Judgement of Heaven

How good is Judgement of Heaven on a scale of 1-10?


  • Total voters
    11
I remember hearing this one for the first time, during my first playthrough of all studio albums, beginning to end. I had just parked in my driveway, and was getting out of my car when the bridge to the chorus started. Instead of walking into my apartment, I just stood there, thinking whoa... this is pretty awesome...

It's not my absolute favourite IM song, but what an anthem for encouragement. Some of the lyrics in particular caught my attention - like a few others have brought up already, I have suffered depression on and off a lot over the last year, after a bunch of family issues and lost possessions. This song was like "I feel you, I know what you're going through, let's frickin' rock through this, bro".

Always a joy to listen to since then. 8/10
 
A pretty solid track overall. A few things are less solid: the slightly too long opening, the repeated "waiting for me" at the end of the chorus, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Somewhere between a 7 and an 8, but closer to a...
7/10
 
This song is a bit flawed but has a lot of good things about it. The lyrics are thoughtful and I like the way this builds up. The 3+3+2 rhythm is too repetitive, it is present for pretty much the entire song. There are a lot of great melodies though both in the guitar department and the vocals. Really good chorus. We also finally get a twin guitar harmony. I also like how Steve created a new melody for the same lyric at the end. That was pretty creative and better than repeating the initial chorus right away.

Overall, solid track despite the flaws.

6
 
This one's always struck me. Real emotion in this piece, and that helps elevate it over many of the other middle of the road songs on the album. Some people really dislike it, but I find it to be at that near-great status, with a little bump. Can't help but think if this one had been better produced it'd be more of a classic. 8/10.
 
2/10 Blazes in dire need of a dousing.

Judgement of Heaven has that pesky happy-Maiden sound that deserves no place on such an emotionally heavy album. Blaze again sounds rather mismatched with this track, the vocals are simply too low for the melody. A lot of this could be the fault of Steve’s mixing, but it’s more than obvious that Blaze was never the best singer for Iron Maiden. The chorus in particular sounds terrible, like a scratch vocal that was forgotten about during the haze of recording. Also, why does a song about Steve wanting to commit suicide sound so upbeat? Not even a great Dave Murray guitar solo and harmony section can save this song from sounding like an obvious B-side.
 
Hits 7/10 button. Two seconds later switches to 8/10.

The beginning of this song isn't all that great, but once it gets going, it becomes a very enjoyable song. The verses feel as though they're from a slightly weaker but still good Lord of the Flies, the chorus sounds great, the solo is amazing, I really do enjoy this track.
 
7 for this one because of the weak intro, otherwise it would get an 8. Once we're past the awkward initial 50 seconds and it gets itself going, it's actually quite enjoyable, especially the chorus. The bridge that leads to the solo reminds me a little too much of "Lord of the Flies", and, along with the intro, is what bring my rating down a bit.
 
This time "From Here To Eternity" called and would like its intro back. Blaze is out of key again and generally sounds bad on the verse (especially "when I was happy", "to get on with your life").

The pre-chorus is a step up and sounds more like Maiden. The chorus is weaker, especially with Blaze's rote and off-key delivery, followed by an extremely awkward and cringe-inducing "yeah, yeah!"

The solo is very sloppy, but cuts into a better instrumental section with nice guitar harmonies that turns into a decent bridge...that is, until Blaze does another very awkward "yeah!"

Back to the weak chorus and a few more terrible "yeahs", with Blaze saving the worst for last with a final "yeah" that sounds like a cat being strangled. So awful!

The pre-chorus and the bridge save this from being a complete bust, so I'll be charitable and give it a 4/10. But it's still in the running for the worst song on the album because the lowest moments here are even worse than the lowest moments in "Look For The Truth".
 
Despite Blaze being a tad inconsistent in the intro, he still manages to give a good enough performance that perfectly emulates the thoughts going 'round in Steve's head. The heavier verses are even better, and the pre-chorus section is great. The chorus itself is cool and the instrumental section is awesome. Great lyrics as well. This song is amazing. 10
 
A very favorite song of mine - close to enter my top 10. The chorus is beyond amazing and Steve bass playing through the song is so good. Very good verses and the pre-chorus is fabulous. Probably my favorite part of any Maiden song is this (at first) only played by Dave? then twin-lead guitar harmony that is at the middle of the song. The drums accompanying that part so well. The melodies are among Maiden's best! (if not the best). And this song was never played live - sad. Hope one day Bruce will sings it live, though I do not know how his vocals will suits the song, because this song belongs to Blaze. Underrated song - one of the best Maiden songs from the 90's.

10/10.
 
If by “passionate” you’re invoking the Latin definition of suffering, as in causing suffering for your eardrums, then I agree. :ok:
LOL . I love so much Blaze voice. He was not perfect technically back then but The X Factor is great also for his vocals full of passion. Nowadays he sings great technically too.
 
Back
Top