HELLOWEEN - Giants & Monsters (Review)

Written by: Blackie Skulless

Preamble: there are far more qualified candidates to discuss Helloween than me. I touched on this when discussing Helloween four years back now (Jesus, time, please slow down), and the arrival of a new album after a softer stance on Europower metal just had me so excited. Despite my lack of expertise, I truly appreciate everything about this band. They have their obvious classics that I adore, they have their strong-tier records that work better for the genre fans, they have their weird deep cuts, and they have stuff that’s all around forgettable. Through it all, they’ve held this image of a spooky outfit that loves dark overcasts and scary subject matter, but have always felt, in the end, like they’re a friend here to keep you safe. Since the time of Alice Cooper, rock villains were opted for more and more over rock heroes, especially as the music got heavier and the themes got darker. Helloween is one of the unique examples that presents itself as one but executes the other, since inception over forty years ago. Despite what the surface reveals, they are friends, not foes, a la Demon, KISS, Lucifer’s Hammer, or Haunt. We approach their seventeenth album (nineteenth not ignoring covers/rerecordings), and Giants & Monsters miraculously still feels so fresh; for that, I thank Kiske, Hansen, and everyone involved.

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In some ways, Giants & Monsters functions as a part-two to the gigantic lineup that got us the powerfully impressive self-titled album a few years back. With a seven person band, we’re treated to another set of endless layers that shuffle around tough riffs, hopeful emotion, progressive edge, and an epic soundscape that’s aided by a crisp atmosphere. Yet, this isn’t merely another set of songs done in the exact same vein, but an evolution of that. If our previous outing saw the classic Keeper style brought to a modern, reimagined ground, then here we get the warmer Europower tone that dominated ‘90s records brought under a fresh scope.

With that, a slight sense of condensation is felt in terms of writing, at least within each individual track. Helloween shows no fears of laying down the more progressive structure or longer epic, but it’s more of an exception than the rule this time. In fact, I’d even say that there’s an active focus on catchier numbers meant to stand out rather than mesh with a larger idea. “This Is Tokyo” is almost jarring, trading the mystical/divine themes for a cyberpunk-meets-metal march that could have worked in a video game. On the other hand, “A Little Is A Little Too Much” would fit nicely on a glam metal record with its harmonies, chanted chorus, and keyboard-coated melodies; the same could be said about “Under The Moonlight.” “Into The Sun” realizes a full-on ballad laced with pianos, as does the easy sway in “Hand Of God,” while others still feel more tuned into the speed metal aspects. Even then, a warmer approach is still evident, especially ones that offer an extremely catchy and welcoming chorus like “Savior Of The World.”
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​Yet, there’s still a nice helping of longer and more familiar stompers on Giants & Monsters. Opener “Giants On The Run” not only cakes heavy clarity onto a softer center, but includes loads of chants and soft acoustic passages that really defined ‘90s Europower. On the opposite side of the disc sits the mighty “Majestic,” one of the longer ones to still make that impression on the way out, utilizing ascending intensity in the vocals to reach an explosive, riff-heavy chorus. The hefty (and admittedly repetitive) “Universe (Gravity For Hearts)” aims for this feeling in the center of the album, but I don’t think it’s pulled off as nicely. “We Can Be Gods” is like the band tampering with a threatening, almost menacing approach, but the chorus still falls into that welcoming mood I can’t stop mentioning. If I haven’t made this obvious, there’s a lot going on here, and even with about fifty minutes of playtime, I won’t pretend it can’t get mildly overwhelming.

Regardless, almost everything on the latest Helloween outing scratches a feel-good itch that many of their former records dealt with. It may feel awkward at times due to the many directions it takes, but the overall picture is still obviously whole thanks to the hopeful attitude and clear execution. In a way it gives me the little things I appreciate about the band’s mid-years all in one record. Perhaps too sugary for some, and one could argue that a lineup of this magnitude needs all the room it can get, but on paper it’s solid stuff. If you aren’t a fan of Europower metal, it might be a tougher sell.

Helloween ​- Giants & Monsters was released August 29th, 2025 via Reigning Phoenix

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Helloween can be found at their official website
Cover artwork by Eliran Kantor