Am I the only man who really likes the Iron Maiden Blaze era?

[DarkLord_Lalinc]

Am I?


 

[Zantera]

No.

[Gadough]

All I've heard is Man on the Edge and I really like that song.

[Nick]

It has its good songs, but it is clearly the worst 2 album run in the history of Maiden.

Edit: And although Blaze is easily blamed, it's more Harris' fault.

[tri.ad]

Am I?


 

No, The X Factor is one of my favourite Iron Maiden albums. And I agree with Nick, most things (particularly on Virtual XI) that went wrong during the Blaze era were Steve Harris' fault (The Angel And The Gambler *cringes*).

[faemir]

FREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEDOM!

Only song I like.

[yorost]

You obviously browsed the Iron Maiden thread prior to making this one, eh.

[Zydar]

Pretty much what Nick said.

[MykeHavoc]

X Factor is one of my favorite IM albums. Virtual XI is weak, but has some decent tunes.

Both are better than both No Prayer and Fear of the Dark IMO.

[Nick]

While I'd say they both edge out No Prayer, I for one really enjoy Fear of the Dark.

[lateralus88]

There are a total of 4 songs I enjoyed from the Blaze era.

1. Man on the Edge
2. Lord of the Flies
3. The Clansman
4. 2 A.M.

Both are better than both No Prayer and Fear of the Dark IMO.

lolno

[Nick]

From the Blaze era I really like...

Sign of the Cross, Lord of the Flies, Man on the Edge, Futureal, and The Clansman

The rest range from alright to boring to downright bad. (Yeah, I'm looking at you Angel and the Gambler)

[lateralus88]

By a show of hands, who is actually crazy enough to enjoy Angel and the Gambler?

[MykeHavoc]

For being an awful song? Me. I applaud how terrible it is.

And where the fuck is Sign of the Cross on your list of four songs? It's the best epic in the entire discography (yes, I even like it better than Mariner. Shoot me).

[lateralus88]

*shoots*

[Perpetual Change]

The Blaze-era is great. The band became incredibly more mature as songwriters at that time, like Blaze or not.

By a show of hands, who is actually crazy enough to enjoy Angel and the Gambler?

I love it.

[chknptpie]

There are definitely songs I really appreciate - Sign of the Cross is one of them.

[Perpetual Change]

DONTCHA THINK I'M A SAVIOUR? DONTCHA THINK I CAN SAVE YA? DONTCHA THINK I CAN SAVE YOUR LIFE?!

[Nick]

The Blaze-era is great. The band became incredibly more mature as songwriters at that time, like Blaze or not.

By a show of hands, who is actually crazy enough to enjoy Angel and the Gambler?

I love it.

This post makes my head explode.

If anything they became more uninspired, bland, and boring as songwriters during the Blaze years. Top that off with a completely noneffective use of Blaze's vocal abilities and you get two mediocre albums.

[Zantera]

I really like Angel and the Gambler tbh. 

[Nick]

[yorost]

Virtual XI had two glaring weak points, The Angel and the Gambler and Don't Look to the Eyes of a Stranger.  The big drawback of both was that they were extended carelessly.  The Angel and the Gambler would be ok filler at 4-5 minutes, nothing new for Maiden.  Don't Look to the Eyes of a Stranger is a pretty enjoyable song, but what is with that one section or repetition.  Lazy composition wrecks a pretty good song.

The thing is, the rest of Virtual XI is quite strong Maiden material.  Prior to Blaze joining they were typically getting far fewer quality songs on an album.

--------------------

X-Factor is their best album, not much went wrong on that except a little bit too much of similar writing pattern with the soft intros.

--------------------

No Prayer For the Dying and Fear of the Dark are simply awful piles of boredom.  They have no life whatsoever and are leagues below anything else Maiden has done.  No wonder, too, they were pretty much writing the same album over and over again for a decade running.  Switching Blaze in for singer gave them some much needed life and has greatly extended their staying power as a creative force.

[TAC]

If the Blaze era shows us anything, it is that how important is Bruce Dickinson and Adrian Smith to the band's sound and songs.
That said, I find Virtual XLI a much more classic feel than X factor, even though it's definitely a few good songs short. But it still has, Futureal, Clansmen, The Educated Fool, and Don't Look To The Eyes Of A Stranger (which does get repetitive, but has one of the most badass instrumental parts on ANY Maiden song!).

I've posted this before, but I think The X factor could've been a MASTERPIECE if it was better arranged and produced. There are some of the most interesting and memorable moments but I find the whole thing kind of choppy, like the verse and chorus of a particular song may have no flow, like in The Unbeleiver, an song that sports one of the best openings in the catalog, but falls apart once the verse starts. Don't let the songwriting credits trick you, this album needed BALANCE and seasoning. If anything, I would call the era a missed opportunity. 

Funny to read the comparison to No Prayer and Fear Of the Dark. Plenty to like on both albums, but clearly NOT the greatest Maiden era. As bad as No Prayer is, that tour was one of the best Maiden shows I had ever seen. Jannick added so much energy and really pulled Dave out of his shell.

If The Final Frontier is any good, I would have no problem saying that the 00's output is far superior to their 80's output. They have proven to be one hell of a band, that has certainly had some growing pains along the way, but I love Maiden because they're not perfect, they are human, and the thing is..they have gotten BETTER over time.

[glaurung]

Virtual XI is very easily my least favorite Maiden album.

[Arcaeus]

It has its good songs, but it is clearly the worst 2 album run in the history of Maiden.

Edit: And although Blaze is easily blamed, it's more Harris' fault.

