Isle of Avalon

How good is Isle of Avalon on a scale of 1-10?

  • Total voters
    18
I listened to this song a lot in the last few days. Calmer parts of the song are easily a 10, great riff and lyrics. Heavier parts of the song are good, but drawn out a little bit. In conclusion, it's an 9/10.
 
I thought this was a brilliant song when the album was new, and one of the best epics on the album. But something has happened, maybe the fact that I've listened to the song about 150 times has made me a bit tired of it, I just don't think it's that great anymore. The weakest link in this song is Bruce. Especially towards the end of the song. Don't get me wrong, it's a very good song, but not as good as the four other long songs.
 
This is where the album really gets interesting. The song opens with what I see as a nod to SSOASS, and progresses to something that simply has to be inspired by Rush. This is the first of two songs where the band really shows their musicianship (Starblind being the other), and the end product is very, very good. A high 9 to Isle of Avalon.
 
I wasn't really sure what to think of this song. When I was reading reviews for TFF before the release I was looking forward to this most and then I got the album and it didn't really click. It was a bit repetitive initially, the lyrics were confusing and it seemed to lack direction.

Then I noticed something. It had a fucking awesome chorus. And then it all kind of clicked for me. The way the song just keeps building and building for this sudden release of emotion and adrenaline in the chorus. The drums in the intro remind me a little of the drums in the interlude of SSoaSS in the way they build. The instrumental section has grown on me a lot and I like how they build the tension, only to drop back into the intro and build it all the way up again before the final chorus. The only thing that stops this from being a 10 is the second post chorus which kills the song a little, in my opinion. The song would be a 10 if it finished after 8 minutes. Although I do like the ending.

9/10.
 
9/10 - This was initially my favourite song from the album, now it's around my second or third. I love the chorus and the sort of mystical, faraway feel of the whole song - a masterpiece for sure!
 
This song initially didn't do anything for me, and I thought it was longer than necessary. On my most recent detailed listen, it finally clicked for me, and I appreciated the lyrics and especially the superb guitar work. 9/10. (I reserve 10 for the TRULY great Maiden epics, and this one just falls somewhat short of that for me)
 
10/10. Fantastic song, one of my favorite post-reunion tracks.

BTW, does anyone know which scales are used in this song?
 
Key is E Major until the pre chorus. Then it is E Minor. I'm not sure if that's what you meant though...
 
For me, "Isle Of Avalon" is the only long song on "The Final Frontier" that completely works, and neither feels overlong, or contains parts that feel like they don't fit the song. It is also the only one that totally engages me, and pulls me into it's soundscape like all great epics should. And as a Rush fan, the fact that this one clearly feels inspired by the Canadian legends is another reason to love it!

It's simply a wonderful song on all levels, with atmospheric and tense clean sections, an absolutely huge, majestic, chorus that actually makes you feel like you are on the Isle, quirky proggy passages that captivate and fill you with wonder, and of course, a classic crashing "Maiden ending" that just gives it that final, intense flourish that just leaves you breathless by the end. Whilst none of the other long songs on the album are actually bad, compared to this wonderfully inspired piece of work, they do seem weak. "Isle Of Avalon" is one of my very fave Maiden songs, no question! <3
 
This is here the album takes off. Even if there were songs on the first half that was really good, the were all (except for the intro) pretty straight forward and safe. This song is more experimental.

This song really sets up a mood on the calm part, and it goes really well together with the Isle of Avalon theme. While the pre chorus is quite strange, the chorus is powerful and exciting and probably the best chorus on the record. The post chorus is interesting but not as good as the chorus. The song then goes into a long jam section. It is a interesting move by the band, but for me it mostly plodding along and could have been shorter. The verse, pre chorus, chorus formula follows and the added guitar lick during the chorus is superb. The song ends with a post chorus and a crescendo.

Most part of the song is really excellent, and the mood and the atmosphere in some parts are as good as other classic Maiden-songs, but I have a hard time to fully enjoy the jam section and therefore I give the song a 8.

8/10
 
Middle instrumental bit is just perfect...the rest of the song not so much.It souns like two different songs are glued together for me.....with a neverending intro.Strange song.
 
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I like this song pretty much, but the thing is that intro should be much shorter and the song would be much better! IMO
 
7/10. Brilliant ideas mixed up with really bad ones, actually, no ideas at all. Results: mediocre song with an enormous potential. Why they did not wanted to make a 6 minutes song?
 
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This is a song you have to be in the right mood to appreciate. It's not excatly a rocker is it. But it's a pretty well crafted song, with lots of things going to it. So with a bit of patience you got a nice experience listening to it. 7/10
 
And now we get to the real meat of the album.

On most days I would tell you that Isle of Avalon is the best Maiden song. Everything about this song is perfect, from the way it builds to its Rush-esque proggy bits. Of all the songs on the album, I would say this is the only one that is completely new ground for Maiden. I still remember the first time I heard it, I couldn't believe what I was hearing! I hadn't really discovered prog yet, apart from the Dream Theater set opening for Maiden (which wasn't all that proggy) and some early Rush, so this was something new and very exciting. Not long after I was digging into Rush, Dream Theater, and the British prog greats.

Back to the actual song, I love the way it continues to build and grow throughout. There is absolutely no repetition here. My favorite part of the song is the "I hear her crying the tears of an angel" bit all the way up to Adrian's guitar solo. That might as well be the best slab of music Maiden has done as far as I'm concerned. Then we get to the 7/4 section, such an awesome groove. I love the way it starts with Steve's bass and the guitarists join in one by one. Then Adrian steps in with the best solo he's ever put on a record. It has such a cool Jazz fusion-y feel. He doesn't get nearly enough moments to just jam the way he does here. The structure on this song is also pretty interesting, each section is only repeated once. Every part is new up until the 7/4 bit, then everything is repeated again. Bit of a different spin on their typical epic structure. The No More Lies nod is cool too, I like to think that was intentional.

10
 
9/10

Adrian goes epic. Terrific song, like mentioned above I love how it builds and grows. The instrumental section is mindblowing. Love how different it is. Hopefully Adrian goes epic again for the next album.

Edit: I'm surprised to see the ratings for this song. Two have given it 3/10. WTF.
 
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