BLAZE: The Rankings (Completed... At Last)

[Diesel 11]

IRYO.

 

[Diesel 11]

39. Identity
Average Score: 7.27/10
Silicon Messiah 5/10

A fairly strong song from Blaze's excellent debut, Silicon Messiah now has half of its tracks on the list, but it's been doing pretty well overall. "Identity" has a memorable chorus and some solid stuff going throughout it, and no one really hates it. Voting peaked around 8 but some lower points kept it back a little from getting higher. Still, this is a good spot to have it in.

Comments:

A great chorus is the highlight of this tune, it can easily get stuck in your head. The rest of the song is good, but not too special.

After two weaker songs, we're finally thrust back in to a great one again. "Identity" isn't one of Blaze's most outstanding tracks but it makes up for it by being a good listen whenever it comes on. A great riff, a great vocal performance, and a pretty great chorus hold down the fort.

Another nice clean intro, another sleepy off-key vocal. Not a fan of the phrasing. Ooh, that was a nice riff they snuck in under the pre-chorus! The chorus kinda sucks, though. Blaze really whiffs some of these notes, too. The wah in the interlude sounds like "why? why? why?", which is unfortunately apropos. Pretty good solos. Nice atmospheric break, and Blaze actually sounds pretty good on that part, but then it's back to the bad singing and phrasing. There are a few nicer parts hiding in here, but the worse stuff drags it down.

A small step down from "The Brave", but still very good. The chorus is catchy, and the music is spectacular, but the lyrics are very cliché and, honestly, kinda cheesy, which helps bumping the song down a point or 2.

Another "pretty good, but not great" song.

Votes:

Spoiler

10 - 1
9 - 2
8 - 3
7 - 2
6 - 0
5 - 2
4 - 1
3 - 0
2 - 0
1 - 0

Overall:

Spoiler

39. Identity
40. Stranger To The Light
41. Life Goes On
42. The World Is Turning The Wrong Way
43. While You Were Gone
44. Tearing Yourself To Pieces
45. Will To Win
46. Smile Back At Death
47. Prayers Of Light
48. At The End Of The Day
49. God Of Speed
50. Solar Wind
51. 18 Days
52. Evolution
53. The Hunger
54. Kill And Destroy
55. Letting Go Of The World
56. 1633
57. Human
58. The Trace Of Things That Have No Words
59. Dawn Of The Dead Son
60. Redeemer
61. Immortal One
62. Human Eyes
63. The First True Sign
64. The Dark Side Of Black
65. Stars Are Burning
66. Madness And Sorrow
67. Waiting For My Life To Begin
68. The Launch
69. Fight Back
70. End Dream
71. Robot
72. Remember
73. Reach For The Horizon
74. Destroyer
75. The Day I Fell To Earth
76. Nothing Will Stop Me
77. Land Of The Blind
78. Faceless
79. Serpent Hearted Man
80. Stealing Time
81. Are You Here
82. Living Someone Else's Life
83. The Dreams Of William Black
84. Blackmailer
85. Russian Holiday
86. Crack In The System
87. The Path & The Way
88. Hollow Head
89. Difficult
90. The Rainbow Fades To Black
91. Motherfuckers R Us
92. Beginning
93. Hatred
94. Dimebag
95. Fate
96. The Truth Is One
97. Forgotten Future
98. Eating Children
99. Fighter
100. Shall We Begin
101. One More Step
102. Judge Me
103. The Black Country
104. The King Of Metal

Albums:

Spoiler

Silicon Messiah 5/10
Tenth Dimension 7/12
Blood & Belief 4/10
The Man Who Would Not Die 9/12
Promise And Terror 6/11
Infinite Entanglement 5/12
Endure And Survive 5/10
The Redemption Of William Black 9/11
Bonus tracks 6/6 (5.65/10 avg.)
#9: The King of Metal 10/10 (4.91/10 avg.)

 

[Diesel 11]

38. Alive
Average Score: 7.30/10
Blood & Belief 5/10

There's a three-way tie at the 7.3 mark, with two of those songs coming from the same album. "Alive" loses out for only reason three 9 votes, but it was really close anyway so getting to #38 is nothing to sneeze at. It's a pretty strong opener that may not be quite as outstanding as some of Blaze's other, but it's still a really solid song. It also marks the fact that the third Blaze album is now halfway through its ammunition... how much longer until the supply store gives out?

Comments:

A pretty great way to open the album, not quite up their with "Ghost in the Machine" or "Kill and Destroy", mind you, but still pretty good. Blaze spouts some very personal lyrics confidently and I like how it softens up midway through before plunging back into heaviness. Overall, strong enough.

If there is one thing that the three BLAZE albums have in common, it's incredibly strong openers (if you count "Kill and Destroy" as the proper one on Tenth...). If you don't feel like headbanging to this riff-fest, there's something seriously wrong with you!

Nice beefy opening riff! Hmm, Blaze is singing way higher than usual and sounds really odd. Very frog-in-throat for some reason. Pre-chorus is better, with nice riff fills. The chorus is so-so except for the riff, but it's more guitar-driven than vocal driven. Ooh, nice softer bridge. I would have gone higher if the vocal performance was better, but as it stands...

Love the heaviness right off the bat. I'd put this one right up there in the same class as Ghost in the Machine. Great song.

