The Official Iron Maiden Thread

[Rod in Toronto]

The Brazilian cover band Children of the Beast ALREADY did a cover of the song:

 

This means they played it live BEFORE Maiden!

[Union 5-3992]

21st century Maiden I feel is some of the most underappreciated music. Yes, the Beast-Seventh Son run in the 80's is impressive and historically important, but Brave New World, AMOLAD, Book Of Souls are so, so excellent. And 21st century Bruce is a much, much better vocalist than 80's Bruce.

I'm of the exact same opinion. I love their later career stuff as well. It really sounds like they're trying to make music they like rather than just bang out snappy singles like the fans want and I appreciate that.

[J2112YYZ]

21st century Maiden I feel is some of the most underappreciated music. Yes, the Beast-Seventh Son run in the 80's is impressive and historically important, but Brave New World, AMOLAD, Book Of Souls are so, so excellent. And 21st century Bruce is a much, much better vocalist than 80's Bruce.

 

21st century Bruce is a much better live singer than 80s Bruce that's for sure. He's more consistent and more disciplined live. But he's not a better singer than he was back then. 21st century Bruce could not do the vocals on Somewhere In Time and Seventh Son anywhere near as good as mid 80s Bruce.

 

Have you heard Bruce's solo albums Accident of Birth and The Chemical Wedding? I will put his vocal performances on those two albums up against anything he's done with Maiden.

[Segue Myles]

21st century Maiden I feel is some of the most underappreciated music. Yes, the Beast-Seventh Son run in the 80's is impressive and historically important, but Brave New World, AMOLAD, Book Of Souls are so, so excellent. And 21st century Bruce is a much, much better vocalist than 80's Bruce.

 

Honestly, the debut Maiden through to No Prayer is for me the classic run in full

 

The newer Bruce era loses nothing

[Nova Carmina]

I like it! It has kind of a Celtic feel in places, and it's not a six-minute idea dragged out to fourteen minutes. Very catchy. I was singing the chorus to myself right away.

[J2112YYZ]

I like it! It has kind of a Celtic feel in places, and it's not a six-minute idea dragged out to fourteen minutes. Very catchy. I was singing the chorus to myself right away.

 

That's because Bruce and Adrian wrote the song. If Steve had any involvement in the writing than we would be hearing a six minute idea dragged on for fourteen minutes. Unfortunately, that's been Steve's writing flaw since The X Factor. He still writes great stuff but nobody tells him that he sometimes goes too long with it.

[treeduck]

The new song is alright, nothing to get worked up about though.

[Mosher]

I like it! It has kind of a Celtic feel in places, and it's not a six-minute idea dragged out to fourteen minutes. Very catchy. I was singing the chorus to myself right away.

 

That's because Bruce and Adrian wrote the song. If Steve had any involvement in the writing than we would be hearing a six minute idea dragged on for fourteen minutes. Unfortunately, that's been Steve's writing flaw since The X Factor. He still writes great stuff but nobody tells him that he sometimes goes too long with it.

 

Bruce wrote the longest song Maiden ever recorded, and the second longest is the fantastic and definitely not too long Rime.

 

(And that said, you're still right. Just worth noting the exceptions.)

[J2112YYZ]

I like it! It has kind of a Celtic feel in places, and it's not a six-minute idea dragged out to fourteen minutes. Very catchy. I was singing the chorus to myself right away.

 

That's because Bruce and Adrian wrote the song. If Steve had any involvement in the writing than we would be hearing a six minute idea dragged on for fourteen minutes. Unfortunately, that's been Steve's writing flaw since The X Factor. He still writes great stuff but nobody tells him that he sometimes goes too long with it.

 

Bruce wrote the longest song Maiden ever recorded, and the second longest is the fantastic and definitely not too long Rime.

 

(And that said, you're still right. Just worth noting the exceptions.)

 

The difference with what Bruce did is that it was a unique composition that brought something new and fresh to the Maiden catalog with Empire Of The Clouds. Steve on the other hand has become obsessed with the same song format (slow, ominous beginning, long and faster main part followed by slow, ominous ending that was pretty much the same as the beginning part) since the X Factor. Steve remains a great writer but he needs to realize less is more sometimes. I have no issue with Rime as that song came along before Steve developed his going on for a little too long syndrome.

[Turbine Freight]

I like it! It has kind of a Celtic feel in places, and it's not a six-minute idea dragged out to fourteen minutes. Very catchy. I was singing the chorus to myself right away.

