Hell On Earth

How good is Hell on Earth on a scale of 1-10?

  • Total voters
    47
frus said:
Just to share some of my musings

I think the intro is very important for the story. It sounds to me like a lullaby, I get the notion of someone sleeping, don't really now who, might even be a child, dreaming dreams as innocent and hopeful as that haunting melody. And then, very abruptly (after some 5 and a half iterations, totally unexpected), the band comes in full tilt, like suddenly woken up by an explosion ("Beginning of a sunrise bores a big hole in the sky"), into a reality of what I assume is a war that has been going on for so long that people barely remember the time before. Every day is panic and confusion and they don't know if they would stay alive. But the song first needs to lull the listener into the sense of calm and security, to reinforce the feeling of chaos and panic that comes after, that's why the intro needs to be that long.
Conversely, the outro gives me the feeling of having survived another day and returning to the (temporary) calm, but it's going on and on, and finally into fade out, to better illustrate the nature of that eternal conflict

So by "trimming the fat" you would get a more compact song, but you would lose half the story. Someone mentioned the middle part of Rime, I sometimes do think (after a million listens) it's too long, but the listener needs to really feel the ship stranded in the middle of ocean with not a whiff of wind, so the next, optimistic, part has more impact
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Great take.

I would interpret it slightly differently in that the song is a meditation on how willfully obtuse comfortable people are to all the shitty things in this world.

The extended calm introduction is a deliberate representation on us carrying on, oblivious, to all but our modern bread and circuses.


TheTalisman said:
That is an interesting interpretation, I like really like that.

On the other hand, I would really like to imagine the lyrics from a particular person in history (can't really think of anyone at the moment though, my knowledge is rather limited and the lyrics doesn't give any obvious clues).
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Senjutsu and Hell on Earth bookend in such a way to illustrate the sacrifices made in order to pay for our modern comfortable lives and freedoms and how we’ve failed to meet their standard or appreciate what’s been handed us.

In Senjutsu the threat comes from outside, in Hell on Earth it’s from within.
 
frus said:
Just to share some of my musings

I think the intro is very important for the story. It sounds to me like a lullaby, I get the notion of someone sleeping, don't really now who, might even be a child, dreaming dreams as innocent and hopeful as that haunting melody. [...]
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I find the intros and outros in Maiden songs important, too. Here, the intro represents an innocent child for me who doesn’t yet know anything of the terrible in the world, but will soon experience it.
The outro is peaceful again, because at the end of their life, they are going to the “other side of hell on earth”.
 
I absolutely love Hell On Earth, I think it is an excellent epic, the length is great and the song has a really great feel to it. On the other hand, I'd love a shorter version without the intro/Outro. I;d also like another final Hell On Earth at the end of it. Regardless the song is an easy 10.
 
Being thinking about this today, and I had a thought about it being Maiden's last ever song. If it does turn out to be their last then, as I said before, I couldn't be disappointed as it's a hell of a way to go out. But I feel a lot of the emotional impact for me comes from imagining this as their last, and while I'd be delighted by Maiden announcing another album, I wonder where that would leave this one. Would I see it in a new light? Would I think less of it? I suppose I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.
 
This song is Maiden gone Nightwish, pretty much. That chorus melody is 100% Nightwish, as is the overall style/arrangements, but with a Harris touch to it of course.
 
Edington said:
Being thinking about this today, and I had a thought about it being Maiden's last ever song. If it does turn out to be their last then, as I said before, I couldn't be disappointed as it's a hell of a way to go out.
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I think we’ll have 19 albums. However if this is to be the last, the farewell message is not in Hell on Earth, but in The Pankrement, the Meet you There part. Nothing wrong there, time is not always linear, farewell message could very well be Hallowed be Thy Name.
 
The Dissident said:
On the other hand, I'd love a shorter version without the intro/Outro
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Personally, since I like this song so very much the long intro is good for me because it comes with lots of anticipation of what is yet to come.
But, if you just want to get right into the song, there are easy ways to strip these intros and outros. Easily done with iTunes.
I typically strip off the Yanick acoustic intro that he has slapped on to three songs now. And definitely strip off Satallite 15.
Maiden have become more willing to experiment these days, which is great but doesn't always suit my tastes.
 
mckindog said:
Great take.

I would interpret it slightly differently in that the song is a meditation on how willfully obtuse comfortable people are to all the shitty things in this world.

The extended calm introduction is a deliberate representation on us carrying on, oblivious, to all but our modern bread and circuses.




Senjutsu and Hell on Earth bookend in such a way to illustrate the sacrifices made in order to pay for our modern comfortable lives and freedoms and how we’ve failed to meet their standard or appreciate what’s been handed us.

In Senjutsu the threat comes from outside, in Hell on Earth it’s from within.
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Both this post and the one from @frus that @mckindog is replying to are great illustrations of why Maiden is the best and why I love these forums. Great songs produce great thoughts. Good people (like Maiden fans) have good discussions. Thanks to you both. Up the Irons!
 
I really like the acoustic/bass intro which again reminds me of something off The X Factor, I specifically had Fortunes of War in mind when hearing it. I think a bar or two could be removed from the intro before the song really gets going since it drags a bit but it's no big deal as the rest of the song is stellar. The bridge and chorus are phenomenal along with the beautiful quiet section in the second half that occurs before exploding into Bruce's "Love in Anger, Life in Danger" section. The outro reprises the introduction but this time fades out, which is extremely rare for an Iron Maiden song to do so and has only been done for 4 songs before this but to have it be for the last song makes it quite effective. I would not be surprised if this song gets played live, it's a great track!
 
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My favourite on the album by far and the one I go back to listening to the most. It stood out from the very first listen - it's very melodic, very catchy and varied. A top-notch Maiden, could well be one of my favourite Maiden songs in general. Thank you, Mr. Harris!
10/10

Edit: Now that I'm thinking about it, it may have grabbed me immediately because the intro sounds so close to the intro of Fortunes of War.
I'm a simple person - I hear TXF, I love it.
 
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