Author Topic: Jirpo's Iron Maiden Top 50 (Read 18738 times)

wolfking · « **Reply #140 on:** August 02, 2011, 06:36:58 AM »

Totally agree with those two, especially No Prayer. Such an underrated song and one of Maiden's best. TXF is my fav album though, appriciate your comments on it though.

Mladen · « **Reply #141 on:** August 02, 2011, 08:22:48 AM »

Always incredible to see appreciation for The X Factor.

GuineaPig · « **Reply #142 on:** August 02, 2011, 08:32:44 AM »

I wish I had included "Look for the Truth" on my list.

Zook · « **Reply #143 on:** August 02, 2011, 12:30:52 PM »

It was bothering me.

Gadough · « **Reply #144 on:** August 02, 2011, 01:09:01 PM »

...Thanks, I guess?

Zook · « **Reply #145 on:** August 02, 2011, 01:15:09 PM »

Lazy ass.

Gadough · « **Reply #146 on:** August 02, 2011, 01:18:06 PM »

I've wanted to use that emoticon since I joined DTF, but there's never been an appropriate time to do so, until now. Thank you Zook.

Zook · « **Reply #147 on:** August 02, 2011, 01:54:28 PM »

Glad I could be of service.

sneakyblueberry · « **Reply #148 on:** August 02, 2011, 04:07:26 PM »

Wow, These Colours is so high. Never really liked that song.

Jirpo · « **Reply #149 on:** August 03, 2011, 05:54:07 AM »

Some more good ol' early reunion era stuff

12. Rainmaker
Another amazing short rocking opener (I don't count Wildest Dreams

) from the reunion era. This track is very melodic and beautiful. The guitar melody at the start is awesome, the first verse is one of my favourite verses ever. Its sung so beautifully by Bruce. "I turn my face towards the barren sun" is such an amazing line. The chorus "I dream, of the rain, as it falls upon the leaves" has an amazing melody. The solo is melodic and sounds so free, very inspiring stuff. The lyrics sound like something Dio would write in my opinion (one of, if not my favourite lyricist), using a lot of metaphors. An incredible track with great lyrics. The only reason this one is as low as it is (!) is because its too short (I like progressive songs). But don't worry, there are a few more short songs to come!

11. Blood Brothers
This track is also very touching, melodic and beautiful, like most of the songs on the album. You can tell the band gave their all on this track, making it one of Maiden's best ballads. The chorus works amazingly live, and I was very impressed when I saw them on this tour, it surpassed my expectations, all the people chanting along made it special. The chorus has a very good vocal melody. Great clean guitar and vocals at the start, and the slower, melodic guitar melodies in the instrumental section are also very good.

6. Somewhere in Time
This is at the top of the jumble of albums from #6 - #11 because it features awesome songs and great songwriting, as well as an awesome performance from Adrian and Bruce. Caught Somewhere in Time, Wasted Years, and Stranger in a Strange Land are amazing. The rest of the tracks, although all pretty good, fall short of pushing this album into the top pack of Maiden albums in my opinion.

Zydar · « **Reply #150 on:** August 03, 2011, 06:15:22 AM »

Blood Brothers

wolfking · « **Reply #151 on:** August 03, 2011, 06:25:49 AM »

I always though Blood Brothers was a little overrated, but Rainmaker definitely deserves a spot that high, amazing song.

TAC · « **Reply #152 on:** August 03, 2011, 07:32:19 AM »

Jirp, props for No Prayer. It's also in my Top 15 as well.

Jirpo · « **Reply #153 on:** August 04, 2011, 06:22:04 AM »

Here starts the top 10! I'll put double the effort intro my writeups from now

10. Paschendale
The first track in the top 10 is a track that is often considered Maiden's best reunion effort and even their best overall. This song is very emotional and heavy. The intro is one of my favourite intros ever, the tapping is so awesome!

The intro riff is great and I love how it reverts back to the tapping after a few measures. The vocals are haunting, powerful and great at getting across a sense of despair and hopelessness. The chorus is very emotional, changing the wording slightly on the first repeat to give it the opposite meaning. The lyrics are a highlight, some of Maiden's best, with some fantastic lines such as "Cruelty has a human heart, every man does play his part, terror of the men we kill, the human heart is hungry still". The riff that follows this after the brief pause and Nicko's tapping is my favourite Maiden riff, and the first solo would be in my Maiden top 10 easily, a very powerful solo. The vocal melody in "Blood is falling like the rain, it's crimson cloak unveils again" is awesome. The second solo doesn't live up to the first one, but is still great. Then comes the chorus and then one of my favourite endings ever, its just so haunting when the distortion fades out and Nicko starts tapping, then Adrian comes in. Amazing. Unlike most, I don't think this one would be that incredible live. It seems too calculated and perfect to work that well live, with a whole crowd of people. I much prefer listening to this by myself, usually at night when I can hear the wind howling outside.

yorost · « **Reply #154 on:** August 04, 2011, 08:54:33 PM »

...not been following your list or polls lately for obvious reasons, so I brought you this.

