The Dark Ride

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, very tuned down guitars, and gruffer vocals. The album was produced by renowned figures Roy Z and Charlie Bauerfeind. It is also 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.

The Dark Ride
Studio album by Helloween
Released	30 October 2000
Recorded	2000
Studio	Mi Sueño Studio, Tenerife, Spain
Genre	Power metal
Length	56:57
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
"Mr. Torture" Released: October 2000 "If I Could Fly" Released: October 2000

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Sputnikmusic	[2]

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.	Title	Writer(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"	Deris	3:43
6.	"If I Could Fly"	Deris	4:09
7.	"Salvation"	Weikath	5:43
8.	"The Departed (Sun Is Going Down)"	Kusch	4:37
9.	"I Live for Your Pain"	Deris	3:59
10.	"We Damn the Night"	Deris	4:07
11.	"Immortal"	Deris	4:04
12.	"The Dark Ride"	Grapow	8:48

Bonus Tracks: Special Edition

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
13.	"The Madness of the Crowds"	Deris	4:12
14.	"Deliver Us From Temptation"	Markus Grosskopf, Weikath	4:54
15.	"If I Could Fly (Single Edit)"	Deris	3:30

Bonus Tracks: Japanese Edition

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
13.	"The Madness of the Crowds"	Deris	4:12

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 "All over the Nations" 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 mis-print on the back label.

Personnel

• Andi Deris - vocals
• Michael Weikath - guitar
• Roland Grapow - guitar
• Markus Grosskopf - bass
• Uli Kusch - drums

Trivia

• The Japanese cover art has the "Helloween" logo in the same type of "scratch writing" as the album title.
• Additionally, the Japanese cover art signifies the first time ever that the band uses the proper letter "o" in the "Helloween" logo instead of a pumpkin.
• "Do You Feel Good" was originally written during the sessions for The Dark Ride, but would not be recorded until the following album, Rabbit Don't Come Easy.

References

1. The Dark Ride at AllMusic. Retrieved 2011-06-22.
2. "Helloween - The Dark Ride". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved 2011-06-22.
3. "The Dark Ride". Encyclopaedia Metallum. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
4. "Helloween – The Dark Ride (tracklist and versions)". Discogs. Retrieved 2012-11-11.
5. Syrjala, Marko (11 January 2011). "Helloween – bassist Markus Grosskopf". Metal Rules. Retrieved 31 May 2015.