The Iron Maiden Thread v. The Merge of Souls

[jjrock88]

I just checked out youtube footage for the first time of the Iron Maidens.

Talented for sure and also much much hotter than I expected.

[MirrorMask]

Steve Harris said that they feel they have at least one more album in them  it was an interview in the Sun, he said that as long as they're all fit and healthy, Nicko included who is the oldest, they can do at least one more album 

[Logain Ablar]

I think this is the article you read:

https://www.thesun.co.uk/tvandshowbiz/3496434/iron-maiden-confirm-theyll-record-at-least-one-more-studio-album-as-they-kick-off-first-uk-tour-in-seven-years/

[cramx3]

 

Great news!

[Mosh]

I'd like to start the Iron Maiden discography thread this summer. Dunno how busy I'll be in the future so now is the best time to do it.

[TAC]

Go for it, bro!

[Samsara]

Happy to hear Maiden likely has one more record left in the tank. I'm really excited to see them live again this summer. Been a while, and this will be as close as I've ever been, seating-wise. This will be my fifth Maiden gig, and first time in five years. 

[Architeuthis]

I just checked out youtube footage for the first time of the Iron Maidens.

Talented for sure and also much much hotter than I expected.

They really are great performers and play the songs verbatim. Bruce Dickinson even said they are the best Maiden tribute band out there. If they ever come through your area, it only costs 10-15 dollars to see them, more than worth it!  They played a excellent rendition of Mooncry, and many other classics and closed the show with Hallowed Be Thy Name.. 

[wolfking]

I'd like to start the Iron Maiden discography thread this summer. Dunno how busy I'll be in the future so now is the best time to do it.

YES!!

It's great that another album will more than likely happen, but the curse of time is really scary these days.  To think that the end of the band is in sight just because of father time is hard to fathom, even though it's pure reality.  Interesting that if Nicko was unable to continue then that would decide the fate of the band also.

[PowerSlave]

Has anyone heard any rumors of the other guys having any health issues? Bruce's ordeal was scary enough, but he seems to be completely back in full form. Outside of my selfish reasons for wanting them to be well (more music and tours...), they all seem to be great people, and I'd hope that they get to fully enjoy their retirement when the day finally comes.

[Mosh]

Stay tuned for a discography thread starting sometime this week!

It is a bummer that the end is near, but I'm really loving the band's messaging lately. Remember back when TFF came out? When asked if it was the last album the band never gave a definitive answer really until they were getting ready to go back into the studio. And even then they never really said there was an album coming. The answers were always along the lines of "we'd like to but who knows what will happen". This time around it has been definitive that they will make another album pretty much since TBOS came out.

Also, if they immediately go into the studio after this tour, it will be the first time we get a new album without a nostalgia tour in between since the 90s.

[MirrorMask]

It's since Dance of Death that "the end is near", when they announced they would scale back on tours and do them mostly in the summer. I cherish their longevity and applaud their commitment to more music and whenever they will feel their time is up, that will be it... until then, Up the Irons! 

[Logain Ablar]

Interesting interview with Rod. The first part is mostly about beating the ticket touts, but the question about retirement comes up here:

https://youtu.be/w8u7uND4HSs?t=216

[wolfking]

Has anyone heard any rumors of the other guys having any health issues? Bruce's ordeal was scary enough, but he seems to be completely back in full form. Outside of my selfish reasons for wanting them to be well (more music and tours...), they all seem to be great people, and I'd hope that they get to fully enjoy their retirement when the day finally comes.

No, the way they have been touring there is no reason to think that either.  If something happened to one of them like Bruce, I'm sure they'd be a statement.

It's good to read they are looking after themselves, things happen, but yeah, let's hope everyone finishes their career on their terms and they all stay well.

[jammindude]

So I just picked up Final Frontier last weekend (off the used rack) and it's been shuffling in my iPod.   And I just heard El Dorado for the first time today.

Why did anyone have a problem with that song?  For all the flack it gets, I was expecting something like "Bring Your Daughter"....but it was actually really cool!   I was pleasantly surprised!   I like it a ton better than Blood Brothers or Brave New World.

[TAC]

So I just picked up Final Frontier last weekend 

Wut??

Where you been, man?

[jammindude]

So I just picked up Final Frontier last weekend 

Wut??

Where you been, man?

Brave New World turned me off big time.  After that, I just got out of Maiden for a long time.   Didn't hear any of the reunion albums until someone turned me on to AMOLD just a couple years ago.   Since then, I've been slowly getting back into them.

[TAC]

How did BNW turn you off?

[jammindude]

Gee (we're blood brothers) I don't know (we're blood brothers) maybe (we're blood brothers) it was that I thought (we're blood brothers) the lazy chorus writing from VXI (we're blood brothers) would get turned around (we're blood brothers).   But (we're blood brothers) when I spun the album (we're blood brothers) it turns out (we're blood brothers) that Steve hadn't learned a bloody thing.

Which would also explain why I thought AMOLAD was amazing.  It only had one or two songs that suffered from the "let's repeat the title of the song 8 or 16 times and WHAMMO....INSTANT CHORUS"   The entire album seems much more thought out. 

In fact, I find that my enjoyment of a Maiden album is directly related to how many of the choruses are the musical equivalent of Chinese Water Torture.     1 or 2 songs can mean a great album.   3 or 4 is a meh album.   More than 5 and I will probably never spin that album again.

