Yax said:
I don't think we'll see this one live for that exact reason.
Mother of Mercy
- Thread starter mozzle
- Start date
I don't think we'll see this one live for that exact reason.
Suicidehummer
Trooper
I don't think he's struggling on it. He doesn't even sound strained when he hits that "Cross Eyed Mary" note in the Talisman...
Only recently did I come to understand what the lyrics in the chorus were saying. I was thinking "taking my last breath of fire" was suggesting he could breathe fire, but he's really talking about burning to death.
Only recently did I come to understand what the lyrics in the chorus were saying. I was thinking "taking my last breath of fire" was suggesting he could breathe fire, but he's really talking about burning to death.
No, he's talking about burning in hell.
Suicidehummer
Trooper
How do you figure?
Regretting what he did, begging for forgiveness?
Suicidehummer
Trooper
Yeah, he's about to die and wants God's forgiveness for all the killing.
"I’ll die a lonely death of
That I'm certain of"
"I’ll die a lonely death of
That I'm certain of"
Invisible
Invader
Neck muscles still sore from Mother of Mercy chorus. 4 listens in. I don't think Bruce needed any more takes. He did exactly what he came to do here on this Earth, which is basically ripping his heart out through his mouth and shoving it into our ears. I very much hope to see this stuff live.
UpTheIrons
Ancient Mariner
Great song, 4.5/5, I love the lyrics, the chorus is great and the ending is fantastic!
Suicidehummer
Trooper
I gotta say, the chorus sounds like each line was cut in separately.
SpaceCoyote
Prowler
I agree with the AMOLAD comparisons, and would take it a bit further. This song reminds me a TON of the X Factor, particularly "The Aftermath" (lyrically, that is). I could almost see Blaze singing a version of this song. (I say 'version'... I realize he couldn't hit some of the notes as recorded by Dickinson)
Cap Maronis
Trooper
owa said:this song is growing on me over the last day. Still my least favourite on the record though. But that doesn't mean I think it's bad
I'm with you. It's a Montsegur for me, good tune, good feel and everything, but emotionally and thematically seems to be out of step with the rest of the album, so for that reason I keep it at the bottom. And while I feel everything on my favorites list is in flux after Isle of Avalon, I can't imagine this one will climb up that high on my favorites list.
That said, it's still a good song, just my least favorite by a bit of a margin.
Bombusbombus
Nomad
So far this is my favourite of the album, I think it's really an outstanding track. I actually think it's better than big parts of AMOLAD, even if I love that album.
Sir_Arthur_Conan_Death
Prowler
Really great song. I can just picture soldiers standing in the rain during the intro. Awesome stuff.
Mother of mercy
Prowler
Great song!! Does anyone else hear "only the good die young" in the first guitar melody??
Mother of mercy said:
Now that I think about it, yesish, at least the suggestion of it.
So now we come to a song which to me seems to draw much influence from The X Factor and a little from A Matter of Life and Death.
In terms of lyrics, its not hard to draw parallels between MoM (haha, mom) and The Aftermath or Fortunes of War. AMOLAD also gets a shoutout in terms of the general theme of soldiers and war since that was a central theme in the last one. However, it is still unique because here the soldier is seeking a way out, which is a central theme of this album it seems (seeking in general, not for a way out specifically although it resurfaces in The Man Who Would Be King). Also in terms of melodies, it has some of the melancholy that I would associate with the general feel of The X Factor. Speaking of melodies, my favorite bit comes in 2:01-2:18 and again from 3:48-4:04. Can't really say why, but I like it alot. There are many melodies in this song and they all seamlessly proceed from one to the other without disturbing the progression of the text. Bruce might have complained once that Steve's melodies were hard to sing text to, but I think here this problem has been fixed to perfection. But while on the subject of melodies, I'd like to add that the only bit of this song that I still need to get used to is the chorus. It is an unusual one for Maiden, difficult to sing, not just in terms of pitch but also because of the intervals. In this respect, it is reminiscent of the last two songs in AMOLAD which are more obscure, melody-wise. But aside from this, it is an absolute beauty with some of the most powerful lyrics I think Maiden has ever written.