...that's where my wife decided to put our daughter's dried belly button stump after it fell off. When I told her I was taking a picture she placed the dried umbilical cord over Eddie's head.

sneakyblueberry · « **Reply #155 on:** August 04, 2011, 10:10:49 PM »

Quote from: yorost on August 04, 2011, 08:54:33 PM

dried belly button stump

:vomit:

wolfking · « **Reply #156 on:** August 04, 2011, 10:34:37 PM »

WTF?!! That's disgusting, why do we need to see that?

MasterShakezula · « **Reply #157 on:** August 04, 2011, 11:43:04 PM »

Maybe he doesn't especially like post-09 Maiden?

The King in Crimson · « **Reply #158 on:** August 04, 2011, 11:51:00 PM »

Heeeeey yeah, that Paschendale song is pretty great. Much better than semi-disgusting pictures of belly-button stumps, amiright?

I was sooo sad they didn't play Paschendale (and Brighter Than A Thousand Suns) when I saw Maiden last year. What a great song.

MasterShakezula · « **Reply #159 on:** August 04, 2011, 11:52:48 PM »

I got to see Paschendale last year. It was rather rad. I didn't get to see BTASLWJNEK, which was alright, because I do not particularly enjoy that song, anyways.

yorost · « **Reply #160 on:** August 05, 2011, 09:23:32 AM »

Quote from: wolfking on August 04, 2011, 10:34:37 PM

WTF?!! That's disgusting, why do we need to see that?

I did what any normal human would do when torn between being appalled and laughing. I took a picture and posted it on the internet. My wife doesn't think highly of Eddie. ...or my Maiden cd's apparently.

Jirpo · « **Reply #161 on:** August 06, 2011, 04:55:18 AM »

That was interesting....

9. For the Greater Good of God
This is an awesome, awesome track. Its a very powerful song about the stupidity of religous war. The intro is sinister, and the vocals are emotional. When the song goes heavy for the first time (midway through the first verses to the first chorus) is amazing, it doesn't sound like much but its probably my favourite moment on the whole record. Its very intense and heartfelt. The chorus is also very emotional, and Bruce sounds like he is giving his all. The "second chorus" (For the greater good of god) that appears later in the song is also very good. The instrumental section of this track is amazing. Some of Maiden's best guitar melodies are here, and they aren't repeated long enough to get boring. Great solo's aswell. One of the best things about this song is the lyrics, absolutely some of Maiden's best (probably in my top 3, along with Starblind and Hallowed). I quite like songs about war and religion, particularly this one because I agree with the lyrics, I can relate a bit more to the song. The ending is also quite touching. Amazing song, I don't know how people think this one doesn't live up to the 80's material

5. The Final Frontier
This is where the albums take another huge step up. I think in a few years this one will be higher on my list, and looking back I think it should be higher already. This album has no bad tracks, I look forward to every track on the album. Having said that, the quality is a bit uneven - there are a few masterpieces, but a few songs that are just good songs, not good enough to beat the insane classics on the couple of 80's albums above this one.

Mladen · « **Reply #162 on:** August 06, 2011, 05:51:14 AM »

Interesting choices once again.

wolfking · « **Reply #163 on:** August 07, 2011, 04:38:58 AM »

I love FTGGOG.

Jirpo · « **Reply #164 on:** August 07, 2011, 07:57:29 AM »

8. The Wicker Man
Maiden's first reunion track, and WOW what an effort. Even though I wasn't a fan at the time (only 7 years old

) I can imagine most people would be be extremely excited that Maiden is BACK! This song is rather special to me because it was the first whole song that I loved from Maiden (The first part I loved was the poppy intro to Wasted Years

) (Although, this wasn't the song that got me fully into Maiden - theres another song I will credit that to later on

). The chorus just really got me, its a fantastic vocal melody, one of my favourite ever. The pre-chorus is great and still gives me a shiver of nostalgia when I hear it. The riffs are awesome and the solo is spectacular. The "ooohhh" part is great too. This is my most listened to Maiden song. This song carries an energy that I must admit has been lacking a bit in the reunion era (not that I'm dissapointed, I love the proggy stuff), and this is my favourite opener from the reunion era and one of my favourite songs from that era and overall. The lyrics are interesting too. I was extremely excited for this one live on the tour, and it was pretty good, but it was overshadowed by how amazing the rest of the show was in my eyes. The crowd didn't show the same excitement for this one compared to tracks like 2 Minutes and Fear of the Dark.

4. Piece of Mind
Its very hard to look past the insane amount of classic material on this album. To be honest, if not for a couple of songs that let down the quality, it would easily be in my top 3 (my top 2 albums currently are a gap ahead of the rest, and this one could join them if not for these songs). But still, this album contains a good amount of Maiden's very best material. Really classic stuff, Maiden at their peak.

