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

[Kalata]

Probably because it’s one of his best songs, with the best chorus of any of his songs.

... wholeheartedly agree.

 

[Diesel 11]

2. Eagle Spirit
Average Score: 8.86/10
The Redemption Of William Black 11/11

Blaze's longest song, "Eagle Spirit" is the Infinite Entanglement trilogy's closing opus, and you all came out in droves to send it up to the heights it deserves. There were no votes below a 7, which means that any weaknesses some may have seen were nothing to compare to its magnificence. Opening with a spoken word intro and building into a riffing, emotional piece detailing William Black's fight with the people on the planet invaded against the Redeemer, it is certainly one of his finest creations, and more than deserving of the place it has reached.

Here is the place we belong....

Comments:

The third part is not that good, maybe I have to listen to it again, but the last song Eagle Spirit is a fantastic epic with a brutal solo !

"Eagle Spirit" is easily the album's crowning jewel.

I like how the narrative switches to the inhabitants on the planet the humans were seeking to claim for themselves - no one ever thought of them, did they? Some very well-written lyrics, in my opinion, and the music is a nice fit too.

Talk about ending on a high note! Here the story comes to an end with the best song from the entire trilogy.

What a great song to end that great trilogy!

I would bet money that it won’t make the top 10, much less the top 3; and I’m fairly confident it won’t even make the top 20.

Votes:

Spoiler

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

#6: The Redemption Of William Black
Average Score: 7.07/10

Blaze's most recent album, and the closer to his Trilogy, The Redemption Of William Black (Infinite Entanglement Part III) comes as the second-to-last album to drop from the countdown, following a run in which its closing epic finally entered the list in second place out of one hundred and four songs of all shapes and sizes, all lengths and styles, yadda yadda yadda.

Redemption is certainly a solid album, but there seems to be a mixture between the brilliant ("Eagle Spirit", "Already Won"), the good ("Redeemer", "Immortal One"), and the... eh, not the best he's ever put out ("Human Eyes", "Are You Here"). Still, the sum is better than the whole and it's been lauded for being a satisfying conclusion to the Trilogy. Not one of his Top 5 albums, maybe, but it's good.

Comments:

While the weakest of The Trilogy, that's not to say that this album isn't great. Because it is. It just doesn't consistently knock it out of the park as much as its predecessors do.

I think the concept trilogy helped Blaze stay focused and deliver something more consistent than his past work, though I don't think he ever fully hit things out of the park.

The first half of the final part of William Black's journey definitely contains the weakest songs of the trilogy, but boy, does the second half deliver in full force! And so we reach the end (for now) - Black's story has wrapped up in style, and I sincerely hope Blaze will team up with Chris Appleton again in the future.

Overall:

Spoiler

2. Eagle Spirit
3. Escape Velocity
4. Together We Can Move The Sun
5. Meant To Be
6. A Thousand Years
7. Ghost In The Machine
8. Born As A Stranger
9. Surrounded By Sadness
10. Soundtrack Of My Life
11. Blood And Belief
12. Calling You Home
13. Silicon Messiah
14. The Tenth Dimension
15. Leap Of Faith
16. Watching The Night Sky
17. Infinite Entanglement
18. Endure And Survive
19. Speed Of Light
20. Dark Energy 256
21. Time To Dare
22. Eating Lies
23. Ten Seconds
24. Comfortable In Darkness
25. The Truth Revealed
26. Regret
27. The Brave
28. Blood
29. What Will Come
30. Already Won
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 9/10
#2: Endure And Survive 10/10 (7.39/10 avg.)
#3: Promise And Terror 11/11 (7.23/10 avg.)
#4: Blood & Belief 10/10 (7.16/10 avg.)
#5: Infinite Entanglement 12/12 (7.14/10 avg.)
#6: The Redemption Of William Black 11/11 (7.07 avg.)
#7: Tenth Dimension 12/12 (7.04/10 avg.)
#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.)

 

[Diesel 11]

1. Stare At The Sun
Average Score: 9.38/10
Silicon Messiah 10/10

Unless you're Jer, it shouldn't come as any surprise whatsoever that "Stare At The Sun" is the winner in the countdown, bar none. It has never lost a single Blaze Survivor, and is there any reason it should take a loss now? I don't think so, and clearly you guys agree with me. Literally, eight different people gave it a 10, four others gave it a 9, and only Jer went lower than that with his gob-smacking 6. Clearly, this is Blaze's most beloved song, his "Hallowed Be Thy Name", if you. Like "Hallowed", it's a song that transcends the artist's career, able to rope in new fans with a single listen, drawn into the scene, the setting, the wonder it presents.

