Blaze era help?

  Exactly "CRIED", I wish I liked the vocals better on those two.  I'm not attacking Blaze though.  Bruce is on another plane, not just for me but many, many others.  It really was a tough position for Bailey I'm sure.  Bruce was almost at OZZY, and on par with Halford and  DIO  stature at the time.  Huge shoes to fill and many fans were not going to fully invest in Bailey no matter the performance. 
 
I'm even more intrigued now than before having read all these opinions. Some people seem to lean very strongly one way or another and I'm interested to see which way I'll go on this? I'm a great supporter of Blaze being a bit of an underdog and he had a very big pair of shoes to fill. I'm hoping to appreciate his input really as the guy is genuine and has been through a lot more than most people should have to deal with. Should be able to voice an opinion on this by the weekend when my cd's arrive.
 
Even if you don't like Blaze in Maiden, or if you like his sound but not the music, you might want to check out some of his solo stuff. I can't speak highly enough about Silicon Messiah, which is an album that is up in my top 5 any day of the week.
 
To add my own opinion, even if it's a bit late, The X Factor is my favourite album ever. It's not perfect, but that adds to its appeal, in my opinion. It's flaws make it human, so to speak. Maybe not call them flaws, but imperfections. You can tell it was written and recorded by five musicians, people, artists, and not conceived and polished by a superstar producer in a huge studio. To use a tired cliché, that is also what makes the album much more metal than so many other records out there. Moreover, I don't know a single album that is so dominated by a mood and feel, and that has its title stamped on each and every second of its running time like that.
But when it comes to the meat of the album, the songs themselves, they are all brilliant, one and all. I wouldn't want to hear Bruce on them at all. It wouldn't sound right. OK, he can mostly pull them off live alright, but it doesn't sound completely right.
It took me about half a year to appreciate the album, so don't rush it.

As for Virtual XI, as everyone has said, it is much more classic Maiden style, albeit with Blaze on vocals. I can see that people have problems with the sterile production, the lack of creative drumming and the sometimes rather repetitive songwriting, but I still think the album is extremely good. It is very consistent and has some diamonds on it, such as Futureal, The Clansman and The Educated Fool. No bad track on it, in my opinion.
 
I'm a bit late too, I can't help being late for school. But it isn't the bad vocals on the Blaze albums. Fear of the Dark has far worse vocals than both Blaze albums.
 
While I don't like Blaze's vocals nearly as much as Bruce's , I still enjoy his singing on the 2 albums and instrumentally, they are amazing. A big improvement over NPFTD and FOTD.
 
Mosh said:
I'm a bit late too, I can't help being late for school. But it isn't the bad vocals on the Blaze albums. Fear of the Dark has far worse vocals than both Blaze albums.
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Wasting Love, Fear of the Dark, Afraid to Shoot Strangers, Judas Be My Guide vocally annihilate anything from either "X" album.
 
We're going to have to disagree on that. Except  maybe Afraid to Shoot Strangers.
 
I think Blaze sounds better on Afraid To Shoot Strangers than Bruce did on the album. His voice had that horrible raspy quality to it that never suited his style. If Bruce had sung ATSS like he sang WTWWB? Yes. But the stuff Blaze did with that song was just great.
 
Ugh, I really don't like how Blaze sang ATSS, but then again, I liked Bruce's singing on NPFTD and FOTD.
 
Blaze did it better, ATSS.

Regarding OP's question...buy those albums. TXF is a masterpiece in it's league. VXI is a sub-par Maiden album, but that means only that it fits in same category as NPFTD and FOTD. Something is missing there and there are flaws. Nicko's decision to play like a drum machine is almost as terrible as Bruce's to employ that raspy singing in 1990.
 
Without listening too deeply on youtube, the songs with Blaze I did hear overshadowed a lot of the Maiden tracks I have simply never liked and even if I don't adore the albums I'll be eternally grateful for him keeping Bruce's seat warm. For the record I very quickly scribbled down these tracks as being among my most hated and it didn't take much thought either: Holy Smoke, From Here To Eternity, Weekend Warrior, Chains Of Misery, Childhood's End, Purgatory, Can I Play With Madness?, Wasted Years, Wasting Love, Innocent Exile, Twilight Zone, Invaders, Women In Uniform, The Assassin, Invasion, Charlotte The Harlot, Bring Your Daughter To The Slaughter, Hooks In You, The Prophecy, Quest For Fire, Prowler.

I think Blaze may have a few filler tracks if I'm being honest but can they be worse than my most hated? I'll find out soon!
 
wow some unusual hates in my book, id count them all as pretty mediocre tracks rating mid table. except QFF

i think somebody needs to prepare a countdown  :lol: we wont be happy til we have exeryones full maiden archive.
 
LooseCannon said:
I think Blaze sounds better on Afraid To Shoot Strangers than Bruce did on the album.
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And we should all agree on that. I do.
 
Travis The Dragon said:
While I don't like Blaze's vocals nearly as much as Bruce's , I still enjoy his singing on the 2 albums and instrumentally, they are amazing. A big improvement over NPFTD and FOTD.
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You know what else was a big improvement over NPFTD and FOTD? Accident of Birth and Chemical Wedding. They are also a big improvement over the "X albums". Why? Mr. Adrian Smith!
 
Habberdasher said:
You know what else was a big improvement over NPFTD and FOTD? Accident of Birth and Chemical Wedding. They are also a big improvement over the "X albums". Why? Mr. Adrian Smith!
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Yep, Adrian's return to Maiden was as badly needed as Bruce's. There really isn't anyone like him out there. A total original and we're blessed to have him.
 
CriedWhenBrucieLeft said:
Did I read Wasted Years on a hate list?  :o
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:blush: Sorry, I loved it at the time but after a few dismal live versions it's novelty wore off. I find it a little poppy when I listen to SIT now. A Maiden hate list doesn't mean I can't listen to the songs sometimes. Likewise Quest For Fire, hearing the "fi-yuuuur" pronounciation during the verses over and over put me right off as well as the "caves were home" squeal. There's not a Maiden track I can't listen to but there is an album that never comes out to play....FOTD.
 
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