The Iron Maiden Thread v. The Merge of Souls

[TAC]

Yeah, it feels like that chorus is sung over and over again. And I know the whole "repetitive chorus" thing, but I feel it really undermines the song. It's too bad because there is all kinds of greatness here.

[wolfking]

You can really hear it was written for Virtual XI.

[Zook]

The repetition could be so much worse. Too much repetition in music is a pet peeve of mine, but this song gets a pass.

[TAC]

So I made an Iron Maiden Spotify Playlist. It's comprised of songs 5 minutes and under. A few go beyond the 5 minute mark, but I basically wanted a playlist of my favorite shorter songs.

It's my playlist so Gangland is on it and Deja Vu is not.
I stayed away from some of the shorter classics like Children Of The Damned, Aces High or Run To The Hills.

Iron Maiden-5 Minutes To Midnight


Gangland
Still Life
Flight Of Icarus
Sun And Steel
Back In The Village
Moonchild
The Prophecy
Only The Good Die Young
Public Enema Number One
Fates Warning
No Prayer For The Dying
Run Silent Run Deep
Childhood's End
Judas Be My Guide
Fear Is The Key
Be Quick Or Be Dead
Man On The Edge (live Bruce)
The Fallen Angel
Wildest Dreams
Montesegur
Rainmaker
Different World
The Pilgrim
Mother Of Mercy
Coming Home
Speed Of Light


26 songs, 2 hours
On shuffle, of course.

[DTA]

I had the chorus melody for Dream of Mirrors in my head for YEARS before I even knew it was Maiden. I must've heard it somewhere and locked it away in my subconscious because it played in my head constantly. Discovering the band/song it belonged to was like getting paroled after a few years in jail.

It's a good song though longer than it needs to be, with an really catchy chorus (that is repeated way too much I agree), and contains a classic clunky Maiden tempo-shift.

[DTA]

So I made an Iron Maiden Spotify Playlist. It's comprised of songs 5 minutes and under. A few go beyond the 5 minute mark, but I basically wanted a playlist of my favorite shorter songs.

It's my playlist so Gangland is on it and Deja Vu is not.
I stayed away from some of the shorter classics like Children Of The Damned, Aces High or Run To The Hills.

Iron Maiden-5 Minutes To Midnight

Public Enema Number One
Fates Warning
No Prayer For The Dying
Run Silent Run Deep

No Prayer is a great album I don't care what anyone says. These songs are all excellent.

[MirrorMask]

Dream of Mirror is cool, it just follows a song on the album, The Mercenary, which has a way worse repetitive-chorus problem.

It's also quite badass how it speeds up in the middle and you get to the fast version of the chorus!

[Indiscipline]

My IM Top 25, without overthinking:

Still Life
Revelations
Phantom of the Opera
Die with Your Boots On
To Tame a Land
22 Acacia Avenue
Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Remember Tomorrow
Flash of the Blade
Afraid to Shoot Strangers
Infinite Dreams
Hallowed Be Thy Name
Prodigal Son
The Trooper
Flight of Icarus
Purgatory
Run to the Hills
Strange World
Transylvania
Wasted Years
Powerslave
Where Eagles Dare
Aces High
Children of the Damned
Fear of the Dark

[TAC]

Have you not heard an Iron Maiden album after 1992??

[Indiscipline]

 

I probably haven't heard a metal album after 1992 

[TAC]

Alex, you need to fix that, pronto!

The Reunion Era is equal or better than The Classic Era.

[Indiscipline]

Kidding, bro, I do have the post-reunion stuff (and the Blaze's as well).

Doesn't "move" me much. 

[TAC]

Doesn't "move" me much. 

They have pills for that, you know.



That doesn't even make sense.

[Indiscipline]

That doesn't even make sense.

Objectively? 

[TAC]

That doesn't even make sense.

Objectively? 

Positively.

[RodrigoAltaf]

The reunion era stuff could use A LOT of trimming.

[wolfking]

Childhoods End and Judas.  2 of Maidens most underrated.

[Cool Chris]

Have you not heard an Iron Maiden album after 1992??

When TAC calls you out for not being aware of anything since the 90s, you know you are living under a rock or mammoth proportions.

[TAC]

[Zook]

Why do you suppose they write such repetitive choruses? I haven't really enjoyed Maiden since BNW. Not only.are the choruses repetitive, but the song structures as well. Songs like Caught Somewhere in Time or Seventh Son work better because at least they sing in a different melodic phrasing, but the newer songs are just shouting lines over and over.

[wolfking]

Why do you suppose they write such repetitive choruses? I haven't really enjoyed Maiden since BNW. Not only.are the choruses repetitive, but the song structures as well. Songs like Caught Somewhere in Time or Seventh Son work better because at least they sing in a different melodic phrasing, but the newer songs are just shouting lines over and over.

Honestly, I do think laziness is a factor.  It's not like they can't do it but it does make you wonder at times.  Perhaps they just feel that the repitition is right for the songs.  Maybe they tried other lyrics and melodies and nothing worked so they just said fuck it and kept the one line.

[TAC]

Honestly I think Steve envisions the band playing large stadiums and he recognizes the choruses to be chant alongs.

[wolfking]

Honestly I think Steve envisions the band playing large stadiums and he recognizes the choruses to be chant alongs.

