'Judgement Day'

I'm with Mosh all the way on this.

Yes, Maiden has followed this pattern for a long time as of late, but something about the way the tracks are arranged on TXF just doesn't work for me. The melancholy production and droning vocals don't help. At least with Bruce at the helm, we'll get an octave jump when the intro ends. Blaze's limited range (and the band's unwillingness to cater to his range) make TXF a very boring listen. Honestly, the energy and production on VXI is vastly superior, but the songs aren't as good (save for a couple).

It's a well known fact that I am not a fan of the Blaze albums. He never fit with Maiden, IMO, regardless of how classic some of those recordings may be. Steve's depressing musicality during that time is probably more so to blame than Blaze, but either way, TXF does not have the same dynamics as the reunion albums, regardless of the song structure.
 
I am less busy with Bruce when I listen to a non-Bruce album. I think that Blaze suits The X-Factor very well. His range fitted the material on this album. Let's not mix this up with his live performances with the band. But I guess we especially disagree on the quality of the songs.

These are TXF and DOD songs in my order of favour. You'll find most of DOD in the bottom half, with three of them rock bottom:

The Unbeliever
Blood on the World's Hands

Dance of Death
Paschendale

Judgement of Heaven
Sign of the Cross
Fortunes of War

Lord of the Flies
Man on the Edge
Gates of Tomorrow
Rainmaker

The Aftermath
Age Of Innocence

2 A.M.
Montségur
Journeyman
New Frontier
The Edge of Darkness

Look for the Truth
Face in the Sand
Wildest Dreams
No More Lies
 
Last edited:
I'm not sure why we're comparing TXF and DoD, but yea I prefer TXF too.
 
Ah gotcha! Missed that part of the post somehow. I dunno, if we're talking about just dynamics, I think DoD might have a higher dynamic range than TXF. It's hard to ay for sure though, especially when both albums have really low production value. TXF feels contained while DoD is too muddy and loud. When comparing live versions of two of their most dynamic songs, Sign of the Cross and Paschendale, they're both bombastic and highly dynamic.
 
Ah gotcha! Missed that part of the post somehow. I dunno, if we're talking about just dynamics, I think DoD might have a higher dynamic range than TXF. It's hard to ay for sure though, especially when both albums have really low production value. TXF feels contained while DoD is too muddy and loud. When comparing live versions of two of their most dynamic songs, Sign of the Cross and Paschendale, they're both bombastic and highly dynamic.

I prefer TXF's production anytime. DoD is the only Maiden album I have a hard time listening to because of the production. It's just so loud and distorted.

Comparing those songs, both are excellent but Sign of the Cross, for me, is just another league. Could be the best live song they've ever done.
 
So fast, so frantic. Not as good as Justice of the Peace or a few songs from the album itself, yet it holds its own and is certainly one of the cheeriest tunes from the period. 8/10.
 
This song is absolutely relentless and would give an excellent closer to the record (a la Only The Good Die Young). I think it should have replaced The Unbeliever on the final cut (9.25/10)
 
Last edited:
This song has a great riff, verses, chorus and brutal solos (I like how Jan and Dave alternate ''wild'' solos - Priest style). Full on speed!

The solo of Dave is one of his best.
 
Last edited:
This song is absolutely relentless and would give an excellent closer to the record (a la Only The Good Die Young). I think it should have replaced The Unbeliever on the final cut (9.25/10)
I suspect even Maiden themselves found it a little bit too similar to Be Quick Or Be Dead to put in on the album. Apart from that, you know I find it one of the acceptable songs from the Blaze era, and the least annoying performance from him.
 
Back
Top