From Tenerife, the largest of the Spanish Canary Islands, Andi Deris answered Wikimetal's call. The current Helloween quickly apologized for his tired voice, as he had recorded some demos for the band's upcoming album just hours before.
“I’m finishing two songs I wrote for Michael [ Kiske , former vocalist]. I’m happy to be able to write in his style; before, it would have seemed like a copy,” he said. Deris replaced Michael and also former vocalist Kai Hansen starting in 1993. Now, the band's lineup features all three members reunited for a tour and an album, which is expected to be released in 2020. “We have about 20 ideas on the table, a good mix from all decades of metal. Songs where I sing, songs where only Michael sings, songs for Kai…,” he explains.
The Pumpkins United World Tour will be coming to Brazil for Rock In Rio and Rockfest in São Paulo, and it started as an unpretentious idea. “It came about when Kai was touring with Helloween and Gama Ray . We realized that people were happy to sing along with us. The only missing piece was Michael. We had to show him that we're not an evil band, that this new phase has positive and upbeat lyrics. He decided to give us a chance,” says Andi.
That's how a friendship developed between the members. Michael visits Andi on the island of Tenerife, and Andi visits Michael in Germany, where he records the demos that the current vocalist writes. "We unfortunately found a common hobby, which is eating cheesecake," he jokes, "We became good friends."
This friendship is one of the driving forces behind Helloween's new phase. The friends share the stage and the songs. "If I say 'I don't feel comfortable singing this part' because it's too difficult, the other person has to sing it. Michael has the technique for higher notes, I'm in the middle. If it's a brutal scream, that's something for Kai," he explains.
From this dynamic, which worked so well on stage, comes the tour DVD , which Andi promises will be full of surprises, from behind-the-scenes footage to songs that weren't played live. It's a performance that Brazilians will have the pleasure of seeing starting in September. The shows in Brazil cause conflicting feelings in the vocalist:
“I’m really looking forward to Rock In Rio. Our last time there was an adrenaline rush. I hope everyone has a lot of fun, which is what ends up happening. We go on stage nervous, but after a few minutes you see that everyone loves you and just wants to have a good time.”
Helloween was called in "at the last minute" after Megadeth canceled their tours Dave Mustaine 's throat cancer . "I hope he recovers well," Andi said. "It's a strange feeling to be invited to something so good with such sad news. But we'll go up there and honor Mustaine with a lot of metal."
Another of these conflicting feelings is the memory the vocalist has of the singer Andre Matos , from Angra , who recently passed away . “I had to delete him from my contact list. We were very close, we always exchanged messages,” he recalls. “It’s something truly horrible. That’s life.”
If Andi seems to be a meeting point of metal references, between Matos' friendship and Helloween's more than 30-year career, it's because that's the role he plays with pleasure. Not only does the band's new phase try to incorporate everything that encompasses the band itself, but Andi also tries to bring something new from whatever the inspiration may be.
“People think I’m crazy when I say I love Deftones, but it’s very adventurous. I love Jonathan [ Davis ] from Korn , too. I always want to open my ears, not copy, but bring inspiration. I don’t want to think that I know how to write music and that I don’t need to learn anything else. The day I stop learning, I retire,” Andi laughs.
And it is from this gathering that Helloween 2019 emerges, the three decades represented in the three vocalists, but always looking towards the future of music. “There is a future. I want to add spice to Helloween's music, we have to give new sounds a chance, take it to the next level.”
If it's up to Andi Deris, Helloween and metal still have a long way to go.