May 23, 2023

Toronto, Canada @ History

Review/photos: Billy Klare

Helloween brought their United Forces 2023 world tour to Toronto, Canada on May 23 with special guests Hammerfall. This leg of the world tour includes this only Canadian date and twelve additional stops in the United States. Helloween return with the full “Pumpkins United” line-up including Kai Hansen (guitar / vocals), Andi Deris (vocals), Michael Kiske (vocals), Michael Weikath (guitar), Markus Grosskopf (bass), Sascha Gerstner (guitar) and Daniel Loble (drums). All four Helloween eras are represented with the original Kai led era, Kiske era, Deris era and the latest united version of the band.  

I was fortunate enough to see the Pumpkins United tour in 2018 on three different occasions in Germany (Wacken Open Air), New York and Montreal. All three concerts were outstanding so my expectations were sky high for this Toronto show and I’m delighted to report it was another amazing Helloween performance. It’s clear this expanded version of the band still enjoys touring and playing together. 

During the Pumpkins United tour, Helloween performed alone each night with lengthy extended sets but changed approach on this tour to include Sweden’s Hammerfall opening the show each night. Michael Kiske noted in recent interviews that show attendance is still uncertain in parts of Canada / USA so they wanted to diversify the line-up and help limit touring risk. Based on my previous personal experiences, the 2018 New York & Montreal shows were sold out but my friend attended the recent Dallas, USA show a week before this Toronto show and sadly the attendance was limited to just 300 – 350 people. I don’t know exact Toronto attendance numbers but I’m pretty sure it was at least a thousand strong and potentially more (it’s a large newer venue so difficult for me to judge).         

The show started with Hammerfall playing their own brand of melodic power metal which was likely influenced by 1980’s Helloween to some degree. The Hammerfall setlist was surprisingly broad with at least one songs from most of their discography (12 or 13 songs in total). The crowd enjoyed the performance helping sing all the catchy choruses. I saw many fans wearing Hammerfall T-shirts that night. I’m more of a casual fan but really enjoyed “Blood Bound”, “Let The Hammer Fall”, “Any Means Necessary” and the last song of the night “Hearts on Fire”. 

It was finally time for Helloween and the crowd was excited and eager to get started. The stage design was pretty straight forward. The elevated drum kit was surrounded by a large orange inflatable pumpkin with a large TV screen at the back of the stage playing various Helloween animation and other relevant clips throughout the show. The elevated drum riser provided room on each side that band members utilized during the show. 

Helloween kicked off their set with “Skyfall” from the latest self-titled album released in 2021. They also played “Mass Pollution” and “Best Times” from the new record. While I enjoyed hearing the new songs live for the first time, they just don’t hold the same nostalgia factor for me like the older classic material. Similarly, audience reaction was generally positive for the new songs but not to the same extent as the classics.   

The audience helped sing many of the old songs word-for-word including “Future World”, “Eagle Fly Free”, “Save Us”, “Dr. Stein” “How Many Tears” and the lengthy “Keeper of the Seven Keys”. I couldn’t wipe the smile of my face during these amazing songs that I grew up with. My one minor complaint of the night was the limited representation of the genius “Keepers I” album (only Future World was played). I certainly understand there’s no way to tackle everything on this tour with the band shifting to a normal set length and a new album of material to play. It’s clear to me the “Keepers I” and Deris era material was trimmed from the previous extended Pumpkin United sets. 

There’s often significant debate in the Helloween community around the Andi Deris era of the band but I was a big fan from day one. We were treated to a few songs from some key Deris albums including “Perfect Gentleman”, “Power”, and “Forever and One”. Andi sounded great live which is no small task when your singing beside the legend that is Michael Kiske. 

I loved the interaction and banter between Kiske and Deris as they sang together throughout the night. It’s evident to me they still enjoy performing together and egos are not getting in the way. It’s nice to see band cohesiveness remaining so strong. One key memory of the night was Kiske & Deris taking center stage sitting on stools singing “Forever and One” equally sharing the lines and chorus.

I continue to be impressed with Sasha on guitar who holds his own next to the legendary Hansen & Weikath which must be intimidating for a much younger guitarist sharing the stage with these metal veterans. Sasha has excellent stage presence and spoke to the crowd on multiple occasions, asking the audience at one point who was here from Quebec. He clearly knows the significance of the Montreal, Quebec metal scene and it’s importance within the overall Canadian metal scene. As a Montrealer, I thought that was pretty cool. 

The best memory for me occurred mid-set when kai took over the vocal duties and performed a medley of “Metal Invaders”, “Victim of Fate”, “Gorgar” and “Ride The Sky” followed by “Heavy Metal (Is the Law)”. Kai’s voice hasn’t aged as well as Kiske or Deris but getting the opportunity to hear the earliest original Helloween songs led by Kai who started the band is priceless for a long-time Helloween fan. It’s heavy metal history and I’m glad this material remained in the reduced setlist.  

The night ended on a high note with another classic Helloween song from Keepers II – “I Wan’t Out”. Significant audience singing participation encouraged by the band with large orange and black inflatable pumpkins falling into the audience. An incredible way to end a memorable night. Damn, I once again left the show without one of those coveted giant pumpkin souvenirs.    

I highly recommend this 2023 United Forces Helloween tour. These are true legendary heavy metal musicians who reunited to bring the fans a very special show. I think it’s probably safe to say this touring event won’t last forever and no guarantees of another world tour with the same original members (especially for us Canadians & Americans who only get a few shows every few years). It’s worth taking a mini-vacation traveling to one of these tour stops if you can. You won’t regret it.   

Note: The attached photographs were taken by me on my I-phone in the middle of the crowd and not intended to represent or replace professional level photography. I just wanted to share some clips from the show.