DIRKSCHNEIDER is confirmed as the special guest for HELLOWEEN‘s upcoming “United Alive Part II” European tour 2020.
Udo Dirkschneider and his band will be performing songs solely from his era with ACCEPT, the band he experienced his worldwide breakthrough with at the beginning of the 80s. His voice is the soul of such timeless hits as ‘Metal Heart’, ‘Princess Of The Dawn’and ‘Balls To The Wall’.
“It’s great to have the German Tank with us! He’s a great guy and a musical icon. The tour is gonna be big fun!“, comments Andi Deris.
Udo Dirkschneider adds, “It’s a great honour to share the stage with our friends of HELLOWEEN. We will play a set featuring ACCEPT songs only, the fans won’t miss any of the big hits“.
Michael Weikath states, “This is the ultimate German metal package – I can’t wait to hear all the ACCEPT hits I grew up with!!!”
The “United Alive Word Tour Part II” kicks off this September as the legendary “United” lineup will be unleashed once again. Stronger than ever before with an arsenal of new songs – this will simply be the ultimate HELLOWEEN party!
Europe 2020 26.09. SK Zvolen – Ice Stadium 27.09. A Vienna – Gasometer 29.09. CH Zurich – Samsung Hall 30.09. I Milan – Lorenzini District 02.10. D Stuttgart – Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle 04.10. UK Manchester – Academy 05.10. UK London – Brixton Academy 07.10. F Paris – L’Olympia 08.10. LUX Luxembourg – Rockhal 09.10. F Lyon – Le Transbordeur 11.10. E Barcelona – Sant Jordi Club 12.10. E Madrid – WiZink Center 15.10. CZ Prague – O2 16.10. D Bochum – RuhrCongress 17.10. D Hamburg – Sporthalle 19.10. H Budapest – Papp László Sportaréna 20.10. PL Katowice – Międzynarodowe Centrum Kongresowe 23.10. RUS Moscow – Adrenaline Stadium 25.10. RUS St. Petersburg – A2 Green Concert 27.10. EST Tallinn – Noblessneri valukoda 29.10. FIN Helsinki – Black Box 31.10. S Gothenburg – Partille Arena * 12.11 BG Sofia – Arena Armeec * 14.11 GR Athens – Faliro Pavilion *
“The social media feedback was overwhelming on all counts. To hear and read ‘This was the show of my lifetime’ gives you the ultimate kick to offer the fans even more. Let’s go for the next round!” – Sascha Gerstner
Looking back to the »Pumpkins United World Tour,« named by the press the “Tour Of The Year,” everyone still has a big smile on his face. The excitement that swept through the media began with the announcement of the metal summit’s plan to visit at least 32 countries on 3 continents – but the reactions were nothing compared to the euphoria of over 1 million fans at sold out halls and festivals from West to East. Even if CD, DVD and Blu-ray present stunning contemporary documents – nobody wants to imagine that this is all there is…
BRAND NEW ALIVE
“The »Pumpkins United World Tour 2017-2019« forged us into a real band – we are all very keen in recording a new studio album now. Artistically it’s extremely thrilling.” – Andi Deris
It becomes solidified: Immediately following the massive Brazil tour with THE SCORPIONSand IRON MAIDEN, the Pumpkins United line-up entered the H.O.M.E. Studios inHamburg (where everything started in 1984) to work on brand new song material. The same recording console used for albums such as »Master Of The Rings,«»Time Of The Oath« or »Better Than Raw« is now being used to record a new legendary studio album – analogue and deliberately “back to the roots.” With Michael Kiske, Kai Hansen and Dani Löble drumming on Ingo Schwichtenberg‘s original kit, one thing is for sure: a strongerHELLOWEEN vibe won’t be possible. With United power, the new album will slam down our door end of August / beginning of September 2020 – produced by Charlie Bauerfeind andDennis Ward, who are likewise excited about the quality song material they have on offer from the band.
