40-year-old virgin

averycopeland

averycopeland

Invader
Since this is my first posting on this forum,
I would like to briefly introduce myself.


I reached the wise age of 40 back in October 2011
and I just started listening to Iron Maiden THIS YEAR-- in 2012 !!

That's right-- I was actually around during the band's
classic era and I simply let it all slip past me. (Damn!)



I had a childhood friend back in the early 80's who loved to watch
a Maiden concert video on VHS (most likely "Live after Death")--
so I did get some exposure to the band but I didn't pay enough attention.
Back then, I was listening mostly to Top 40 Rock/Pop stuff and old Beatles records.


By the end of that decade-- and for the following 20 years or so--
I focused primarily on various Classic Rock and 70's Prog Rock since I never
enjoyed the Grunge/Punk/Rap-related styles that soon became the new Pop music...
and I somehow tended to overlook most Metal material in general.



Fast-forward to 2012 and the "Metal Evolution" television series on VH1-Classic.
Recently I've been lamenting the disappearance of good old fashioned
melodic Rock'n'Roll in pop culture... so I was curious to see how this program
would incorporate (or ignore) Classic Rock acts into its timeline.


Anyway-- The show used a song for its intro that had me hooked right away.
I found out that it was "The Trooper" from Iron Maiden.
Suddenly, a few faint memories of my childhood friend singing along to "Aces High"
and "Run to the Hills" came to mind... and a big smile came across my face.
By the end of that day, I hit the nearest CD shop and picked up the "Piece of Mind" album.



After that, I bought a CD of the band's first album and started listening to all
their albums in chronological order. As of right now, I am up to "Powerslave".

I plan to absorb a new album every couple weeks-- in preparation for the upcoming tour.
I already have tickets for a concert date in late June!

:notworthy:
 
Awesome story. Welcome to the club.

I have two pieces of advice for you:

1. Don't get discouraged by some of the weak material they put out in the 90s. Just go with it - Maiden's post-2000 stuff is right up their with the 80s golden age. (I like to pretend the 90s never happened :D ).

2. If you have the chance, go see them live. They are one of the best large touring acts ever, and who knows how long they'll keep this up.
 
MaidenCanada said:
1. Don't get discouraged by some of the weak material they put out in the 90s. Just go with it - Maiden's post-2000 stuff is right up their with the 80s golden age. (I like to pretend the 90s never happened :D ).
Click to expand...
In before angry Blaze fans.
 
Mosh said:
In before angry Blaze fans.
Click to expand...
No Prayer and the X Factor are two of the best albums IMO.

No Prayer is criminally underrated, as for the X Factor it's just an epic record. Like go and listen to the Unbeliever, it will give you chills all down your spine.
 
Dityn DJ James said:
No Prayer and the X Factor are two of the best albums IMO.

No Prayer is criminally underrated, as for the X Factor it's just an epic record. Like go and listen to the Unbeliever, it will give you chills all down your spine.
Click to expand...

I think 'No Prayer' is rated just right.

And yes, 'The Unbeliever' is a very good song. Actually, the 'X Factor' is my favorite Maiden album from that decade that never happened.
 
All I can say to the topic opener is this: A new album won't prepare you for the upcoming tour.
Prepare like this:

1. Play eighties albums.
2. Play Maiden England (video).
3. Last but not least (very important!) -> Play Fear of the Dark. It's on YouTube. Play it 20 times per day until you see the gig. As far as Maiden is concerned, this song represents the nineties. Actually, all the albums that were released in that decade, were actually not released. They are simply non-existent.

So, do like MaidenCanada does; join the sheep and don't be concerned with anything that happened in the 1990s.
 
My plan is to listen to ALL their proper albums in chronological order before going to the concert in late June.
Granted, I expect that most of the 90s material could be ignored... but you never know. :ninja:

This is basically a crash-course in Maiden for me.
At this rate, I suppose I'll give each album my full attention for about a week or a week-and-a-half (for now anyway!) .

However, I am currently stuck waiting for a "Somewhere in Time" CD to arrive in the mail.
I bought an original UK pressing on eBay because I read that the dynamics are ruined in the remastered version.

I hope I'm not too disappointed by the 90s stuff. I remain optimistic!
 
Yeh, if your going to only listen to their "proper" albums, best give the Blaze ones a miss! :D

Personally, I don't hear much difference between the original & remastered stuff (inc. SiT) --but others do seem to complain...
 
CriedWhenBrucieLeft said:
Yeh, if your going to only listen to their "proper" albums, best give the Blaze ones a miss! :D
Click to expand...

And if you want to follow my advice, listen to them. The X Factor took about half a year to click with me, but it has been my favourite Maiden album since.
 
In all seriousness, listen to each album with an open mind and don't let anyone's personal biases taint your opinions and tastes. A lot of people here really love those 90s albums, and that's good for them.

I consider The X Factor as the "secret handshake" album of the die-hard Maiden fans.
 
(I was kidding, obviously...) Yeh, give them a good listen. Blaze sure ain't Brucie --but they're all Maiden. And truthfully, if you give them a swerve, you're missing out --there's some great music on them. And more than a few tracks better than old FotD.
 
Don't spoil the guy's party! Man, I just love listening to these stories. Go and listen to the albums and just give cold shoulders to any comments. It'll only disturb your listening experience, believe me. Just keep entering the wonderful universe of Iron Maiden. Cheers and UP THE IRONS!!! \m/
 
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