New To Maiden

  • Thread starter Thread starter Anonymous
  • Start date Start date
A

Anonymous

Guest
Hi,

I don't know if I can do this or where to begin but I have been an Iron Maiden fan since January of this year. I don't own their albums but I like their t-shirts and have seen at least one of their videos on the television. I'm guessing there is a large fanbase out there for this kind of thing, although ask ten people and get ten different answers.

So I will.

Anyway, I am 28 years old and live in Australia where liking Iron Maiden is simply by the book, which is a term that everyone here uses the the time. Don't ask me why. If you want to picture what I look like, then I am sorry but I don't have any photos of myself acceptable for posting. But I have blonde hair and I smoke. I am also thinking of getting an Iron Maiden tattoo like the ones you see in magazines where couples advertise for 'playmates'. The music I listen to could be described as comtemporary adult and I do not like techno - sorry but you need to grow apart from these things!

So, yeah, as I was saying you could maybe give me some information on how I can meet the band and what albums should I buy and in what order - unsure as to whether or not I should buy each album based on its artwork and the listed song titles, which can border on the superfluous. I have checked out amazon.com but there is such a wealth of information and such diversity of opinion that I was visibly reduced to tears and spent the next several hours weeping into a box of tim tams and watching reruns of Full House in my pyjamas. You have NO IDEA!!! I gues at the end of the day I will just have to rely on the kindness of strangers.

If you help me out I promise I will buy their albums as much as possible and support the local team. I quite like the look of '666 Is The Number Of The Beast' and 'TimeCatcher' as I have both these t-shirts and wear them to clubs on the weekends. And thanks for accepting me into this forum even though at times we can be forced into disagreement on a number of related issues - like where the band gets its name from and how many albums will they make before people forget who they are.

Cheers!


*and love live Hangar 18
 
Oh dear,  look,  I must admit that it seems kinda strange you're intrigued by the artwork and being 28.  So,  what you're saying is that you're an Iron Maiden artwork fan since January,  but haven't got any albums? 

For my part,  I'd suggest 7th Son Of A Seventh Son.  Although not my favorite album,  it's the best one (no bad songs). 

I wonder where are the cynical mods  :innocent:
 
Lorax said:
(...) at times we can be forced into disagreement on a number of related issues - like where the band gets its name from and how many albums will they make before people forget who they are.
Click to expand...
:blink:
You love Iron Maiden but you don't have any record? If you want this kind of post not to be deleted you'd better provide a nice picture of you and the tattoo... :D
However, I doubt it's enough... :dead:
 
Here's one of the cynical mods, and I'm not going to be cynical about this. I will, however, begin by plugging my website. Take a look at this, which is based on 50 Maiden fans voting on their favorite songs (including many fans from this forum). It's a good intro how people rank the various Iron Maiden songs.

Aside from that, here's my official recommendation of what order to buy (that's right, buy, not download) the albums in.

1. A Matter Of Life And Death
In addition to being their most recent album, it's also one of their best albums. Not a single weak song on it. Listen to this and get a sense of where Maiden are at today, artistically speaking.

2. Powerslave
The high water mark of their "golden age". Astoundingly good guitar work and intelligent lyrics.

3. The Number Of The Beast
The album that kicked off their "golden age". Contains "Hallowed Be Thy Name", viewed by many as their best song. Also contains "Run To The Hills", arguably their biggest hit.

4. Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son
The third pillar of their 80s output. A loose concept album with great songs, especially the first two tracks.

5. Brave New World
Not only a great album, but in hindsight it's almost like a manifesto for the band's revitalization since the reunion with Smith & Dickinson.

6. The X Factor
One of the albums with Blaze Bayley, and full of highly intelligent songs. A very dark mood; unlike any other Maiden album.

7. Piece Of Mind
My personal favorite. The first album with the "classic" lineup of Dickinson, Murray, Smith, Harris and McBrain. Solid and heavy all the way through.

8. Iron Maiden
Like many band's debut albums, it has some great songs because they got to work on these songs for years before getting signed. "Phantom Of The Opera" is especially spectacular.

9. Dance Of Death
A few weak tracks, but it's worth the price for "Paschendale" alone.

10. Somewhere In Time
Slightly weaker than the albums which came before and after, but only one weak track - "Deja Vu". And even with that song, my opinion seems to be in the minority; most people like it.

11. Killers
Not as instantly impressive as the rest, but this one will grow on you.

12. Virtual XI
An tantalizing hint of the direction Maiden might have taken, had Blaze stayed in the band. Great songs, especially "The Clansman" and "Futureal".