ULTIMATE LIVE ALIVE
“It was already lots of fun to create a show from the variety of records for the first tour. With the new album we are able to top this. Of course, the set will contain our classics again – especially those songs we were not able to play on the first tour.” – Markus Grosskopf
It’s official: The »United Alive World Tour Part II« is coming! The ultimate HELLOWEEN party will continue and there are a million reasons to attend again: Besides the full-speed hit rollercoaster carrying the fans through three decades, the brand new album (yet to be named) will be presented live for the very first time. In September 2020, the legendary United line-up will be unleashed again: Stronger, with new song material and a ton of horsepower – simply the ultimate »United Alive World Tour Part II.«
Europe 2020 26.09. SK Zvolen – Ice Stadium 27.09. A Vienna – Gasometer 29.09. CH Zurich – Samsung Hall 30.09. I Milan – Lorenzini District 02.10. D Stuttgart – Hanns-Martin-Schleyer-Halle 04.10. UK Manchester – Academy 05.10. UK London – Brixton Academy 07.10. F Paris – L’Olympia 08.10. LUX Luxembourg – Rockhal 09.10. F Lyon – Le Transbordeur 11.10. E Madrid – WiZink Center 12.10. E Barcelona – Sant Jordi Club 15.10. CZ Prague – TBA 16.10. D Bochum – RuhrCongress 17.10. D Hamburg – Sporthalle 19.10. H Budapest – Papp László Sportaréna 20.10. PL Katowice – Międzynarodowe Centrum Kongresowe 23.10. RUS Moscow – Adrenaline Stadium 25.10. RUS St. Petersburg – A2 Green Concert 27.10. EST Tallinn – Noblessneri valukoda 29.10. FIN Helsinki – Black Box 31.10. S Gothenburg – Partille Arena
Best known for working with the rock bands FIREWIND, TAINTED NATION and HELLOWEEN, and filling in for SCORPIONS at the Grand Prix in Bahrain on 5th April 2014, MARK CROSS, groovy and hard-hitting veteran drummer launches a new adventure.
The line-up is selected from the league of past band mates, a powerful team of world class players to represent Mark’s work; a ‘best of works’ from his collaborations with bands and artists on stage and in the studio, past to present, with a perfect setlist for a spectacular show.
Mark says: “This whole thing is brand new and has already gained great feedback. In brief, after a long pause it is time to get back on stage and play for ya! Playing music live nowadays means much, much more than burning thousands of pounds for recording and throwing a new production on the market that never really reaches the masses.”
He continues: “This show is not only about drumming, of course it plays a major role, but is mainly focused on the music, good playing and performance. Every involved musician?s talent will make this a great sounding and unforgettable experience. It is great to work with top musicians, who have also been involved with all these bands and projects. A very versatile set indeed with many surprises. Soon I will let you all know the line-up and name of the band! Horns and thumbs up boys and girls … “
In the meantime everyone is clued in: From October 4th, 2019 we can all revisit the PUMPKINS UNITEDWORLD TOUR every night without even leaving the couch. What is served, is no less than the greatest hits from 30 years and a breakneck trip through the entire HELLOWEEN repertoire – a 14 month metal quake, featured on the cover of almost every metal magazine including the world’s biggest metal magazine, Japan´s »BURRN!«, which dedicated an unbelievable four cover stories to this tour. In other words: Clear the ring for the next round of PUMPKINS UNITED madness!
Today, the band reveal their second album trailer, offering an insight into the upcoming live release and into the band members’ thoughts. Watch the new clip here:
»United Alive« & »United Alive In Madrid« – The video- & audio-releases With the releases of »UNITED ALIVE« & »UNITED ALIVE IN MADRID« on Nuclear Blast, the band presents stunning audio and visuals of the epic tour. Every single solo, every spontaneous gesture, and every emotional encore of the PUMPKINS UNITED WORLD TOUR is evoked and made immortal. Band interviews and plenty of background material included. The artworks for the various formats were once again created by photographer and art designer Martin Hausler, who of course stuffed lots of previously unreleased live images into the 36-page booklet and high end packaging. »United Alive« – DVD/Blu-Ray The DVD/BLU–RAY »UNITED ALIVE« captures the phenomenal sets with recordings from Wacken in front of 75,000 metal heads , 14,000 fans in the Madrid arena, and topped off by the legendary gig at the Espaço das Américas in front of 8,000 fans in São Paulo. In total, there’s over three hours of live material in stereo and premium 5.1 surround sound plus a movie compilation with the essentials of the concert’s LED content, all cartoon clips of Seth and Doc, further surprises, and the very personal 30-minute band interview about the past, present, and future.