 

That's because Bruce and Adrian wrote the song. If Steve had any involvement in the writing than we would be hearing a six minute idea dragged on for fourteen minutes. Unfortunately, that's been Steve's writing flaw since The X Factor. He still writes great stuff but nobody tells him that he sometimes goes too long with it.

 

Bruce wrote the longest song Maiden ever recorded, and the second longest is the fantastic and definitely not too long Rime.

 

(And that said, you're still right. Just worth noting the exceptions.)

 

The difference with what Bruce did is that it was a unique composition that brought something new and fresh to the Maiden catalog with Empire Of The Clouds. Steve on the other hand has become obsessed with the same song format (slow, ominous beginning, long and faster main part followed by slow, ominous ending that was pretty much the same as the beginning part) since the X Factor. Steve remains a great writer but he needs to realize less is more sometimes. I have no issue with Rime as that song came along before Steve developed his going on for a little too long syndrome.

 

The problem with the newish overlong Maiden songs is that they are so formulaic.

 

Repeat trite boring melodic passage for 32 bars then modulate it up a key and repeat for another 32 bars.

 

See The Red and the Black for confirmation.

[J2112YYZ]

I like it! It has kind of a Celtic feel in places, and it's not a six-minute idea dragged out to fourteen minutes. Very catchy. I was singing the chorus to myself right away.

 

That's because Bruce and Adrian wrote the song. If Steve had any involvement in the writing than we would be hearing a six minute idea dragged on for fourteen minutes. Unfortunately, that's been Steve's writing flaw since The X Factor. He still writes great stuff but nobody tells him that he sometimes goes too long with it.

 

Bruce wrote the longest song Maiden ever recorded, and the second longest is the fantastic and definitely not too long Rime.

 

(And that said, you're still right. Just worth noting the exceptions.)

 

The difference with what Bruce did is that it was a unique composition that brought something new and fresh to the Maiden catalog with Empire Of The Clouds. Steve on the other hand has become obsessed with the same song format (slow, ominous beginning, long and faster main part followed by slow, ominous ending that was pretty much the same as the beginning part) since the X Factor. Steve remains a great writer but he needs to realize less is more sometimes. I have no issue with Rime as that song came along before Steve developed his going on for a little too long syndrome.

 

The problem with the newish overlong Maiden songs is that they are so formulaic.

 

Repeat trite boring melodic passage for 32 bars then modulate it up a key and repeat for another 32 bars.

 

See The Red and the Black for confirmation.

 

Red and Black is a good song but the bass intro/outro serves no purpose. The same with the slower intro to These Colours Don't Run. Why not just start it with the main riff? It's small stuff like that where someone needs to say to Steve 'hey, does this really belong here? It doesn't add anything to make the song better'.

 

What's he gonna do at this point? Fire one of them? Highly unlikely.

[Turbine Freight]

I like it! It has kind of a Celtic feel in places, and it's not a six-minute idea dragged out to fourteen minutes. Very catchy. I was singing the chorus to myself right away.

 

That's because Bruce and Adrian wrote the song. If Steve had any involvement in the writing than we would be hearing a six minute idea dragged on for fourteen minutes. Unfortunately, that's been Steve's writing flaw since The X Factor. He still writes great stuff but nobody tells him that he sometimes goes too long with it.

 

Bruce wrote the longest song Maiden ever recorded, and the second longest is the fantastic and definitely not too long Rime.

 

(And that said, you're still right. Just worth noting the exceptions.)

 

The difference with what Bruce did is that it was a unique composition that brought something new and fresh to the Maiden catalog with Empire Of The Clouds. Steve on the other hand has become obsessed with the same song format (slow, ominous beginning, long and faster main part followed by slow, ominous ending that was pretty much the same as the beginning part) since the X Factor. Steve remains a great writer but he needs to realize less is more sometimes. I have no issue with Rime as that song came along before Steve developed his going on for a little too long syndrome.

 

The problem with the newish overlong Maiden songs is that they are so formulaic.

 

Repeat trite boring melodic passage for 32 bars then modulate it up a key and repeat for another 32 bars.

 

See The Red and the Black for confirmation.

 

Red and Black is a good song but the bass intro/outro serves no purpose. The same with the slower intro to These Colours Don't Run. Why not just start it with the main riff? It's small stuff like that where someone needs to say to Steve 'hey, does this really belong here? It doesn't add anything to make the song better'.

 

What's he gonna do at this point? Fire one of them? Highly unlikely.

