UMUR "A Distant Thunder" is the 3rd full-length studio album by US power/heavy metal act Helstar. The album was released through Metal Blade Records in November 1988. Prior to the release of "Remnants of War (1986)" almost the entire lineup was changed, and again on "A Distant Thunder", there have been a couple of lineup changes as guitarist Rob Trevino has been replaced by André Corbin, and drummer Rene Luna has been replaced by Frank Ferreira.

Stylistically we´re more or less treated to a natural continuation of the US power/heavy metal style of "Remnants of War (1986)". James Rivera´s strong vocals and commanding delivery is the main focus of the music (he sings both raw and high pitched screaming vocals), but the instrumental part of the music is skillfully delivered too. A powerful pounding rhythm section, hard edged heavy metal riffing and melodic lead guitar work are some of the ingredients of the band´s sound.

While most tracks on the 9 track, 43:13 minutes long album are energetic and hard edged US power/heavy metal tracks, the album also features a couple of more mellow melodic parts, and a cover of "He's a Woman - She's a Man" by the Scorpions. The latter closes the album and fits well with the rest of the tracks. Some of the highlights include "The King is Dead", "Abandon Ship", and the epic "Winds of War", but all material on the album are of a high quality. "A Distant Thunder" is well produced too, featuring a powerful, raw, and detailed sound production, which brings out the best in the material. Upon conclusion it´s a high quality US power/heavy metal release and a 4 star (80%) rating is deserved.

Warthur Another album, another lineup for Helstar, who on A Distant Thunder deliver an excellent US power metal release. At points they sound uncannily like Iron Maiden, but when you sound this good doing it that is no bad thing. The closing "He's a Woman, She's a Man" - a Scorpions cover - is to my ears a little average, especially after the excellent Winds of War which could easily have been the album closer, but aside from that it's a very listenable album which will appeal to anyone who likes speed or power metal or the proggier bits of Iron Maiden's discography.

Unitron Helstar-A Distant Thunder

When the album begins, you're already shot right into powerful pounding and rolling drums with the opening song 'The King is Dead'. During the chorus, Rivera's lower vocals flow perfectly with the shredding guitar. Rivera's vocals are very well performed on this song, with his higher-pitched vocals being spread out to the beginning, middle, and end. 'Tyrannicide' is another strong track. The shredding guitar at both the beginning and the rest of the song is just amazing. 'Scorcher' is another favorite, with a beautiful acoustic intro. Rivera's vocals really shine here, with his soft vocals flowing perfectly with the acoustics. His scream signals the fast guitar and drums to come in. The bridge is another favorite part of the song, with some Medieval sounding acoustic guitar.

'Abandon Ship' is a big stand-out track, with it being the longest song on the album. All the instruments compliment each other perfectly, the drums rolling, the shredding guitar, and the bass all blend well together. The bridge is my favorite part of the song, before the guitar solo comes in, Larry Barragan's guitar really shines. Then beautiful acoustic guitar comes in while the electric guitar is still droning in the background, which is something I love to hear. Rivera's vocals and lyrics are very strong, his vocals complimenting the acoustics perfectly. It's definitely the masterpiece of the album.

The lyrics are much stronger on this album, with more inspirational lyrics. The song 'Bitter End' is about freedom. The lyrics for 'Abandon Ship' remind me of an Iron Maiden song, with the lyrics speaking about dreams and exploration.

Overall, this album is certainly essential to any metal collection. Helstar was at their peak, none of the songs are weak on this album. Helstar blends speed, power, thrash, into a perfect blend. Their inclusion of Medieval influences is very unique as well, with it fitting pretty well with Helstar's sound. Highly recommended to any metal collection.

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LightningRider One of power metal's greatest accomplishments is the unique, diversified and purely epic "A Distant Thunder" by Helstar, which took all of the strengths of their first two albums and mixed them with the extensive progginess that was becoming more and more apparent in metal since the likes of Dream Theater showed up for the game. And in the end, we have an album that is much more creative than the average power metal album, and something that can stand with the giants of Germany.

The first three songs gradually get better, with "A Bitter End" being one of the band's best, never overdoing the incredible aggression and speed, and "Abandon Ship" is even better molding a sorcery of progression and atmosphere into the mix. The second half of the album is a fantastic half on its own, but it's a little more repetitive thanks to the good but somewhat pointless midtro "Whore of Babylon." The album ends with a progressive mix of ballad and speed called "Winds of War" and a speed metal cover of "He's a Woman, She's a Man" by Scorpions. The cover is about as good as the original.

I'd say this Helstar album is purely essential for anyone looking to explore metal in general. And as far as getting into Helstar, it's a fantastic entryway for exploring the band.