»United Alive In Madrid« – Live-CD/Vinyl As pure as it gets – the LIVE–CD/VINYL »UNITED ALIVE IN MADRID« has nearly three hours of unbridled PUMPKINS live pressure up its sleeve – including bonus tracks of the shows in Prague, São Paulo, Wacken, and Santiago de Chile. »United Alive« & »United Alive In Madrid« will be available in the following formats, and can be pre-ordered here: http://nblast.de/HelloweenUnitedAlive 2DISC BLU-RAY DIGIBOOK Disc 1: Live concert, Disc 2: Bonus material – intro movie, interview, LED compilation, Seth & Doc animations & more 3DISC DVD DIGIBOOK Disc 1 & 2: Live concert, Disc 3: Bonus material – intro movie, interview, LED compilation, Seth & Doc animations & more 3DISC LIMITED DIGIBOOK LIVE AUDIO CD Live concert Madrid plus bonus tracks: »March of Time«, »Kids of the Century«, »Why« and »Pumpkins United« 5DISC VINYL BOX Live concert Madrid plus bonus tracks: »March of Time«, »Kids of the Century«, »Why« and »Pumpkins United« 8DISC EARBOOK BLU-RAY & DVD & CD Complete contents of Blu-ray, DVD, and CD in premium packaging
»UNITED ALIVE« – DVD/BLU-RAY Disc 1 01. Halloween 13:29* 02. Dr. Stein 5:47* 03. I’m Alive 3:23** 04. If I Could Fly 4:13* 05. Are You Metal? 4:19*** 06. Rise And Fall 4:22** 07. Waiting For The Thunder 4:04* 08. Perfect Gentleman 4:26* 09. Kai´s Medley 14:36*** (Starlight / Ride The Sky / Judas / Heavy Metal Is The Law) 10. Forever And One 4:32** 11. A Tale That Wasn’t Right 6:09*** 12. I Can 4:48* 13. Pumpkins United 6:28*** 14. Drumkins United 4:50*** 15. Livin’ Ain’t No Crime / A Little Time 6:38* 16. Why 4:32** 17. Sole Survivor 5:15** 18. Power 4:16* 19. How Many Tears 10:58*** 20. Invitation / Eagle Fly Free 7:55* 21. Keeper Of The Seven Keys 20:13* 22. Mos-Kai-To 2:38* 23. Future World 4:46* 24. I Want Out 9:08*** 25. Outro & Credits 4:59 Total running time: 2 hours 47 minutes (*) Recorded live in Madrid, December 9th, 2017 (**) Recorded live in São Paulo, October 29th, 2017 (***) Recorded live at Wacken Open Air, August 4th, 2018
Disc 2 01. Halloween 13:35 – Live in São Paulo, October 29th, 2017 02. Dr. Stein 5:29 – Live in São Paulo, October 29th, 2017 03. Kids Of The Century 4:08 – Live in Prague, November 25th, 2017 04. March Of Time 5:27 – Live in Santiago de Chile, October 31st, 2018 05. Pumpkin’s Whisper – 35:27 06. Bursting Hamburg – 01:59 07. The Essential LED Compilation – 17:09 08. Seth & Doc, The United Thing – 12:04 09. The Keeper’s Journey – 1:19
»UNITED ALIVE IN MADRID« – LIVE–CD/Vinyl CD 1 01. Halloween 13:37 02. Dr. Stein 5:36 03. I’m Alive 3:48 04. If I Could Fly 4:01 05. Are You Metal? 4:28 06. Rise And Fall 4:22 07. Waiting For The Thunder 4:02 08. Perfect Gentleman 4:50 09. Kai’s Medley 13:52 (Starlight / Ride The Sky / Judas / Heavy Metal Is The Law) 10. Forever And One 5:22 11. A Tale That Wasn’t Right 5:43
CD 2 01. I Can 4:57 02. Livin’ Ain’t No Crime / A Little Time 6:39 03. Sole Survivor 4:58 04. Power 4:11 05. How Many Tears 10:56 06. Invitation / Eagle Fly Free 7:13 07. Keeper Of The Seven Keys 17:03 08. Future World 5:36 09. I Want Out 8:47 Live in Madrid, December 9th, 2017
CD 3 01. March Of Time 5:28 – Live in Santiago de Chile, October 31st, 2018 02. Kids Of The Century 4:00 – Live in Prague, November 25th, 2017 03. Why 4:40 – Live in São Paulo, October 29th, 2017 04. Pumpkins United 6:32 – Live at Wacken Open Air, August 4th, 2018 Total Running Time: 2 hours 41 minutes
Remaining Live dates: 28.09. BR Florianópolis – Rock ao Vivo (w/ SCORPIONS) 01.10. BR Porto Alegre – Rock ao Vivo (w/ SCORPIONS, WHITESNAKE) 04.10. BR Rio de Janeiro – Rock in Rio (w/ IRON MAIDEN, SCORPIONS, SEPULTURA)
Jimmy Kay from Canada’s The Metal Voicerecently spoke to HELLOWEEN’s guitarist Michael Weikath.Weikath spoke about the band reuniting after all these years, the upcoming writing sessions of the new album and the bands new live Cd/Dvd BluRay, Helloween United & Alive in Madrid’ which will be releasedOctober 4th on Nuclear Blast.
Watch the interview here:
When asked how Helloween managed to heal old wounds and reunite not like other bands
“We have a different outlook and we have a different upbringing. That whole school system in Germany is quite different and Michael Kiske have this new-age approach towards things and he wants to be a wise character he’s thinking karma and stuff. I’m doing the same you know. Kiske and I used to be best friends in the past, it would be meager, puny and weak you know if we couldn’t sort out any issues for a reunion, we just needed a little talk. We know each other so well from from the past. We both agree there were some kind of demons in the past that screwed everything up. We don’t even know today how we both got onto the wrong track and became so negative towards each other? It’s like a big burden that you have to carry around with yourself for no use at all, just to be f***** right, just to be on the cool side, just to be Mr. Right. Names come to mind of other famous bands where you can say they will never have a reunion. Plus we have a very good management who put us together in the past with Kai Hansen and that would have been near to impossible if you have separate managements.”
When asked why people should pick up the latest Live offering by Helloween
“It’s the combination of a lot of things, maybe we didn’t play so well in the past. In the 80’s. there were crazy conditions and lots of stress and somehow you had to cope with equipment that didn’t quite work. Camera teams being difficult at times, too much booze and stuff and everyone too self-centered. I mean we have old recordings of the Hell of Wheels tour and I was freaking fat cause I’ve had lost a testicle and the hormones inside me were going freaking crazy and I added twenty kilos to my angelic appearance from before. I looked like a like a freaking dumb badass, it did not make me feel really proud.”
When asked about the progress of writing the new album with Pumpkins United
There will be 5 guys writing, Michael Kiske is not going to compose much except whatever he thinks will get into consideration. The pre-production we are going to start end of October 2019, that would entail three months where we will arrange, brainstorm, try things for new song material and then whatever is cool is going to be kept for the main recordings later.”
When asked if the musical directions will be a continuation of their last album My God Given Right “My God Given right was done quite a different way, we had 25 tracks and the producer picked the ones that he thought were the most worthwhile and bam you had that album ready, we just recorded all the ready-made demos . This time on the new album we have a lot more fragments and eventually there’s going to be some great stuff I just know. It’s going to be a lot of work it’s going to take some time but that’s probably a great approach if we’re all not too old for it or if we’re not too uncool for it. We have Charlie Bauerfeind and Dennis Ward as a producer a team on this album so as there’s got to be something great coming out of it. Denis Ward knows Unisonic and the way the band worked, Denis been part of the band himself and he knows how to arrange things and record things and and come up with great results under the most difficult circumstances and Charlie Bauerfeind is like the main organizer. I wrote three complete tracks, Sascha Gerstner came up with a few things, Markus Grosskopf finished a few tracks. Kai Hansen and Andi Deria are working on some fragments and when we put it all together we get creative and so that’s the way we’re gonna do it. In terms of musical direction we are not going to do something unexpected, we are going to play it safe in the future.”
