Starblind
- Thread starter Travis The Dragon
- Start date
BLASPHEMER!
I'm shinin' up the banhammer.
Do you seriously mock the majestic sonic wonderland that is Paschenfuckingdale here, on this Maiden forum? Have you entirely lost your mind?
Paschenfuckingdale is the reason Adrian Smith created mankind.
Do you seriously mock the majestic sonic wonderland that is Paschenfuckingdale here, on this Maiden forum? Have you entirely lost your mind?
Paschenfuckingdale is the reason Adrian Smith created mankind.
Any ways I can get scans of that?
No worries if you can't.
Jonszat
Trooper
I feel bad because I don't love Starblind like everyone else. I find the instrumental section to be slightly worse than some of the other epics because nothing in it has grabbed me that much. The vocals sound great but never really entice me. It could just be a song like BTaTS that is almost universally loved by everyone but me. Neither Starblind or BTaTS are anything below a 7/10. But they just don't seem even close to the praise others give them. Ah well.
Edit: I do think that Nicko is absolutely brilliant on the song though.
Edit: I do think that Nicko is absolutely brilliant on the song though.
D
Deleted member 7164
Guest
Paschendale is 7/10 on the record. Live, it's clean 10/10, without much thinking.
Summary : stellar song, shit of album production.
Summary : stellar song, shit of album production.
Prowler_108
Trooper
I agree.Jeffmetal said:
Prowler_108 said:
Good thing my banhammer is two-sided. I'ma get ta whackin ya n00bz soon if I keep seeing PFD disprespected!
Black Thunder
Ancient Mariner
SinisterMinisterX said:Good thing my banhammer is two-sided. I'ma get ta whackin ya n00bz soon if I keep seeing PFD disprespected!
BWHAHAHAHAHHAHAH!!!!
Dear everybody.
This post requires a few disclaimers.
Disclaimer #1: I'm drunk. Which means that, by principle, you shouldn't take too seriously what I post. However, it doesn't mean you should not put any thought into it at all, because I'm putting much effort into it, and as you know, in vino veritas. Which is a good reason for me to get a Vodka from my freezer (just returned from a party).
Second disclaimer, I think I need to define my personal laws of aesthetics. Let me present to you an example. Last night I was out dancing at an 80's metal party, and I spent a while watching this cute chick dancing. Before you ask, I tried to dance with her, but she didn't care. So, I watched her. She had a nice body and was dressed in a cliché 80s style, with denim and leather, Mötley Crüe patch and all. Cheesy as hell, but really nice to watch. To me, that's aesthetics in "performing arts", at least I think you know what I mean. I have a great sense of visual arts (I think), because I love William Turner, Paul Gaugin, Rembrandt and most of all, Picasso. Anyway, aesthetics is not just visual. It's whatever you perceive as "beautiful", and in my very poor example, that would describe the chick I mentioned. She was beautiful and nice to watch, but it also felt right to the music (Maiden, Angel Witch Bon Jovi, what do you want?). That's aesthetics. Things just feel right in every way.
Having said that, here is the true reason why I am posting in this thread: Starblind to me, is the perfection of aesthetics. I have to think of a very beautiful female friend of mine headbanging (and yes, I admit that there is hardly anything hotter than a beautiful girl headbanging, send me to the psychitarist if you can afford it) and the images of space of time; combined with the greatest music my favourite band has ever composed; combined with the greatest lyrics one of my favourite lyricists has ever written (if you are interested, ask me for my favourite lyricists, they are not relevant here).
I am just going to point out that musically, this song is sheer brilliance to me; I am not a musician (although I can play the air guitar quite well, and I'm a fairly good singer under the shower), so I'm not going to comment on the musical merits of this song, however strong I believe them to be. The way you know me, I have to comment on the lyrics.
Here comes disclaimer #3: I have not read LooseCannon's interpretation. I think he is one of the eminent thinkers of our community (and beyond), and I believe that all of you should take note of whatever he posts. But I also have to mention that Loosey and I have had long debates over the years (and I mean, years), and despite our close friendship I think in many points we have agreed to disagree. So it's up to you, dear critical thinker (and if you're uncritical, stop reading right here, this will blow your brain circuits) to decide what feels wrong and right to you.
