one.

I really find the riffs on here very good – they're exactly the kind of technical, intense stuff the band was doing on Remnant Of War and the original Nosferatu, and done in a manner that sounds more intense here because of the modern production and overall more aggressive character. In terms of songwriting, there isn't much you can fault the guys for here – opener “Awaken Unto Darkness,” the snappy headbanger “Bloodlust” or the stampeding “Off With His Head” are all first rate tunes. Later on you get some more ambitious ones like the slow dirge “Abolish The Sun” and the epic “Black Cathedral,” easily the best tune on here with its slow dramatic build and neoclassical frenzy.

The problems aren't necessarily debilitating, but they are enough so that I don't enjoy this as much as some do... for one, James Rivera. It's hard to bash the guy, as he's the face of the band and a metal icon, but I just don't think he's a very good singer anymore. He had his limitations in the 80s, but he was full of such boundless zeal and energy that it became awesome anyway. Here, while I appreciate the effort, he just sounds stuffy and strained a lot of the time. Too many of the vocal lines are slow and dragging in a way, and I just feel like they should have more energy to match the riffs – check out the chorus on “Bloodlust” for an example; it's not bad I guess, but compared with the maniacal fury of those riffs, it seems somewhat limp in comparison. He gets some catchy lines in here and there, but overall he has to rely too much on newly-adopted harsh growling and I find it accentuates the limits of his performance.

And overall, this is just kind of a long album for such aggressive music. There isn't much dynamic. The songs are all individually very good, but played one after another for close to an hour, it becomes a bit much. I feel like they got the right idea, finally, at the end, when you get some more mellow sections that add contrast and atmosphere – not saying I want full on power ballads or pop songs, but some more variety would go a long way here. On Nosferatu the music felt more acrobatic and versatile, and so it was an easier listen. This sounds great at first but becomes a bit of a slog later on.

Overall, it's a good, fun listen and an admirable return to form for a band I thought would be shitty forever – but Vampiro is really just a solid album rather than a great one, and after the initial surprise, some of its luster has worn off for me. But if you want a diabolically eerie listen for the Halloween season, eh, give it a shot.

The reviewer has, or rather had now, three major wishes in the new millennium regarding the music aspect of his life:

1) Anacrusis to reform and produce at least one more masterpiece (which happened two years ago with the gigantic, both quantity and quality-wise, “Dancing with the Past”);
2) Helstar to try to match the magnificence of “Nosferatu” (granted here);
3) Coroner to get back together for a few more stellar spells (hopefully coming soon to the theatre next to you…)

Yes, the Helstars joined the group of acts (King Diamond, Queensryche, Helloween, to name the more prominent ones) who looked back in nostalgia at their heritage. Most of these bands’ subconscious awareness of which album exactly their magnum opus is has reached the conscious layer to the point that they never tried to disguise their source of inspiration using the same album title, occasionally veiling it with the addition of some “vengeful” words or digits. So those follow-ups, or whatever they are, range from the really good (“Abigail II, the Revenge”), to the mildly entertaining (“Keeper of the Seven Keys, the Legacy”), to the weak and humiliating (“Operation Mindcrime II”). Needless to add, neither of them managed to match the brilliance of its precursor leaving the fan to wonder as to why a sequel to an already flawless album was necessary except as a desperate attempt for commercially attractive package and an effort to preserve the diminishing fanbase by bringing back fond memories from the past…

Still, we the fans always secretly hope that our favourite bands will somehow manage to find this sparkle of genius once again, and delight us with a musical piece similar to their finest hour. Believe it or not, it has happened on this “Vampiro”, and judging by the very positive reviews the album has generated here so far, it may even surpass “Nosferatu”’s score. Well, let’s not get carried away, but the truth is that this new vampire saga comes very close to the grandiosity of the other “bloodsucker”. A few frowns may appear initially due to the self-expressing album title screaming “Nosferatu! Make no mistake here!” from miles away, but once the first notes from “Awaken in Darkness” permeate the listener’s aura, the frown would quickly turn into a sincere wide smile despite that anthem’s strong “flirtation” with epic doom for a large portion of the time. The blissful intricacy witnessed at times on “This Wicked Nest” already suggested that the band were moving towards the second culmination of their career, and here it is, fully accomplished. With Rob Trevino not a part of the line-up anymore, one may start worrying about the band’s staple guitar wizardry, but here comes the young talent Andrew Atwood from the power/thrashers The Scourge from where the band had already recruited the bass player Garrick Smith two years ago.

