The Book of Souls Awards

Aces_High

Gathering speed as I head down the runway
Now that a few months have passed since the release, I'm pretty sure most of us have a more definite opinion on the latest album.

FORMAT:

Best song:
Worst song:
Surprisingly good song:
Most disappointing song:
Best moment:

Best lyrics:
Best line:
Best verse:

Best title:

Best intro:
Best outro:

Bruce's best performance:

Best chorus:
Best pre-chorus:

Most catchy song:
Best melody:

Best bridge:

Best instrumental:

Best guitar solo:

Best main riff:

Best 18 minute song about a British aircraft that crashed in France during a storm:

Please suggest more categories if you have some.

My votes:

Best song: Empire
Worst song: Speed of Light (still awesome)
Surprisingly good song: When the River Runs Deep
Most disappointing song: Tears of a Clown
Best moment: "Here lies a dream... Dreams live on" until the outro.

Best lyrics: Empire
Best line: They were praying to the gods of nature and were living in the cities of stone
Best verse:
By power day and night and death he ruled them
...
The ultimate sacrifice

Best title: If Eternity Should Fail

Best intro: Empire
Best outro: Speed of Light

Bruce's best performance: Empire

Best chorus: Deb Oukoff Söls
Best pre-chorus: The Book of Souls

Most catchy song: If Eternity Should Fail

Best bridge: The Book of Souls

Best instrumental: The Book of Souls

Best guitar solo: The Red and the Black - Smith (9:40) (wow)

Best main riff: If Eternity Should Fail
Best melody: EOTC after the first SOS part

Best 18 minute song about a British aircraft that crashed in France during a storm: Empire of the Clouds
 
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Best song: The Red & the Black
Worst song: The Great Unknown
Surprisingly good song: When the River Runs Deep
Most disappointing song: Shadows of the Valley

Best lyrics: Empire
Best line: The dreamers may die, but dreams live on

Best title: If Eternity Should Fail

Best intro: Empire
Best outro: Man of Sorrows

Bruce's best performance: Empire

Best chorus: Book of Souls
Best pre-chorus: Death or Glory

Most catchy song: If Eternity Should Fail

Best bridge: The Red & the Black

Best instrumental: The Red & the Black

Best guitar solo: Speed of Light - Adrian

Best main riff: The Red & the Black

Best 18 minute song about a British aircraft that crashed in France during a storm: Tough, but Empire of the Clouds
 
Best song: When the River Runs Deep
Worst song: Tears of a Clown
Surprisingly good song: The Great Unknown
Most disappointing song: Empire of the Clouds

Best lyrics: The Book of Souls
Best line: What humanity I knew I have long forgotten

Best title: If Eternity Should Fail

Best intro: The Red and the Black
Best outro: If Eternity Should Fail

Bruce's best performance: The Book of Souls

Best chorus: If Eternity Should Fail
Best pre-chorus: When the River Runs Deep

Most catchy song: If Eternity Should Fail

Best bridge: Shadows of the Valley

Best instrumental: The Book of Souls

Best guitar solo: When the River Runs Deep

Best main riff: When the River Runs Deep

Best 18 minute song about a British aircraft that crashed in France during a storm: Ummm...
 
Best song: The Book of Souls
Worst song: When the River Runs Deep
Surprisingly good song: Tears of a Clown
Most disappointing song: The Red and the Black

Best lyrics: The Book of Souls
Best line: "The dreamers may die, but the dreams live on"

Best title: If Eternity Should Fail

Best intro: Empire of the Clouds
Best outro: Speed of Light

Bruce's best performance: Empire of the Clouds

Best chorus: If Eternity Should Fail
Best pre-chorus: ...I guess Death or Glory?

Most catchy song: Death or Glory

Best bridge: The Book of Souls

Best instrumental: The Book of Souls

Best guitar solo: ....one of Adrian's

Best main riff: The Book of Souls

Best 18 minute song about a British aircraft that crashed in France during a storm: n/a
 
Ok this looks fun

Best song: Empire of the Clouds
Worst song: Shadows of the Valley
Surprisingly good song: Man of Sorrows/Tears of a Clown
Most disappointing song: The Book of Souls*

Best lyrics: Man of Sorrows
Best line: The Man of Sorrows chorus

Best title: Empire of the Clouds

Best intro: The Red and the Black
Best outro: The Red and the Black

Bruce's best performance: If Eternity Should Fail

Best chorus: If Eternity Should Fail
Best pre-chorus: If we can call the Woah Oh Oh Oh in The Red and the Black a pre chorus, I'll go with that.

