The Official Iron Maiden Thread

[Presto-digitation]

mine is in the proverbial mail.

 

Isn't that the truth. If I had a dollar....

[Presto-digitation]

I have the leak as well and have given it a really cursory listen (combination of taking the dog for a walk in the rain and in the bathtub later).

 

I don't have an opinion at all, but I will safely say that not a metric fuckton grabbed me by the shirt and throttled me on a first pass. That thing like in Pascendale that just kicks your ass or makes you think, "Wow, what a f***ing riff!" Not that it has to and there is a lot to chew on here with many epics and well over 80 minutes of music. I can barely remember a thing I heard on first listen.

 

Cursory takes:

 

1. Lots of mid-tempo. Maybe two rockers and we have heard one of them.

 

2. Bruce's vocals are good and clearer than the first two singles suggest (probably just those copies then). Has a few high area strains, but good and strong throughout the vast majority. No real complaints about vocal performance.

 

3. Thankfully not a lot of repetition in the choruses or refrains. Absolutely no "for the greater good of God" lines repeated 8 times in a row. None of that.

 

4. Good solos. Lots of them.

 

5. Prefer the Dickinson-Smith tracks. Darkest Hour is really nice. Maybe my early fav of previously unheard tracks.

 

6. Liking Hell On Earth as the best of the 'Arry epics (final cut).

 

7. Very long instrumental sections. Settle in.

 

8. Vocals follow guitar lines....a LOT. If that bothers you then you're in trouble son.

 

9. Nothing strikes me as poor. Even the worst of these tracks on a cursory glance is perfectly listenable, but some songs meander and could clearly benefit from some editing. Why do 12 bars of a section that would suffice with 4 bars? These - naturally - are the 'Arry tracks. Nothing wrong with the noodling and going on and about, but sometimes it's almost laughably exhaustive. In some places it's perfectly appropriate.

 

10. Very Blaze-era sounding music in many, many places throughout. Thankfully sans his obnoxious vocals. But really, like When The Wild Wind Blows you could hear many of these on Virtual XI or X Factor musically/tonally.

 

 

I learned my f***ing lesson prematurely reviewing the STYX album as "meh" and then really falling for it (personality over just looks, eh??), so I won't do that here because music takes time and attention. It's a f***ing DENSE, LONG album and not filled with short pop-rock hooks. Anyone who listens once and says f***ing amazing is just as silly as the person who listens once and never gives it another chance. So give it time and proper listens and then formulate a sound thought on it. I know there are sections I just didn't remember that will dawn on me a few listens in and I'll think, "f**k yeah."

 

Could you PM me the leak?

 

Check your PM

[invisible airwave]

Stumbled on to a crapload of "describe insert here" videos from TV shows and someone did one for Iron Maiden via Spongebob.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDne4qWePOE

[Entre_Perpetuo]

Stumbled on to a crapload of "describe insert here" videos from TV shows and someone did one for Iron Maiden via Spongebob.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FDne4qWePOE

 

That was glorious.

[bluefox4000]

I'm in the middle of my first listen and i'm enjoying. Listen. it's modern Maiden.....it's dense.....it's long.......it's stupidly OTT.

 

and as mentioned as long as the songs are there's really no endless chorus looping.....at least not too much.

 

look if yu are expecting a new leap on each album. play the Alan Parsons Project. this is Maiden. they just do what they do..

 

Mick

[Presto-digitation]

Well said Mick

[Rod in Toronto]

I'm in the middle of my first listen and i'm enjoying. Listen. it's modern Maiden.....it's dense.....it's long.......it's stupidly OTT.

 

and as mentioned as long as the songs are there's really no endless chorus looping.....at least not too much.

 

look if yu are expecting a new leap on each album. play the Alan Parsons Project. this is Maiden. they just do what they do..

 

Mick

 

But they could do what they do with a little bit more energy, couldn't they?

[bluefox4000]

Well i finished my listen. and i'm gonna be honest. the first disc is stupidly strong.

 

The songs on disc 1 are all insanly catchy with maybe their best solo work of the modern era.

 

Disc 2. didn't hit me as fast. but they're all over 10 minutes though.....did i mention it's all harris......so i can just stop explaining, lol

 

the strongest of the 3 longs i thought was Hell on Earth the closer.

 

to be honest this album hit me faster than BOS.

 

after hearing Rod's thoughts i was worried. Damn me if i didn't smile basically the whole time. more listens to come but yo sum it up. Disc 1 Amazing. Disc 2 needs more spins.

 

Mick

Edited September 2, 2021 by bluefox4000

[bluefox4000]

I'm in the middle of my first listen and i'm enjoying. Listen. it's modern Maiden.....it's dense.....it's long.......it's stupidly OTT.

 

and as mentioned as long as the songs are there's really no endless chorus looping.....at least not too much.

 

look if yu are expecting a new leap on each album. play the Alan Parsons Project. this is Maiden. they just do what they do..

 

Mick

 

But they could do what they do with a little bit more energy, couldn't they?

 

really you didn't feel any energy?

 

to each their own but i have to disagree.

 

hope it grows on you.

 

i will say i see where your coming from a bit on Disc 2. at least the 3 long songs.