When asked if they will change the set list on the next Helloween Tour
“Sure maybe we can do something like Twilight of the Gods or if people want to hear Save US or other songs we couldn’t do on the last tour because it was already three hours. Next time around it;s going to be different because there are enough stuff to pick from.”
When asked if Pumpkins United with Kai Hansen and Michael Kiske is a short term or long terms
“We all pretty much feel great and so we are going to keep it that way as long as it goes. From what I understood and from what I heard. I even asked how long are we going to do this and everyone was in agreement we are going to try as long as it lasts.”
When asked about if he looks at the Helloween album Chameleon more favorable then in the past
“I even looked at a favorable back then it was just I thought it could have been even better.I mean Chameleon could have been better with a different approach but it was the result of what was there at the time and the intentions we had with it. We were lambasted with debt of the amount of two million Deutschmarks, we were just trying to get rid of that somehow and we thought if we if we make the album commercial it would work.”
In the meantime everyone is clued in: From October 4th, 2019 we can all revisit the PUMPKINS UNITEDWORLD TOUR every night without even leaving the couch. What is served, is no less than the greatest hits from 30 years and a breakneck trip through the entire HELLOWEEN repertoire – a 14 month metal quake, featured on the cover of almost every metal magazine including the world’s biggest metal magazine, Japan´s »BURRN!«, which dedicated an unbelievable four cover stories to this tour. In other words: Clear the ring for the next round of PUMPKINS UNITED madness!
Today, the band release the third live clip and single for the ear-wig ‘Forever And One’. Watch the video here:
If you wanna get a deeper insight, check out the band’s first album trailer:
»United Alive« & »United Alive In Madrid« – The video- & audio-releases With the releases of »UNITED ALIVE« & »UNITED ALIVE IN MADRID« on Nuclear Blast, the band presents stunning audio and visuals of the epic tour. Every single solo, every spontaneous gesture, and every emotional encore of the PUMPKINS UNITED WORLD TOUR is evoked and made immortal. Band interviews and plenty of background material included. The artworks for the various formats were once again created by photographer and art designer Martin Hausler, who of course stuffed lots of previously unreleased live images into the 36-page booklet and high end packaging.
»United Alive« – DVD/Blu-Ray The DVD/BLU–RAY »UNITED ALIVE« captures the phenomenal sets with recordings from Wacken in front of 75,000 metal heads , 14,000 fans in the Madrid arena, and topped off by the legendary gig at the Espaço das Américas in front of 8,000 fans in São Paulo. In total, there’s over three hours of live material in stereo and premium 5.1 surround sound plus a movie compilation with the essentials of the concert’s LED content, all cartoon clips of Seth and Doc, further surprises, and the very personal 30-minute band interview about the past, present, and future.
»United Alive In Madrid« – Live-CD/Vinyl As pure as it gets – the LIVE–CD/VINYL »UNITED ALIVE IN MADRID« has nearly three hours of unbridled PUMPKINS live pressure up its sleeve – including bonus tracks of the shows in Prague, São Paulo, Wacken, and Santiago de Chile.