Yep, like the Iced Earth Tim Owens albums sucking were Schaffer's fault.

The Blaze era of Iron Maiden has some great songs.

[Cool Chris]

If the Blaze era shows us anything, it is that how important is Bruce Dickinson and Adrian Smith to the band's sound and songs.

Yeah, I almost think of that period as the sans Bruce and Adrian era more than as the Blaze era, since their absence had more of an impact on Maiden's sound than Blaze's presence did. Just like I think of Dream Theater's 1995-1998 period as the 'disputes with the record label and internal disagreements' era more than as the Derek Sherinian era.

Every band that is around for such a long time is going to go through peaks and valleys. Luckily this valley still produced some solid songs that rank high in IM's catalog.

[GuineaPig]

Not as bad as the sans-H Bruce era, imo.

[Perpetual Change]

This post makes my head explode.

If anything they became more uninspired, bland, and boring as songwriters during the Blaze years. Top that off with a completely noneffective use of Blaze's vocal abilities and you get two mediocre albums.

I just can't agree with this.   Virtual XI is as good as any Iron Maiden album. Lightning Strikes Twice, The Educated Fool, The Clansman, and Como Estais Amigo are all fantastic, and the rest of the album ain't bad. Como Estais Amigo and The Educated Fool are also a lot more like the more mature writing I think you see in the reunion albums than the 80s stuff.

[TAC]

Not as bad as the sans-H Bruce era, imo.

Possibly.

... and The Educated Fool are also a lot more like the more mature writing I think you see in the reunion albums than the 80s stuff.

hmm..interesting thought.. Hey, there were plenty of GREAT ideas on those two albums, and I mean GREAT IDEAS, but there just wasn't the right band dynamic to bring them to proper being.

[wolfking]

The X Factor is my favourite Maiden album.

[MykeHavoc]

At times for me it is.

Sign of the Cross
Lord of the Flies
Man on the Edge
Blood on the World's Hands
2AM

All strong songs. Plus the two bonus cuts from the Eddie's archives box set.
Great album and really sets the mood for those depressing times. Kind of when I like to put on
Promised Land from Queesryche.


The Tim Owens era of Iced Earth is hardly terrible. Both albums he sings on are two of the strongest records in the
entire Discography. You whining wussy Barlow psychos need to get over it. I love Matt, but Tim is leaps and bounds superior
in singing in nearly every facet.

[Perpetual Change]

hmm..interesting thought.. Hey, there were plenty of GREAT ideas on those two albums, and I mean GREAT IDEAS, but there just wasn't the right band dynamic to bring them to proper being.

Maiden's discography up until the Blaze albums is, from a lyrical standpoint, very deeply rooted in history, the supernatural, and literary works and movies.  It's not until the Blaze albums really that you start hearing Maiden write from that deeply personal, "realistic" point of view. I doubt Maiden could have gotten to the level of songs like "The Thin Line Between Love and Hate" and "Face in the Sand" and "Journeyman" without those Blaze songs first.

[Mladen]

The X Factor is an absolutely amazing release, and my 3rd favorite Iron Maiden album overall. There aren't many songs that are memorable after the very first listen, but there are plenty of great riffs, epic solos, fantastic lyrics, and an amazing vocal performance by Blaze Bayley. I really think Blaze sounds awesome on this album, his dark and subtle voice fits perfectly, and I seriously doubt even the best singer in the world (Bruce Dickinson) could match that. I actually think this is one of the most important albums in their career - if you listen to A Matter of life and death, you can still feel the elements from The X Factor present. It's just a fabulous record that I'll never get tired of. And, by the way, it contains my all time favorite song - Sign of the cross.

Virtual XI is a pretty damn good album as well, although easily one of my lesser favorites. Blaze doesn't sound quite as good, which maybe has to do with some of the tunes sounding more cheesy and happy. It's still more accessible than The X Factor, due to some catchier tunes. My favorites here are The Clansman, Como estais amigos, Futureal and The Educated fool. Even The Angel and the gambler is a fun ditty, although I agree the chorus didn't need to be repeated 20 times. It's an enjoyable album overall, and there's nothing about it that should make Iron Maiden ashamed.

When it comes to the live performances from Blaze era, that's where the problem is. We've all heard how do The Trooper, Hallowed be thy name and some more songs sound with Blaze on vocals. All I have to say is: Maiden should have changed the tuning to fit Bayley's voice better. That would give a new special spark to some of their older songs, and I would have been the first to accept the change. It's weird that Steve and the guys didn't realize at the time that Blaze wouldn't be the right guy for Bruce's stuff.

It's not that Blaze is a bad singer - if you check out his solo albums, you'll be blown away. I think he's got the most consistent band in the last 10 years in terms of quality of studio albums. I've seen him live a couple of years ago, doing an incredible acoustic show. Believe me, a bad singer can't sound so incredible with only one guitar beside him. It was impressive. He even stayed for two straight hours after the gig and signed everybody's ticket. What a guy.

[wolfking]

All strong songs. Plus the two bonus cuts from the Eddie's archives box set.

YES!!!  Judgement Day and Justice of the Peace are such good tracks!!  And the Japan/vinyl only cut I Live my Way is killer also.  The X Factor should have been a double album with these three tracks included!!

[sneakyblueberry]

All I have to say is: Maiden should have changed the tuning to fit Bayley's voice better.

Absolutely this.  My brother and I were discussing this the other night, I think Blaze wasn't really given a fair chance during his time in Maiden.  There were plenty of changes that could've been made to accommodate him, like changing keys etc, but sadly nothing like that happened.