Has Adrian been playing it safe?

Ascendingthethrone

Ancient Mariner
I have been listening to TFF all week and forgot how ‘proggy’ some of Adrian’s songs were on that album. Over the last two albums, I feel he had been playing it safe by writing more straightforward songs. I love TWOTW and TGU but I feel the other songs of his recently haven’t been as strong. I miss his longer songs like Starblind, Isle of Avalon and Paschendale. Do you think he was burnt out? I think his contributions to the Harris epics on Senjutsu could have made them stronger songs.

Am I alone with feeling this way?
 
It could also be a reaction to that Steve and Shirley didn't allow the band to record those longer, more advanced and experimental songs the way that he wanted to on TFF. He didn't agree with their choice of a dry and down scaled production. Adrian wanted to use a different amp for clean parts, which Steve didn't agree on, perhaps some more guitar effects and definitely more reverb on the vocals etc. So perhaps he decided to write songs that he didn't feel require that type of production after that negative experience.
 
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I feel the other songs of his recently haven’t been as strong.

Am I alone with feeling this way?
with Maiden I didn't notice this yet, which might have to do with the fact that in the end it's still Maiden. means: the other five bring more or less input to a song Adrian wrote and in the end it all fits somehow. but anyway, your point seems true to me especially when listening to the Smith/Kotzen album. I just can't get into it because I don't find even one song that impresses me. one of the first thoughts about the album that came to my mind was: poor songwriting.
 
I have been listening to TFF all week and forgot how ‘proggy’ some of Adrian’s songs were on that album. Over the last two albums, I feel he had been playing it safe by writing more straightforward songs. I love TWOTW and TGU but I feel the other songs of his recently haven’t been as strong. I miss his longer songs like Starblind, Isle of Avalon and Paschendale. Do you think he was burnt out? I think his contributions to the Harris epics on Senjutsu could have made them stronger songs.

Am I alone with feeling this way?

I do not think he has been playing it safe, rather than he probably thought that some of those intricate proggier songs he was writing were not working that well with Maiden. If I remember correctly, he said something along those lines in an interview promoting The Book of Souls.
 
I've never known exactly how to define proggy but those 3 longer songs you cite are all amazing. Probably not surprising I feel that way someone whose lifelong favorite bands are Rush and Yes I tend to be drawn towards the longer more complicated epics.

I read somewhere (probably here) that TWOTW sound, which surprised the hell out of me on first listen thinking it sounded like The Cult circa Electric, was more in line with his work outside of IM.

I can't opine on that however I just assume his creative process decides that some ideas work better as shorter rockers and other ideas have potential to be built into something much larger in scale and complexity.
 
It’s kinda hard to say whether Adrian is playing it safe, since we’re not hearing any of the material he wrote that didn’t work for the album. Also, while not as “proggy,” Writing on the Wall is still a really different song in its own right.

But let’s be real, Maiden will never again write a song as good as Starblind.
 
Adrian just likes to mix up things. He is probably quite conscious about what he wants to write. If he wants to write an epic he does, and same if he wants to write a rocker. You could almost argue that's ambitious in its own way.

On Senjutsu Adrian wrote four songs, and each very different from each other. I would say that's not playing it safe.
 
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