So, Starchild. I have said that this is aesthetical perfection, and time will tell if it is better than Hallowed or not. Ask me again in ten years. I have had a hard time figuring our what the lyrics are trying to tell me. And I'm still not entirely sure. But to me it spells out in the first parts to be the promises of a fanatic who will tell you that this world is coming to an end, and that you should release yourself of your earthly presence and commit yourself to God and religion.
This is basically the prelude, but what happens then is close to blowing our minds. What does leaving elders to their parley; meant to satisfy our lust mean? Perhaps the fact that the generations of the past reach out and tell their stories, for the sole sense of satisfying our desire for great stories? I wish so. There are great heroic stories which are wonderful to listen to - think of Alexander the Great, Caesar, or Genghis Khan - that inspire us to make the best of ourselves, but should not make us become fanatics that follow their footsteps for the sake of it. The Alexander of our time may be called Barack Obama, if we give him a chance... it's just a matter of perspective. And thought.
I love the image of Damocles. Because whatever we do, there is always the sword of Damocles hanging above us. No matter how hard we try, there are lunatics who want to bring this world to chaos. In our present days, they are called Osama bin Laden or Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. They do not seem to want peace, at least not in the way the majority prefers it. We all wish they would see that none of us want anything different, we just believe the path towards it is different. But that is the sword of Damocles; we believed it to fall in Berlin in '61, Cuba in '62, Vietnam in '68, Europe in '89, MidEast in '03; it never fell upon us, but it was pretty damn close at times. I don't want it to fall, and I will do everything to prevent from anyone making it to fall.
Anyway, what does "Starblind" mean? Does it refer to all the deluded souls who follow the ones who will make the sword of Damocles fall upon us? Or does it refer to all of us who believe this will never happen? Because, face it, we all still believe in the thesis of Francis Fukuyama, that history had reached its end with the fall of the East Bloc; every society in the world is still waiting for us - the West - to liberate it and show it the way of Western Democracy. This, by the way, is not polemics, I'm just asking you. I am personally not yet sure whether this is the way to go or not. I certainly would not want the Taleban to rule Afghanistan... again.
Anyway, may those who believe the sword of Damocles will never fall on us make the sword fall in the end? Would the 9/11 attacks and all the related ones have happened if the US hadn't appeared in the MidEast in the first place? I have studied this history extensively. If you want my answer, ask me. There's a PM-box.
I believe that those who preach to you the Bible, the Qor'an, the Talmud, the Badhagadvita (sp?), the sayings of Confucius and all that jazz are promising you the stars, though they never give them to you, thus making you blind in anticipation for the stars- Starblind.
Mind you, that's my opinion. If you find the stars in any scripture or promise you believe in, tell me, reason it to me, I am more than welcome to listen. And argue.
On with the song. It speaks of religion's cruel device that is gone and its empty flesh and hollow bones... may this refer to the importance of preachings of the time religion came to existence? My personal theory, don't quote, is that each religion, from Zoroastrianism to Islam, was a new way of getting things to order that got out of hand. Zarathustra, just as Muhammad, just wanted to get a new order to society. They never thought that people in centuries past them would still take their word for the sole Truth...
At this point, I need another Vodka.
Because the song says that "you are free to choose a life to live or one that's left to choose".
The thing is, I don't see the problem. I personally believe in some sort of God, however it may be defined (this may shock some of my atheist friends), but at the same time, I believe he/she/it gave me a critical mind to make me decide what is wrong and what is right. If God would have wanted me to behave the right way, he would have told me so.
Yes, I know what you're gonna say. Ten Commandments, Old Testament, New Testament, yadda yadda yadda. But do you really think that if it is so important to God to get to us once and tell us what is right ionce? Or wouldn't he make sure that we follow his rules by telling those who didn't get his message?
Walk away from comfort offered by your citizens of death means that we should be critical. Ask what our governments want when they introduce new laws, especially when they do it during the Football World Cup... just saying (as a German). Why did Russia make war on Georgia, just when the Olympic Games in Beijing started... just asking.
Remember the Roman phrase, panem et cercensae, bread and games. It's what they keep you quiet with. Thing haven't changed in 2000 years.