 

but i thought disc 1 was bangin'

 

Mick

[Rod in Toronto]

I respect them for continuing on, and I understand that the pace of the songs is now different, slower...age plays a role here. But the whole album sounded tired to me. No wonder people have been saying that it reminds them of The X Factor - the dark tone and slow plodding nature of the songs are similar to the stuff they did on the Blaze era.

[Rod in Toronto]

Compare these three timestamps on the links below:

 

02:36 here:

 

03:34 here:

 

And 05:06 in the new song Darkest Hour. Tell me this is not the exact same guitar solo.

[Segue Myles]

Compare these three timestamps on the links below:

 

02:36 here:

 

03:34 here:

 

And 05:06 in the new song Darkest Hour. Tell me this is not the exact same guitar solo.

 

I hear it, even mentioned it on my lil thread. But I really am not mad about it. Darkest Hour is a tremendous song!

 

And I loooooove Coming Home too!

[J2112YYZ]

I respect them for continuing on, and I understand that the pace of the songs is now different, slower...age plays a role here. But the whole album sounded tired to me. No wonder people have been saying that it reminds them of The X Factor - the dark tone and slow plodding nature of the songs are similar to the stuff they did on the Blaze era.

 

That's how I feel after my first listen. They sound tired. Nothing really picks up on the album. It's just one long mid tempo slog after the other. At least X Factor has Lord Of The Flies and Man On The Edge to pick things up. This album has Stratego and that's it.

Edited September 3, 2021 by J2112YYZ

[Segue Myles]

I've really taken to this album, but I will say it was a bit startling to feel reminded so much at times of the Bayley albums.

 

I think Senjutsu is far superior to either, and it feels at times like the successor to The Final Frontier moreso than The Book Of Souls. I really, really love Lost In A Lost World and the entirety of disc two (which I was most nervous about).

 

Obviously it's not going to be for everyone.

 

Too early to really know exactly what I think, but I do feel having a double album end with three epics is a bit much. I think the tracklist could have worked even better with a bit of moving things around. Having all the shorter songs on one album, and the second all pretty much epics, leaves me almost feeling fatigue.

 

But I'm thoroughly enjoying the material.

[Segue Myles]

Now played it three times, this is currently how I rank modern Maiden:

 

1. The Final Frontier

2. Brave New World

3. The Book Of Souls

4. Senjutsu

5. Dance Of Death

6. A Matter Of Life And Death (this was painful to put last!)

 

The more I listen to this era, the more I love it. Not sure where the new album will ultimately sit but right now, it's right in the middle of a joyous bunch!

[Laurabw]

Mine is out for delivery! Reading mixed reviews on the FB page. But I don't mind their heavy slow stuff, so I tend to think I'll like it.

[Segue Myles]

Mine is out for delivery! Reading mixed reviews on the FB page. But I don't mind their heavy slow stuff, so I tend to think I'll like it.

 

I personally think it's a fantastic album. I don't think it sounds tired or predictable at all, it's the first time since The Final Frontier that I loved a new Maiden album immediately.

[The Analog Cub]

Man, this album is DARK. This album requires patience, but it's pretty rewarding.

 

I'm enjoying it. If you're really into 80s Maiden and not as much into 21st century Maiden this probably won't win you over, but I'm betting none of the other albums did either. They've decided what they like writing and they are damn good at it.

[The Analog Cub]

Right now the favorite is The Time Machine. This is something I'd blast in my car at full volume.

[bluefox4000]

I absolutly love the new album. I really respect people's opinions but i can't agree they sound tired here AT ALL. it is a darker more down record. and the fact that there are no up athems to speak of may translate to tired?

 

they've done away with the endless hook refrains and that's a great thing for me this album was over too fast. at an hour 21 it flew by!!! contrast that with AMOLAD which is an hour 13 and feels 9 years too long as great as it is.

 

My favs after 3 spins thus far.

 

Shenjutsu

The Writing on the Wall

Days of Furture Past

The time Machine

Darkest Hour (beautiful copied solo and all)

The Parchment

Hell on Earth

 

fantastic album......sorry for those not feeling it.

 

Mick

[The Analog Cub]

The vocals on this album are particularly strong, IMO. While I've always been a fan of Bruce, he uses his lower register a lot more here and the higher notes are used more tastefully, instead of...well, spastically, like he did on Final Frontier or Book of Souls.

[The Analog Cub]

And to echo what others have said, something finally got through to Steve Harris to have him stop writing choruses that just repeat the song title.

[bluefox4000]

And to echo what others have said, something finally got through to Steve Harris to have him stop writing choruses that just repeat the song title.

 

I'm playing AMOLAD now as much as i love that album the hooks over and over just sucks hard. they all do it but AMOLAD is the worst offender by far.

 

and the hooks are Sooooo children's song sing-song-y , lol

 

Shenjutsu has mercifully stopped the bleeding that way.

 

Mick

[Segue Myles]

And to echo what others have said, something finally got through to Steve Harris to have him stop writing choruses that just repeat the song title.

 

The fact it's not endless repeated choruses (something that took me nearly two decades to enjoy BNW in spite of), had me instantly hooked. None of these songs feel like a chore! It's growing on me so much, I've played it several times now, and for an album as long as this, it feels so short!

 

This might be the best modern Maiden album, it's certainly looking that way for me.

[Tony R]

I.Like.It.