ICED EARTH SURVIVOR 2018: Results -> A Question Of Heaven wins!

Are you satisfied with the results?

  • Total voters
    10
Consensus: The best Stu-era Iced Earth songs are Dystopia, Cthulhu, Black Flag, Ghost Dance, and Clear the Way... and the pirate one is the best.
 
Everytime I see the word "consensus", I feel the urge to argue. I couldn't really agree - I'd say Anthem is one of the best. I don't like Ghost Dance, but I think Plagues of Babylon could also be included in the best list.
 
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Credits:
Jon Schaffer - rhythm guitar & vocals - 11th album with the band
Troy Seele - lead guitar - 4th album with the band
Stu Block - vocals - 2nd album with the band
Luke Appleton - bass - 1st album with the band
Raphael Saini - drums - 1st album with the band
Guests:
Hansi Kürsch - lead vocals on "Among The Living Dead"
Michael Poulsen - lead vocals on "Highwayman"
Russell Allen - lead vocals on "Highwayman"

  1. Plagues Of Babylon - The slow buildup of the song is quite cool even if the drumming is kinda boring. However, it's anticlimactic that it builds up speed but then returns back to the slower chorus (which is good, but still...).
  2. Democide - This one is cool, but Stu kinda overdoes the vocals so that they are impossible for him to do properly live.
  3. The Culling - A fairly average song with an above average epic chorus.
  4. Among The Living Dead - Nice heavy verses, chorus that goes a bit too long but the Hansi scream saves it. Also the post-chorus riff is quite nice.
  5. Resistance - Some cool leads but a chorus that's been done before... Expendable song.
  6. The End? - Stu sounds constipated in the verses, but the chorus is cool and the riffs and leads are quite cool. Could've been shorter though.
  7. If I Could See You - While derivative of their previous ballads, this one is fucking awesome too and don't @ me ballad haters! Stu sings with his normal voice for once and nails the song. The chorus is epic and the drummer nails the buildup for once with additional double bass at the end. Also the solo is awesome too. Best song on the album.
  8. Cthulhu - This one is also cool. Chorus is derivative again, but it works. Choruses on this album are all very similar tbh, the only difference is whether the lyrics work or not.
  9. Peacemaker - This one doesn't have the same chorus as most other songs so at least there's something new. Some cool leads and riffs, but overall nothing special.
  10. Parasite - Forgettable song with an annoying chorus.
  11. Spirit Of The Times - Awesome ballad and the best song on the album. Haters. Don't. @. Me. You are all insane. I don't know what's not to like about this song, except for the fact that it's a ballad which triggers a lot of people. Stu produces one of his rawest performances ever, not an ounce of Barlow imitation here. The chorus is epic as fuck. Troy is killing it with leads all over the place, plus the solo is awesome.
  12. Highwayman - This one, however, is shit. I feel like Jon just wanted to have Poulsen and Allen on the album and came up with this shit cover. Allen sounds like he binge smoked all day and then recorded the vocals over Skype and Poulsen sounds like Elvis trying to sing like the dude from Nickelback. Shit stuff really.
  13. Outro - Jokey outro, dunno why the outrage. It's 30 seconds long, not 30 minutes.
Overall: Yeah, it's weaker than Incorruptible. I also don't like the production. Drums feel disconnected from the guitars and guitars should be louder. Stu also goes overboard with overdubbing sometimes. The songs are kinda samey too. I would've trimmed it so that it doesn't have the outro, Resistance, Parasite or Highwayman. Would've been way better that way.
Best song(s): Spirit Of The Times, If I Could See You, Plagues Of Babylon

And the votes are... Great Heathen Army, The Relic, Part 1, Brothers, Defiance, Resistance, Peacemaker, Parasite, Highwayman and Outro.

Anyone else I should wait for or can I update?
 
Night Prowler said:
Spirit Of The Times - Awesome ballad and the best song on the album. Haters. Don't. @. Me. You are all insane. I don't know what's not to like about this song, except for the fact that it's a ballad which triggers a lot of people. Stu produces one of his rawest performances ever, not an ounce of Barlow imitation here. The chorus is epic as fuck. Troy is killing it with leads all over the place, plus the solo is awesome.
Click to expand...

o_O :nuts: :facepalm:
 
Totally with NP on Spirit of the Times, (apart from 'best song', I prefer the album's title track and If I Could See You Now). It's an excellent quality slower offering with real passion behind it.
 
I don't feel like doing an in-depth review, but I'll give a few thoughts on some of these songs at a later time. As for now, my votes are as follows:

The Veil
The Relic
Brothers
Resistance
Parasite
Outro
 
Yeah, I'm okay with Highwayman too, especially if you loosely put it, along with If I Could See You Now and Spirit of the Times, in the context of the supposed ZA plot/theme of half of the album.
 
I don't get the dislike for Highwayman, but maybe it's because the version it is based on (with Nelson, Kristoffersen, Jennings and Cash) is one of my all-time favourite songs. IE's version isn't supposed to be a work of art or bring anything unique to the table. The other version puts four of the greatest country voices together in one song, and I'm sure Schaffer just wanted to pay tribute to that and keep the "one voice/one soul/one verse"-theme :)

I've listened to Plagues on repeat in the car for a few days now, and If I Could See You has grown on me a bit (I guess it can still happen even after a few years), but Spirit is still plain boring.
 
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