Perhaps it’s not that cool to realize for TXF admirers (who rate FOTD as their worst album) that it has things in common with FOTD but…….
Invader said:
Though I agree with you Foro that FotD and TXF have some joining elements,
I'd say
many joining elements.
The most typical elements from FOTD return on TXF. The simple rockers (and the accompanying lyrics) don't, but for the rest many elements do return. I don't mean to say that the quality of those albums is the same, that is not my point. But look:
The ballad
Wasting Love -->
2 A.M (The band must have liked the stuff Janick did on FOTD and let him bring another piece of moody music to TXF, accompanied by Steve and Blaze – Later again the same kind of mood on
Como Estais Amigos, this time without Steve).
The acoustic guitars
There are quite some acoustics on both albums.
Fear Is The Key has some strange fast ones, but so has
The Unbeliever. Of course there are many more acoustic parts but I am not going to list them all now. The similarities are obvious.
One short aggressive, fast track
Be Quick Or Be Dead -->
Man On The Edge: Janick's input and style again import for both albums.
The long calm intro's
See my previous post.
The psychological war song
Afraid To Shoot Strangers ->
Fortunes Of War
I know that Maiden did more "war" songs, but never before like this one. This deeper, psychological aspect of war started with the album
Fear Of The Dark and is continued on TXF and on later albums.
Perhaps there are more connections but this is quite a lot already.
Invader said:
...I've never seen Fear of the Dark as an album with feeling and patience. I always saw it more as a half-arsed attempt to go back to the golden age albums without letting go of No Prayer completely.
On FOTD I don't see much in common with the golden age. Not even the slightest form of attempt. On FOTD Maiden explores new directions, quite some of them are those elements that come back on TXF.
When I compare NPFTD with FOTD, I already told the change in sound and use of acoustic guitars. I realize there are rockers, so to speak on both albums, but the rockers on FOTD are more rock'n'roll-rockers and not half as aggressive and in-your-face as the ones on NPFTD. That's how I hear the differences, but everyone can have their own ideas (and ears) of course.
On NPFTD there are some silly lyrics (
Holy Smoke and
BYDTTS) so that is something in common with 1 or 2 songs of FOTD.
Invader said:
those two albums are in my opinion miles apart. One is a balanced, interesting, and unified album with direction, drive, and passion. The other is a halfway-there effort lacking in enthusiasm, unity, and interest. Maiden only (IMO) reached the balance and unity of The X Factor at the height of their two Bruce eras with Seventh Son of a Seventh Son and A Matter of Life and Death*, both of which were the result of years building up to them.
I can not hear from FOTD that it lacked unity, or that it lacked passion or interest.
I still agree with you that I like TXF better than FOTD, I find that too. These are matters of opinion.
But when I solely look at the
ingredients of both albums, I'd say FOTD is a mix of different things going on (some people find them too different
), where TXF picks up the better elements from FOTD (which are the moody, serious atmospheres, the long/calm intros, and the acoustic guitars) and leaves out the worse ones (less serious lyrics / shorter rockier songs). "Better" and "worse" are also subjective terms, but the band must have seen it this way, or else they wouldn't have taken/rejected those elements.
), then probably it's not worth remembering.