Atwood pairs with the good old Larry Barragan so well that one may find it hard to believe that the two maestros are playing together for the first time: just listen to the infectious galloping duels on “Blood Lust” and be still in awe. James Rivera is in top form, but that shouldn’t be a surprise the man having been practicing his vocal cords extensively with half a dozen projects under his arm, not to mention his multiple session appearances; he even tries a few more aggressive, shall I say deathy, tones on that same “Blood Lust” to a really sinister effect. And the band play on, stepping the pedal on those steely gallops which make “To Dust You Will Become” an instant headbanging delight, a spastic speed/thrasher second to none. “Off With His Head” is superb technical thrash which will sprain your neck with the abrupt stop-and-go’s at the beginning before the staple speedy crescendos overwhelm you. “From the Pulpit to the Pit” is the next in line brisk speedster almost reaching the intensity of “Glory of Chaos” before “To Their Deathbeds They Fell” calms down the situation a bit with a dazzling display of classical guitar wizardry. The virtuosity of this number is matched every bit of the way by the instrumental “Malediction”, fast-paced neoclassicisms with more dramatic semi-blasting, orchestral build-ups, something entirely new in the band’s repertoire, but more than welcome alleviating the riff-patterns which race with the speed of light at times; one may start to wonder if this piece of instrumental genius is actually not better than the mythical “Perseverance and Desperation” from “Nosferaru”.

The culmination seems to have been reached here, but the guys are relentless, and here comes another nod to Beethoven and Mozart with the exemplary shredder “Repent in Fire” this one exhausting the tribute to the classical musical heritage almost completely, and not only for Helstar. Not surprisingly what follows is the high-octane doomster “Abolish the Sun”, a shattering ship-sinker with Rivera acquiring a more sinister temper to fit the depressing mood; a fast-paced, lead-driven ending is inevitable as the band can’t bear it any longer slowing through the motions. The ambitious progressive thrasher “Black Cathedral” follows suit with a lot of drama and atmosphere pouring from the incessant guitar cannonades which are ultimately pacified on the excellent balladic odyssey “Dreamless Sleep” Rivera producing outstanding emotional performance; the good undead Dracula has been laid to rest, presumably for good this time…

even way before the album’s timely end, one could by all means sense that this effort would come on top of the so-called “magnum opus references”; the music flows so naturally that at times the listener may as well forget that he/she’s listening to a tribute to a work of art created in the distant past. Another reason for that may be the lyrical content: text-wise this album is not a sequel to “Nosferatu”; it’s just another conceptual interpretation of the Dracula saga, unlike the case with King Diamond’s “Abigail II” which textually started exactly where the first “Abigail” had left off. The band simply brim with confidence, another major factor for the fans to readily accept this new opus without constantly comparing it with its legendary “godfather”. I’m pretty sure there will be a fair number of metalheads who will discover Helstar through this album alone, and then they may eventually track down the band’s older works to see how this act has evolved through the years, and may even end up comparing “Nosferatu” to the album reviewed here consequently finding flaws in the latter (God forbid!).

With this album a fact, one can easily see Helstar’s reformation period as the most successful one in the new millennium, and not only among the speed/thrash metal acts, and the guys’ overall discography as the one of the strongest in the history of the genre (excluding the controversial “Multiples of Black”, of course, which many don't view as a genuine Helstar effort with only James Rivera present). The thing is that from now on, once the nod to their masterpiece has been done, it’s not very easy to predict the band’s next step… certainly, treading around “Nosferatu” would hardly be the best option although I’m pretty sure the fans would be quite happy to welcome “The Count”, or “Vlad the Undead” as the next installment as long as the next opus isn’t “Multiples of Grey” or any other dubious colour reference. Regarding the latter, one should by all means keep an open mind since the trajectory witnessed so far resembles quite a bit the one from their 80’s period: four albums, the last one the creative peak, followed by a lengthy several-year hiatus, and the coming of the divisive, polemical release. Because if this is what’s coming maybe one more ode to our favourite hungry Transylvanian Immortal may not, after all, be such a bad proposition.

