Chameleon (album)

"For other uses of the word, see chameleon (disambiguation)."Infobox Album | Name = Chameleon
Type = studio
Artist = Helloween


Released = 1993
Recorded = 1992 at Chateau du Pape, Hamburg, Germany, mixed at Scream Studios, Los Angeles, United States
Genre = Progressive rock
Length = 1:11:26 (w/o bonus tracks)
1:52:35 (w/ bonus tracks)
Label = EMI
Producer = Helloween and Tommy Hansen, assisted by Michael Tibes
Reviews =
*Allmusic Rating|2|5 [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=10:y1uj6j7871e0 link]
Last album = "Pink Bubbles Go Ape" (1991)
This album = "Chameleon" (1993)
Next album = "Master of the Rings" (1994)

"Chameleon" is the fifth studio album by German power metal band Helloween, released in 1993. It is their most musically adventurous release, but also their least commercially successful. It is also the last studio album (notwithstanding compilation releases) to feature singer Michael Kiske and drummer Ingo Schwichtenberg.

Background

Tensions within the band resulted in an album that is highly eclectic in terms of its musical aesthetics, to the point that it has been rejected by some fans as not being a Helloween album at all. This position is taken based on the concept that Helloween were only, and should only, ever be a heavy metal band and the fact that Helloween has in effect disowned the album, to this day refusing to play any of the tracks off of it in concert.

Having failed to live up to the standard of "Keeper Of The Seven Keys Part 1", "Keeper Of The Seven Keys Part 2" after "Pink Bubbles Go Ape" in commercial (and somewhat artistic) terms, "Chameleon" abandoned almost all elements of the power metal sound that the band had been instrumental in creating, and can be seen as an attempt to garner success in wider musical avenues like synthesizers, horns, acoustic guitars, the children's chorus of the Orchester Johann Sebastian Bach, violin, church organ, country music, grunge and swing, with participation of musicians like [http://www.gstrings.de/bio-stefan.en.html Stefan Pintev] and Axel Bergstedt. The atmosphere of the album is closer to progressive rock, with some pop elements, than power metal. It's arguable that these elements had always been a part of Helloween's sound, but were not the elements most celebrated by the bands core heavy metal audience. "Chameleon" was the first and last time these diverse influences would make it to the front of the band's sound. In terms of production, this is arguably the most accomplished album of the Michael Kiske era, with an epic sound full of different stylistic influences.

The album contains four singles, which are "Windmill", "When The Sinner", "Step Out of Hell", and "I Don't Wanna Cry No More".

The album was a failure both critically and commercially, and vocalist Michael Kiske and drummer Ingo Schwichtenberg were fired after the subsequent promotional tour. The band then recruited vocalist Andi Deris from Pink Cream 69 along with drummer Uli Kusch and continued in a direction more akin to their earlier works.

In recent years, some fans have conceded that the album is a good progressive rock album and praise its esoteric artistic merits, but still maintain that it cannot and should not be enjoyed as a power metal album, like the band's earlier and later works. The cult status still lasts today.

Track listing

#"First Time" (Weikath) – 5:30
#"When The Sinner" (Kiske) – 6:54
#"I Don't Wanna Cry No More" (Grapow) – 5:11
#"Crazy Cat" (Grapow) – 3:29
#"Giants" (Weikath) – 6:40
#"Windmill" (Weikath) – 5:06
#"Revolution Now" (Weikath) – 8:04
#"In The Night" (Kiske) – 5:38
#"Music" (Grapow) – 7:00
#"Step Out of Hell" (Grapow) – 4:25
#"I Believe" (Kiske) – 9:12
#"Longing" (Kiske) – 4:15

Expanded Edition Bonus Tracks

#"I Don't Care You Don't Care" (Weikath) – 4:01
#"Oriental Journey" (Grapow) – 5:43
#"Cut in the Middle" (Grosskopf) – 3:57
#"Introduction" (Weikath) – 3:52
#"Get Me out of Here" (Weikath) – 2:50
#"Red Socks and the Smell of Trees" (Helloween) – 10:48
#"Ain't Got Nothing Better" (Grosskopf) – 4:41
#"Windmill" (Demo Version) (Weikath) – 5:28

*M - 1,2 also appears on the When The Sinner single.
*M - 3,4,5 also appears on the Windmill & Step Out of Hell singles.
*M - 6,7 also appears on the I Don't Wanna Cry No More single.

Personnel

*Michael Kiske - vocals
*Michael Weikath - guitar
*Roland Grapow - guitar
*Markus Grosskopf - bass
*Ingo Schwichtenberg - drums

Recording information

* Recorded in 1992 at Chateau De Paup in Hamburg, Germany
* Mixed in 1992 at Scream Studios in Los Angeles, United States
* Mastered at Precision Mastering, Hollywood, United States
* Produced by Helloween and Tommy Hansen, assisted by Michael Tibes
* Mixed by Michael Wagner at Double Trouble Productions Inc., assisted by Craig Boubet
* Mastered by Stephen Marcussen
* Logo by Michael Weikath and Sleeve design by Michael Kiske
* All songs are published by Zomba Music Publishers (LTD) S.F. USA