Votes:

Spoiler

10 - 0
9 - 3
8 - 2
7 - 1
6 - 3
5 - 1
4 - 0
3 - 0
2 - 0
1 - 0

Overall:

Spoiler

38. Alive
39. Identity
40. Stranger To The Light
41. Life Goes On
42. The World Is Turning The Wrong Way
43. While You Were Gone
44. Tearing Yourself To Pieces
45. Will To Win
46. Smile Back At Death
47. Prayers Of Light
48. At The End Of The Day
49. God Of Speed
50. Solar Wind
51. 18 Days
52. Evolution
53. The Hunger
54. Kill And Destroy
55. Letting Go Of The World
56. 1633
57. Human
58. The Trace Of Things That Have No Words
59. Dawn Of The Dead Son
60. Redeemer
61. Immortal One
62. Human Eyes
63. The First True Sign
64. The Dark Side Of Black
65. Stars Are Burning
66. Madness And Sorrow
67. Waiting For My Life To Begin
68. The Launch
69. Fight Back
70. End Dream
71. Robot
72. Remember
73. Reach For The Horizon
74. Destroyer
75. The Day I Fell To Earth
76. Nothing Will Stop Me
77. Land Of The Blind
78. Faceless
79. Serpent Hearted Man
80. Stealing Time
81. Are You Here
82. Living Someone Else's Life
83. The Dreams Of William Black
84. Blackmailer
85. Russian Holiday
86. Crack In The System
87. The Path & The Way
88. Hollow Head
89. Difficult
90. The Rainbow Fades To Black
91. Motherfuckers R Us
92. Beginning
93. Hatred
94. Dimebag
95. Fate
96. The Truth Is One
97. Forgotten Future
98. Eating Children
99. Fighter
100. Shall We Begin
101. One More Step
102. Judge Me
103. The Black Country
104. The King Of Metal

Albums:

Spoiler

Silicon Messiah 5/10
Tenth Dimension 7/12
Blood & Belief 5/10
The Man Who Would Not Die 9/12
Promise And Terror 6/11
Infinite Entanglement 5/12
Endure And Survive 5/10
The Redemption Of William Black 9/11
Bonus tracks 6/6 (5.65/10 avg.)
#9: The King of Metal 10/10 (4.91/10 avg.)

 

[Diesel 11]

37. Life And Death
Average Score: 7.30/10
Blood & Belief 6/10

I still can't believe that the people* shouting about how terrible Blaze is at singing look over this song and call it great, because holy hell does that chorus sound like a frog is just movin' around laying eggs. Okay, maybe it's not that graphic, but as far as poor Blaze performances go, this one is pretty up there in my book, yet it seems to be a pretty popular song for some people. It beats "Alive" via a single extra 9 vote, but thanks to no 10s it ends its streak right here. Sorry, but it wasn't good enough for the top 30. Thank god.

*Mostly just Jer.

Comments:

Not a bad song, but completely unmemorable. There's actually a lot I like here - the melody's nice, some of the guitar bits are good, the lyrics aren't too bad - but the chorus is pretty meh and the riff isn't all that great. A perfectly average song.

One of the more emotional pieces on the album, and a damn fine one. Blaze's singing in the chorus is phenomenal.

Another nice harmonized riff. Nice clean guitar and soft verse where Blaze sounds really good. This builds up through an OK pre-chorus, but Blaze misses a note or two and his tone is a little weird there. Nice catchy chorus, though the vocal tone is still a little weird and uneven there. Very nice harmonized interlude punctuated by some fat leads. Blaze sounds more uneven on the final reprise of the soft verse. Nice final choruses and a classy denouement. There are a few performance issues with this one, but overall I think it deserves to be rounded up.

I'm really digging Blaze's performance on this one. This song just seemed to click instantly.

Votes:

Spoiler

10 - 0
9 - 4
8 - 1
7 - 2
6 - 0
5 - 3
4 - 0
3 - 0
2 - 0
1 - 0

Overall:

Spoiler

37. Life And Death
38. Alive
39. Identity
40. Stranger To The Light
41. Life Goes On
42. The World Is Turning The Wrong Way
43. While You Were Gone
44. Tearing Yourself To Pieces
45. Will To Win
46. Smile Back At Death
47. Prayers Of Light
48. At The End Of The Day
49. God Of Speed
50. Solar Wind
51. 18 Days
52. Evolution
53. The Hunger
54. Kill And Destroy
55. Letting Go Of The World
56. 1633
57. Human
58. The Trace Of Things That Have No Words
59. Dawn Of The Dead Son
60. Redeemer
61. Immortal One
62. Human Eyes
63. The First True Sign
64. The Dark Side Of Black
65. Stars Are Burning
66. Madness And Sorrow
67. Waiting For My Life To Begin
68. The Launch
69. Fight Back
70. End Dream
71. Robot
72. Remember
73. Reach For The Horizon
74. Destroyer
75. The Day I Fell To Earth
76. Nothing Will Stop Me
77. Land Of The Blind
78. Faceless
79. Serpent Hearted Man
80. Stealing Time
81. Are You Here
82. Living Someone Else's Life
83. The Dreams Of William Black
84. Blackmailer
85. Russian Holiday
86. Crack In The System
87. The Path & The Way
88. Hollow Head
89. Difficult
90. The Rainbow Fades To Black
91. Motherfuckers R Us
92. Beginning
93. Hatred
94. Dimebag
95. Fate
96. The Truth Is One
97. Forgotten Future
98. Eating Children
99. Fighter
100. Shall We Begin
101. One More Step
102. Judge Me
103. The Black Country
104. The King Of Metal

Albums:

Spoiler

Silicon Messiah 5/10
Tenth Dimension 7/12
Blood & Belief 6/10
The Man Who Would Not Die 9/12
Promise And Terror 6/11
Infinite Entanglement 5/12
Endure And Survive 5/10
The Redemption Of William Black 9/11
Bonus tracks 6/6 (5.65/10 avg.)
#9: The King of Metal 10/10 (4.91/10 avg.)