There’s a good chance that Helstar’s Vampiro could’ve fallen flat on its face. While the Texas group’s ninth full-length album isn’t a direct sequel to their legendary Nosferatu, the return to the vampire lyrical theme and aspirations to achieve their classic tech speed metal sound feels like a desperate gamble similar to the ill-fated Operation: Mindcrime II. Fortunately, Helstar never strayed too far from their roots to begin with, resulting in an album that achieves its goals like so many of their peers never do.

On the surface, Vampiro is pretty similar to the other albums that Helstar has released since they returned with 2009’s The King of Hell. The production is polished and the downtuned guitars hit in with a mix of aggression and clarity. Vocalist James Rivera also continues to the group’s main attraction, leading the way with a melodic delivery that very occasionally mixes in some harsher shrieks to compensate for his somewhat diminished upper range.

But while Rivera’s hamminess is what seems to have kept Helstar all this time, the guitar work is what really stands out on this album. While their other reunion efforts prominently featured chuggy riff patterns in songs that frankly sounded like contemporary Exodus with clean vocals, Vampiro features a much more acrobatic guitar performance as the duo play plenty of intricate patterns and neoclassical harmonies. Considering how the album to feature new guitarist Andrew Atwood alongside the original player Larry Barragan, it’s rather fascinating to see Helstar truly sound like Helstar again.

With that, the songwriting is also pretty good and showcases a lot of variety. Tracks like the opening “Awaken Into Darkness” and “Black Cathedral” make the deepest impacts due to their sweeping theatrics while other tracks like “Repent In Fire” and “Off With His Head” also stand out due to the strong choruses. In addition, the instrumental “Malediction” appropriately makes the most of winding guitar passages while “Dreamless Sleep” closes things out with a brief but somber note.

While bands like Vektor may be the future of thrash metal, Vampiro proves that Helstar is one of the strongest thrash bands left in the old guard. While the modern presentation may throw some old school fans off, the top notch performances keep the retread territory from feeling too desperate. If only all heavy metal sequel albums could be this awesome…

Highlights:
“Awaken Into Darkness”
“Malediction”
“Repent In Fire”
“Abolish the Sun”
“Black Cathedral”

Originally published at http://iindymetalshows.com

Holy shit, where did this come from?

To be completely honest, Helstar were a band I had essentially given up on. It's not that their exploits over the better part of the past decade (starting with 2008's The King of Hell) had been bad, per se - but for a band whose classic output included some of the most unique and instantly-identifiable material ever to come out of the American power metal scene, it was just bland. The aggression was there, but the magic was gone: the nifty traditional and neoclassical influences and hilarious B-movie horror vibes replaced by wholly competent yet mostly uninspiring modern thrash-isms. It simply wasn't Helstar - at least, not the Helstar I know and love; if not for the idiosyncratic vocals of James Rivera, one could be forgiven for not recognizing the band at all. One could never accuse the band of phoning it in - the performances were dripping with energy and sincerity - but the music simply was not very memorable or interesting.

Thus, when I learned some months ago that Helstar's newest album would be revisiting the themes of their 1989 opus Nosferatu, I didn't really hold my breath. Boy, was I wrong.

Vampiro is a monster of an album, containing many of the best elements of Helstar's classic material. I think it would be somewhat misleading to paint this album purely as a spiritual successor to Nosferatu; to my ears, there's quite a lot of Remnants of War in here, as well. Nor can one really accuse this of being a mere rehash of the band's glory days; this album does have a definitely modern tinge to it, and while for most bands of this style that might be a criticism, I can't really say it hurts the quality here at all. This is very much a natural development of the classic Helstar sound: simultaneously fresh and familiar.

