Shadows Of The Valley

How good is Shadows of the Valley on a scale of 1-10?

  • Total voters
    26
Number 6 said:
The "Clansman" bit is very similar to that "Losfer Words" bit indeed (I can also see where the "Book of Souls" claim came from as well), but neither have anything to do with "Wasted Years" or "Shadows of the Valley".
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You're half right.
 
Number 6 said:
but neither have anything to do with "Wasted Years" or "Shadows of the Valley".
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The details vary, but it's all similar stuff in E minor with accented notes going "bigger leap down, smaller leap up" and E pedal notes in between. Also in SotV the accent pattern is indentical as in WY. Saying that they don't have anything to do with each other is a bigger stretch than saying they are very similar.
 
Number 6 said:
Where?

That bit in "Clansman" is not nearly as similiar as people try to make it out to be.
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The Clansman bit is much more like Wasted Years than SOTV. All the riffs are based around the same simple scale, Clansman has the notes in the exact same sequence, SOTV mixes it up after the fourth note in the sequence. Also the length of the phrase is half as long in SOTV.
 
TBOS album is amazing, but ''Shadows Of The Valley'' is my favorite song from it. I wish Janick writes more than 2 songs per album. Again fantastic lead melody (triple-lead melodies too), verses and the intro is good, very dramatic - the ''who-ah'' part is one of the best moments in the song and the song theme is perfect for the album. The chorus and the lyrics great, the song is fast, maybe mid-tempo, but it builds up and it is a very ''mystic'' tune and I like that a lot.... plus it has a great song title.

I like this part of the song a lot:

''Into the valley of death fear no evil
We will go forward no matter the cost
Into the valley of death follow me now
Bring me your souls and I’ll make it our last''

Majestic moment of the song. The song is a hidden gem, deep cut, treasure. Dave's solo is great, Janick's solo is good (it fits the song) and Adrian adds a little improvisation to his own. Bruce's vocals are great as always, great drumming from Nicko. This song shines in the modern Maiden style. 10/10
 
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"[U said:
I like this part of the song a lot:[/U]

''Into the valley of death fear no evil
We will go forward no matter the cost
Into the valley of death follow me now
Bring me your souls and I’ll make it our last''
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This.
 
The weakest song on the album, but still pretty decent. It rips off the "Wasted Years" riff blatantly but does a good job of it. The verses and pre-chorus are kinda weaker, but the chorus itself is strong, and the whoa-oh-oh bit is cool too. Not one of Maiden's best, but firmly above average. 6
 
The album's hidden gem. They either played all the other 10/10 tracks live or released them as a single so you might be mistaken for thinking this song isn't up to much. You'ld be wrong. Nice intro that changes into a heads down rhythm section for the main verses. The section that goes Janick blackmore style solo, classic maiden melody, H playing a bluesy solo over that melody (WTF! he does this in the red and black too, I love this new development) and then the verse "Into the valley of death fear no evil" may be the best secion on the entire album. 10/10
 
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Does anyone think the lyrics are based on Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell? Its a book from 2004 and a BBC tv series from May 2015. The album was recorded before the tv series aired.
The chat about ravens and a dark world kissed with sadness really remind me of the book. I read the book not long before the album came out and there were other lines in the song that reminded me of the book but I can't quite remember now.
 
I think the lyrics as I understand them have to do with the "sons" who die young. As if he wants to urge the listener to follow the "wild call"!
He also says at one point that "try to make sense of all this
It will be for the repentance of the people "
This verse shocked me! What to say!
 
Another Book of Souls track with a seemingly incohesive lyrical concept and a lot of musical parts loosely strung together, this one is the biggest offender for me. While there are some great melodies in this track, I find that Bruce's vocal parts are pretty unmemorable and the riffs all feel pretty familiar, and not just the Wasted Years callback. It's all a little too familiar and it doesn't feel like the song has any direction. This is honestly probably in the running for my least favorite reunion-era track. 2
 
I thought of something - the different verse before the ''oh-ohs'' (''into the valley of death fear no evil''...) would have been a killer chorus for the song. But then we wouldn't have it in the song. Just a thought. One of the best sections of the entire Reunion era imo. It's really anthemic and epic!

Not that I want to, but I can't be the only one who thinks so?
 
Kalata said:
I thought of something - the different verse before the ''oh-ohs'' (''into the valley of death fear no evil''...) would have been a killer chorus for the song. But then we wouldn't have it in the song. Just a thought. One of the best sections of the entire Reunion era imo. It's really anthemic and epic!

Not that I want to, but I can't be the only one who thinks so?
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It is one of the bands best moments. I was sure they'd play the song live just for this.
 
Kalata said:
I thought of something - the different verse before the ''oh-ohs'' (''into the valley of death fear no evil''...) would have been a killer chorus for the song. But then we wouldn't have it in the song. Just a thought. One of the best sections of the entire Reunion era imo. It's really anthemic and epic!

Not that I want to, but I can't be the only one who thinks so?
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Amazing section, yes.

I think this song is underrated and I wish they had played it on TBOS world tour. Much better than The Great Unknown, for example. Actually, the only thing that I don't like about it is the wasted years-like intro, but just because it sounds too similar. Solid 8.5/10 for me.
 
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