 

[Diesel 11]

36. The Man Who Would Not Die
Average Score: 7.30/10
The Man Who Would Not Die 10/12

Via a single 10 vote, The Man Who Would Not Die's title track manages to win out over its rivals in the 7.3 tie and becomes the album's third-highest ranking song. Just how far will the other two get before we see this album's exit? That remains to be seen, but this is a pretty strong track that had enough supporters to launch it here, but not quite enough to keep it in the game long enough for it to see the Top 30. Oh well, for a while there it was the song that would not die, but... I'm afraid that death comes as the end. R.I.P.

Comments:

As far as title tracks go, this is decent enough, but there's a lot of stuff going on I don't like. I don't like the production, I don't like the main riff much, and I think Blaze's vocals aren't as good as on other releases. That said, I do like the final "I am the maaaaaan" and that bit where the drums stop and only the guitar remains, and honestly the lyrics are decent, but overall, this is definitely a bit of a drop from previous stuff.

Immediately from the get-go it's obvious that we're dealing with a different band than before, with a different sound than that of the BLAZE-era. The opener is energetic as always, and I can't help but being very fascinated with Blaze's performance here. It's raw and unpolished, and certainly not his finest hour, but there's so much passion and power it that I get goosebumps anyway. This is a man believing in every little word he sings!

Good aggressive riff. Sounds like the new guitar players are going for a '90s In Flames vibe, which is cool. Eww, Blaze's vocals are all over the place on the verse and pre-chorus -- constant tone and note problems. He sounds good on the brief chorus, though. Cool aggressive interlude followed by a nice melodic one, then a strong solo. The musical backbone of this song is very solid, but Blaze's vocals are unusually bad here.

Very strong song, but it doesn't quite live up to the extremely high standards set by the openers form all of Blaze's previous albums.

Votes:

Spoiler

10 - 1
9 - 1
8 - 4
7 - 2
6 - 1
5 - 0
4 - 0
3 - 0
2 - 1
1 - 0

Overall:

Spoiler

36. The Man Who Would Not Die
37. Life And Death
38. Alive
39. Identity
40. Stranger To The Light
41. Life Goes On
42. The World Is Turning The Wrong Way
43. While You Were Gone
44. Tearing Yourself To Pieces
45. Will To Win
46. Smile Back At Death
47. Prayers Of Light
48. At The End Of The Day
49. God Of Speed
50. Solar Wind
51. 18 Days
52. Evolution
53. The Hunger
54. Kill And Destroy
55. Letting Go Of The World
56. 1633
57. Human
58. The Trace Of Things That Have No Words
59. Dawn Of The Dead Son
60. Redeemer
61. Immortal One
62. Human Eyes
63. The First True Sign
64. The Dark Side Of Black
65. Stars Are Burning
66. Madness And Sorrow
67. Waiting For My Life To Begin
68. The Launch
69. Fight Back
70. End Dream
71. Robot
72. Remember
73. Reach For The Horizon
74. Destroyer
75. The Day I Fell To Earth
76. Nothing Will Stop Me
77. Land Of The Blind
78. Faceless
79. Serpent Hearted Man
80. Stealing Time
81. Are You Here
82. Living Someone Else's Life
83. The Dreams Of William Black
84. Blackmailer
85. Russian Holiday
86. Crack In The System
87. The Path & The Way
88. Hollow Head
89. Difficult
90. The Rainbow Fades To Black
91. Motherfuckers R Us
92. Beginning
93. Hatred
94. Dimebag
95. Fate
96. The Truth Is One
97. Forgotten Future
98. Eating Children
99. Fighter
100. Shall We Begin
101. One More Step
102. Judge Me
103. The Black Country
104. The King Of Metal

Albums:

Spoiler

Silicon Messiah 5/10
Tenth Dimension 7/12
Blood & Belief 6/10
The Man Who Would Not Die 10/12
Promise And Terror 6/11
Infinite Entanglement 5/12
Endure And Survive 5/10
The Redemption Of William Black 9/11
Bonus tracks 6/6 (5.65/10 avg.)
#9: The King of Metal 10/10 (4.91/10 avg.)

 

[Lampwick 43]

Here's my official prediction of the songs that will make up the top 10 based on whats left. In chronological order:

Ghost in the Machine
Silicon Messiah
Stare at the Sun
The Tenth Dimension
Meant to Be
Alive
Blood and Belief
Surrounded By Sadness
Together We Can Move the Sun
Eagle Spirit

Far too soon for Alive to make its exit. It belongs in at least the top 20.

Also, did someone seriously give The Man Who Would Not Die a 2??

 

[Diesel 11]

Crazy world we're livin' in.

 

[Jer]

I still can't believe that the people* shouting about how terrible Blaze is at singing look over this song and call it great, because holy hell does that chorus sound like a frog is just movin' around laying eggs.

*Mostly just Jer.