It's a very emotional song, after all. Silicon Messiah as a whole is a very sci-fi inspired album, and this follows in that same vein. We see before us, floating out into the wide beyond of outer space, one of Major Tom's long lost brethren, a spaceman, far from his home, from his family, from the life he used to live. All alone, in a great big unknown. And here is where he meets his end. Couple that with a blazing solo section and some killer riffs, and you've already got a masterful song in its own right.

But what sets "Stare At The Sun" apart from songs like "Space Oddity" and the like is the way that this song tackles one's last moments. There's fear, there's panic, there's despair... and yet at the same time there's also peace, a peace that now you will be opening that door that's been in front of you for all this time, yet you never had a key until now. With no escape, no turning back, you take that step forward into the unknown. Into another portal, infinite darkness, another lifetime, Heaven, perhaps? Who knows. But there it is, and that's what this song does so well. "As I live, so I die... here in endless night..." A final step into the unknown, where we all will stare at the sun.

I'll say this as succinctly as I can: There is not, and never will be, another song like "Stare At The Sun". Thank you, Blaze.

Comments:

Absolutely beautiful song about the fate that may encompass our race - a handful of survivors who may be doomed to wander the cosmos forever, worldless, if our precious globe is damaged or destroyed through our own wrongs.

This is, in my opinion, the best song ever. It is nothing short of perfect. Perhaps it is not terribly original in its structure and songwriting, but it is simply so good that it doesn't matter.

Stare At The Sun is on a completely different level.

It's basically a masterpiece in my honest opinion and perfect as it is.

There are some moments of brilliance here, but the pre-chorus and chorus drag the whole thing down.

I don't have much to say about this song. I love it, and it's a perfect way to end the album. It's long, but doesn't feel like it, the music is amazing, and the lyrics are thoughtful.

Phenomenal.

Votes:

Spoiler

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

#1: Silicon Messiah
Average Score: 7.56/10

Again, unless you're Jer, Silicon Messiah taking the top spot on the list should not be a surprise whatsoever. It was proof that Blaze was more than just a failed former Maiden singer. With the right bandmates, he was able to craft a heavy, well-rounded monster with some truly amazing tracks. Certainly, all of his subsequent releases have always been measured up to this one, for better or for worse. There isn't much more that I can say that hasn't been said before. Give it a listen. It's just that good.

And with that, we've finally come to the end of our countdown. I'm quite satisfied overall, and I hope you are two. Been quite a wild ride, hasn't it? Certainly felt like an eternity... heheh... Hopefully the wait was worth it. We'll see what lies for us in the future. 'Til then, thanks again for participation. It's been a blaze.

See you space cowboy . . . .

Comments:

Silicon Messiah is amazing.

An absolute hidden gem of metal, a true diamond in the rough.

Silicon Messiah was fucking awesome.

Better than anything Blaze did with Maiden as far as I am concerned.

Silicon Messiah was brilliant.

Overall:

Spoiler

1. Stare At The Sun
2. Eagle Spirit
3. Escape Velocity
4. Together We Can Move The Sun
5. Meant To Be
6. A Thousand Years
7. Ghost In The Machine
8. Born As A Stranger
9. Surrounded By Sadness
10. Soundtrack Of My Life
11. Blood And Belief
12. Calling You Home
13. Silicon Messiah
14. The Tenth Dimension
15. Leap Of Faith
16. Watching The Night Sky
17. Infinite Entanglement
18. Endure And Survive
19. Speed Of Light
20. Dark Energy 256
21. Time To Dare
22. Eating Lies
23. Ten Seconds
24. Comfortable In Darkness
25. The Truth Revealed
26. Regret
27. The Brave
28. Blood
29. What Will Come
30. Already Won
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

#1: Silicon Messiah 10/10 (7.56/10)
#2: Endure And Survive 10/10 (7.39/10 avg.)
#3: Promise And Terror 11/11 (7.23/10 avg.)
#4: Blood & Belief 10/10 (7.16/10 avg.)
#5: Infinite Entanglement 12/12 (7.14/10 avg.)
#6: The Redemption Of William Black 11/11 (7.07 avg.)
#7: Tenth Dimension 12/12 (7.04/10 avg.)
#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.)

 

[Jer]

2. Eagle Spirit

Meh. Super boring chorus riffing, too many on-the-nose lyrics, and the spoken opening overstays its welcome. The song is good, but nowhere near great, and has no business being this high on the list, IMO.

Obviously most of you disagree, so it’s a good thing I didn’t actually bet any money...

 

[Jer]

Well, congratulations @Diesel 11 , it only took you a little over 5 months to finish the countdown after you started it!

But thanks for doing it anyway, even if your ratings are kooky.

 

[Diesel 11]

Jer be the kinda dude that sides with the Redeemer.

 

[Diesel 11]

it only took you a little over 5 months to finish the countdown after you started it!

