And yet it’s been more than 6 years since the last time Helstar visited our country. Back then they had played at An Club to promote the excellent “Vampiro”; now they appeared at Kyttaro Club without being “limited” by a new album. So, to everyone’s great satisfaction, the set list would be largely based on the classic albums of the 80’s without this meaning that we wouldn’t hear some selections from the newer releases. But we’ll see about that later and let’s start from the beginning…

At 8:10 Hailsteel hit the stage. It was a last-minute addition as Idmon’s Aegis cancelled their appearance for some reason. Despite the fact that the guys didn’t have enough time to prepare for the show, they did a great job presenting songs from their one and only album “Raw Rapid Aggressive”. Their 35-minute set moved in NWOBHM paths with a lot of speed metal origins but also songs that stayed with you right from the first listen. This is very important. I would like to see them in a regular full set…

Shortly after 9 o’clock Stygian Oath appeared according to schedule. This is a band from Thessaloniki which released their debut album “Midnight Flames” last year and also has an EP of the same name to their credit. It was the first time I saw them, and they left me with the best impressions with their professional set up and flawless overall performance. Especially vocalist Akis Daflis effortlessly hit the most demanding note. To my ears the guys worship the US Metal of the 80’s although one could easily spot elements of classic Priest. Well done!

But the time had come for the Texan legends! The reason why more than 200 people were at the Kyttaro Club on Sunday. Helstar’s relationship with the Greek audience is very tight and we are always treated with fantastic shows by them since 2004 when they visited us for the first time until nowadays! As we said in the introduction, the set would be based, for the most part, on old school classics. However, the start was made with “Dark Incarnation” through last year’s EP “Clad in Black”. Rivera appears on stage in a black cape and a red suit wearing of course the…vampire fangs! “Dark Incarnation” went down extremely well, and the rest of the set was just a blast as the track selection was fantastic. Helstar was firing on all cylinders and never let the foot from the pedal during their 90-minute set. “Evil Reign” and “Leather and Lust” that followed caused pandemonium and fans went absolutely crazy with Rivera being truly sensational and not missing a single note! Larry Barragan was flawless in his guitar duties, and you couldn’t help but be moved every time he started a riff from a classic song since we’re talking about the man who founded Helstar with James Rivera 40+ years ago. As for Atwood, Smith, Erhardt (i.e., the members of The Scourge) they were totally professional, and it was obvious that they were having a great time on stage!

Absolute highlights included the back to back performances of “Abandon Ship” and “Winds of War” (they hadn’t played live the former since the European tour of 1988), the ever-popular “The King is Dead”, “Baptized in Blood”, “Run With The Pack” and “Burning Star” while I couldn’t help but mention the personal dedication of “Dark Queen” and Rivera’s “thank you” to Rockpages. Guys, we thank you for the music and we are already looking forward to your return…maybe next year…who knows? All in all, it was a great heavy metal night that we will remember forever!

Set List: “Dark Incarnation” / “Evil Reign” / “Leather and Lust” / “Fall of Dominion”/ “Pandemonium” / “Abandon Ship” / “Winds of War” / To Sleep Per Chance To Scream”/ “Black Cathedral” / “Towards The Unknown”/ “Dark Queen” / “Burning Star” / “The King is Dead” / “Baptized In Blood” / “Run With The Pack”

Sakis Nikas