Empire Of The Clouds

How good is Empire of the Clouds on a scale of 1-10?

  • Total voters
    31
Matt S said:
I'm a long-time Maiden fan, but embarrassingly enough, a "play the classics" fan. I went to the San Antonio show this weekend (no, I am not the kidnapper posting from jail) and discovered TBoS album and Empire as a result of the show.

I side with those who feel it's the most epic IM song in their repertoire. I was blown away at the first listen and it hasn't diminished over the last 10 times I have listened to it today. I wouldn't change a thing.

I discovered this site (and the fact that the R101 tragedy was an actual event) through researching Bruce's inspiration for the song. I'm glad I did. I've read every post on this thread and have learned a lot.

The reason I signed up was to post the one comparison I haven't seen made yet. I don't know if anyone is familiar with Bloodrock's D.O.A. but the descending bass line behind the SOS section and the dissonant descending part after the 14:25 piano riff (the crash) seem like definite homages to the ending finale to that song. Oddly enough, that song is also about an air disaster (not to spoil the details for anyone who is going to seek it out). Throughout EOTC, there seems to be a feel that resonates like D.O.A., maybe it's the same key, chord progression, the subject matter, the pained vocals, something. I don't know.

If anyone is familiar with that song or wants to search it up, I would be interested in seeing if it's just me or anyone else hears it.

watch
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Welcome aboard, Matt S! I've never heard the track but I will go and listen to it.
 
Dickson traditionally writes short, fast songs. Here it seems he wants to have a go at the progressive concept. I dont know, it feels as if it was made to be long for the sake of being long. 1/10
 
fekso said:
Dickson traditionally writes short, fast songs. Here it seems he wants to have a go at the progressive concept. I dont know, it feels as if it was made to be long for the sake of being long. 1/10
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1 of 10 because of lenght and no other arguments? You need to learn how to judge songs. TRATB has a lot more problems for me, but I still gave it a 6.

Or you are just a troll.
 
fekso said:
Dickson traditionally writes short, fast songs. Here it seems he wants to have a go at the progressive concept. I dont know, it feels as if it was made to be long for the sake of being long. 1/10
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Yep, because Revelations, Brave New World, Powerslave, If Eternity Should Fail, Brighter Than a Thousand Suns, Coming Home, Ghost of the Navigator, Journeyman, The Longest Day, Lord of Light, Wasting Love, These Colours Don't Run, Starblind, etc. are all short and fast and not progressive.
 
OOOH I see! He thinks that Alex Dickson wrote EOTC...

But even he can co-write amazing stories in songs like Penguins On The Moon with Sack Trick.
 
matic22 said:
OOOH I see! He thinks that Alex Dickson wrote EOTC...

But even he can co-write amazing stories in songs like Penguins On The Moon with Sack Trick.
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No. I'm sorry for not spelling correctly on the internet. My mom must be so disapointedo_O

MrKnickerbocker said:
Yep, because Revelations, Brave New World, Powerslave, If Eternity Should Fail, Brighter Than a Thousand Suns, Coming Home, Ghost of the Navigator, Journeyman, The Longest Day, Lord of Light, Wasting Love, These Colours Don't Run, Starblind, etc. are all short and fast and not progressive.
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And how many of those songs are written by himself? Relevations, Powerslave, IESF right? I bet IESF was written with a solo band member and the other two are 33 years old. I'm just saying, that to me, EOTC is a bit out of character (compared to what he brought to the table for the last 20 years) and overthought (just putting a bunch of songs together into one big).
 
I remember when TFF came out and everyone said WTWWB was the best Iron Maiden song ever. You dont really hear people say that anymore and I'm sure EOTC will go in that direction. Just like with The X Factor, time will reveal the quality of the songs. So many people that regard that album as the hidden diamond in the discography today.
 
Magnus said:
I think Empire is very overrated, and also that what you said



is unfortunately valid for quite a few other recent Maiden songs which sound like totally different ideas thrown together
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Although this sometimes work out. Murray and Harris had two separate songs that together became Benjamin Breeg.
 
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I feel a little bit shitty for slaming this song, but at this point with them being so popular (I was there in 1998 when they couldnt even breathe without being criticized) they could all fart into a microphone or record an extended version of The Angel or the Gambler and still reach the number one spot on Billboard.

The same way the albums from the 90's are being disregarded because Blaze is singing, the same way Maiden can record anything today and still generate a hype.
 
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Diesel 11 said:
That would be awesome.
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When playing it live Janick will introduce a new stage move - splits! While balancing a guitar on his head. Michael Kenney will appear onstage in an angel outfit while hanging over the band with the help of the Gene Simmons TM flying rig. Live version will also include an extended version of Nickos 2013 Sao Paulo drum solo and the singalong part from Running Free (also extended) that will give us a live version clocking in at 32:01
 
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10/10
For an eighteen minute song, it always feels fresh whenever I listen to it. I avoided it like the plague when I first got into Maiden because I doubted it would be anything less than indulgent, but man was I wrong. Brilliant storytelling within the lyrics, brilliant composition, and a brilliant listening experience. On a side note, I've actually used this song to introduce non-Maiden fans in my family to the band, and they all love it.
 
I think the song is a masterpiece and the first 7 minutes, telling the story of the R101, are a wonderful build-up to what comes next with the storm and the crash. The coda is wonderful too and we did get a fantastic epic without a bass intro and bass outro!
 
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