13. Fear Of The Dark
From a time when Maiden largely lost their way, but the title track and "Afraid To Shoot Strangers" are classics.

14. No Prayer For The Dying
Listed only for the sake of completeness. Maiden's worst album.

Additionally, the purchase of Live After Death is something I'd recommend at any time. The greatest heavy metal live album ever (by any band), and a good overview of the songs from their first 5 albums. (Although Killers is under-represented.) And for DVD: Rock In Rio.
 
Excellent list with spot-on thumbnail descriptions.  Although my personal list of favorite albums would differ slightly -- by the way, Lorax, there is a poll on that very topic: http://forum.maidenfans.com/index.php?topic=7092.0 -- this is a very good buyers' guide for anyone interested in getting into Iron Maiden's music.  SMX's best recommendation is perhaps his last, however.  If you are looking to start your collection with one album that gives a great overview of the band, get Live After Death -- it is a better introduction to Iron Maiden than any of the greatest hits collections currently available, as it covers the best material from the Big 3 albums from IM's golden age (Beast, Piece and Powerslave).  I'd put that at #1 on the shopping list. 
 
SMX, that's a really good list, I don't think I'd change the order of any of the albums. I fully agree on most of what you write about them too. This must mean one of two things: either you're a highly intelligent person with a great taste in music, or we're both led astray by our own stupidity :P

@ Lorax: I almost hesitate to say this but there are a few decent compilations out there too, like Best of the beast and Edward the Great, if you want a pretty decent mix of songs from Iron Maiden's different "eras", although I'd sincerely think you ought to buy the full albums, in the order SMX gave them. Oh, and I love the tone in your post. That mix of adolescence and (what I hope is) irony. I think I'll even give you a praise :D
 
SinisterMinisterX said:
Here's one of the cynical mods, and I'm not going to be cynical about this. I will, however, begin by plugging my website. Take a look at this, which is based on 50 Maiden fans voting on their favorite songs (including many fans from this forum). It's a good intro how people rank the various Iron Maiden songs.

Aside from that, here's my official recommendation of what order to buy (that's right, buy, not download) the albums in.
Click to expand...

Thankyou for treating an 'uninitiated' new member with the respect they deserve. It is so rare these days to find a forum not rife with musical elitism and clique-y indifference. If you must know, my post was a test of sorts, purposefully playing up to the stereotype of the 'clueless' music nerd. And you passed - with flying colors. Don't want to sound weird, but I really needed to test the waters before deciding to post here regularly. So many forums I have joined in the past are full of rude smartasses. I will gladly post here in the future and should I have any questions about this band that I know very little about, I will not hesitate to ask.

2. Powerslave
The high water mark of their "golden age". Astoundingly good guitar work and intelligent lyrics.

3. The Number Of The Beast
The album that kicked off their "golden age". Contains "Hallowed Be Thy Name", viewed by many as their best song. Also contains "Run To The Hills", arguably their biggest hit.
Click to expand...

My friend has these two albums, aside from a few odd tracks, I must say I wasn't impressed. Didn't hate either of them, but they failed to ignite any real spark of interest. They seemed to....er....pedestrian. Not enough experimentation. The songs went nowhere interesting, just seemed to chug along predictably. And to be honest I've never liked 'Run To The Hills'.

But still, much appreciated.

4. Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son
The third pillar of their 80s output. A loose concept album with great songs, especially the first two tracks.

5. Brave New World
Not only a great album, but in hindsight it's almost like a manifesto for the band's revitalization since the reunion with Smith & Dickinson.
Click to expand...

I love the artwork of Brave New World (I know, I know never judge a book...etc) and I have heard that it is somewhat more of a restrained, mature album, which is what I was looking for. I will definitely buy these two.

7. Piece Of Mind
My personal favorite. The first album with the "classic" lineup of Dickinson, Murray, Smith, Harris and McBrain. Solid and heavy all the way through.
Click to expand...

Agreed. Have heard this and I liked it very much.

9. Dance Of Death
A few weak tracks, but it's worth the price for "Paschendale" alone.
Click to expand...

Have liked what I've heard of this one. Will probably be the first one I buy.

10. Somewhere In Time
Slightly weaker than the albums which came before and after, but only one weak track - "Deja Vu". And even with that song, my opinion seems to be in the minority; most people like it.
Click to expand...

Number two to buy. Probably.

14. No Prayer For The Dying
Listed only for the sake of completeness. Maiden's worst album.
Click to expand...

Fans seem unanimous in naming this the worst album. Why?
 
