Afraid to Shoot Strangers

How good is Afraid to Shoot Strangers on a scale of 1-10?


  • Total voters
    10
This is one of my favorite songs ever.  I give it a 10.  The middles section is beautiful, but I've always wondered...who plays it?
 
Re: Daily Song: Afraid to Shoot Strangers

Forostar said:
Actually, with this song Maiden tried out something new, namely a rhythmic and calm beginning, built around a bass pattern, in which the role for Nicko was nihil or minimal. This was done on various later songs as well, e.g. on The X-Factor, check out Fortunes of War for instance. This song is not only important in this development.

Listen to the part which starts at 2.44, where we hear a certain style, where Steve and Nicko follow eachother smoothly, and Steve does a certain bass pattern and the guitars play the same(!) melody (no harmony, no rhythm guitars). This was done later as well, on various occasions. E.g. take Look For The Truth, take When The Wild Wind Blows:

Afraid To Shoot Strangers is written all over these instrumental sections.

Foro, you have just done me a huge favour.  This album has always disappointed me, yet having read your comments I have re-listened to this album and have enjoyed it for the first time.  It is what it is and you can certainly hear the future of Maiden throughout the album.  I can't wait to see them live in a month's time!! \m/
 
My favorite song off the album. Great depressive atmosphere with an amazing harmony section. One of the best of the 90's Maiden. 10/10.
 
The best song on the album. 9/10. There was potential with this one but it kind of drops off after the slow intro which is an anomaly.
 
9/10 from me as well! Bruce's rather annoying voice is the only reason why not 10.
 
10/10, Another personal favourite of mine, good lyrics, really like the song when it speeds up.
 
Intro is good, but maybe a little overlong. Melodies are amazing. I have to say that Blaze never sang this song as good as Bruce. 9/10.
 
One of the best '90s Maiden songs, for sure. I actually prefer the live version with Blaze, i like the way he sings it. Bruce of the '80s or late '90s would kill Blaze's interpretation, but not Bruce of the early '90s. Nine.
 
A great song. I know it is about a soldier in the Gulf War. However, I personally like to think of it as a kind of wild west theme to it like an outlaw feeling guilty about shooting people. Just my personal twist on it, but if you've ever played Red Dead Redemption, you'll know what I'm talking about.
 
It took a very long time for this song to grow on me and I'm not exactly sure why. I don't think it is a bad song. Some of the transitions are weird to me. The ending is my favorite part of the song. I like the music and the mood it portrays underneath the repetition of ATSS. Overall, I don't not like this song it is just that I feel like I should like this ATSS more than I do.
 
On July 16 in Buffalo, Bruce introduced the song as a soldier's perspective if when it came the time to pull the trigger, would he really ahve the balls to do it. By the way, it was awesome live that night. Totally nailed it.
 
A 10 for me. I love this song. I have even admitted to my family. I sometimes get emotional when i hear it. Without a doubt one of my all time faves.
 
One of the best musical breaks in all of Maiden. Love this song. It's got a weird feeling to it, but I love the tonality.

I used to cover the second half of this song with my band in 8th grade...

9.
 
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