Now if only we could get LC to finish that Eddie ranking he's been having on and off for the last couple years...

 

[Jer]

Jer be the kinda dude that sides with the Redeemer.

Immortal Ones gotta immortal...

 

[Lampwick 43]

Thanks for finishing the countdown @Diesel 11! While I can't say I'm completely satisfied with how everything turned out, the right song won in the end.

 

[Diesel 11]

i can’t believe it’s finally over. it feels like a part of me is gone.

 

[BloodOnTheBassistsHands]

@Diesel 11 - thanks for spending the time to organize this countdown. I've been (gradually) diving into Blaze's solo career over the past couple of years, and this has been really helpful.

On a semi-related note - I'm old fashioned and like making mix CD's for long car rides. Here's what I created recently for Blaze's catalogue:

- Wolfsbane era: "Man Hunt" ("Tough as Steel" was a late cut)
- Maiden era: "Virus", "Doctor, Doctor", "Judgment Day" and "Justice of the Piece" (I avoided songs from the two studio albums to give this some more variety - I love "Sign of the Cross", "The Clansman", "Lord of the Flies", etc., but I've heard them a thousand times)
- Silicon Messiah: title track, "Ghost in the Machine", "Stare at the Sun" ("The Launch" was a late cut)
- Tenth Dimension: "Meant to Be"
- Blood and Belief: "Soundtrack of my Life"
- The Man Who Would Not Die: "Samurai"
- Promise and Terror: none (but "City of Bones" was a late cut)
- The King of Metal: none
- Infinite Entanglement: "A Thousand Years"
- Endure and Survive: "Escape Velocity", "Together We Can Move the Sun" (edited out the last three minutes)
- The Redemption of William Black: "Prayers of Light", "Eagle Spirit" (edited out the first minute or so)

With the two edits above, this (just barely) fits onto an 80 minute audio CD. I know hardly anyone listens to CDs anymore, but I figured I'll share it anyway as this gives a good overview of all the eras of his career (a lot of "consensus" picks, with a few personal favourites).

 

[Shmoolikipod]

Big thanks Diesel, I really enjoyed reading the list (but the rankings... ) and also for introducing me to Blaze's career, great music.

 

[Kalata]

Thanks for this ranking @Diesel 11 ! It was a pleasure.

I think the right song won. ''Stare At The Sun'' is one of the best songs that Blaze has ever written. ''Eagle Spirit'' at #2 - yesssss.... it's the best song from his latest solo album. ''Escape Velocity'' at #3 is awesome - one of my favorite songs from Blaze. ''A Thousand Years'', ''Together We Can Move The Sun'' and ''Born As A Stranger'' are also in top 10 - great great songs.

Overall, I am satisfied with the results.

 

[Confeos]

Good job @Diesel 11 ! My personal top 10 would look just a wee bit different, but I can't argue against "Stare at the Sun" as the winner it's been fun to participate, let's do something similar again soon!

 

[Diesel 11]

let's do something similar again soon!

I think Jer still wants to do his 1988 thing. After that I’ve got more Maiden-centric ideas, so if you’re all willing to put up with a slow trudge again, we can rock ‘n roll.

 

[rideon77]

I'm very happy for the first 2 positions. At the 3th place I would have put Together We Can Move The Sun or Meant To be .

 

[LooseCannon]

Well, the right song won - a masterpiece of a track.

 

[Forostar]

1. Stare At The Sun
2. Eagle Spirit
3. Escape Velocity
4. Together We Can Move The Sun
5. Meant To Be
6. A Thousand Years
7. Ghost In The Machine
8. Born As A Stranger
9. Surrounded By Sadness
10. Soundtrack Of My Life
11. Blood And Belief
12. Calling You Home
13. Silicon Messiah
14. The Tenth Dimension

Here's my prediction of the top 10 of this survey, hosted by @Diesel 11:

01. Stare at the Sun
02. Eagle Spirit
03. Soundtrack of My Life
04. Ghost in the Machine
05. The Tenth Dimension
06. Escape Velocity
07. Together We Can Move the Sun
08. A Thousand Years
09. Surrounded by Sadness
10. Blood and Belief

11: Silicon Messiah

I worked several hours on this so I assume my prediction should come close.

Looks like my top 10 (oh well: top 11) prediction was pretty close! 3 songs in bold that have the same spots. Furthermore
- 5 songs somewhere else in the top 10 (alright guys: that's 8 out of 10 songs predicted in the top 10. ).

Songs that landed outside the top 10:
- 1 song is only 1 postion lower than predicted
- 1 song is only 2 positions lower than predicted
- 1 song 9 positions lower than predicted (this was the worst prediction, still not that bad)

Songs in the top 10 I had not expected: Meant to Be and Born as a Stranger.

Thanks for hosting @Diesel 11.