I am only going to comment on one line of the song, one which I believe to be the strongest in the Maiden discography, if no the strongest ever: Whatever god you know, he knows you better than you believe.
Does that not mean that God knows all your doubts? And he knows that if even if your doubts he knows that if you blow yourself up or conquer Jerusalem or whatever, he know that youa re not entirely sure of everything? Does that mean that you don't have to answer to you Imam or Priest or Mullah or Rabbi or whatever, but only to God who, as we saw is in yourself and nothing else?
I apologise for my spelling mistakes. I am drunk and met a really lovely lady tonight... and there's a glass of vodka on my table. NASTROVIYEH!
This post requires a few disclaimers.
Disclaimer #1: I'm drunk. Which means that, by principle, you shouldn't take too seriously what I post. However, it doesn't mean you should not put any thought into it at all, because I'm putting much effort into it, and as you know, in vino veritas. Which is a good reason for me to get a Vodka from my freezer (just returned from a party).
Second disclaimer, I think I need to define my personal laws of aesthetics. Let me present to you an example. Last night I was out dancing at an 80's metal party, and I spent a while watching this cute chick dancing. Before you ask, I tried to dance with her, but she didn't care. So, I watched her. She had a nice body and was dressed in a cliché 80s style, with denim and leather, Mötley Crüe patch and all. Cheesy as hell, but really nice to watch. To me, that's aesthetics in "performing arts", at least I think you know what I mean. I have a great sense of visual arts (I think), because I love William Turner, Paul Gaugin, Rembrandt and most of all, Picasso. Anyway, aesthetics is not just visual. It's whatever you perceive as "beautiful", and in my very poor example, that would describe the chick I mentioned. She was beautiful and nice to watch, but it also felt right to the music (Maiden, Angel Witch Bon Jovi, what do you want?). That's aesthetics. Things just feel right in every way.
Having said that, here is the true reason why I am posting in this thread: Starblind to me, is the perfection of aesthetics. I have to think of a very beautiful female friend of mine headbanging (and yes, I admit that there is hardly anything hotter than a beautiful girl headbanging, send me to the psychitarist if you can afford it) and the images of space of time; combined with the greatest music my favourite band has ever composed; combined with the greatest lyrics one of my favourite lyricists has ever written (if you are interested, ask me for my favourite lyricists, they are not relevant here).
I am just going to point out that musically, this song is sheer brilliance to me; I am not a musician (although I can play the air guitar quite well, and I'm a fairly good singer under the shower), so I'm not going to comment on the musical merits of this song, however strong I believe them to be. The way you know me, I have to comment on the lyrics.
Here comes disclaimer #3: I have not read LooseCannon's interpretation. I think he is one of the eminent thinkers of our community (and beyond), and I believe that all of you should take note of whatever he posts. But I also have to mention that Loosey and I have had long debates over the years (and I mean, years), and despite our close friendship I think in many points we have agreed to disagree. So it's up to you, dear critical thinker (and if you're uncritical, stop reading right here, this will blow your brain circuits) to decide what feels wrong and right to you.
So, Starchild. I have said that this is aesthetical perfection, and time will tell if it is better than Hallowed or not. Ask me again in ten years. I have had a hard time figuring our what the lyrics are trying to tell me. And I'm still not entirely sure. But to me it spells out in the first parts to be the promises of a fanatic who will tell you that this world is coming to an end, and that you should release yourself of your earthly presence and commit yourself to God and religion.
This is basically the prelude, but what happens then is close to blowing our minds. What does leaving elders to their parley; meant to satisfy our lust mean? Perhaps the fact that the generations of the past reach out and tell their stories, for the sole sense of satisfying our desire for great stories? I wish so. There are great heroic stories which are wonderful to listen to - think of Alexander the Great, Caesar, or Genghis Khan - that inspire us to make the best of ourselves, but should not make us become fanatics that follow their footsteps for the sake of it. The Alexander of our time may be called Barack Obama, if we give him a chance... it's just a matter of perspective. And thought.
