Which band did Kai Hansen form in 1989 after leaving Helloween?

Kai Hansen formed Gamma Ray in 1989 after leaving Helloween.

Hansen was a founding member of Helloween and played guitar and sang on the band’s early releases. After leaving Helloween in 1989, he began developing a new project with bassist Dirk Schlächter and drummer Uli Kusch. That project became Gamma Ray, one of Germany’s prominent power-metal bands.

Gamma Ray’s debut album, Heading for Tomorrow, appeared in 1990. Ralf Scheepers initially handled lead vocals, while Hansen concentrated mainly on guitar before later taking over as the band’s principal singer. The group’s music combined melodic guitar work, fast tempos, prominent choruses, and science-fiction and fantasy themes.

The band is sometimes confused with Hansen’s earlier group Helloween or with Blind Guardian, another major German power-metal act. Hansen later returned to Helloween and recorded with the reunited lineup, while continuing his work with Gamma Ray.