Tournament of INSTRUMENTALS (Eighth Finals): Group B

Vote for your FAVOURITE instrumental track: 1 vote per battle


  • Total voters
    14
  • Poll closed .
In a rare moment, I am with Cosmic: 1 & 4 (second pair was the hardest; Pink Floyd won big time for me).
 
Much as I like One of These Days, I'm going with Ktulu. Not fond of Alan Parsons, so Ides gets it for that reason.
 
It's a Maiden board, what did you all expect?

I completely agree, by the way. Maiden's instrumentals are generally mediocre at best and Ides is a freaking intro for chrissakes...but hey, we're here for a reason, I suppose.
 
Ides is easily the worst Di'Anno era song. In fact, it's the only one from that era I'd call bad. I consider it a failed prototype of The Hellion.
 
Ides is easily the worst Di'Anno era song. In fact, it's the only one from that era I'd call bad. I consider it a failed prototype of The Hellion.
:facepalm:

Ides is one of the best intros ever, plus Sirius is super boring so it ain't hard to be better than it.
 
:facepalm:

Ides is one of the best intros ever, plus Sirius is super boring so it ain't hard to be better than it.

Let's pretend for a moment that Ides doesn't exist, and Killers opens with Wrathchild. You're starting the album off with an aggressive, fast paced and energised song that begins the momentum of the album. That's a good thing, Iron Maiden, Powerslave, SIT, Seventh Son, FOTD, Virtual XI, BNW and AMOLAD all did that well.

But Ides is just completely pointless. It doesn't flow into Wrathchild well, doesn't leave much of an impression, it overstays its welcome (which for a 2 minute track is not a good thing), and worst of all, it has no reason to exist. Wrathchild would have been the perfect opener for Killers. The Hellion on the other hand (released a year later to be fair) flows into Electric Eye well, sets a great atmosphere, is only on for 40 seconds, and is always goes hand in hand with the main song.

Sirius isn't the best competition, I'll admit that, but it's a nice atmospheric piece that sets a pleasant atmosphere. It has a reason to exist unlike TIOM.
 
But Ides does exist, and it's in this survivor. And so is/was Sirius. :)

I shan't argue about Hellion, though. If I'd had my way that would still be here.
 
Let's pretend for a moment that Ides doesn't exist, and Killers opens with Wrathchild. You're starting the album off with an aggressive, fast paced and energised song that begins the momentum of the album. That's a good thing, Iron Maiden, Powerslave, SIT, Seventh Son, FOTD, Virtual XI, BNW and AMOLAD all did that well.

But Ides is just completely pointless. It doesn't flow into Wrathchild well, doesn't leave much of an impression, it overstays its welcome (which for a 2 minute track is not a good thing), and worst of all, it has no reason to exist. Wrathchild would have been the perfect opener for Killers. The Hellion on the other hand (released a year later to be fair) flows into Electric Eye well, sets a great atmosphere, is only on for 40 seconds, and is always goes hand in hand with the main song.

Sirius isn't the best competition, I'll admit that, but it's a nice atmospheric piece that sets a pleasant atmosphere. It has a reason to exist unlike TIOM.
:facepalm:
IMO The Ides Of March+Murders In The Rue Morgue would've been a much better solution to open Killers with than Wrathchild.
 
@RTC

I remember you never reacted to my post but I wonder if you read it:

The biggest issue I have with it is that it has no reason to exist. Wrathchild would have served as a great opener to Killers. Instead, Ides just wastes time on the album right at the very start.
You could make the argument about it being a Hellion/Electric Eye deal before it existed, but Ides was never paired with Wrathchild in the same way even back then and Ides is far longer as an intro piece. My interest dulls pretty early on in the song, and it's just an unimpressive instrumental at that point.
I think you are making a mistake. It was paired in 1979, and played live!
The Ides of March
Wrathchild
These are separate links but I have the bootleg on mp3 and these are the first two tracks.
More info (full setlist) here:
http://www.ironmaidencommentary.com/?url=tour00_mfm/bootlegs00_mfm&lang=eng&link=tours
Go to 5 October 1979.
Of course, later it was still paired, but then Ides was played from a tape.
I am not sure if you know this, but listen to this intro from Samson's album Head On (1980):
Steve got a co-credit for it. So, Ides of March certainly has a history before it landed on Killers.
 
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I don't think Ides of March is terrible, I think it's a decent intro. However:

Sirius is super boring so it ain't hard to be better than it.

Yeah, no. Sirius is one of the most dramatic and atmospheric works of rock music ever. Still gives me goosebumps after all the times I've heard it.
 
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