Lorax said:
14. No Prayer For The Dying
Listed only for the sake of completeness. Maiden's worst album.
Click to expand...
Fans seem unanimous in naming this the worst album. Why?
Click to expand...
From a personal point of view, I think (and I have said this before) that "No Prayer.." is actually a very good album. Aside from "Hooks in you", I rate all tracks good to very good. But a lot of fans do not like the change in direction Maiden took on this - going from quite a polished act to a more raw sounding band (especially on Bruce's vocals).

I will admit, however, when "No Prayer.." first came out, I only liked it a little - but I almost forced myself to like because it was Maiden (how shallow!). "The Assassin", for example, I hated - I saw them live twice on that tour and when this was played, I was quite disappointed. As the years have worn on, I dig this album out every so often and actually really enjoy it - especially now "The Assassin". I do think that "Fear of the Dark" (aside from one or two killer tracks) is the worst - in my opinion.

Aside from that, SMX has a good indication as to the order you should build up your collection.
 
Oh dear. Such haste of decision - where to begin?

I want to look the part, before it's too late. And maybe it is.

But this is the order I will buy them in this weekend:

Dance Of Death
The X Factory
Somewhere in Time?
Brave New World
Death On The Road
Iron Maiden
Rock In Rio
A Matter Of Life And Death
Piece Of Mind
Powerslave
Virtual XI
No Prayer For The Dying
Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son
Killers
Number Of The Beast
Live After Death
 
Albie said:
Fans seem unanimous in naming this the worst album. Why?
From a personal point of view, I think (and I have said this before) that "No Prayer.." is actually a very good album. Aside from "Hooks in you", I rate all tracks good to very good. But a lot of fans do not like the change in direction Maiden took on this - going from quite a polished act to a more raw sounding band (especially on Bruce's vocals).

I will admit, however, when "No Prayer.." first came out, I only liked it a little - but I almost forced myself to like because it was Maiden (how shallow!). "The Assassin", for example, I hated - I saw them live twice on that tour and when this was played, I was quite disappointed. As the years have worn on, I dig this album out every so often and actually really enjoy it - especially now "The Assassin". I do think that "Fear of the Dark" (aside from one or two killer tracks) is the worst - in my opinion.

Aside from that, SMX has a good indication as to the order you should build up your collection.
Click to expand...


I remember, back in 1991, that I bought NPFTD as one of the last albums, because Holy Smoke and BYDTTS didn't grab me as much as the other singles I knew. When I finally played the cd I was pleasantly surprised!
The album sounded fresh and the drums have the most live sound Birch ever created.
Fates Warning, Mother Russia are (forgotten) songs with above-average good melodies and atmosphere. Public Enema Number One has a cool roughness all over it and interesting guitar playing during the couplets. I love the vocals (emotion) Bruce puts into the title track. The instrumental sections of Run Silen Run Deep is also worth mentioning.

This album represents for me a good combination of moody moments, groove, aggression and live feel.
 
Lorax said:
Oh dear. Such haste of decision - where to begin?

I want to look the part, before it's too late. And maybe it is.

But this is the order I will buy them in this weekend:

Dance Of Death
The X Factory
Somewhere in Time?
Brave New World
Death On The Road
Iron Maiden
Rock In Rio
A Matter Of Life And Death
Piece Of Mind
Powerslave
Virtual XI
No Prayer For The Dying
Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son
Killers
Number Of The Beast
Live After Death
Click to expand...
Perhaps I don't understand but tell me: if you plan to buy all these albums in the weekend why are you asking all these questions??????????
 
May I also suggest not buying too many albums at once?  I know from personal experience ( I bought six Maiden albums in day ) that you can't appreciate them as much.  Start with the first two you mentioned,  Dance Of Death has some weak tracks but it still is a great album (Paschendale  :wub:),  and The X Factor is also a very good one (although I don't have it yet,  everyone says it is,  and it's got Sign Of The Cross)
 
I just bought 'Piece Of Mind' and 'Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son'.

Fly On Your Way Like An Eagle
Fly As High As The Sun.

The girl at the front counter smiled at me as I handed her my intended purchase. Maybe she knew maybe she didn't but I'll never go back there again...and why should I?

Next weekend I intend to buy Dance Of Death and Powerslave.

Yeah, I know why you think that.

wink wink
I'm not sure if this is a good idea anymore. Since listening to Iron Maiden I have been so engrossed in the artwork. At times I forget that there are also songs like 'Aces High'.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top