I think you hit the nail on the head here actually.

[Mister Gold]

Honestly I think Steve envisions the band playing large stadiums and he recognizes the choruses to be chant alongs.

Yeah, this is the key right here. Practically everything Iron Maiden has done since the start of the Reunion era seems to start from Steve's vision of Iron Maiden as a band best experienced in a live setting. Right down to their peculiar productions sounding messy at times.

For example, I am not a fan of The Red & The Black in its studio form... but goddamn was it a blast when I saw the band live on the Book of Souls tour. I'm not sure what exactly it is that changes that makes the song work so much better for me live, but it was a noticeable factor in my experience.

[wolfking]

Honestly I think Steve envisions the band playing large stadiums and he recognizes the choruses to be chant alongs.

Yeah, this is the key right here. Practically everything Iron Maiden has done since the start of the Reunion era seems to start from Steve's vision of Iron Maiden as a band best experienced in a live setting. Right down to their peculiar productions sounding messy at times.

For example, I am not a fan of The Red & The Black in its studio form... but goddamn was it a blast when I saw the band live on the Book of Souls tour. I'm not sure what exactly it is that changes that makes the song work so much better for me live, but it was a noticeable factor in my experience.

It's possibly my fav on the album, but hot damn seeing it live took it to another level.  It ripped.

[Mister Gold]

Honestly I think Steve envisions the band playing large stadiums and he recognizes the choruses to be chant alongs.

Yeah, this is the key right here. Practically everything Iron Maiden has done since the start of the Reunion era seems to start from Steve's vision of Iron Maiden as a band best experienced in a live setting. Right down to their peculiar productions sounding messy at times.

For example, I am not a fan of The Red & The Black in its studio form... but goddamn was it a blast when I saw the band live on the Book of Souls tour. I'm not sure what exactly it is that changes that makes the song work so much better for me live, but it was a noticeable factor in my experience.

It's possibly my fav on the album, but hot damn seeing it live took it to another level.  It ripped.

Yeah, its pacing was always a big issue for me in the studio version, but for some reason that thing became a monster when I saw it live. Definitely one of the highlights of that show, much to my surprise.

[wolfking]

Honestly I think Steve envisions the band playing large stadiums and he recognizes the choruses to be chant alongs.

Yeah, this is the key right here. Practically everything Iron Maiden has done since the start of the Reunion era seems to start from Steve's vision of Iron Maiden as a band best experienced in a live setting. Right down to their peculiar productions sounding messy at times.

For example, I am not a fan of The Red & The Black in its studio form... but goddamn was it a blast when I saw the band live on the Book of Souls tour. I'm not sure what exactly it is that changes that makes the song work so much better for me live, but it was a noticeable factor in my experience.

It's possibly my fav on the album, but hot damn seeing it live took it to another level.  It ripped.

Yeah, its pacing was always a big issue for me in the studio version, but for some reason that thing became a monster when I saw it live. Definitely one of the highlights of that show, much to my surprise.

I think it had more of groove and rolled better.  Not as stiff as the studio version perhaps.

[Mister Gold]

I think it had more of groove and rolled better.  Not as stiff as the studio version perhaps.

That might be it, actually. A big problem for me with the studio version is how it feels like three or four different song ideas that Steve had but hadn't fully figured out how to marry them together. So it feels like it just jumps to different songs with little sense of cohesion.

And listening to a live performance of it on YouTube now, I can definitely hear a more natural, steady groove from Nicko's drumming here. Feels a lot more seamless here.

[MirrorMask]

Honestly I think Steve envisions the band playing large stadiums and he recognizes the choruses to be chant alongs.

Yeah, this is the key right here. Practically everything Iron Maiden has done since the start of the Reunion era seems to start from Steve's vision of Iron Maiden as a band best experienced in a live setting.

It's the same reason why hearing The Angel and the Gambler live was not THAT bad after all.

[Mister Gold]

Honestly I think Steve envisions the band playing large stadiums and he recognizes the choruses to be chant alongs.

Yeah, this is the key right here. Practically everything Iron Maiden has done since the start of the Reunion era seems to start from Steve's vision of Iron Maiden as a band best experienced in a live setting.

It's the same reason why hearing The Angel and the Gambler live was not THAT bad after all.

Nah, I'm sad to say The Angel and the Gambler still is that bad. Watching a live video from 1998 and while it's maybe a hair more tolerable than the studio version, it's still obnoxiously bad.

[wolfking]

The radio edit is bloody excellent.

[Indiscipline]

Have you not heard an Iron Maiden album after 1992??

When TAC calls you out for not being aware of anything since the 90s, you know you are living under a rock or mammoth proportions.

 


Gotta renew my Kerrang! subscription and find new cassettes for my walkman

[TAC]

Kerrang!   

The greatest metal magazine. There were only a handful of places that would stock it, being an import.

And Metal Hammer too. Would've never gotten into Helloween without Metal Hammer.

[jjrock88]

BW&BK was a pretty cool magazine too! Every month it came with a mixed cd inside; I remember one CD having a live version of Futureal with Bruce singing 

[TAC]

Nice. I don't think I've actually ever seen a hard copy of Bravewords. But after DTF, their website is the second one I hit daily.


I still have my floppy 45 of Anarchy Divine I got with a Kerrang!.