 

I wish he'd fire Janick Gers. Talk about a third nipple.

[goose]

This one feels more like a classic rock song than a heavy metal song,

Very 70's with a little feel of Wheel In the Sky (Journey) and classic Nazareth, imo.

[The Analog Cub]

I like it! It has kind of a Celtic feel in places, and it's not a six-minute idea dragged out to fourteen minutes. Very catchy. I was singing the chorus to myself right away.

 

That's because Bruce and Adrian wrote the song. If Steve had any involvement in the writing than we would be hearing a six minute idea dragged on for fourteen minutes. Unfortunately, that's been Steve's writing flaw since The X Factor. He still writes great stuff but nobody tells him that he sometimes goes too long with it.

 

Bruce wrote the longest song Maiden ever recorded, and the second longest is the fantastic and definitely not too long Rime.

 

(And that said, you're still right. Just worth noting the exceptions.)

 

The difference with what Bruce did is that it was a unique composition that brought something new and fresh to the Maiden catalog with Empire Of The Clouds. Steve on the other hand has become obsessed with the same song format (slow, ominous beginning, long and faster main part followed by slow, ominous ending that was pretty much the same as the beginning part) since the X Factor. Steve remains a great writer but he needs to realize less is more sometimes. I have no issue with Rime as that song came along before Steve developed his going on for a little too long syndrome.

 

The problem with the newish overlong Maiden songs is that they are so formulaic.

 

Repeat trite boring melodic passage for 32 bars then modulate it up a key and repeat for another 32 bars.

 

See The Red and the Black for confirmation.

 

Red and Black is a good song but the bass intro/outro serves no purpose. The same with the slower intro to These Colours Don't Run. Why not just start it with the main riff? It's small stuff like that where someone needs to say to Steve 'hey, does this really belong here? It doesn't add anything to make the song better'.

 

What's he gonna do at this point? Fire one of them? Highly unlikely.

 

I wish he'd fire Janick Gers. Talk about a third nipple.

 

I enjoy Janick Gers more as a songwriter than I do as a guitarist. He's got mad chops like the other two, but some of the songs he's on (Dance Of Death, Book Of Souls, Ghost Of The Navigator) are excellent late-era Maiden. Adrian is my favorite of the three and is who I probably try to emulate tone-wise as a guitarist more than anyone else in history.

 

Regarding Steve Harris' songwriting, I tend to agree, though there are some outliers. Blood Brothers was lightning in a bottle and is one of their best songs. The Final Frontier is where they really needed to cut out the fluff and didn't. You could argue the same for AMOLAD but IMO the songs are all so strong it's okay.

[The Analog Cub]

My Bruce album tiers - too hard to rank individually

 

Perfect

Seventh Son

Brave New World

Somewhere In Time

Powerslave

AMOLAD

 

Great, some flaws

Book Of Souls

Beast

Piece Of Mind

 

The highs are high, the lows are pretty low

Dance Of Death

Final Frontier

No Prayer

 

Fear of the Dark is forever purged from my listening activity. The title track and Afraid To Shoot Strangers are fine and are greatly improved by their live representations.

[The Analog Cub]

21st century Maiden I feel is some of the most underappreciated music. Yes, the Beast-Seventh Son run in the 80's is impressive and historically important, but Brave New World, AMOLAD, Book Of Souls are so, so excellent. And 21st century Bruce is a much, much better vocalist than 80's Bruce.

 

21st century Bruce is a much better live singer than 80s Bruce that's for sure. He's more consistent and more disciplined live. But he's not a better singer than he was back then. 21st century Bruce could not do the vocals on Somewhere In Time and Seventh Son anywhere near as good as mid 80s Bruce.

 

Have you heard Bruce's solo albums Accident of Birth and The Chemical Wedding? I will put his vocal performances on those two albums up against anything he's done with Maiden.

 

It's been a long time but I've listened to both. Chemical Wedding I remember enjoying but I need to revisit.

[Laurabw]

I liked the song.

[Rod in Toronto]

I liked the song a lot, and I think they struck the perfect balance between trying something new and preserving their identity. The only thing I found strange was the first solo, which sounds like a collage of ideas that Adrian had for that part, and came out kinda weak.

[Mosher]

My Maiden rankings- there would be some shifting if done again- But Powerslave would remain on top.