Opener Awaken Unto Darkness functions marvelously as a tone-setter: eerie acoustic guitars and ambience give way to an absolute stomper of a main riff, before the lead guitar screams in - and off we go: this is Helstar, no doubt about it. About halfway through, the tempo suddenly kicks up to a frenzy, where it'll stay for the better part of the album (only slowing down for the ominous, crawling Abolish the Sun and the acoustic outtro Dreamless Sleep). The goofy horror atmosphere that worked so well on Helstar's "classic" material is back here in full force, as well as the dark gothic vibes of Nosferatu that meld so well with the neoclassical touches to the solos and many of the riffs. The songcraft is typical Helstar - that is, riffs piled on riffs, and for this style of music you really can't do any better than that.

And the riffs are phenomenal - from spider-y neoclassical fretwork to classic speed metal to satisfying palm-mute-and-power-chord fare. A couple of more modern-sounding riffs recall their other post-reunion work, but here they're in a context where they work just fine. New bassist Garrick Smith, aided by a very nice mix courtesy of veteran Bill Metoyer, acquits himself nicely, with some fine strutting bass lines. He has a great sense of what to do to maintain a sense of identity beneath all the fireworks of the guitars (check out the chorus of From the Pulpit to the Pit for a particularly fine example) without ever sounding out-of-place, which is a difficult task in music as busy as this. Drummer Michael Lewis does a fine job with a battery of nicely varied patterns, straightforward when the songs need it but satisfyingly complex when the music has room for it.

The guitar soloing deserves special mention, because it's downright fucking amazing. Frankly, to my ears, the soloing on Nosferatu was good, but it was often more flashy than it was memorable. Not so on Vampiro. Barragan and newcomer Andrew Atwood shred away in impressive fashion, but always in service of the song. Solos build, develop, and climax in spectacular fashion, always memorable and never outstaying their welcome. Atwood in particular deserves praise for his lead-craft; if anything, he's a bit better than Barragan here. Just listen to his solos on From the Pulpit to the Pit or Repent in Fire, and tell me that isn't some of the best guitar work you've heard in the past decade.

And then we have James Rivera, who sounds like a man possessed. Rivera may have lost the top end of his tenor range to age (though his falsetto remains in impressive form), but what he's lost in flexibility he more than makes up for with sheer variety, displaying all sorts of interesting (and often harsh) dimensions to his voice. He shrieks, he moans, he croons, he bellows - simply put, Rivera does it all here, and with energy and charisma to spare, even showcasing a delicate side to his voice on the haunting outtro Dreamless Sleep. As with Helstar's classic albums, Rivera really sells the songs here, and all told this is probably one of the best performances of his career.

Perhaps my only real criticism is of the production, which has grown on me with repeated listens but still strikes me a tad sterile - if the rhythm guitar and drums were just a bit more natural-sounding, this would be perfect. But dwelling on this too much seems a bit silly, given the undeniable quality of the album at hand, so it's a minor quibble at best.

I could go on, but honestly if you know what classic Helstar sounds like, then you have a good idea what Vampiro sounds like, too. Welcome back, Helstar - here's to a new classic, and hopefully many more to come.

Helstar have returned with their tenth full length album titled Vampiro, and at first glance it appears to be a continuation of Nosferatu...appears is the operative word here. If you truly dive deep down into this album, you see that it much more than a "sequel" or, and I despise this term, a "return to form." No, Helstar never lost their form. They may have lost their way in the mid nineties before their decade long hiatus but they never lost their true form. Their comeback, King of Hell, was a great album as were the two that followed. However, Vampiro is a culmination of everything that Helstar has done throughout their thirty-five year career.

From the first notes of this album, you can tell it's going to be something quite special and epic. Eerie sounds with a soft acoustic guitar riff start before a monster riff comes in and you know this album means business. "Awaken Unto Darkness" is the title of this killer opening track. The opening solo, with it's haunting eastern feel, fits so perfect. Halfway through the song it speeds it up with another kick ass riff that is reminiscent of older Helstar. New guitarist, Andrew Atwood, is an amazing fit because his solo on the song smokes with a great tone that compliments Larry Barragan's sound and style. Everything here seems to be falling into place perfectly.

