Maiden Albums: Head to Head

[Number 6]

Blaze >>>>>> Bruce

 

[Collin]

Which one?

The one with Darkness. Not the one with Briefcases or lunches.

 

[Srogyy]

Sign of the Cross
Different World
------------------------
Lord of the Flies
These Colours Don't Run
------------------------
Man on the Edge
Brighter Than a Thousands Suns
------------------------
Fortunes of War
The Pilgrim
------------------------
Look for the Truth
Longest Day
------------------------
The Aftermath
Out of the Shadows
------------------------
Judgement of Heaven
The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg
------------------------
Blood on the World's Hands
For the Greater Good of God
------------------------
The Edge of Darkness
Lord of Light (I actually hesitated... I love The Edge of Darkness too.)
------------------------
2 a.m.
Hocus Pocus (2 A.M. is a very nice moody track, but the fun aspect of Hocus Pocus wins here.)
------------------------
The Unbeliever
The Legacy

 

[Diesel 11]

Ha, just checked the current results, my vote on the last match-up won't matter a fuck. I did not expect such a total obliteration of what I consider to be a great song (The Unbeliever).

The Unbeliever is a great song, but unfortunately it's up against a fucking masterpiece. Sad!

 

[Lampwick 43]

Which one?

Man On The Edge Of Darkness, of course.

It's up there with Maiden classics like The Fallen Angel And The Gambler, and Judgement Of Heaven Can Wait.

 

[Forostar]

Ha, just checked the current results, my vote on the last match-up won't matter a fuck. I did not expect such a total obliteration of what I consider to be a great song (The Unbeliever).

The Legacy has a majestic intro but the instrumental part later on (despite one of Janick's better solos) is stale compared to the adventurous Unbeliever. The whole song is pretty monotone compared to The Unbeliever.

 

[The Flash]

The intro is actually my least favorite part of The Legacy.

 

[Diesel 11]

My favorite part are the lyrics themselves, but I love the song as a whole.

 

[permanenteddie]

Sign of the Cross vs Different World
Lord of the Flies vs These Colours Don't Run
Man on the Edge vs Brighter Than a Thousand Suns
Fortunes of War vs The Pilgrim
Look for the Truth vs Longest Day
The Aftermath vs Out of the Shadows
Judgement of Heaven vs The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg
Blood on the World's Hands vs For the Greater Good of God
The Edge of Darkness vs Lord of Light (tough one as well)
2 AM vs Hocus Pocus
The Unbeliever vs The Legacy (even if The Unbeliever is, imo, one of the best of the album)

 

[Lampwick 43]

7-4 AMOLAD. The 4 X Factor songs being: Sign of the Cross, Fortunes of War, The Aftermath, and 2 a.m.

I really wanted to vote for Edge of Darkness, but I just couldn't go against Lord of Light.

 

[Black Wizard]

'The Unbeliever' ends well but the intro and early vocal lines are somewhat jarring and discordant. 'The Legacy' is a glorious song, however, with three distinct parts that flow almost seamlessly into one another.

 

[LooseCannon]

Edge of Darkness is the forgotten Blaze epic, and a far better song than it's given credit for.

 

[Black Wizard]

Edge of Darkness is the forgotten Blade epic, and a far better song than it's given credit for.

Blade?

 

[Confeos]

Sign of the Cross vs Different World
Lord of the Flies vs These Colours Don't Run
Man on the Edge vs Brighter Than a Thousand Suns
Fortunes of War vs The Pilgrim
Look for the Truth vs The Longest Day
The Aftermath vs Out of the Shadows
Judgement of Heaven vs The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg
Blood on the World's Hands vs For the Greater Good of God
The Edge of Darkness vs Lord of Light
2 A.M. vs Hocus Pocus
The Unbeliever vs The Legeacy

4-7.

Ouch. Both albums sit firmly in my Top 5.
Some choices, namely Sign of the Cross vs Different World, Fortunes vs Pilgrim and Judgement vs Benjamin Breeg, were absolutely brutal. In the end I think AMOLAD is a worthy winner, but I'm perfectly happy with any of these two progressing.

 

[LooseCannon]

Blade?

Autocorrect.

 

[Black Wizard]

'A Matter of Life and Death' has streamrolled this one 8-3. Sad! I think it's laughable that 'The Pilgrim', one of Maiden's weakest songs, has more votes than 'Fortunes of War' - a thoroughly underrated song. You people are crazy.

 

[Ariana]

It's not craze, it's Bruce bias. Sad!

 

[JudasMyGuide]

Bruce bias? Never. AMOLAD bias all the way.

Wait… only 6-5 in favour of AMOLAD? Huh?

That was… unexpected.

 

[Black Bart]

Sign of the Cross vs Different World
Lord of the Flies vs These Colours Don't Run
Man on the Edge vs Brighter Than a Thousand Suns
Fortunes of War vs The Pilgrim
Look for the Truth vs Longest Day
The Aftermath vs Out of the Shadows
Judgement of Heaven vs The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg
Blood on the World's Hands vs For the Greater Good of God (both are songs that I rank among Maiden's most uninspired and most badly constructed, I voted for the singer I prefer)
The Edge of Darkness vs Lord of Light
2 AM vs Hocus Pocus
The Unbeliever vs The Legacy

A battle at the bottom of the barrel, as far as Maiden albums go, in my opinion. Songs of Sadness, Plodding and Boredom Vol. 1 (aka The X Factor) had its charm because it was the first of the kind for Maiden. Then, the formula outwore its welcome.
8-3 for The X Factor.

 

[Mosh]

Fortunes of War is definitely the only one being snubbed here. The Pilgrim is easily the worst song on the list (minus the b side).

Edit: Forgot about The Edge of Darkness. That song is the worst. The Pilgrim isn’t far behind though.