Mladen · « **Reply #165 on:** August 07, 2011, 12:34:48 PM »

Yeah, some people don't show that much excitement for The Wicker man because they suck. It's an incredible song, works awesome live.

TAC · « **Reply #166 on:** August 08, 2011, 06:29:41 AM »

Quote from: Mladen on August 07, 2011, 12:34:48 PM

Yeah, some people don't show that much excitement for The Wicker man because they suck. It's an incredible song, works awesome live.

Wow, I suck , then

I wouldn't have The Wicker Man in my Top 50. I think the chorus completely does not fit with the rest of the track. If it had a different chorus, I would love this song much more.

Now, as far as FTGGOG..

My favorite song of that incredible album, and it might be my favorite song of the reunion era.

Jirpo · « **Reply #167 on:** August 08, 2011, 08:13:38 AM »

7. Children of the Damned
This song is one of Maiden's most intense and powerful songs. Based musically from Black Sabbath's "Children of the Sea" (and surpassing it in my eyes, no easy feat), this song was perfect to showcase their new singer. This is my favourite vocal performance by Bruce ever. His voice is very strong and powerful. The line "God knows he wants to go home" is very emotive. The chorus is awesome, with the background riff being one of my favourite riffs ever. The line "He thought oblivion, well it beckons us alllllll!" always sends a shiver down my spine, its incredible and leads into the chorus amazingly. The part after the chorus, where the lyrics describe the childs burning, is also a very powerful section, especially if your in the right mood. The solo is great and the ending is just perfect. The lyrics are some of Maiden's best, written exceptionally well and I think the concept of the movie it was based on is an awesome concept, the idea of six children with supernatural powers.

TAC · « **Reply #168 on:** August 08, 2011, 08:29:58 AM »

I have Children also around #7 on my list. Completely agree!

Jirpo · « **Reply #169 on:** August 10, 2011, 07:09:21 AM »

6. The Longest Day
This track is amazing. The intro is one of the most chilling, evil things ever and competes with Paschendales intro. Bruces voice really enhances this too. The pre-chorus and chorus are simply some of Bruces best moments, with the pre-chorus emulating the ferocity, chaotic, fast-paced battle and the chorus wailing out a sad, mourning tune. The solos in this song are amazing, though short, I enjoy them every time. The main guitar melody in the instrumental section is awesome, one of the best from the album (surpassed only by a couple on The Legacy and The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg). The little repeat of the intro at the end is very powerful, and I wonder if Paschendale would have ended better if it had no vocals at the end either. Anyway, this war epic would be incredible to see live, but I doubt I will ever get the chance to see it. The lyrics are awesome, and I feel this one even tops Paschendale (not an easy feat!).

Mladen · « **Reply #170 on:** August 10, 2011, 08:00:21 AM »

Great choice.

farsight · « **Reply #171 on:** August 10, 2011, 08:48:05 AM »

The Longest Day's flute-like solo

wolfking · « **Reply #172 on:** August 10, 2011, 02:56:49 PM »

Wow, Longest Day is so high.

Jirpo · « **Reply #173 on:** August 12, 2011, 08:07:08 AM »

5. Aces High
This is one of my favourite album openers ever, and probably the song I would have to open my dream setlist (along with Churchills Speech). The intro tune is one of my favourite guitar licks ever. This track is quite special to me. Its the first song I really learnt to play on guitar and is still my favourite to play. Although The Wicker Man was the first song that got me into Maiden, this one really sealed the deal for me. I remember the first day it clicked for me, I had never liked any piece of music more at the time. The chorus is my second favourite of all-time; Bruce's vocals are awe-inspiring, I just feel such a surge of emotions every time I hear the chorus, even though its not a particularly emotional song. The solo is definitely one of Maiden's best, really excellent work. This song has never suffered from my constant overlistening (my 4th most played Maiden song, The Wicker Man is my most played). This would be #1 on my wishlist of songs to see live from any band, no exceptions. The way it transitions from "Never surrender" into the opening tune is simply

3. Powerslave
This album used to be my favourite, but I realised it was clearly a level below the other two - I was simply placing it on a pedestal because of its popularity. The "big 4" of the album let it contend with any other album, and Flash of the Blade and The Duellists are right up there. Its the other two that let it down a bit. Losfer Words is pretty good, about the same as "Die With Your Boots On", but Back in the Village isn't very good, similiar to "Quest For Fire" for me. Anyway, this album still rules, and it has the best cover art ever.

Zydar · « **Reply #174 on:** August 12, 2011, 08:08:53 AM »

I love Aces High. It was the first IM song I loved when I started listening to them. The Live After Death version is killer

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Author Topic: Jirpo's Iron Maiden Top 50 (Read 18738 times)