Of course, this is a Helstar album so the real star of this show is James Rivera. His voice has changed little over the years but the changes it has made has only gone to compliment the band. His screams and shrieks have become his signature in their ferocity and his lower "clean" singing voice has only gotten better. He can bring that eerie, dark vibe to the songs but he also has created a way to bring out characters in his voice. "To Dust You Will Become" is a perfect example of how much dynamic his voice has taken on. I've personally known James since 1999 and seen him perform on multiple occasions as well as rehearsals, soundcheck's, etc. Prior to this album, Welcome the End from his Distant Thunder project was my favorite performance by James. This album has turned that all around. He's telling a story on this album and is using his voice, much like King Diamond, to create the atmosphere for the story and the result is just incredible.

The songwriting and the riffs on this album need mention because the opening riff on "From the Pulpit to the Pit" is catchy as fuck and the opening solo just shreds making this one of my favorite Helstar songs. "To Their Deathbeds They fell" is another killer song that seems to hearken back to the old days but is much deeper than that. The riffs are technical on this album and do remind me of Nosferatu but you can tell the modern Helstar elements are their. As I said earlier, this album is the culmination of everything they have done, mixing their modern elements with their classic riffing.

I think the fact that long time knob twister, Bill Metoyer, mixed this album is another factor that should be mentioned. I actually think the production on this album is much cleaner and more defined than on their previous three. At times it even reminds me of Destiny's End's first album. The guitar tone is especially amazing and compliments these songs so well. Combined with the brilliant song writing, killer solos, and James' skill at using his voice to actually put you into this story you get a result that is just brilliant.

As we approach the end of 2016 we start to think about what albums could be in the running for album of the year and this album is truly in the running. I knew it would be a great album just because it was Helstar but I never expected this. From beginning to end this album is pure heavy metal at it's finest. Fans of old and new Helstar can get on board with this album because, at the end of the day, one can not deny great heavy metal.

The Elitist Metalhead

After over 2 decades of mostly lackluster releases, Helstar have found themselves at the top of their US power metal game once again! Generally speaking, most of the time when a band decides to "Go back to their roots" or release a sequel to their magnum opus, it turns out to be completely uninspired and an insult to their former glory, but that is not the case with Helstar's latest effort. Vampiro may have a bit of that mechanical, modernized production, but once you hear the album you'll think you've stepped back in time to the late 80s once again because Vampiro closely resembles Nosferatu in both lyrical and musical content.

Helstar are at their best when they play a fusion of thrashy power metal and neo-classical shred and that's what they have at long last returned to with this latest endeavor. Lyrically, this album is a very serviceable adaptation of Bram Stoker's classic tale, written in a mature horror-like style that never feels cheesy like a lot of power metal often can, it also reminds me of Castlevania and that's my favorite game franchise, so Castlevania Metal is ok with me. From the opening of Awaken Unto Darkness until the ending of Black Cathedral, Vampiro relentlessly assaults the listener with an onslaught of thrashy galloping riffs and blazing Baroque influenced solos and melodies (One of my favorite moments of the album is the chaotic, shreddy instrumental track Malediction) along with James Rivera's unique tenor voice, which is just as razor sharp as ever and really helps with the atmosphere of the album between his aggressive mid range, his ear pricing wails and his unearthly Dani Filth like black metal shrieks, you really feel like you're listening to Dracula himself.

The biggest problem with the album is due to there not being much variety in the songwriting (Besides a couple songs like Abolish the Sun and Awaken Unto Darkness having some epic doom-ish moments), and because of the style of production the album has, it's about as draining as the vampiric lord himself sinking his fangs into your neck. I personally do love this draining feeling because it makes the concept just that much more convincing, but I could see it being a turn off for some people, however I still say If you're a fan of Helstar's original masterpiece Nosferatu, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Castlevania or just really well crafted power thrash and don't mind a bit of extra shredding on the side, I'd highly recommend checking out this fantastic sacrificial offering to the genre from Helstar.