The Final Countdown (album) - Release and Reception

Release and Reception

The Final Countdown was the band's breakout album. Upon its release in May 1986, The Final Countdown peaked at #8 on the Billboard 200 album chart. The album granted Europe international recognition. The Final Countdown achieved triple Platinum status in the United States, double platinum status in Canada, and Gold status in the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

Allmusic gave The Final Countdown four and a half out of five stars. Reviewer Doug Stone said, "This is the story; this is the legend told by Teutonic guitars and predictable keyboards ringing pure and hurtling through each and every convention perfectly. The quintet's big-boy Epic inaugural, The Final Countdown deftly combines the Valhalla victory of Europe's heroic debut with the American poodle pomposity that devoured the band. You could live without The Final Countdown, but why?"

Rolling Stone writer J. D. Considine said, "The words to "The Final Countdown" make almost no sense whatsoever on paper, but there's genuine drama to the way Tempest's keening vocals surge through the mock-orchestral morass of synths and guitar. Maybe it's trite, maybe it's derivative, but it's also undeniably effective. From the stirring stadium schlock of "Rock the Night" to the self-indulgent melodrama of "Love Chaser," the best moments here are insidiously catchy, leaving you humming along against your better judgment".

Howard Johnson of Kerrang! is "nauseated" by the keyboard sound on the album and concludes that "Europe are bad, just bland and boring".

The Final Countdown included the hit singles "The Final Countdown," "Rock the Night," "Carrie" and "Cherokee," all of which had accompanying music videos. All four placed on the Billboard Hot 100. A fifth single, "Love Chaser," was released in Japan only. "The Final Countdown" was the most successful song from The Final Countdown on the rock charts, reaching number 18 on the Mainstream Rock Charts and number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100. "The Final Countdown" arguably became the band's most recognizable and popular song. Its music video received heavy airplay on music television.