THE Iron Maiden Thread

[SomeoneLikeHim]

[El Barto]

I really hope they're doing some indoor shows before the Summer festival circuit.  I'm knocking around a trip to Europe in the Spring, and I'd love to catch one or two of these.

[Nel]

I've noticed that all the albums with the slipcase exteriors have finally been going from $15 to $10, so I picked up The Number Of The Beast, Piece Of Mind, Somewhere In Time, and Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son yesterday. Feels good to finally be getting more IM in my collection; all I had before was The Final Frontier.

[TAC]

I've noticed that all the albums with the slipcase exteriors have finally been going from $15 to $10, so I picked up The Number Of The Beast, Piece Of Mind, Somewhere In Time, and Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son yesterday. Feels good to finally be getting more IM in my collection; all I had before was The Final Frontier.

That's a hell of a haul!

[jjrock88]

Might as well complete the collection; you won't regret it!

[Ultimetalhead]

I was collecting those slipcase ones for a while. I think I have Killers, NOTB, Piece, LAD, Powerslave, SiT, and Seventh Son. I don't remember why I stopped.

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

IRON MAIDEN IS THE FIRST ROCK BAND TO BE ANNOUNCED TO PLAY AT THE NEW NATIONAL STADIUM – FRIENDS ARENA – IN STOCKHOLM, JULY 13, 2012

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

Ahhh Nicko you sexy MoFo you got some good taste my friend! 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=7HLu58sHduY#!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=WBVXbXjVIJ8#!

[Nel]

I've noticed that all the albums with the slipcase exteriors have finally been going from $15 to $10, so I picked up The Number Of The Beast, Piece Of Mind, Somewhere In Time, and Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son yesterday. Feels good to finally be getting more IM in my collection; all I had before was The Final Frontier.

Continuing on, a few days back I bought the following: s/t, Fear Of The Dark, and A Matter Of Life And Death. So now I've got about half the discography. So far, all the albums have been very good; it usually comes down to me liking about half the songs, and being sort of indifferent to the other half.

And then there's A Matter Of Life And Death. Holy shit. It's been quiet a while since I've been able to say I've loved every song on a single album, but every song on this album clicked for me. Especially amazing since I've been listening to all the IM albums I own this weekend and this came at the tail-end when I was getting weary. The only gripe I'd have (and it's very minor since I love every song anyway) is that a lot of the songs sound kind of samey. I mean, how many begin with that slow, acousticy build-up. At any rate, my favorite IM album so far, and could very possibly sneak it's way into my top 20 favorite albums ever.

I guess a little con is that I've owned The Final Frontier since it was released, always enjoyed it, but now it seems like a step down from AMOLAD. 

Hoping to find more of the slipcase editions. I just noticed that when you put them together on the shelf, the sides are forming a picture of Eddie, so I really want to complete that. 

[cramx3]

AMOLAD is my favorite IM album so you are not alone.

[philmcson]

Yeah, AMOLAD was a very well executed experiment. Although, my fav is Brave new world, you simply hear the unleashed energy from Dickinson and Smith as they returned to the band......

[Nel]

Coincidentally, I bought the rest of the albums I don't have today.  Picked up BNW, DoD, NPftD and Powerslave in the store, ordered Killers, X Factor and Virtual XI off of Amazon.

It is... complete. 

[cramx3]

Enjoy although some of those are my least favorites  IMO. 

[Mladen]

Congratulations, Nel.   

[Cyclopssss]

Great, welcome to the fold. I've been listening to IM since I first heard a 12" of 'Drifter' in '81 or something. Bought 'Killers' when it came out and became a fan instantly.

Having said that, to my eternal shame I must admit to have NEVER seen them play live. I did see them at a Mc Donalds in my hometown though, but that don't count....

[MoraWintersoul]

Welcome to Iron Maiden!

[cramx3]

Great, welcome to the fold. I've been listening to IM since I first heard a 12" of 'Drifter' in '81 or something. Bought 'Killers' when it came out and became a fan instantly.

Having said that, to my eternal shame I must admit to have NEVER seen them play live. I did see them at a Mc Donalds in my hometown though, but that don't count....

Sadly your time is running out to see them as they are getting older and don't tour as much these days. You have to see them next time they come near you.

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

Iron Maiden - Bloopers Of The Beast Vol. I
24:56! That could have been the end for Nicko! 

[Gadough]

Someone needs to explain to me why the fanbase doesn't like No Prayer For the Dying. I'm giving it a proper listen for the first time, and I'm really enjoying it.

[Scorpion]

I enjoy like it a lot, actually, but some tracks just drag it down. Public Enema Number One comes to mind, or the overrated Bring Your Daughter...

Other songs, like the title track, Holy Smoke and Mother Russia are all pretty swell and often go unappreciated, which is a shame.