»United Alive« & »United Alive In Madrid« will be available in the following formats, and can be pre-ordered here: http://nblast.de/HelloweenUnitedAlive
2DISC BLU-RAY DIGIBOOK Disc 1: Live concert, Disc 2: Bonus material – intro movie, interview, LED compilation, Seth & Doc animations & more 3DISC DVD DIGIBOOK Disc 1 & 2: Live concert, Disc 3: Bonus material – intro movie, interview, LED compilation, Seth & Doc animations & more 3DISC LIMITED DIGIBOOK LIVE AUDIO CD Live concert Madrid plus bonus tracks: »March of Time«, »Kids of the Century«, »Why« and »Pumpkins United« 5DISC VINYL BOX Live concert Madrid plus bonus tracks: »March of Time«, »Kids of the Century«, »Why« and »Pumpkins United« 8DISC EARBOOK BLU-RAY & DVD & CD Complete contents of Blu-ray, DVD, and CD in premium packaging
»UNITED ALIVE« – DVD/BLU-RAY Disc 1 01. Halloween 13:29* 02. Dr. Stein 5:47* 03. I’m Alive 3:23** 04. If I Could Fly 4:13* 05. Are You Metal? 4:19*** 06. Rise And Fall 4:22** 07. Waiting For The Thunder 4:04* 08. Perfect Gentleman 4:26* 09. Kai´s Medley 14:36*** (Starlight / Ride The Sky / Judas / Heavy Metal Is The Law) 10. Forever And One 4:32** 11. A Tale That Wasn’t Right 6:09*** 12. I Can 4:48* 13. Pumpkins United 6:28*** 14. Drumkins United 4:50*** 15. Livin’ Ain’t No Crime / A Little Time 6:38* 16. Why 4:32** 17. Sole Survivor 5:15** 18. Power 4:16* 19. How Many Tears 10:58*** 20. Invitation / Eagle Fly Free 7:55* 21. Keeper Of The Seven Keys 20:13* 22. Mos-Kai-To 2:38* 23. Future World 4:46* 24. I Want Out 9:08*** 25. Outro & Credits 4:59 Total running time: 2 hours 47 minutes (*) Recorded live in Madrid, December 9th, 2017 (**) Recorded live in São Paulo, October 29th, 2017 (***) Recorded live at Wacken Open Air, August 4th, 2018
Disc 2 01. Halloween 13:35 – Live in São Paulo, October 29th, 2017 02. Dr. Stein 5:29 – Live in São Paulo, October 29th, 2017 03. Kids Of The Century 4:08 – Live in Prague, November 25th, 2017 04. March Of Time 5:27 – Live in Santiago de Chile, October 31st, 2018 05. Pumpkin’s Whisper – 35:27 06. Bursting Hamburg – 01:59 07. The Essential LED Compilation – 17:09 08. Seth & Doc, The United Thing – 12:04 09. The Keeper’s Journey – 1:19
»UNITED ALIVE IN MADRID« – LIVE–CD/Vinyl CD 1 01. Halloween 13:37 02. Dr. Stein 5:36 03. I’m Alive 3:48 04. If I Could Fly 4:01 05. Are You Metal? 4:28 06. Rise And Fall 4:22 07. Waiting For The Thunder 4:02 08. Perfect Gentleman 4:50 09. Kai’s Medley 13:52 (Starlight / Ride The Sky / Judas / Heavy Metal Is The Law) 10. Forever And One 5:22 11. A Tale That Wasn’t Right 5:43
CD 2 01. I Can 4:57 02. Livin’ Ain’t No Crime / A Little Time 6:39 03. Sole Survivor 4:58 04. Power 4:11 05. How Many Tears 10:56 06. Invitation / Eagle Fly Free 7:13 07. Keeper Of The Seven Keys 17:03 08. Future World 5:36 09. I Want Out 8:47 Live in Madrid, December 9th, 2017
CD 3 01. March Of Time 5:28 – Live in Santiago de Chile, October 31st, 2018 02. Kids Of The Century 4:00 – Live in Prague, November 25th, 2017 03. Why 4:40 – Live in São Paulo, October 29th, 2017 04. Pumpkins United 6:32 – Live at Wacken Open Air, August 4th, 2018 Total Running Time: 2 hours 41 minutes
Live dates:
21.09. BR São Paulo – Rockfest (w/ SCORPIONS, WHITESNAKE, EUROPE) 23.09. BR Uberlândia – Roadfest (w/ SCORPIONS, WHITESNAKE) 25.09. BR Brasília – Rock ao Vivo (w/ SCORPIONS) 28.09. BR Florianópolis – Rock ao Vivo (w/ SCORPIONS) 01.10. BR Porto Alegre – Rock ao Vivo (w/ SCORPIONS, WHITESNAKE) 04.10. BR Rio de Janeiro – Rock in Rio (w/ IRON MAIDEN, SCORPIONS, SEPULTURA)
THE ROCK ALCHEMIST – Italian Rock Band from Turin with a strong sonic identity that blends modern rock with progressive, hard, alternative, and pop elements!
Kimmo Kuusniemi’s SARCOFAGUS return with a Historic 2010 Concert Video Premiere on YouTube! Click image to watch the video