Blaze’s performance on “Judgement Of Heaven” makes this sound like opera by comparison, but I did note the vocal weirdnesses of this song in my comments...

 

[Diesel 11]

Blaze’s performance on “Judgement Of Heaven” makes this sound like opera by comparison, but I did note the vocal weirdnesses of this song in my comments...

Yeah, but you still have it an 8.

 

[Shmoolikipod]

I think Life and Death is fantastic! Especially the prechorus with the rhythm under it is very good after the soft verses, and the lyrics match the change very well with the realization it's not the end, gaining power to see it in the chorus. This could go higher


Alive is also good but not as much. It has a good main riff but the verse isn't very interesting, like in The Wickerman. The rest is very good... I think it's a good spot for it

I love the pace on TMWWND, it's just relentless! It really took me the first time I listened to it. I think the obvious highlight has to be Blaze holding maaaaaaaaan in the choruses (do you say choruses?), especially in the last one. I absolutely love the riff in this song. The only thing that isn't great is the lyrics. I think it could go to top 20 with L&D.

This also means that Voices from the Past now just has to beat Samurai to make it to the top of the album, and more interestingly this means The Truth Revealed beat another 3 songs. I can't wait to see if the intro beats the actual song!

 

[Diesel 11]

35. Independence
Average Score: 7.38/10
Infinite Entanglement 6/12

Half of Infinite Entanglement has now made the list, as its penultimate track (when not including "Shall We Begin?") now hits the scene. "Independence" is a pretty mammoth track that relies heavily on its guitar work. It actually tied with the next track at the 7.375 mark, but loses out with no 10 votes. Still, it's done a fine job at sticking around, but alas, "The Truth Revealed" bests yet another track.

Comments:

Another great song as the album winds to a close. Simple but effective chorus, good vocals, and an instrumental section that feels very Maiden-esque (a couple bits remind me of "Fear of the Dark").

A nice clean intro with acoustic flourishes leads into an acoustic verse. Blaze sounds pretty good here. The heaviness returns and the new verse is OK. The chorus is super repetitive and not very good. The verse reprise is stronger. Ooh, the bridge is pretty good! Nice interlude and solos! Nice soft bit, bit Blaze sounds overly loud and uncontrolled there. The heavier second bridge is alright. Nice slowdown to an intro reprise. Hmm, I can probably round this up.

Another song that's enjoyable without being more than just good. To be honest it's not very memorable, but I can't find anything specific that I dislike about it. As I said, it's just good.

Blaze sounds really great, and so does just about everything else in this song. The chorus is kind of repetitive, but it doesn't really detract from the song all that much. Fuck it, I'll be generous.

Votes:

Spoiler

10 - 0
9 - 2
8 - 1
7 - 4
6 - 0
5 - 1
4 - 0
3 - 0
2 - 0
1 - 0

Overall:

Spoiler

35. Independence
36. The Man Who Would Not Die
37. Life And Death
38. Alive
39. Identity
40. Stranger To The Light
41. Life Goes On
42. The World Is Turning The Wrong Way
43. While You Were Gone
44. Tearing Yourself To Pieces
45. Will To Win
46. Smile Back At Death
47. Prayers Of Light
48. At The End Of The Day
49. God Of Speed
50. Solar Wind
51. 18 Days
52. Evolution
53. The Hunger
54. Kill And Destroy
55. Letting Go Of The World
56. 1633
57. Human
58. The Trace Of Things That Have No Words
59. Dawn Of The Dead Son
60. Redeemer
61. Immortal One
62. Human Eyes
63. The First True Sign
64. The Dark Side Of Black
65. Stars Are Burning
66. Madness And Sorrow
67. Waiting For My Life To Begin
68. The Launch
69. Fight Back
70. End Dream
71. Robot
72. Remember
73. Reach For The Horizon
74. Destroyer
75. The Day I Fell To Earth
76. Nothing Will Stop Me
77. Land Of The Blind
78. Faceless
79. Serpent Hearted Man
80. Stealing Time
81. Are You Here
82. Living Someone Else's Life
83. The Dreams Of William Black
84. Blackmailer
85. Russian Holiday
86. Crack In The System
87. The Path & The Way
88. Hollow Head
89. Difficult
90. The Rainbow Fades To Black
91. Motherfuckers R Us
92. Beginning
93. Hatred
94. Dimebag
95. Fate
96. The Truth Is One
97. Forgotten Future
98. Eating Children
99. Fighter
100. Shall We Begin
101. One More Step
102. Judge Me
103. The Black Country
104. The King Of Metal

Albums:

Spoiler

Silicon Messiah 5/10
Tenth Dimension 7/12
Blood & Belief 6/10
The Man Who Would Not Die 10/12
Promise And Terror 6/11
Infinite Entanglement 6/12
Endure And Survive 5/10
The Redemption Of William Black 9/11
Bonus tracks 6/6 (5.65/10 avg.)
#9: The King of Metal 10/10 (4.91/10 avg.)

 

[Diesel 11]

34. City Of Bones
Average Score: 7.38/10
Promise And Terror 7/11

This song stood and fought, stood and fought, and managed to defeat its rival "Independence" via a single 10 vote just before it bit the dust. "City Of Bones" is an abstract song about a devastated city whose inhabitants don't take their deaths meekly - they fight back, and it's that kind of energy that helps single it out for some people and helped it keep in the game right up until this point. It's gone, but it won't be forgotten.

