Maiden's multi-generational fan base - what's the magic?

Taker

Cannon Fodder
I find it quite remarkable how this band appeals to such a wide variety of ages. Last night I spent a large part of the evening in deep discussion with my employer's son, who is 14. I'm 46. The subject: Iron Maiden in general and The Final Frontier in particular. The lad and I had absolutely nothing in common outside of Iron Maiden, but it was amazing how the conversation never lacked for subject matter. As an older fan, it's reinforcing to see that a band that I've followed for almost thirty years is still having the same effect on the youth of today as they did on me in the early 80's.
For me as a long time fan, Maiden's musical integrity has been a primary factor in my listening loyalty. There have been dips in the road over the years, but even with material I'm not overly fond of, the musical excellence displayed by the artists was never called into question. All of the material they have released is almost instantly recognizable as Maiden. That's comforting, somehow. I'm guessing the musical integrity is less of a factor with the newer fans, and when I asked the boss's son what appealed him the most, he told me it was the energy of the music. So now I'm asking the more recent fans of Iron Maiden the same question: What is it about this band of guys in their 50's do you find so appealing?
 
im 16, as the lad you were talking to their energy (particularly on stage) far surpasses alot of bands half their age which is refreshing
but to me its largely the way that a story can be told by them, not just lyrically but complimented by the music aswell. This is also one of the main reasons i prefer the 2000 songs as theyve moved toward the more progressive storytelling style which makes TFF my Meccah with immense imagery and a passion for exploration and discovery. such a beautiful rhetoric for an album.
Theres a real intelligence to their music, its all thought out and (on occasions, other than Quest) historically backed up. nothing feels too contrived and done solely for the fame like with most bands my mates listen to, to the point that im really the only maiden fan in my group with the rest generally thinking that "their kind of metal id dead now, anyway slipknot and bullet are much better" :blink:

As far as im concerned they are the best band in the world and i cant see there ever being another band to come near them in my eyes. Im making a conscious effort to make the most of them while theyre around. this summer i will have seen em' 3times in 3 different countries  :bigsmile:

as a closing note, theres a feeling at a maiden gig you dont get anywhere else. like you mentioned, you come from different backgrounds but instantly your friends and theres a sense of unity that maiden brings [blood brothers live really meant something (could've cried)]

thats my summary  :)
 
I thing one of Maiden's biggest attributes is that their music is absolutely timeless.  If I listen to an old Judas Priest album, for example, I can say "that came out in the 80's, sounds like it."  But Maiden has never bowed to any trends, and thus have always stood apart from what was popular.  Albums like Seventh Son or Powerslave seem to just "exist" without any real relation to when they came out.  Some bands just have it like that.  Pink Floyd is another example of a similarly timeless band.
 
I don't think Maiden is particularly unique in their fanbase.  Good music will always find a way to filter down to subsequent generations.  It's why people still listen to Vivaldi or Mozart.
 
GuineaPig said:
I don't think Maiden is particularly unique in their fanbase.  Good music will always find a way to filter down to subsequent generations.  It's why people still listen to Vivaldi or Mozart.

Agreed %100.

Good songwriting is good songwriting, regardless of instrumentation, band image, etc.....and will appeal to people from all walks of life. 
 
I'm in a very similar situation to jonnytron who posted earlier in that I am the only Maiden fan in my group of friends. Some of them claim that bands like Bullet For My Valentine  :eek: are the "real metal bands" whereas others like typical mainstream pop and hip-hop, lots of them also like an electro-rock band called Pendulum who I simply cannot stand. The irritating thing is that people of my age group seem to dismiss Maiden as soon as they hear that they are a band from the 80's without even listening to any of their songs and even caliming tha thtye are just "noise" or "screaming" which provokes incandescent rage within me. Nothing however can shake my massive support of Maiden, the sheer emotion and passion that runs through practically every one of their songs and their lyrical brilliance which no other band can hold a candle to (In my opinion that is  :D) means that I do, and probably always will, consider them to be the greatest musicians of all time. It is a pity that few people are able to realise that they are a band that demands understanding and thoughtful listening rather than producing run-of-the-mill 3 minute pop songs made for the radio and therefore refuse to even attempt to enjoy their phenomenal music.

As for the reason to their growing fanbase I attribute it to the relevance of their music despite some of their songs being written many years before people of my age were even born and once again, the energetic and passionate nature of their music!  :shred:
 
chaosapiant said:
I thing one of Maiden's biggest attributes is that their music is absolutely timeless.  If I listen to an old Judas Priest album, for example, I can say "that came out in the 80's, sounds like it."  But Maiden has never bowed to any trends, and thus have always stood apart from what was popular.  Albums like Seventh Son or Powerslave seem to just "exist" without any real relation to when they came out.  Some bands just have it like that.  Pink Floyd is another example of a similarly timeless band.

Agreed 100%
 
UpTheIrons said:
I'm in a very similar situation to jonnytron who posted earlier in that I am the only Maiden fan in my group of friends.

actually i dont mind elements of pendulum  :innocent:  like self v self with in flames (thats awesome)   but i digress... in the first term of college ive been on missionary mode trying to get people into maiden, its working with some while others, in particular a girl in my group wenever we talk logically about music resorts to "well you like shitty iron maiden so you cant talk" wearing her bullet for my valentine tshirt.. :mad: safe to say shes not coming back  :innocent:    
no shes not dead (yet) but i dont talk to her as much... another guy im loaning flight666, he seems to be more receptive.

