Pink Bubbles Go Ape

I got the expanded version of the album in the post today :) It boasts 4 new songs not on the original CD release, one of them a cool cover of Blue Suade Shoes and while many complain that it's the weakest CD that Helloween have ever done I disagree, I think it's a brave attempt to try something new, after the iconic Keeper of the Seven Keys, Part II any CD was going to be a let down so instead of producing a pale imitation the band tried something else, something new. There's s couple of stand out tracks, one of which remains in the live set to ths day. Kids of the Century was the lead single and it's a firm statement of how exploratory the band are, it's quite different to their chant along classics but yet it retains a good sense of self and it stands up quite nicely on its own merits. Number One is less of a stand out single as it's eclipsed by non-single track The Chance which remains a fan favourite (one of mine too) to this day. This album is a necessary one, without it the band would have remained trapped in a style that was rapidly fading and instead they searched for a new sound for the coming years and eventually they'd find it in Master of the Rings.