Comments:

City of Bones is easily the best song on the album, terrific live, and one of, if not the, best Blaze songs.

Promise and Terror had its moments (mostly City of Bones).

A strong song that isn't quite outstanding, I like the way the title doesn't really steer the lyrics; the instead of describing the city of bones, the song describes what happens within the city. Good stuff, as I said, strong overall, but lacking a certain something.

This has to be my favourite track on the album. Atmospheric, heavy riffs and epic melodies, with a majestic-sounding Blaze soaring on top of it. The choir-part midway through the song that builds up to the harmonized riff is a definite contender for best moment on the entire record! Though I assume the city in question is Leningrad (judging by the "surrounded for 900 days"-part), I like how the lyrics focus less on describing a particular scenario, and more on painting a picture of all those people joining together, standing their ground and never giving up.

Marching drums introduce another In Flames style lead. I really like the groove here. Decent verse with great guitar accompaniment. Questionable phrasing in parts. Disappointing chorus that doesn't go anywhere. Excellent solo! Nice marching interlude with a cool "ah-ah" choral section. A sweet harmonic interlude and a pretty good solo follow. More verse and chorus and a reprise of the "ah-ah" section brings things to a close with a big rock ending. Excellent music throughout, but a merely "good enough" verse and a disappointing chorus bring this down.

Not terrible. Its got some pretty cool parts, but as a whole it feels somewhat underwhelming.

Votes:

Spoiler

10 - 1
9 - 1
8 - 1
7 - 3
6 - 1
5 - 1
4 - 0
3 - 0
2 - 0
1 - 0

Overall:

Spoiler

34. City Of Bones
35. Independence
36. The Man Who Would Not Die
37. Life And Death
38. Alive
39. Identity
40. Stranger To The Light
41. Life Goes On
42. The World Is Turning The Wrong Way
43. While You Were Gone
44. Tearing Yourself To Pieces
45. Will To Win
46. Smile Back At Death
47. Prayers Of Light
48. At The End Of The Day
49. God Of Speed
50. Solar Wind
51. 18 Days
52. Evolution
53. The Hunger
54. Kill And Destroy
55. Letting Go Of The World
56. 1633
57. Human
58. The Trace Of Things That Have No Words
59. Dawn Of The Dead Son
60. Redeemer
61. Immortal One
62. Human Eyes
63. The First True Sign
64. The Dark Side Of Black
65. Stars Are Burning
66. Madness And Sorrow
67. Waiting For My Life To Begin
68. The Launch
69. Fight Back
70. End Dream
71. Robot
72. Remember
73. Reach For The Horizon
74. Destroyer
75. The Day I Fell To Earth
76. Nothing Will Stop Me
77. Land Of The Blind
78. Faceless
79. Serpent Hearted Man
80. Stealing Time
81. Are You Here
82. Living Someone Else's Life
83. The Dreams Of William Black
84. Blackmailer
85. Russian Holiday
86. Crack In The System
87. The Path & The Way
88. Hollow Head
89. Difficult
90. The Rainbow Fades To Black
91. Motherfuckers R Us
92. Beginning
93. Hatred
94. Dimebag
95. Fate
96. The Truth Is One
97. Forgotten Future
98. Eating Children
99. Fighter
100. Shall We Begin
101. One More Step
102. Judge Me
103. The Black Country
104. The King Of Metal

Albums:

Spoiler

Silicon Messiah 5/10
Tenth Dimension 7/12
Blood & Belief 6/10
The Man Who Would Not Die 10/12
Promise And Terror 7/11
Infinite Entanglement 6/12
Endure And Survive 5/10
The Redemption Of William Black 9/11
Bonus tracks 6/6 (5.65/10 avg.)
#9: The King of Metal 10/10 (4.91/10 avg.)

 

[Diesel 11]

33. Voices From The Past
Average Score: 7.40/10
The Man Who Would Not Die 11/12

And there it is - The Man Who Would Not Die has now ejected every single song in its sleeves except for one of them. "Voices From The Past" was a really, really strong song and fought off some pretty heavy competition to scrape its way just outside the Top 30. A strong performance from all involved coupled with some pretty awesome lyrics helped it to stay alive for as long as it did, but sadly, it's now just a voice in our past. And that means one thing: "Samurai" is TMWWND's only remaining track. When will it fall? Only time will tell...

Comments:

My favourite from the album, I think.

Fucking CHRIST, is this album making a comeback at long last?? This song is great, the riff is good, Blaze is good, I love the chorus...

Yes! Finally! Great intro, cool interplay between the band, good melodies, and strong verses and choruses. Perfect song from start to finish!

A nice plaintive melodic lead on top of strong rhythm work. Unexpected soft section. Blaze sounds so-so here. Chorus 1 and 2 are almost good, but Blaze is missing notes left and right. Nice heavy harmonized interlude! Strong solo. More out-of-tune chorus. So painful.

Here we go. This one just clicked right from the start.

Voices from the Past now just has to beat Samurai to make it to the top of the album...