 

1. Powerslave

2. Piece of Mind

3. Killers

4. Dance of Death

5. Seventh Son of A Seventh Son

6. Book of Souls

7. The Final Frontier

8. Somewhere In Time

9. Iron Maiden

10. No Prayer For The Dying

11. The Number Of The Beast

12. Brave New World

13. A Matter Of Life And Death

14. Fear Of The Dark

15. Virtual XI

16. The X Factor

[Turbine Freight]

I like it! It has kind of a Celtic feel in places, and it's not a six-minute idea dragged out to fourteen minutes. Very catchy. I was singing the chorus to myself right away.

 

That's because Bruce and Adrian wrote the song. If Steve had any involvement in the writing than we would be hearing a six minute idea dragged on for fourteen minutes. Unfortunately, that's been Steve's writing flaw since The X Factor. He still writes great stuff but nobody tells him that he sometimes goes too long with it.

 

Bruce wrote the longest song Maiden ever recorded, and the second longest is the fantastic and definitely not too long Rime.

 

(And that said, you're still right. Just worth noting the exceptions.)

 

The difference with what Bruce did is that it was a unique composition that brought something new and fresh to the Maiden catalog with Empire Of The Clouds. Steve on the other hand has become obsessed with the same song format (slow, ominous beginning, long and faster main part followed by slow, ominous ending that was pretty much the same as the beginning part) since the X Factor. Steve remains a great writer but he needs to realize less is more sometimes. I have no issue with Rime as that song came along before Steve developed his going on for a little too long syndrome.

 

The problem with the newish overlong Maiden songs is that they are so formulaic.

 

Repeat trite boring melodic passage for 32 bars then modulate it up a key and repeat for another 32 bars.

 

See The Red and the Black for confirmation.

 

Red and Black is a good song but the bass intro/outro serves no purpose. The same with the slower intro to These Colours Don't Run. Why not just start it with the main riff? It's small stuff like that where someone needs to say to Steve 'hey, does this really belong here? It doesn't add anything to make the song better'.

 

What's he gonna do at this point? Fire one of them? Highly unlikely.

 

I wish he'd fire Janick Gers. Talk about a third nipple.

 

I enjoy Janick Gers more as a songwriter than I do as a guitarist. He's got mad chops like the other two, but some of the songs he's on (Dance Of Death, Book Of Souls, Ghost Of The Navigator) are excellent late-era Maiden. Adrian is my favorite of the three and is who I probably try to emulate tone-wise as a guitarist more than anyone else in history.

 

Regarding Steve Harris' songwriting, I tend to agree, though there are some outliers. Blood Brothers was lightning in a bottle and is one of their best songs. The Final Frontier is where they really needed to cut out the fluff and didn't. You could argue the same for AMOLAD but IMO the songs are all so strong it's okay.

 

Dave Murray is my fave Maiden guitarist. His fluid legato & bending is incredible. I've spent hour upon hour copying his licks. He is also a genuinely nice bloke if you ever meet him.

[Segue Myles]

New album Senjutsu has just been announced!

 

E X C I T E D

 

Edit: https://www.ironmaiden.com/news/article/im17

Edited July 19, 2021 by Segue Myles

[Rod in Toronto]

New album Senjutsu has just been announced!

 

E X C I T E D

 

Edit: https://www.ironmaid...ws/article/im17

 

I'm worried about 3 Harris songs in a row with more than 10 minutes...it will be the same acoustic bass intro, followed by the cookie cutter Gers riff that has been done a gazillion times. We'll see. I hope to be proven wrong.

[Segue Myles]

[J2112YYZ]

New album Senjutsu has just been announced!

 

E X C I T E D

 

Edit: https://www.ironmaid...ws/article/im17

 

I'm worried about 3 Harris songs in a row with more than 10 minutes...it will be the same acoustic bass intro, followed by the cookie cutter Gers riff that has been done a gazillion times. We'll see. I hope to be proven wrong.

 

Exactly what I thought when I saw the info on those last three songs. Looks like this album will be crawling to the finish line just like AMOLAD and TFF do.

[Segue Myles]

New album Senjutsu has just been announced!

 

E X C I T E D

 

Edit: https://www.ironmaid...ws/article/im17

 

I'm worried about 3 Harris songs in a row with more than 10 minutes...it will be the same acoustic bass intro, followed by the cookie cutter Gers riff that has been done a gazillion times. We'll see. I hope to be proven wrong.

 

Exactly what I thought when I saw the info on those last three songs. Looks like this album will be crawling to the finish line just like AMOLAD and TFF do.

 

Oof...I love those two albums