Masterplan have been around for quite a while now. Originally they were seen as „the project of the Helloween exiles“. But over the years they’ve proven they’re a fully-fledged band with an identity of their own.
Proof of that is the fact they survived the departure of key members – Uli Kusch (co-founder), iconic singer Jørn Lande and famous drummer Mike Terrana.
The new album Metalmorphosis came out on 26 June 2026. The gentlemen are going back to what suited them best in the early days.
It’s also their first new material in thirteen years. Great melodic sense and a dense atmosphere. We get nine „standard tracks“. The tenth one, Rise Again, is a standalone single from 2024 in an album version.
A metal transformation
Every song is loaded with fierce energy and you’ll enjoy the strong, catchy melodies too. Singer Rick Altzi delivers a vocal performance with a rasp similar to Lande back in the day, but his voice also carries an unmistakable dose of rawness and grit.
Other key weapons include Roland‚s riffs and, of course, the whole impression is underlined by the fast drumming and the skilful hands and feet of Kevin Kott.
It all kicks off with Chase the Light and its dark, heavy melody, spiced up with excellent guitar solos. The rock feeling of some songs alternates with a power metal or wild speed sound, the kind you can hear in Through The Storm, or even with the almost pop-rock undertone of the hit Electric Nights with its captivating drums in the intro.
An interesting detour is the eight-minute epic The Call, which sounds soaring and progressive and in my opinion ranks among the very best here.
Grapow himself took a vocal part on it, but the biggest surprise comes right at the very end — in the fading outro, a Slovak lullaby shyly appears. The guitarist has been living in Slovakia for years and has long had a soft spot for Slavic folk music.
Final words
So what to say in closing? The album is fresh and impressive, and its energy recalls the band’s legendary debut. While listening you get the feeling of pure joy in music, and that gives every song something extra. The start of new times? That could be seriously good.
Lineup:
- Rick Altzi – vocals
- Roland Grapow – guitars
- Axel Mackenrott – keyboards
- Jari Kainulainen – bass
- Kevin Kott – drums
Tracklist:
- Chase The Light
- Electric Nights
- Shadow Man
- Bound To Fall
- Pain Of Yesterday
- Metalmorphosis
- Through The Storm
- Ghostlight
- The Call
- Rise Again (Album vers.)
Release year: 2026
Label: Frontiers Music Srl
Youtube preview:
Links:
https://www.master-plan.net/
https://www.facebook.com/masterplantheband/
https://www.instagram.com/masterplan.official/
Rating: 5/6
