Maiden Songs That Are Growing On You

Let me add another! Infinite Dreams, I never liked the intro all that much so it was usually a skip for me. Was jamming to 7S on the way home from work the other day and really listened to it more closely. It may have broken my top 15 on that listen, whew what an awesome song, I love how it almost wanders through all those different parts like a dream can sometimes be perfectly clear and entirely confusing at the same time.
 
I hated it upon first listen, but as I'm listening more and more to NPFTD, Holy Smoke is really growing on me. It's silly but fun. It's an attempt to sound like AC/DC, not that they necessarily needed to do that.
 
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I hated it upon first listen, but as I'm listening more and more to NPFTD, Holy Smoke is really growing on me. It's silly but fun. It's an attempt to sound like AC/DC, not that they necessarily needed to do that.

I love Holy Smoke. It's the only great song on NPFTD in my opinion.
 
The ultimate grower for me has to be The Legacy. I've listened to AMoLaD a thousand times over when it came out in 2006... and I just couldn't remember the song at all when looking at the tracklist (the length of the album probably hasn't helped, either). The Legacy? Maiden have such a song? How does it go? To be fair, I remembered the distinctive 8-tone motive repeated throughout... but not much else.
Then it really grew upon me, during the last year. Like, really grew. Currently it's in my top 5, some days even bordering on #1. It works best as a closing number, wrapping up AMoLaD quite nicely, but it has this strange grip on me anyway... Some days I'm not even in the mood for Maiden, but I'm almost always in the mood for that song. Weird.
 
Also, The X Factor, as a whole. During the first listen, I actually fell asleep somewhere around Blood on the World's Hands. Nowadays it's my #3 album by Maiden.

And Isle of Avalon. During the first ten or so listens, I just didn't get it. The three minute intro was probably the main problem. Now I really like it.
 
I never really listened to X Factor till I heard Bruce sing a couple live. I actually removed it from my playlist all these years. But slowly the live ones with Bruce vocals made it onto my computer. Sign of the cross, lord of the flies along with The Clansman live which I often play loud in my car.

I have since put both Blaze Bayley albums on and don't usually skip them when they come around.
 
I used to ignore Bring your Daughter to the Slaughter and disliking Holy Smoke. They were on repeat during my night shift recently.
Also the whole AMOLAD album. I bought it and went to see the tour but I bought the album so close to the venue that I couldn't really thoroughly remember any of the songs so the first half of the show was a bit lukewarm for me, and I carried that feeling over to my general feelings for this album. I rediscovered it recently and I'm liking it more and more.

Generally I feel my taste in (Maiden) songs shift. I liked the classic in-your-face songs at like 13 years old, now 14 years later I appreciate the lyrical side and the instrumental details more. Not to say that I don't enjoy in-your-face stuff anymore, of course. People change, taste changes, everything evolves. I prefer BNW to NOTB, it was different 10 years ago. Who knows how it is in another decade's time.
Also, Coming Home from TFF wouldn't nearly have had such an impact on me if I wouldn't work in aviation (not a pilot).

I do massively enjoy Wasted Years since ever, though.
 
Not a specific song, but the entire album of The X Factor. Upon first listen, I guess the absence of bruce just hits you like a ton of bricks. Blaze is clearly not Bruce. My first listen through the entire X factor album and I just felt very disappointed. Not that I thought the songs were bad, it was tough to really appreciate them fully after just a single listen each (except i've heard sign of the cross before). It was simply the fact that Bruce was gone.
It's pretty damn ironic that I'm experiencing the same emotions many fans did back in 1993-1995 when they first played that album. I at least get to know that Bruce will be back. I would probably be more disappointed and wondering where the heck this new Blaze Bayley band is going.

However, now i've listened to it about 4 or 5 times in its entirety and it sounds better with each listen. Blaze is slowly growing on me, but I think he might be clearly behind both Bruce and Paul as the #3 maiden vocalist. I'll revisit that question when I've finished Virtual XI early next month.
 
The man who would be king have really grabbed my attention lately, used to think it was good, but a bit bland and one of the songs that didn't stand out on the record. But now I'm all of a sudden starting to love it a lot, it has a very nice kinda mellow vibe and some fascinating and bluesy solo things going on, a song that grows when put out of context, on the record it's kinda hidden in the end between other songs that tends to overshadow it, but listen to it on it's own and it's actually a very, very good song.
 
The man who would be king have really grabbed my attention lately, used to think it was good, but a bit bland and one of the songs that didn't stand out on the record. But now I'm all of a sudden starting to love it a lot, it has a very nice kinda mellow vibe and some fascinating and bluesy solo things going on, a song that grows when put out of context, on the record it's kinda hidden in the end between other songs that tends to overshadow it, but listen to it on it's own and it's actually a very, very good song.
This one took me a few listens, but I wouldn't have classified it as a grower. Definitely one of my favorites from TFF.
 
Let me add another! Infinite Dreams, I never liked the intro all that much so it was usually a skip for me. Was jamming to 7S on the way home from work the other day and really listened to it more closely. It may have broken my top 15 on that listen, whew what an awesome song, I love how it almost wanders through all those different parts like a dream can sometimes be perfectly clear and entirely confusing at the same time.


Infinite Dreams is actually a bit of an anti grower (shrinker), to me as I used to hold it as one of Maidens best, but not anymore. But that is probably just because I played it too much, and wore it out a bit.
 
The lesser played tracks on Dance of Death are currently growing on me a lot, particularly New Frontier and Face In The Sand.

I'm not sure why this album gets the flack it does.
 
The lesser played tracks on Dance of Death are currently growing on me a lot, particularly New Frontier and Face In The Sand.

I'm not sure why this album gets the flack it does.
DOD is tied for my second favorite reunion album with BNW behind TFF. Face in the Sand is a fantastic song and New Frontier isn't nearly as bad for me as it is for many of you.
 
The title track from The Final Frontier has grown on me a lot recently. I was really not a fan until very recently, but now I like it a lot more.
 
I guess No Prayer For the Dying has grown on me a little bit recently. It's not as bad as I remembered it being, it was actually quite alright.
 
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