I love the image of Damocles. Because whatever we do, there is always the sword of Damocles hanging above us. No matter how hard we try, there are lunatics who want to bring this world to chaos. In our present days, they are called Osama bin Laden or Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. They do not seem to want peace, at least not in the way the majority prefers it. We all wish they would see that none of us want anything different, we just believe the path towards it is different. But that is the sword of Damocles; we believed it to fall in Berlin in '61, Cuba in '62, Vietnam in '68, Europe in '89, MidEast in '03; it never fell upon us, but it was pretty damn close at times. I don't want it to fall, and I will do everything to prevent from anyone making it to fall.
Anyway, what does "Starblind" mean? Does it refer to all the deluded souls who follow the ones who will make the sword of Damocles fall upon us? Or does it refer to all of us who believe this will never happen? Because, face it, we all still believe in the thesis of Francis Fukuyama, that history had reached its end with the fall of the East Bloc; every society in the world is still waiting for us - the West - to liberate it and show it the way of Western Democracy. This, by the way, is not polemics, I'm just asking you. I am personally not yet sure whether this is the way to go or not. I certainly would not want the Taleban to rule Afghanistan... again.
Anyway, may those who believe the sword of Damocles will never fall on us make the sword fall in the end? Would the 9/11 attacks and all the related ones have happened if the US hadn't appeared in the MidEast in the first place? I have studied this history extensively. If you want my answer, ask me. There's a PM-box.
I believe that those who preach to you the Bible, the Qor'an, the Talmud, the Badhagadvita (sp?), the sayings of Confucius and all that jazz are promising you the stars, though they never give them to you, thus making you blind in anticipation for the stars- Starblind.
Mind you, that's my opinion. If you find the stars in any scripture or promise you believe in, tell me, reason it to me, I am more than welcome to listen. And argue.
On with the song. It speaks of religion's cruel device that is gone and its empty flesh and hollow bones... may this refer to the importance of preachings of the time religion came to existence? My personal theory, don't quote, is that each religion, from Zoroastrianism to Islam, was a new way of getting things to order that got out of hand. Zarathustra, just as Muhammad, just wanted to get a new order to society. They never thought that people in centuries past them would still take their word for the sole Truth...
At this point, I need another Vodka.
Because the song says that "you are free to choose a life to live or one that's left to choose".
The thing is, I don't see the problem. I personally believe in some sort of God, however it may be defined (this may shock some of my atheist friends), but at the same time, I believe he/she/it gave me a critical mind to make me decide what is wrong and what is right. If God would have wanted me to behave the right way, he would have told me so.
Yes, I know what you're gonna say. Ten Commandments, Old Testament, New Testament, yadda yadda yadda. But do you really think that if it is so important to God to get to us once and tell us what is right ionce? Or wouldn't he make sure that we follow his rules by telling those who didn't get his message?
Walk away from comfort offered by your citizens of death means that we should be critical. Ask what our governments want when they introduce new laws, especially when they do it during the Football World Cup... just saying (as a German). Why did Russia make war on Georgia, just when the Olympic Games in Beijing started... just asking.
Remember the Roman phrase, panem et cercensae, bread and games. It's what they keep you quiet with. Thing haven't changed in 2000 years.
I am only going to comment on one line of the song, one which I believe to be the strongest in the Maiden discography, if no the strongest ever: Whatever god you know, he knows you better than you believe.
Does that not mean that God knows all your doubts? And he knows that if even if your doubts he knows that if you blow yourself up or conquer Jerusalem or whatever, he know that youa re not entirely sure of everything? Does that mean that you don't have to answer to you Imam or Priest or Mullah or Rabbi or whatever, but only to God who, as we saw is in yourself and nothing else?
I apologise for my spelling mistakes. I am drunk and met a really lovely lady tonight... and there's a glass of vodka on my table. NASTROVIYEH!
Perun, my friend, on this one, we pretty well agree.
national acrobat
Ancient Mariner
Great post, beats the usual nonsense of the Drunk Posting thread. I enjoyed reading everyone else's interpretations of the song here too.
Play Classics!
Prowler
This song is too busy, too much going on, it could have been much better with a proper arrangement. Someone; read Kevin Shirley, should have told Bruce to shut the fuck up sometime during the song, and leave a little breathing space to reflect on the lyrics just sung before one gets a new batch of lines thrown in your face. Bruce blabbermouths more than my wife on this one, and it gives me a 'kin headache.