[El Barto]

I think most people agree that AMoLaD is an exceptional album, both figuratively and literally. There was some very interesting songwriting on it, by which I mean uncharacteristic of Maiden, and it was all very well done. I have a similar take on the post-reunion albums as you, but rather looking at the number of bad songs I'm looking at how many good, atypical Maiden songs there are. The interesting ones. From that standpoint I didn't care all that much for BNW or TFF. I didn't dislike BNW, but it was pretty average. TFF only has one song that does really does something for me.

[Logain Ablar]

I share some of the frustrations about repeat repeat repeating, and my other bugbear is bookend intros and outros that go on just a bit too long. This is why I don't care for The Red and The Black very much, as to me it represents the worst of that sort of stuff.

I can find things to like on all the reunion albums, with AMOLAD probably being the most consistent in quality. The only think I'm not keen on with that album (and most of the reunion albums) is the really "dry" sounding production, with very little vocal harmonies.

Assuming there will be another album, I'd love for them to go with another producer, who'd really challenge and push them on the songwriting front. Though, at this stage in their career, I can't see the formula changing very much.

[cramx3]

So I just picked up Final Frontier last weekend 

Wut??

Where you been, man?

Brave New World turned me off big time.  After that, I just got out of Maiden for a long time.   Didn't hear any of the reunion albums until someone turned me on to AMOLD just a couple years ago.   Since then, I've been slowly getting back into them.

Id suggest the Book of Souls then, also doesn't suffer from repetition.

[bosk1]

So I just picked up Final Frontier last weekend (off the used rack) and it's been shuffling in my iPod.   And I just heard El Dorado for the first time today.

Why did anyone have a problem with that song?  For all the flack it gets, I was expecting something like "Bring Your Daughter"....but it was actually really cool!   I was pleasantly surprised!   I like it a ton better than Blood Brothers or Brave New World.

Great album.  Great song.  And I really haven't seen it get MUCH flak, outside a small number of people who are just very vocal about it.  Have you watched En Vivo?  If not, you should.  It's a fantastic DVD.

[Mosh]

So I just picked up Final Frontier last weekend (off the used rack) and it's been shuffling in my iPod.   And I just heard El Dorado for the first time today.

Why did anyone have a problem with that song?  For all the flack it gets, I was expecting something like "Bring Your Daughter"....but it was actually really cool!   I was pleasantly surprised!   I like it a ton better than Blood Brothers or Brave New World.

Great album.  Great song.  And I really haven't seen it get MUCH flak, outside a small number of people who are just very vocal about it.  Have you watched En Vivo?  If not, you should.  It's a fantastic DVD.

It had a mixed reception when it came out but I think most people are fine with it. The problem with modern Maiden is that the epics tend to overshadow the shorter tunes. I think El Dorado could stand up to most of the short rockers from the 80s.

[Mladen]

Well, if we're talking about the shorter, punchier tracks on The Final frontier, I would say The Alchemist is an absolute highlight. However, the highlights are in the second half, they truly delivered with the epics.

[wolfking]

Don't get me started on El Dorado.

[Mosh]

The Alchemist is awesome. Should've been a single and should've been played live.

[MirrorMask]

The Alchemist is awesome. Should've been a single and should've been played live.

Ditto!

[Architeuthis]

So I just picked up Final Frontier last weekend (off the used rack) and it's been shuffling in my iPod.   And I just heard El Dorado for the first time today.

Why did anyone have a problem with that song?  For all the flack it gets, I was expecting something like "Bring Your Daughter"....but it was actually really cool!   I was pleasantly surprised!   I like it a ton better than Blood Brothers or Brave New World.

Great album.  Great song.  And I really haven't seen it get MUCH flak, outside a small number of people who are just very vocal about it.  Have you watched En Vivo?  If not, you should.  It's a fantastic DVD.

It is a great show! My only problem with the DVD is that the camera editing jumps around way too much. That gets frustrating and takes away from the concert experience.

[nobloodyname]

Turns out Hallowed was dropped because of a legal dispute.

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2017/05/13/heavy-metal-legends-iron-maiden-shelve-fans-favourite-song-legal/

Here's the song in question: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hTBmLmYz6A0

[RodrigoAltaf]

All we need now is that someone sues Maiden for plagiarism in Fear of the Dark.

[wolfking]

Hang on, if Steve says it was resolved with one of the song writers years ago, who the fuck is this McKay guy to go ahead and sue Steve.  And what's poor old Dave getting dragged to court also? 

I didn't know it took lyrics from this song.  That's where the similarities end though.

EDIT: Hang on, as I listen to this song while I type, now I know why Dave is involved.  He took the second half for the Nomad.  Cool stuff.

[jammindude]

The entire song carries a VERY similar feel to the entire "waiting in my cold cell" section of Hallowed...but ya, this is where the line blurs a bit for me as to the difference between stealing a song, and simply lifting a single idea as a point of inspiration that grows into something completely different. 

James Taylor was working on a song called "Something in the Way She Moves".    George Harrison said, "Hey, I like that line.  Can I use it?"  JT said sure.   Harrison, of course, wrote "Something" and it became a huge hit for the Beatles.   That story is well documented enough that James Taylor *COULD* take the Harrison estate to court for co-authorship of the song....but he's not a starving artist who never made it....so there's that. 

[PowerSlave]

That song (musically) sounds like a rip-off of Welcome to My Nightmare from Alice Cooper. I'm not sure what year it came out, so it might have come out before the AC song.

[Zydar]

That song (musically) sounds like a rip-off of Welcome to My Nightmare from Alice Cooper. I'm not sure what year it came out, so it might have come out before the AC song.

Apparently it was released in 1974.

https://www.discogs.com/Beckett-Beckett/release/1323464