Album
Keeper of the Seven Keys, Part I
Keeper of the Seven Keys, Part I is Helloween's second studio album, released on 23 May 1987 through G.B.B.S. Records. It follows their 1985 debut, Walls of Jericho, and it is the record where vocalist Michael Kiske first appears with the band, a change that shaped how they sounded from here on.
Sitting between heavy metal and power metal, it is widely regarded as the album that created European-style power metal, which makes it a natural starting point for anyone curious about where the genre took shape. It also opens a two-part story: Part II followed in 1988, so this is the first chapter of a pair that defined the band's late-eighties run.
Keeper of the Seven Keys, Part I: tracklist, credits and charts
8 tracks · 37:10Tracklist
- 1InitiationKai Hansen1:20
- 2I’m AliveKai Hansen3:23
- 3A Little TimeMichael Kiske4:01
- 4Twilight of the GodsKai Hansen4:31
- 5A Tale That Wasn’t RightMichael Weikath4:45
- 6Future WorldKai Hansen4:03
- 7HalloweenKai Hansen13:20
- 8Follow the SignKai Hansen and Michael Weikath1:48
- Produced by
- Tommy Hansen, Tommy Newton, Tommy Hansen
- Recorded at
- Horus Sound Studio (Hanover, Germany)
- Recorded
- November 1986 – January 1987
- Mixed by
- Tommy Hansen
- Mixed at
- Horus Sound Studio
- Engineered by
- Tommy Hansen, Tommy Newton
- Labels
- G.B.B.S. Records, Noise
- Length
- 37:10
Line-up
- Markus Grosskopf · bass guitar, background vocals
- Kai Hansen · guitar, background vocals
- Ingo Schwichtenberg · drums (drum set)
- Michael Weikath · guitar, background vocals
- Michael Kiske · lead vocals
Singles
- “Future World” · 1987
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 · 1987 | 104 |
| Finnish Albums (The Official Finnish Charts) · 1987 | 10 |
| German Albums · 1987 | 15 |
| Swiss Albums · 1987 | 18 |
| Swedish Albums · 1987 | 42 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 1987 | 58 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| Germany · 1989 | Gold |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
74.2
Popularity (0–100, vs the whole vault)
2.7k
ListenBrainz listeners
62k
Wikipedia views, last 12 months
—
Deezer fans (all editions)
Released the same week
Also released on 23 May
Every year →
Dynasty
KISS · 1979
Mer de noms
A Perfect Circle · 2000
Out of Exile
Audioslave · 2005
Brain Drain
Ramones · 1989
Mad Season
Matchbox Twenty · 2000
Look What the Cat Dragged In
Poison · 1986
Ready an’ Willing
Whitesnake · 1980
The ConstruKction of Light
King Crimson · 2000
Yeah!
Def Leppard · 2006
Pierced From Within
Suffocation · 1995
The Painful Truth
Skunk Anansie · 2025
KISS 40 Years: Decades of Decibels
KISS · 2014
More from Helloween
Full discography →
Death Metal
1984
Helloween
1985
Walls of Jericho
1985
Keeper of the Seven Keys, Part II
1988
Live in the U.K.
1989
Pink Bubbles Go Ape
1991
The Best, The Rest, The Rare
1991
Chameleon
1993
Mr Ego (Take Me Down) EP
1994
Master of the Rings
1994
The Time of the Oath
1996
High Live
1996
Better Than Raw
1998
Karaoke Remix, Volume 2
1998
Karaoke Remix, Volume 1
1998
Metal Jukebox
1999
The Dark Ride
2000
Treasure Chest
2002
Rabbit Don’t Come Easy
2003
Keeper of the Seven Keys: The Legacy
2005
Keeper of the Seven Keys: The Legacy: World Tour 2005/2006
2007
Gambling With the Devil
2007
Unarmed: Best of 25th Anniversary
2009
7 Sinners
2010
Burning Sun
2012
Straight Out of Hell
2013
My God‐Given Right
2015
Halloween - Live
2019
United Alive
2019
Helloween
2021
Giants & Monsters
2025
The best of 1987
All of 1987 →
Appetite for Destruction
Guns N’ Roses · 1987
The Joshua Tree
U2 · 1987
Kiss Me Kiss Me Kiss Me
The Cure · 1987
A Momentary Lapse of Reason
Pink Floyd · 1987
Tango in the Night
Fleetwood Mac · 1987
Hysteria
Def Leppard · 1987
The Uplift Mofo Party Plan
Red Hot Chili Peppers · 1987
Permanent Vacation
Aerosmith · 1987
The $5.98 E.P.: Garage Days Re‐Revisited
Metallica · 1987
Document
R.E.M. · 1987
Whitesnake
Whitesnake · 1987
Bad Attitude
Deep Purple · 1987
Releases and pressings
How we know the release date musicbrainz only
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 23 May 1987 | ignored lone early release dated 1987-04-21 |
| Wikipedia infobox | March 1987 | |
| Wikidata | 1987 | |
| US release | 1987 | earliest US date |
17 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| — | XE | Noise Records | 4006030006124 | other |
| 1987 | ES | G.B.B.S. Records | other | |
| 1987 | US | RCA | 078635639940 | other |
| 1987 | US | RCA | 078635639926 | other |
| 1987 | US | RCA | 078635639919 | other |
| 1987 | DE | Noise International | 4006030006124 | other |
| 21 April 1987 | JP | Victor | 4988002121588 | original |
| 23 May 1987 | DE | Noise International | other | |
| 21 October 1994 | JP | Victor | 4988002301331 | other |
| 1997 | DE | Noise Records | 4006030006124 | other |
| 2006 | GB | Castle Music | 5050749411785 | deluxe |
| 2006 | MX | Scarecrow Records | 5050749411785 | other |
| 10 February 2006 | XE | Noise Records | 5050159640928 | deluxe |
| 22 February 2006 | JP | Victor | 4988002499212 | deluxe |
| 8 August 2006 | XW | Noise Records | 5414939554476 | deluxe |
| 8 August 2006 | US | Sanctuary Records | 060768642829 | other |
| 26 July 2024 | XW | Sanctuary Records | 4099964053845 | remaster |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · upscaled: major: best source 1408x1392, upscaled to 1500 (x1.08)
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 1408×1392 | upscaled: major: best source 1408x1392, upscaled to 1500 (x1.08) |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |