Still Raising Hell: Michael Weikath Talks Helloween, Guitars, and the Beatles’ Distorted Destiny

There’s a calm that lingers behind the eyes of a legend who's lived through the chaos of metal’s wildest years—and Michael Weikath has that calm. Calling in from Berlin, the founding guitarist of Helloween joined Press Play Radio’s Don and Tina mid-rehearsal, flanked by century-old architecture, a shopping center, and a mission: to fine-tune guitar parts with bandmate Sascha Gerstner before the rest of the band arrives. “We’re sorting out the ‘what ifs’ before the singers show up,” he said casually, like it’s all just another Tuesday in power metal paradise.

Since Helloween’s official formation in 1984 (though it had roots in earlier Kai Hansen-led lineups), the band has become a cornerstone of European metal. Yet for Weikath, it’s never been about coasting. “We were rehearsing every day except Sundays,” he said. “On Sundays, we just got drunk.” It wasn’t all beer and distortion, though. They were obsessed with the logistics—contracts, distributors, lessons learned from bands like Lucifer’s Friend, who suffered from poor record distribution despite having the chops to be Germany’s answer to Queen.

Now decades into the game, Weikath is still as sharp and cheeky as ever. When Don reeled off a few of the band’s accolades—millions of records sold, platinum certifications—Weikath playfully undercut him. “Not us,” he deadpanned, pointing the credit toward bandmates. But even with his humility, there’s no denying the band’s impact. They helped define melodic power metal. They helped invent the big, European, cinematic metal sound—symphonic but aggressive, sweet but savage.

So how did it all begin for him? “I was twelve,” he told Tina, without hesitation. His musical gateway drug? The Beatles. He was obsessed. “She Loves You” lit the spark, but it was the sonic madness of Helter Skelter that pushed him toward distortion. “I wanted a guitar that sounded expensive,” he said, laughing. “They gave me a plastic saxophone, melodica, piano... but I just wanted to play rock and roll guitar.”

Eventually, he got that guitar—an acoustic one in 1974, followed by electric dreams and lessons his mother insisted on. “She said, ‘You’ll just leave it in the corner unless I make you take lessons.’ So I did. But I always wanted to plug in and use a pick.”

Tina, ever the heart of Press Play, leaned into the personal. “I love knowing how people actually became rock stars,” she said. Michael didn’t disappoint. He’s full of stories, and when he speaks, it’s clear that while the volume might have been cranked for most of his life, his feet stayed planted. He still geeks out over other bands—like Malice, whose debut album In the Beginning became a sonic blueprint. “We wanted to sound like that,” he said. “You can hear it in ‘Savior of the World’ on our new record. Totally Malice-inspired.”

Don couldn’t help but note the full circle of it all. Michael Wagener—who had worked with Malice, the Scorpions, and countless others—helped capture that exact sound. Weikath nodded, reminiscing about Wagener’s long-running chemistry with German artists like Klaus Meine and early Scorpions demos. “It all kind of ties together, doesn’t it?”

From plastic saxophones to platinum records, from Beatles fandom to defining an entire genre, Michael Weikath’s journey is part fairytale, part masterclass in obsession, and 100% authentic. Even now, preparing for another tour, he’s dissecting guitar parts, arranging harmonies, and preparing for another go at raising hell on stage with Helloween.

As the interview wound down, it was clear—Weikath isn’t just a shredder. He’s a historian, a craftsman, and most of all, a fan. He’s still in it for the sound. For the stories. For the legacy. And if that legacy started at twelve with a Beatles record… well, that’s just rock and roll poetry.

Be sure to check out their latest hit, This Is Tokyo, out now! 

For more on Helloween, tour dates, merch, and their latest release, visit: www.helloween.org

Watch the full conversation with Michael Weikath on Press Play Radio.