Votes:

Spoiler

10 - 2
9 - 2
8 - 1
7 - 3
6 - 0
5 - 1
4 - 0
3 - 0
2 - 1
1 - 0

Overall:

Spoiler

33. Voices From The Past
34. City Of Bones
35. Independence
36. The Man Who Would Not Die
37. Life And Death
38. Alive
39. Identity
40. Stranger To The Light
41. Life Goes On
42. The World Is Turning The Wrong Way
43. While You Were Gone
44. Tearing Yourself To Pieces
45. Will To Win
46. Smile Back At Death
47. Prayers Of Light
48. At The End Of The Day
49. God Of Speed
50. Solar Wind
51. 18 Days
52. Evolution
53. The Hunger
54. Kill And Destroy
55. Letting Go Of The World
56. 1633
57. Human
58. The Trace Of Things That Have No Words
59. Dawn Of The Dead Son
60. Redeemer
61. Immortal One
62. Human Eyes
63. The First True Sign
64. The Dark Side Of Black
65. Stars Are Burning
66. Madness And Sorrow
67. Waiting For My Life To Begin
68. The Launch
69. Fight Back
70. End Dream
71. Robot
72. Remember
73. Reach For The Horizon
74. Destroyer
75. The Day I Fell To Earth
76. Nothing Will Stop Me
77. Land Of The Blind
78. Faceless
79. Serpent Hearted Man
80. Stealing Time
81. Are You Here
82. Living Someone Else's Life
83. The Dreams Of William Black
84. Blackmailer
85. Russian Holiday
86. Crack In The System
87. The Path & The Way
88. Hollow Head
89. Difficult
90. The Rainbow Fades To Black
91. Motherfuckers R Us
92. Beginning
93. Hatred
94. Dimebag
95. Fate
96. The Truth Is One
97. Forgotten Future
98. Eating Children
99. Fighter
100. Shall We Begin
101. One More Step
102. Judge Me
103. The Black Country
104. The King Of Metal

Albums:

Spoiler

Silicon Messiah 5/10
Tenth Dimension 7/12
Blood & Belief 6/10
The Man Who Would Not Die 11/12
Promise And Terror 7/11
Infinite Entanglement 6/12
Endure And Survive 5/10
The Redemption Of William Black 9/11
Bonus tracks 6/6 (5.65/10 avg.)
#9: The King of Metal 10/10 (4.91/10 avg.)

 

[Shmoolikipod]

Great songs, sad Voices is out.

I'd like to say that City of Bones is by far oneoof the most predictable songs I have ever heard. I just knew how the song would go first time I heard the intro, it's like I have a template in my head for songs that begin with this kind of intro, still great song.

 

[Diesel 11]

32. A Work Of Anger
Average Score: 7.43/10
Infinite Entanglement 7/12

The final track on the original Infinite Entanglement album (when not counting "Shall We Begin?"), "A Work Of Anger" is a great way to round off Part I of the trilogy and is a moment of introspect with good performances from all involved. It's managed to last up 'til now thanks to have no real detractors, but unfortunately no one gave it a 10 and that's what ultimately stopped its ascent right here. Here it is, our work of anger. Long may it rest.

Comments:

"A Work of Anger" is basically the album's closer, and what a closer. Quieter but with plenty of power, Blaze sounds great, particularly on the "Heeeeere IIIII aaaam, your work of aaaaaaannnnger!" bits. Superhuman. Awesome song.

Another nice clean intro. That bass line is total X Factor Steve Harris. The renaissance feel underlying this is interesting. The heaviness kicks in and we get an OK verse and pre-chorus. The chorus isn't particularly catchy, but it has some interesting melodic choices in it. The extended solo is kind of boring. The choral section is nice. An intro reprise ends things nicely. Some weaknesses and some nice bits.

A emotional and reflective piece with some nice melodies, and once again very Maiden-ish. As the last "real" song on the album, it's a fitting closer when it comes to the story itself, leaving the listener on a cliffhanger and hopefully eager to get involved with the second part. At least I feel that way.

Votes:

Spoiler

10 - 0
9 - 2
8 - 1
7 - 2
6 - 2
5 - 0
4 - 0
3 - 0
2 - 0
1 - 0

Overall:

Spoiler

32. A Work Of Anger
33. Voices From The Past
34. City Of Bones
35. Independence
36. The Man Who Would Not Die
37. Life And Death
38. Alive
39. Identity
40. Stranger To The Light
41. Life Goes On
42. The World Is Turning The Wrong Way
43. While You Were Gone
44. Tearing Yourself To Pieces
45. Will To Win
46. Smile Back At Death
47. Prayers Of Light
48. At The End Of The Day
49. God Of Speed
50. Solar Wind
51. 18 Days
52. Evolution
53. The Hunger
54. Kill And Destroy
55. Letting Go Of The World
56. 1633
57. Human
58. The Trace Of Things That Have No Words
59. Dawn Of The Dead Son
60. Redeemer
61. Immortal One
62. Human Eyes
63. The First True Sign
64. The Dark Side Of Black
65. Stars Are Burning
66. Madness And Sorrow
67. Waiting For My Life To Begin
68. The Launch
69. Fight Back
70. End Dream
71. Robot
72. Remember
73. Reach For The Horizon
74. Destroyer
75. The Day I Fell To Earth
76. Nothing Will Stop Me
77. Land Of The Blind
78. Faceless
79. Serpent Hearted Man
80. Stealing Time
81. Are You Here
82. Living Someone Else's Life
83. The Dreams Of William Black
84. Blackmailer
85. Russian Holiday
86. Crack In The System
87. The Path & The Way
88. Hollow Head
89. Difficult
90. The Rainbow Fades To Black
91. Motherfuckers R Us
92. Beginning
93. Hatred
94. Dimebag
95. Fate
96. The Truth Is One
97. Forgotten Future
98. Eating Children
99. Fighter
100. Shall We Begin
101. One More Step
102. Judge Me
103. The Black Country
104. The King Of Metal

Albums:

Spoiler

Silicon Messiah 5/10
Tenth Dimension 7/12
Blood & Belief 6/10
The Man Who Would Not Die 11/12
Promise And Terror 7/11
Infinite Entanglement 7/12
Endure And Survive 5/10
The Redemption Of William Black 9/11
Bonus tracks 6/6 (5.65/10 avg.)
#9: The King of Metal 10/10 (4.91/10 avg.)

