Total Eclipse

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How good is Total Eclipse on a scale of 1-10?

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    15
6/10

Total Eclipse, though not great, is far superior to Gangland (and Invaders). It is a mid-tempo, crunchy tune with a sinister vibe that would have made for a perfect transition between the upbeat Run to the Hills and the dark Hallowed Be Thy Name. The guitars are menacing and Bruce’s voice is surprisingly gritty (a tone he would revisit on the much maligned early 90s albums). The bridge is a bit muddled, with cluttered lyrics and a seemingly random solo followed by a strange wailing refrain. Total Eclipse is an atypical Maiden song, sounding more like classic heavy metal or hard rock, but Bruce’s range is impressive and it’s certainly a better song than the waste that is Gangland.
 
Quite an underrated song this.

I like the subtle changes in tempo and Bruce is brilliant on this. But otherwise nothing much stands out. Just makes a 7

7
 
Taken from the Official Rankings thread:

"Three general comments - one, this could have fit in on No Prayer For the Dying. Two - a Black Sabbath vibe. Three - should have been on the original release of the album rather than Gangland."

I disagree with all three statement actually. Firstly, this could not have fit on No Prayer For The Dying. Try The Number of the Beast and you'd be a little more accurate. Secondly, I hear no Sabbath vibe. I only hear Maiden. Thirdly, I think that while it should've been on the album, Gangland deserves its place as well. The 1998 remaster got it right.

Oh, and I also have a problem with its ranking. #111 is too goddamn low. Try somewhere in the Top 20 and you'd be a little more accurate. I love this song. One of the finest Maiden has ever made. 10/10.
 
The interest thing about Total Eclipse is that the main riff is a fairly stock glam metal riff of the era, yet in Maiden hands, they make it sound sinister and adventurous (the lyrics also really help).

Love the breakdown for the solos. And yeah, I completely agree that Gangland deserves to be there. Not sure why Gangland gets hate. It's not world class like some of the others, but it serves it's purpose and helps with pacing.

There is zero chance this would fit on No Prayer.
 
Fantastic song from start to finish. Heavy and dark, I can't seem to figure out why exactly was that the band thought "Gangland" would be better on the album than this. Fabulous lyrics that were geniously written on an extremely relevant subject matter, and that leave a lingering sting when you actually listen to what they have to say. Solid 9.
 
An awesome song from beginning to end. The opening is great, the verses are awesome, the solo, while the weakest part, still rocks, and the ending is fantastic. This is such an icy song, and it's got some of Bruce's best singing on it.

I don't think that it should replace "Gangland". That song is still necessary to The Number of the Beast. Still, "Total Eclipse" is a masterpiece of a song. Fucking amazing. 10/10.
 
The most "Maiden" song in my opinion, especially 3:00. 10/10
I just thought about how similar the buildup before Bruce starts singing is to Ghost of the Navigator I can hear the exploding riff after the intro instead of "cold as steel" :D
 
Much better. This one has the distinct benefit of being a textbook example of a song vindicated by history. The song was left as a b-side, rather than on the album itself at first, something which the band has openly admitted to being a mistake. And it's become quite the appreciated song since then. True, it still has a mixed reputation amongst fans, some prefer it as a b-side and some think it deserves fame as a overlooked classic. I'm not in either camp myself, let me explain.

While the song is all around good, it gives me the feeling that it was chopped up and shortened to a version that is a lot more of a hackjob than it really should. See Exhibit A; the solo comes out of complete nowhere and ends just as quickly as it appeared. It's also a short burst of complete cacophony and it doesn't mesh well at all with the rest of the song. The final section features a wailing Bruce and more emotion than anywhere else in the song which is generally speaking a lot heavier than most other things on the album. It also doesn't fit in very well. And then the song ends on the opening riff again and I don't really feel satisfied by it.

So...what should I give it? I'd say a 7/10.
 
This is a song that used to be a contender for my Top 10, but it's fallen quite a bit since. I think it's strong as a whole, but not quite so good as it was when I first listened to it. 7
 
The main riff is brutal. Good verses, but the chorus is not so good. Wild solos - the part after them (''gone are the days''...) is great. Powerful drumming (as in the whole album). The song is not bad and fits the atmosphere of TNOTB album quite well. 7/10

I like ''Gangland'' more though.
 
I've mentioned it a few times in various threads, but Total Eclipse is one of the worst songs in the entire catalogue for me. It's so frustrating, because the first verse riff has so much potential and starts out greatly, but I despise every other section. The topic of the song is fascinating, but it squanders everything. Especially the last verse where Bruce is hitting some insane pitches, which might be very impressive as far as vocal ranges go, but doesn't sound musical at all to me. It's infuriating really. A 1 and only because I can't vote lower than that.
 
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