I kind of just realised for the first time that there is only one song on NPFTD that's over 5 minutes.
Kade, I think you just hit on No Prayer's main problem.
The short songs on No Prayer are actually really good. Excellent, even.
No Prayer For The Dying (2021 Steve would've added 7 extra minutes turned this into a 12 minute masterpiece)
Run Silent Run Deep
Public Enema Number One
Fates Warning
But the "epic", Mother Russia, is really weak. As is the opener, Tailgunner. These are spots that Maiden is generally pretty strong at.
But these lesser "supporting" tracks are as strong as an other album's.
Except Hooks in You - that's one of the biggest pieces of garbage EVER. Can't believe that Smith is partially responsible for it. Horrible track as is Holy Smoke. And Bring Your Daughter isn't much better.
While not the greatest tracks ever, I don't have a problem with either Mother Russia or Tailgunner or the rest of the album. The rest of the album is good to my ears.
Hooks In You is one of the 5 worst songs Maiden has ever recorded. Holy Smoke would've been an awesome B-side. I consider neither essential, and I wasn't really referring to them when I said their shorty songs were good. MOST of them were.
And as far as Bring You Daughter...that song is excellent, I mean other than the Bring Your Daughter To the Slaughter part, which I know is a big part. But the verses are excellent, and the chorus section, the music..not the words, is great.
Kind of like Public Enema Number One..A great song killed by an awful title.
With No Prayer, Steve really wanted a more of a stripped down feel, after going through the 80's. And he obviously wanted that stripped down approach reflected in their toned down stage show, which I still maintain is one of my all time favorite tours.
In a way, Steve kind of properly read the room regarding where music was going after the extravagance of the 80's. No Prayer was recorded in the summer of 1990, a full year before Nirvana released Nevermind.
Surprisingly, Bruce has 5 or 6 writing credits, yet he still feels a bit detached.
But Steve's material, after two years off is surprisingly weak, especially Mother Russia.
Jannick catches a lot of flak, but he basically came in and well, rescued the band would be way strong, but he gave the band a much needed heartbeat. Find a show from that tour on youtube and watch it. He was so energetic on stage, and he seemed to really pull Dave out of his shell.