:huh:oh no, ive become like one of those pushy religious people  :blush:

plus they ALL think Dio (was) "shit"...  -_-  i need some new friends, or a stress ball at times
 
GuineaPig said:
I don't think Maiden is particularly unique in their fanbase.  Good music will always find a way to filter down to subsequent generations.  It's why people still listen to Vivaldi or Mozart.

Correct.

Good is good regardless of age.
 
Travis_AKA_fonzbear2000 said:
Of course, part of it has to do with parents who listen to Maiden and then their kids hear it and get into it.
my parents had in a way an adverse effect toward maiden in me, both my parents are into pop, Bowie and abba etc.
but in a way my rebelling stages from that into rap and metal helped to broaden my scope of music and helpe me to reach maiden, personally now i enjoy many types of music from blondie to eminem through to in flames, dio and maiden. and in all like you said id agree its to do with who i have been surrounded by at different stages of my growing up
 
I am a 41 year old fan, since Piece of Mind, my 16 year old got into them after seeing the early part of the new Tour.  In part it is because they just flat out make great music, but also that they are not doing the nostalgia gig, they keep themselves relevant by making and playing new, music and hitting it hard on stage.  They are also a bit of a backlash against all the celeb pop crap music.  They won me fully over on the Powerslave Tour, they won my kid over with a completeley different set list, and at the same time keep winning me over to the point where I enjoy the new stuff as much as the classics.
 
I'm 18, Been listening to Maiden since I was 15.

And they are huge part of my life now. Favorite band, I started playing guitar because of them.
So yeah, Maiden are timeless and awesome.
 
UpTheIrons said:
lots of them also like an electro-rock band called Pendulum

Yep, a lot of my uni mates also like this band hugely, but I'm not a fan of them either. One of my mates even travelling ~900km from Melbourne to go to a one-off show only in Sydney (for that section of the tour).

Travis_AKA_fonzbear2000 said:
Of course, part of it has to do with parents who listen to Maiden and then their kids hear it and get into it.

Yep, that's what happened to me. Both my parents listened to Maiden / metal in their teen years in the 80s (and still do now, just not on as big a scale) and early teens is when I started listening to Maiden / metal.

As to the question why so many people over different generations listen to Maiden? The music is timeless, and Maiden put so much energy and hard work into their music, it's hard not to like them (for those people that give them a chance).
 
bearfan said:
I am a 41 year old fan, since Piece of Mind, my 16 year old got into them after seeing the early part of the new Tour.  In part it is because they just flat out make great music, but also that they are not doing the nostalgia gig, they keep themselves relevant by making and playing new, music and hitting it hard on stage.  They are also a bit of a backlash against all the celeb pop crap music.  They won me fully over on the Powerslave Tour, they won my kid over with a completeley different set list, and at the same time keep winning me over to the point where I enjoy the new stuff as much as the classics.

Every word of this is true for me as well. The news Priest is doing a farewell tour, while sad, hasn't wrecked my world. While I enjoyed both reunion albums, neither was "special" in the way the music of their heyday was special. Maiden's output from its reunion phase remains as special as its glory years. Their current popularity is proof integrity and dedication do mean something.
 
mckindog said:
Every word of this is true for me as well. The news Priest is doing a farewell tour, while sad, hasn't wrecked my world. While I enjoyed both reunion albums, neither was "special" in the way the music of their heyday was special. Maiden's output from its reunion phase remains as special as its glory years. Their current popularity is proof integrity and dedication do mean something.
Maiden's reunion was 1000 times more succesfull than any other reunion in metal . Iron Maiden pretty much recaptured the popularity they had in their peak in the eighties in everything (album sales * when considering today's conditions* , ticket sales, grand memorable tours e.t.c) . No matter the opinion one has on the quality of the reunion albums (which i think are great) noone can deny the amazing success of IM' reunion.
 
Just to confirm in my previous post, I wasn't abusing other artists (such as Pendulum) I was merely stating that they weren't for me, in case there are any fans on here  :bigsmile:
 
UpTheIrons said:
Just to confirm in my previous post, I wasn't abusing other artists (such as Pendulum) I was merely stating that they weren't for me, in case there are any fans on here  :bigsmile:

I had to stand and listen to them to keep a space near the front for Maiden at Sonisphere last summer. Abuse away!  ;)
 
I think the magic in Maiden's music lies in the fact that they create complex and emotional music. Plus, being somebody who loves reading, watching movies and all other forms of learning, I think that they can open up a lot of new fields to people with a thirst for knowledge. And let's not forget they kick an absolutely hearty dose of ass  :rocker: I think there's also quite a sense of playfulness in their music. Listening to Maiden it's almost like playing a videogame for me, but with a lot of intelligence and emotion added (which doesn't mean that videogames aren't intelligent or emotionally complex per sè, but this is about Maiden, after all  :yey:)
 
taker64 said Maiden's musical integrity has been a primary factor in my listening loyalty. You said it all.

A Metal band in the 1980's with Winston Churchill as an intro. Yea, right...

This band was really different... and today still is.
 
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