 

[Diesel 11]

31. Samurai
Average Score: 7.44/10
The Man Who Would Not Die 12/12

And there it is, at long last, the highest-ranked song from Blaze's first outing with the Bermudez brothers - "Samurai". Can you believe that it's been a full 58 songs since the last album bit the dust? Crazy. "Samurai" proved to be one of the most popular tracks from The Man Who Would Not Die, an album that, while inconsistent, did offer us the pretty great rocker with an awesome bass intro leading to a cool chorus about one's willingness to die. I doubt many are gonna be surprised that "Samurai" won out over the other songs on the album, and indeed, there were many speculations that it would be a part of the Top 10, but alas, it was not meant to be, as it rests at last here, just outside the Top 30. Well won, and now we turn our attention to the other albums left in the game. Which will be the next to fall?

Comments:

Ninjas are overrated, Shadow. So are samurai. Want to impress me, summon up a legion of Roman soldiers.

Here we go! This is more like it. From the awesome bass intro to the very end, there's nothing bad about this song. Even the guitar is much better, with little oodles here and there that stand out. The chorus is great, Blaze sounds great, it's easily one of the album's best songs.

A cool bass-intro that reminds me of Symphony X's "Domination" and a great chorus is what I find most memorable about this tune.

Cool aggressive intro. Eww, Blaze is sounding pretty bad again, vocals all over the place. Verse and pre-chorus are so-so. The chorus is sparse and oddly rhythmed, and the only part that totally works is the "samurai" in the middle. These lyrics are really cheesy, giving me bad flashbacks to Europe's "Ninja". Ooh, I really like the melodic guitar fill right after the chorus. Good aggressive break with a nice melodic lead. The bridge is half good, half cheesy. Another nice interlude and a strong solo, followed by a weaker one. Not totally sold on the "whoah-oh" section, but it's better than most of his attempts. I like the upward modulation on the final chorus. Another song with great music, but significant vocal performance problems.

Love the bass opening. Just a great song all the way around. Better than it has any right to be.

Votes:

Spoiler

10 - 1
9 - 2
8 - 1
7 - 3
6 - 1
5 - 0
4 - 1
3 - 0
2 - 0
1 - 0

#8. The Man Who Would Not Die
Average Score: 6.61/10

Talk about a divisive album. The Man Who Would Not Die has always been pretty highly spoken of on the interwebs, but I personally consider it Blaze's worst release. It's overly long to the point that it becomes a bleary drive to finish, but I was fully expecting to be alone in my estimation of it. Not so, as it comes dead last out of Blaze's releases (I think we're still choosing to forget about The King Of Metal's existence). This is where the "overly long" thing comes into play. While there were some tracks particularly praised - such as "Samurai" and "Voices From The Past" - there were others almost universally panned - such as "Crack In The System" and "The Truth Is One".

To say then that this album isn't for everyone would be an understatement. Musically, there's a Gothenburg style of influence to be found, as the Bermudez brothers took over with the disintegration of the original BLAZE band, and it's far heavier than the three albums that preceded it (and the two with Maiden). Whether or not you like that style definitely comes into play, but the vocals are also done differently this time. Whether that was intentional or not, you can tell right from the beginning that Blaze has evolved, and the question remains: is it better or worse than previous?

For all its sins, The Man Who Would Not Die should still be remembered as an album that showcased Blaze's willingness to experiment with his song, and the songs reflect that. A lot of them don't have the hooks something like Silicon Messiah had, but focus more on creating an atmosphere and a narrative, like that of a gladiator in a ring or a willingness to face death should it come to you. And it's also the album that gave Jer his highest-rated song, "While You Were Gone", an ode to Blaze's wife, who would pass away not too long after this album's release.

The Man Who Would Not Die is the kind of album that may not be for everyone, but if you can get into it, then more power to you. As an aside, this is the last time an album's exit in the countdown corresponds to where it ranked when the average scores were put together, so I'm enjoying this while I can. The next stage is gonna become pretty damn convoluted....

Comments:

I personally love it!

I think it's going to be a grower. A couple songs struck me right off the bat, notably "Robot" (which is incredibly awesome!!!!) and "The Man Who would Not Die". Unfortunately, I think the lyrics are a bit lame and cheesy in places.

I just got the album today, and I was blown away. I found his previous albums a bit slow and hard to get into, but this, in my opinion at least, is Blaze's best work since The X Factor.

I don't like Blaze's "new" singing style, it looks like he's lost a bit of his abilities, he practically yells throughout the album, somehow he's missing a nuance, I don't know how to describe it.

After having listened to the album once, I have to say that I don't like the new direction, double bass drums, 180 bpm songs... This isn't my final opinion though, I'll listen to the album a couple of more times. But for now it seems far away from the likes of Silicon Messiah and Tenth Dimension.

A very strong album IMO.