[philmcson]

Other songs, like the title track, Holy Smoke and Mother Russia are all pretty swell and often go unappreciated, which is a shame.

True. If uncompared, it is a good album, but when you see it from the viewpoint of an 80s Maiden fan who has experienced Piece of mind with Nicko's awesome rattling, then epic Powerslave, progressive Somewhere in time and their concept album Seventh son of a seventh son, NPFAD is a downer. Also it was the first album without Adrian Smith after a long while, and let's be honest: Gers' riffs and solos never were as good as Adrian's, although Janick has also had pretty cool moments....

[Zook]

Someone needs to explain to me why the fanbase doesn't like No Prayer For the Dying. I'm giving it a proper listen for the first time, and I'm really enjoying it.

Because TAILGUNNUH

TAILGUNNUH

You know, I've had that album for several years, really only to complete the totally hated but they don't sound bad to me remastered collection, and I don't think I've ever listened to it all the way through, but Holy Smoke was the only song I liked, and only because it was ridiculous.

[Nel]

I kinda listened to everything together, and No Prayer For The Dying and Fear Of The Dark just felt a bit weaker because they felt like a more hard rock kind of sound rather than the direction they were going down with Somewhere In Time and Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son.

I still enjoyed a majority of songs on those two albums though.

X Factor and Virtual XI I have yet to actually sit through. All the anti-hype is kind of making me dread it. 

[Scorpion]

The X Factor is sooo amazing and underrated that it's not even funny.

[El Barto]

Yeah, I don't think you've seen much anti-hype for X Factor in this forum.  Most people here think at the very least it's a good album, and quite a few of us think it's great.  Virtual XI is a different story, though.

[MrBoom_shack-a-lack]

X-Factor has gotten a fair amount of beating since it's release but it really is a decent album imo. I love Man on the Edge! 

[Ruba]

NPFTD is alright, not even close to 80s albums, but better than anything after reunion. The title song, Public Enema Number One and Run Silent, Run Deep are my favourite songs. Bring Your Daughter, on the other hand, is pretty much one of the worst Iron Maiden songs. Still it is better than Bruce's original version  .

Holy Smoke has my all-time favourite music video. If you haven't seen it yet, go and check it out.

[MoraWintersoul]

X-Factor has gotten a fair amount of beating since it's release but it really is a decent album imo. I love Man on the Edge! 

Falling doooown, falling doooown, falling dooooo-oooo-ooooown!

I quite like Judgment of Heaven and I don't see it mentioned frequently.

[Ruba]

I quite like Judgment of Heaven and I don't see it mentioned frequently.

Judgment of heaven is waiting for me
Waiting for me
Waiting for me
Waiting for me





YEA-YEAAAAAAH!!!!!!





Seriously, it is very good. I love the mid-section guitar melodies.

[wolfking]

TXF = Best Maiden album.

[Mladen]

I think time has shown how incredible The X Factor actually is. I feel like, after the release of A Matter of life and death, The X Factor suddenly made sense. That album laid the foundation for what the Maiden have been doing ever since Bruce rejoined, but the absence of Bruce and a much darker and raw sound turned off too many fans that had refused to acknowledge the album for about a decade.

[cramx3]

I agree with what everyone is saying about the X-Factor.  The album is really good musically.  I think it lacks in production and Blaze, while I do like his vocals on his solo albums, doesn't sound that great on this album.  I think when you see how The Sign of The Cross was on RiR, you can see just how good those songs really are.

[Mladen]

I think Blaze did a really good job on TXF. His performance on VXI, on the other hand, isn't that impressive, mostly because the songs are too cheerful for his darker, deeper voice. But if anyone's not too sure about his vocals overall, his solo albums are an absolute must. 

[TAC]

I think Blaze did a really good job on TXF. His performance on VXI, on the other hand, isn't that impressive, mostly because the songs are too cheerful for his darker, deeper voice. But if anyone's not too sure about his vocals overall, his solo albums are an absolute must. 

Yeah, I agree with that, M. Especially Promise And Terror, a truly remarkable album after the death of his wife.



I've stated before that to me, TXF sounds like a demo of an album that could've been great. It is filled with some of the best ideas in the catalog, but I feel that a lot of the songs just don't feel completely worked through.
I'm in no say dissing it or saying it sucks, I just feel that it's a bit incomplete. Both in terms of writing and production. Like I said, it has a demo feel to it.
I think the intro to The Unbeliever is one of the coolest sections they have, but between that, the verse, and the chorus, it just sounds like a garbled mess. I believe the blueprint was there, but it just needed more refinement. 

[jjrock88]

Ruba is right about the Holy Smoke video.  If you've never seen it, go to youtube right away.   If Silicon Messiah and Tenth Dimension had been released under the Iron Maiden name, fans would've hailed them as classics and Blaze wouldn't have gotten a bad rap at all.  I enjoy TXF and VX1 a lot though.