Helloween ‎– Metal Jukebox

Best to start off by saying I'm neither a Helloween connoisseur, nor much of a power/speed metal fan; infact, the only attraction here for me was the tracklist - an ambitious affair for most parts, consisting mainly of songs noted for powerful, heart-felt, character-driven and distinctive delivery; so sue me for thinking that this could, potentially, be an interesting listen.
Woefully, it turns out that at best those intriguing choices get the band some merit in the big balls department – but, more realistically, they (and especially their singer) should really check out 'overreaching' in a dictionary.

Let's begin with the worst of it: a disposable cover of He's A Woman, She's A Man (Scorpions) and an anemic From Out Of Nowhere (Faith no more), one of FNM's most boring songs to begin with, and tragically lacking their inherent comprehension of groove.

Almost not as bad are Locomotive Breath (Jethro Tull) - an ill advised choice, performed with a clichéd, 'Very Metal', attempt at intimidating vocals, thus lacking Ian Anderson's anguished delivery; also, the flute-cum-guitar-solo is a jumbled afterthought mess instead of the compelling highlight it could - and should - have been.
Proving that not all surprises are good ones, Space Oddity (David Bowie) is astoundingly straight-forward all around; alas, this choice is purpose-defeating at best (and artistically poor in fact) as the one reason to make this album would have been to imbue the songs with a personal signature; due to the singer’s limitations, the vocal delivery - again - lacks Bowie's charm and persuasion, and given their technical competence, the group’s undeviating recital is utterly pointless.
All My Loving (Beatles) is amusing in a much-too-predictable 'speed metal does Beatles' kind of way, but ultimately nothing more than that (nice backing vocals, though).
Hocus Pocus (Focus) dramatically lacks the insane joyfulness, abandon and precision of Thijs Van Leer's original vocals, but it does have a redeeming, great guitar solo; however, it remains entirely too close to the original, and would have been much better served if sped up and considerably metalized.

Almost good are Juggernaut (Frank Marino) - I'm unfamiliar with the original, but taken at face value this is a perfectly fine metal song, so let it lie; White Room (Cream) is a pretty enjoyable, almost personal rendition all round - except for the 'chorus' parts which are way too indecisive, bordering on wimpy.
The Mexican (Babe Ruth) is adapted quite a bit, and on its own terms - again - is a perfectly good metal track (with exceptional guitar parts, by the way, which surpass the original by far). But... if you want to see where this version - and indeed this entire album - is lacking, check out Youtube for a 1974 live version by the original band, and compare vocals. Like an alley cat versus a lab-mouse, I think you’ll find

The best of it is a truly excellent Faith Healer (Alex Harvey), and a surprisingly brilliant Lay All Your Love On Me (Abba) – a glamorous Pop-Metal tune that improves on the original by light-years; though, to be frank, considering the lame source a great artistic achievement this is not. Still - great job on this one, so credit where it is due – Helloween rock better than Abba.

So: as an album - this doesn't really say anything other than "hey kids, we're a metal band and we're doing these songs, ain’t it zany?" which bizarrely turns it into a concept album of sorts, however misguided; and while the singer is agreeably versatile in technical styling, there is a constant lack of emotional character on his part, which begs the question of why in god's name they chose these particular tracks, given that their frontman has got such a pale vocal personality compared to the original performers? Was it a prank on the band's part? Was Mr. singer's ego getting too big?
And the pranksters themselves, while very technically capable throughout, are mostly neither creative nor very interesting - so why the hell did anyone bother with the effort? Make it a 4-track E.P and go on holiday.

In a sentence - looks like they had fun making this, but whether or not anyone else should be subjected to it is entirely depending on how much of a Helloween fan they already are.