I got The Man Who Would Not Die a few days ago and it's a very good album. Blaze's voice works a lot better there than in Iron Maiden, IMO.

TMWWND is really growing on me, but nothing compared to Silicon Messiah.

Given the circumstances the album was recorded in, it's unfair to expect another Silicon Messiah (but then, it's unfair to expect that from anyone), but I still have to say that I'm a bit disappointed by it. I don't blame it on Blaze or the band, and I'm sure they did the best they could, but I guess my expectations were just too high after hearing the two new tracks that were played live several years ago (!).

So for once I disagree slightly with Perun. I just listened to the entire album (several times). I really enjoyed the entire thing, even more than Silicon Messiah (although I haven't listened to that album in a while). [...] I'm not sure what it is about this album, but it just strikes me as really high-energy and full of great beats and riffs. Blaze himself sounds really good on it too.

This album definitely marked a low point in Blaze's history. While it does have a handful of good tracks, most of the album is downright boring, the production is pretty meh, and Blaze isn't singing as well as he was on previous albums. All that being said, the biggest flaw is the album's runtime - 12 songs is entirely too much, and pushing it past the hour mark is overkill. It really needed some trimming. I know that many consider this one of Blaze's best releases, but I don't. The Man Who Would Not Die is quite possibly the worst album he ever released. Thank god it gets better from here.

The Man Who Would Not Die is particularly good.

Appreciating heavier music in general is not unimportant here. This particular album is more trashy, and more Gothenburg-style. The fast riffing is pretty cool. Besides the heaviness there are melodies and harmonies to be found in the riffs.

I remember being very excited when TMWWND was released back in the day, just because I'd been following the split of the BLAZE-lineup and heard about Blaze's personal problems. Finally getting some new music from him was almost a relief! My joy has cooled a bit since then, and I think the album all in all belongs firmly in the middle of the rankings. It only has a few truly great songs, but no real stinkers either. A solid comeback after years of turmoil.

This album started off with some serious promise, including the best Blaze song I've heard to date ("While You Were Gone"); but about halfway through, the quality fell off a cliff and never recovered. [...] Blaze's new band is pretty strong -- the mix of In Flames and some neoclassical elements is a potent combo. For a number of songs the band was the star of the show and Blaze was the element bringing them down, which was kind of sad in a way. The production on this album was also a noticeable step down from the previous three.

Overall:

Spoiler

31. Samurai
32. A Work Of Anger
33. Voices From The Past
34. City Of Bones
35. Independence
36. The Man Who Would Not Die
37. Life And Death
38. Alive
39. Identity
40. Stranger To The Light
41. Life Goes On
42. The World Is Turning The Wrong Way
43. While You Were Gone
44. Tearing Yourself To Pieces
45. Will To Win
46. Smile Back At Death
47. Prayers Of Light
48. At The End Of The Day
49. God Of Speed
50. Solar Wind
51. 18 Days
52. Evolution
53. The Hunger
54. Kill And Destroy
55. Letting Go Of The World
56. 1633
57. Human
58. The Trace Of Things That Have No Words
59. Dawn Of The Dead Son
60. Redeemer
61. Immortal One
62. Human Eyes
63. The First True Sign
64. The Dark Side Of Black
65. Stars Are Burning
66. Madness And Sorrow
67. Waiting For My Life To Begin
68. The Launch
69. Fight Back
70. End Dream
71. Robot
72. Remember
73. Reach For The Horizon
74. Destroyer
75. The Day I Fell To Earth
76. Nothing Will Stop Me
77. Land Of The Blind
78. Faceless
79. Serpent Hearted Man
80. Stealing Time
81. Are You Here
82. Living Someone Else's Life
83. The Dreams Of William Black
84. Blackmailer
85. Russian Holiday
86. Crack In The System
87. The Path & The Way
88. Hollow Head
89. Difficult
90. The Rainbow Fades To Black
91. Motherfuckers R Us
92. Beginning
93. Hatred
94. Dimebag
95. Fate
96. The Truth Is One
97. Forgotten Future
98. Eating Children
99. Fighter
100. Shall We Begin
101. One More Step
102. Judge Me
103. The Black Country
104. The King Of Metal

Albums:

Spoiler

Silicon Messiah 5/10
Tenth Dimension 7/12
Blood & Belief 6/10
Promise And Terror 7/11
Infinite Entanglement 7/12
Endure And Survive 5/10
The Redemption Of William Black 9/11
#8: The Man Who Would Not Die 12/12 (6.61/10 avg.)
Bonus tracks 6/6 (5.65/10 avg.)
#9: The King of Metal 10/10 (4.91/10 avg.)

 

[Shmoolikipod]

TMWWND is great, even if it's inconsistent. I like it better than part 2 and part 3 of Infinite Entanglement and the King of Metal, maybe even Blood and Belief...

Voices from the Past
While You Were Gone
Smile Back at Death
The Man Who Would Not Die
Samurai
Serpent Hearted Man
At the End of the Day
Blackmailer
Waiting for My Life to Begin
Robot
The Truth is One
Crack in the System

 

[Confeos]

"City of Bones" is way too low. I believe the single 10/10 it got was from me, then.

 

[Jer]

I was 30 songs away
I was 30 songs away
From a countdown that was already lost
I just did not know

I was 30 songs away
I was 30 songs away
If @Diesel 11 went back and changed one thing
Then I would be there now​

 

[Diesel 11]

I'm updating tonight.