The Dark Ride

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The Dark Ride
Helloween-thedarkride.jpg
Studio album by
Helloween
Released30 October 2000
Recorded2000
StudioMi Sueño Studio, Tenerife, Spain
Genre Power metal
Length56:57
Label Nuclear Blast
Producer Roy Z and Charlie Bauerfeind
Helloween chronology
Metal Jukebox
(1999)		The Dark Ride
(2000)		 Rabbit Don't Come Easy
(2003)
Singles from The Dark Ride
  1. "Mr. Torture"
    Released: October 2000
  2. "If I Could Fly"
    Released: October 2000
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [1]
SputnikmusicStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [2]

The Dark Ride is the ninth studio album by German power metal band Helloween, released in 2000. [3] [4] The album's style was quite different from Better Than Raw as it had a much darker sound, drop-tuned guitars, and gruffer vocals. The album was produced by Roy Z and Charlie Bauerfeind. It is the last studio album to feature Master of the Rings -era lineup with the dismissal of guitarist Roland Grapow and drummer Uli Kusch after completion of the supporting tour for the album. They went on to form the band Masterplan.

Contents

The album contains two singles, which are "If I Could Fly" and "Mr. Torture".

On a later interview, bassist Markus Grosskopf commented on the album, saying: "The Dark Ride was kind of constructed, all the people were telling us try this, let's do this, you know, it's a good album but it's a very difficult way to do records when there's somebody always going on your nerves all the time." [5]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Beyond the Portal" Andi Deris 0:45
2."Mr. Torture" Uli Kusch 3:27
3."All Over the Nations" Michael Weikath 4:55
4."Escalation 666" Roland Grapow 4:24
5."Mirror Mirror"Deris3:43
6."If I Could Fly"Deris4:09
7."Salvation"Weikath5:43
8."The Departed (Sun Is Going Down)"Kusch4:37
9."I Live for Your Pain"Deris3:59
10."We Damn the Night"Deris4:07
11."Immortal"Deris4:04
12."The Dark Ride"Grapow8:48
Total length:56:57
Bonus tracks: Japanese edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."The Madness of the Crowds"Deris4:12
Bonus tracks: special edition
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
13."The Madness of the Crowds"Deris4:12
14."Deliver Us from Temptation" Markus Grosskopf, Weikath4:54
15."If I Could Fly (Single Edit)"Deris3:30

On some copies of "The Dark Ride" and "Rabbit Don't Come Easy" (as a special two for the price of one cd) the disc has "Mr. Torture" and "All Over the Nations" in reverse order so this way the latter is track #2. The tracks are also flipped on the Japanese version of the CD. Also on copies of the special two for one cd, there is a listing for track #13, "Far Away" on Rabbit Don't Come Easy, which does not exist on the CD and is a misprint on the back label.

Personnel

Charts

Chart (2000)Peak
position
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista) [6] 19
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100) [7] 26
Italian Albums ( Musica e Dischi ) [8] 43
Japanese Albums (Oricon) [9] 11
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan) [10] 38
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade) [11] 68

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Helloween</span> German power metal band

Helloween is a German power metal band founded in 1984 in Hamburg by members of bands Iron Fist, Gentry, Second Hell and Powerfool. It is said that the band is one of the most influential European heavy metal bands of the 1980s. Its first lineup consisted of singer and guitarist Kai Hansen, bassist Markus Grosskopf, guitarist Michael Weikath and drummer Ingo Schwichtenberg. By the time Hansen left Helloween in 1989 to form Gamma Ray, the band had evolved into a five-piece, with Michael Kiske taking over as lead vocalist. Schwichtenberg and Kiske both parted ways with Helloween in 1993; Schwichtenberg died two years later as the result of suicide. Between then and 2016, there had been numerous line-up changes, leaving Grosskopf and Weikath as the only remaining original members. As a septet, their current lineup includes four-fifths of the Keeper of the Seven Keys: Parts I and II-era (1987–1988) lineup, featuring three additional members, vocalist Andi Deris, guitarist Sascha Gerstner and drummer Daniel Löble.

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<i>Keeper of the Seven Keys: The Legacy</i> 2005 studio album by Helloween

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<i>Metal Jukebox</i> 1999 studio album by Helloween

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<i>Master of the Rings</i> 1994 studio album by Helloween

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">If I Could Fly (Helloween song)</span> 2000 single by Helloween

"If I Could Fly" is a power ballad song and single made by German power metal band Helloween, from their album The Dark Ride. The song begins with a grand piano that combines itself with distorted guitars and pounding drums. The lyrics depict a man in a journey of self-discovery. The song was written by Helloween frontman Andi Deris. The song has become one of Helloween's most popular, joining Future World, I Want Out and "Eagle Fly Free" on their live setlists. It was released in some countries as If I Could Fly. In Japan, it was released as Mr. Torture.

<i>Treasure Chest</i> (Helloween album) 2002 box set by Helloween

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Just a Little Sign</span> 2003 single by Helloween

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<i>Mr. Ego</i> (Take Me Down) 1994 EP by Helloween

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Power (Helloween song)</span> 1996 single by Helloween

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"Mr. Torture" is a song and single made by German power metal band Helloween. This single is similar to the "If I Could Fly" single with the addition of "Mr. Torture" as the first track. Like many others of the band's lyrics, this song is rather humorous and not to be taken seriously. It is about Mr. Torture giving women sexual pleasure by practising BDSM.

References

  1. ↑ The Dark Ride at AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-06-22.
  2. ↑ "Helloween - The Dark Ride". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 22 June 2011.
  3. ↑ "The Dark Ride". Encyclopaedia Metallum . Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  4. ↑ "Helloween – The Dark Ride (tracklist and versions)". Discogs . Retrieved 11 November 2012.
  5. ↑ Syrjala, Marko (11 January 2011). "Helloween – bassist Markus Grosskopf". Metal Rules . Retrieved 31 May 2015.
  6. ↑ "Helloween: The Dark Ride" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
  7. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Helloween – The Dark Ride" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
  8. ↑ "Classifiche". Musica e Dischi (in Italian). Retrieved 27 May 2022. Set "Tipo" on "Album". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Helloween".
  9. ↑ Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005 (in Japanese). Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN   4-87131-077-9.
  10. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Helloween – The Dark Ride". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
  11. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Helloween – The Dark Ride". Hung Medien. Retrieved 12 September 2020.


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