DJMayes
Ancient Mariner
I think it's less a case of scoring them in particular low and more of me being fairly stingy in my scores overall. I
have the following rough guideline:
10 - Masterpiece (only got about 6 of these to give out)
9 - Fantastic
8 - Great
7 - Very Good
6 - Good
5 - Average
4 - Weak
3 - Bad
2 - Awful
1 - Irredeemable
Of course these averages don't tell the whole picture. I would rather listen to NPFTD in its entirety than I would Powerslave, but I'd be more likely to choose a song from Powerslave to listen to on its own as Powerslave easily has the strongest individual songs.
nuno_c
A hollow universe in space
I think one of the main reasons why i love Mother Russia is because, to me, it evokes a lot of images. Whenever i hear the song i think of the old Soviet Union at the height of it's repression in Stalin's era. The vocal melodies, the keyboards, everything on that song is a big reference to Russia's "spirit" at that time in history. The intro and outro of the song in particular really make me feel cold, it truly evokes images of soldiers marching in the snow and stuff like that. Great song if you ask me.
And no, it does not have that certain something that an epic like Hallowed has, and i'm happy it has not. Hallowed is Hallowed, it's a universe on it's own and, personally, i prefer seeing things for what they are, not really comparing it all the time to something else (Although, in all honesty, sometimes we all pretty much compare, it's only natural). But one thing's for sure: If things were meant to be all alike, it would all be boring as hell...
So yeah, Mother Russia's great. Works on it's own and it's a really full-on political, beautiful, evocative song.
And no, it does not have that certain something that an epic like Hallowed has, and i'm happy it has not. Hallowed is Hallowed, it's a universe on it's own and, personally, i prefer seeing things for what they are, not really comparing it all the time to something else (Although, in all honesty, sometimes we all pretty much compare, it's only natural). But one thing's for sure: If things were meant to be all alike, it would all be boring as hell...
So yeah, Mother Russia's great. Works on it's own and it's a really full-on political, beautiful, evocative song.
That was awesome.
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
9/10
Mother Russia is this album’s “epic closing track” even though it’s barely longer than five and a half minutes. From the synth-laden intro to the multiple guitar harmonies, the instrumental sections on this song are breathtaking. Harris digs deep into Eastern melodies and creates a mood different from any previous Maiden song. The vocals, however, are quite underwhelming. Bruce follows the riffs note for note and it all just sounds rather silly. There’s a ghostly, meditative sound to Mother Russia, even though it’s rather heavy and dramatic. The guitar solo section is masterful, with a constant back and forth between Murray and Gers that beautifully captures the energy and chaos of the song. It’s a shame that the vocal melodies are so poor, because this could have been one of Maiden’s best songs. Just like Losfer Words from Powerslave sounded empty without vocals, Mother Russia sounds cluttered with them. It potentially could have been superior as a completely instrumental track.
Mother Russia is this album’s “epic closing track” even though it’s barely longer than five and a half minutes. From the synth-laden intro to the multiple guitar harmonies, the instrumental sections on this song are breathtaking. Harris digs deep into Eastern melodies and creates a mood different from any previous Maiden song. The vocals, however, are quite underwhelming. Bruce follows the riffs note for note and it all just sounds rather silly. There’s a ghostly, meditative sound to Mother Russia, even though it’s rather heavy and dramatic. The guitar solo section is masterful, with a constant back and forth between Murray and Gers that beautifully captures the energy and chaos of the song. It’s a shame that the vocal melodies are so poor, because this could have been one of Maiden’s best songs. Just like Losfer Words from Powerslave sounded empty without vocals, Mother Russia sounds cluttered with them. It potentially could have been superior as a completely instrumental track.
Black Bart
Ancient Mariner
I totally share your opinion on "Mother Russia" (except that the melody sounds more Celtic than Eastern to me) apart from the last sentence: it would have been too long as an instrumental I think, and I love "Losfer Words" as it is.
In a rather different genre, here is an interesting example of including Russian music to rock:
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This is another Steve Harris song that sounds technically competent but misses out because it knows how good it is, much like Seventh Son of a Seventh Son. Unlike that worthy, though, this song happens to be a little less good - and have lyrics that are just sad now. Sorry. No, Russia didn't become our friends.
8/10.
8/10.
Honestly if they wanted to go with a more stripped down and direct approach on the album, they should've gone all in. This song is the musical equivalent of an identity crisis. It wants to be a proggy epic worthy of its older brothers Alexander the Great and Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, but it also doesn't want to go back on the album's overall aesthetic. Frankly, it doesn't do either side particularly well.
That being said, there are some nice melodies and it's mostly enjoyable. Just seems half baked and I don't think Steve even knew what he was trying to achieve with this.
6
That being said, there are some nice melodies and it's mostly enjoyable. Just seems half baked and I don't think Steve even knew what he was trying to achieve with this.
6
BeThyJames
Trooper
At least there's some attempt to be creative on this one.
But it's all so forgettable.
6
But it's all so forgettable.
6
Forostar
Ancient Mariner
What does it matter that an album goes in different directions? A good song is a good song.
Absolutely.
Yes and this song is good (I gave it a 6), but ultimately fails to excel as an epic or as something with the stripped down approach of the rest of the album. It does neither particularly well. That's the point I was getting at.
terrell39
Ancient Mariner
According to the IM Commentary, lead guitar credits are Dave/Janick/Dave/Janick/Dave.
The 1st solo by Dave is the most un-Dave like solo I ever heard. Not smooth at all; instead it is all over the place. Not saying it is bad, just that because it is so different, for years it was difficult for me to decide if it was Dave or Janick!
The 1st solo by Dave is the most un-Dave like solo I ever heard. Not smooth at all; instead it is all over the place. Not saying it is bad, just that because it is so different, for years it was difficult for me to decide if it was Dave or Janick!
Forostar
Ancient Mariner
I think it sounds pretty fluently (smooth). It hits more low notes and some parts are slow. That is indeed not the route Dave often takes, but it surely sounds like him. Also some more aggressive bending, but that's what he did more often on this album (title track!).