DAWSON 1 YEAR ON

riff said:
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Aces High obviously is an atrocity. But comparing 2025/2026 to 2022/2023/2024 the former is the clear winner imo. Or on which of those years have they sounded better? Note, I didn't say "better than 2019", I said "since".

Eduardo Cabeza said:
Dude, don't lose time on something so obvious as demonstrating that tempo is measurable. Everyone knows that. Many people also know that tempo can flow if done correctly, and that good drummers, like Nicko on «The Wicker Man», can surf tempo, breathing life into a song —not Simon's case though.
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That's the thing though, Nicko used to be better about it, but on TFP he didn't "surf" the tempo, nor was he "breathing life" into the songs. He was all over the place and got multiple songs almost completely derailed.

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As for the whole "why settle for fine when we could've had amazing": Yeah, I get it. But unfortunately that's not how Steve and the boys see it. They made their choice and they are evidently happy with it. We can complain as much as we want, but that's not gonna change anything.
 
I'm not, nor will I ever be, satisfied with Dawson's drumming. I was hesitant about continuing without Nicko regardless of who the replacement was, but I've made my peace with it and accept that Maiden (with Dawson) existing as a band beyond 2024 in their twilight years makes me happier than with them quitting.
 
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Many of us believe Steve Harris chose Simon Dawson as Iron Maiden's replacement drummer. However, after an extensive genealogical investigation, I've come to a very different conclusion.

In this case, the grey cardinal - the man pulling the strings from behind the velvet curtain - is none other than Paul Bruce Dickinson himself.

Simon and Bruce share suspiciously similar surnames "-son", and that's no mere coincidence. They're clearly descendants of the same ancestral bloodline.

Therefore, those unhappy with Simon's appointment must, from this day forward, blame Bruce, this son of a... genealogy. Not Steve. In fact, the evidence even suggests Simon may have been imposed on Steve in his solo band as well, although that particular branch of the investigation remains inconclusive.

For now, I shall return to my deeply secret, highly dangerous, and utterly fascinating research.

Should I never report my findings again, assume I've been silenced by some hired Greek...

P.S. I must also point out another astonishing discovery. Bruce Dickinson and Paul Di'Anno share the same first name. This establishes an undeniable interpersonal connection between them.

The inevitable conclusion is that Steve never fired Paul Di'Anno at all. Paul orchestrated the entire affair himself so that Paul Dickinson could step into the role of Iron Maiden's vocalist.

A staggeringly complicated case, I must admit - but the evidence speaks for itself.

Steve, of course, must never learn the truth. He's afraid of the dark, which makes him remarkably easy to control through Rod and Bruce's sinister influence.

That's all for now. I've already become far too talkative and spilled far too many beans.

Until next time, my fellow Ignorants.
 
Vaenyr said:
As for the whole "why settle for fine when we could've had amazing": Yeah, I get it. But unfortunately that's not how Steve and the boys see it. They made their choice and they are evidently happy with it. We can complain as much as we want, but that's not gonna change anything.
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Let's not discuss anything ever then.
 
Question for the detractors: who would you have liked to have seen as the new drummer? Keep in mind he has to be British (don't know if Steve would ever back off of that requirement)
 
Iron Lurker said:
Question for the detractors: who would you have liked to have seen as the new drummer? Keep in mind he has to be British (don't know if Steve would ever back off of that requirement)
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Simon Phillips. Mostly because he's a legendary established drummer, with a long career including filling in on various bands. He's got technical ability and feel in spades. It would've been interesting to see Maiden with someone who likely would challenge Steve on certain things on the drums, because he has the chops and career to back it up. Also he's one of the few currently active drummers Nicko's ever mentioned by name, for that added bit of continuity.
 
Ruflux said:
Simon Phillips. Mostly because he's a legendary established drummer, with a long career including filling in on various bands. He's got technical ability and feel in spades. It would've been interesting to see Maiden with someone who likely would challenge Steve on certain things on the drums, because he has the chops and career to back it up. Also he's one of the few currently active drummers Nicko's ever mentioned by name, for that added bit of continuity.
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I agree. Simon Phillips would be THE choice. The problem I see with getting him is that he would likely challenge Steve in terms of sound and production, since he is a producer/engineer. And we know that noone shall challenge Steve and Tony "Steve's right (slightly deaf) ear" Newton.
 
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Could actually someone briefly explain the Lazarus story to me? I never quite got into what it was actually all about. All I gathered was that there was apparently some behind-the-scenes friction regarding the passing-on of the drumsticks.
 
I think he was the guy who was on a retainer during 2023 (and 2024 as well? Correct me if I’m wrong) so he thougt the gig would be his? But the band did already secretly rehearsed with Dawson during the tour in 2024 on a few off days, as British lion played on the same festival bills with Maiden.
 
Vaenyr said:
Is that what I wrote? No, it's not.

Edit: Less flippant response, that wasn't my attempt to shut down discussion. That was simply my opinion and how I view this.
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Of course it’s not what you wrote, but it’s not an uncharitable read of stating it dismissively like that. For someone keen to make people be clear that a given statement is an opinion, you’re sometimes very definitive in your own statements.

You don’t think they should aim for a drummer much better than a post-stroke 70+ year old just because that’s the choice they made then fine, but I think they could be more ambitious because I love this band.

Of course Nicko fluctuates tempos, it’s part of being a breathing, dynamic live band and not some gridded backing track nonsense. That’s not the problem with the new hire, he seems pretty solid tempo wise although the power of his hits seem to be pretty inconsistent. But Simons baseline tempos are noticeably slower than we’re used to hearing, and I agree with other posters that it makes the tunes sound lumpy and leaden.

I think Steve went for a safe choice, and he can do what he wants, but I also think it’s made the band worse.
I saw them in London and thought they sounded pretty awful. They didn’t sound like a tight band playing together, they were all pulling against each other.
With a drummer who could play the parts with the energy they were written with, and being such a physical part that probably means they’d have needed a drummer younger than the rest of them, they could have set up the 50th anniversary victory lap as instrumentally the greatest band on the planet.

I think the upcoming live album, which really should have been an absolutely triumph, is about to be the least essential Maiden release.

Most people aren’t trying to change anyone’s mind, but the discussion here about this has been weird. The tone of “Steve made a choice and we just have to bally well get along with it” is one I cannot jive with.
 
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