Most catchy song: When the River Runs Deep

Best bridge: The Book of Souls

Best instrumental: The Red and the Black, although the bit starting with the morse code in Empire comes very close.

Best guitar solo: Adrian's in Death or Glory

Best main riff: Speed of Light

*I should explain this one. I love The Book of Souls, but for a Janick/Steve epic I was expecting something a little more dynamic, something along the lines of Dance of Death or even The Legacy. So it was a disappointment in that I had a pre-conceived idea of what the song should be and it wasn't that. I still like what we ended up getting, but I didn't have that experience with any of the other songs.
 
Best song: If Eternity Should Fail

Worst song: When The River Runs Deep

Surprisingly good song: Death or Glory. I'd been worried about cheese.

Most disappointing song: Man of Sorrows

Best lyrics: If Eternity Should Fail

Best line: "For me eternity is nothing but a short while."

Best title: Empire of the Clouds

Best intro: If Eternity Should Fail

Best outro: If Eternity Should Fail

Bruce's best performance: Empire of the Clouds

Best chorus: If Eternity Should Fail

Best pre-chorus: Death or Glory

Most catchy song: Speed of Light

Best bridge: Shadows of the Valley

Best instrumental: The Book of Souls

Best guitar solo: For the moment I'm going for Man of Sorrows 4:09 (Dave). I'm also a fan of Tears of a Clown, 3:02, The Book of Souls 8:19 and Empire of the Clouds 10:04.

Best main riff: Speed of Light

Best 18 minute song about a British aircraft that crashed in France during a storm: Lost at La Morenchie. I understand it'll be released in a forthcoming special edition of the album. Consists entirely of Bruce playing piano while Nicko hits a gong. Janick can be heard in the background swinging a guitar around his head while Steve swears under his breath.

*I should explain this one. I love The Book of Souls, but for a Janick/Steve epic I was expecting something a little more dynamic, something along the lines of Dance of Death or even The Legacy. So it was a disappointment in that I had a pre-conceived idea of what the song should be and it wasn't that. I still like what we ended up getting, but I didn't have that experience with any of the other songs.

Absolutely. I get this. I nearly said TBOS myself for 'most disappointing' simply because I'd convinced myself it would be another Dance of Death.
 
So much fun. Maybe we could open threads like this for other albums? I would certainly take part.

As for additional categories, maybe 'Best verse' ('Best line' is pretty small) and an overall 'Favourite moment on the album' would be good? I thought about 'Best melody' too, but I don't know if it's not too fragmental.

Best song: The Book of Souls
Worst song: When the River Runs Deep
Surprisingly good song: The Great Unknown
Most disappointing song: Empire of the Clouds. By far.
Favourite moment on the album: The Book of Souls pre-chorus... and let's add chorus to it, why not.

Best lyrics: If Eternity Should Fail
Best verse: IESF intro
Best line: 'Climb like a monkey'. Kidding. I don't have one, really...

Best title: If Eternity Should Fail

Best intro: If Eternity Should Fail
Best outro: Speed of Light

Bruce's best performance: If Eternity Should Fail and Empire of the Clouds (I have to give Bruce credit for EotC even though I'm massively disappointed with the song in general)

Best chorus: The Book of Souls
Best pre-chorus: The Book of Souls

Best melody: The Book of Souls pre-chorus (EotC main melody is fantastic as well, but didn't impact me like the one I picked)

Most catchy song: Speed of Light

Best bridge: The Book of Souls

Best instrumental: 5:10-5:47 passage from The Book of Souls

Best guitar solo: Adrian's Death or Glory or The Book of Souls

Best main riff: The Book of Souls
 
Best song: The Red and the Black

Worst song: Man of Sorrows

Surprisingly good song: Death or Glory. Only Maiden can make a good song with a chours like "Run like a monkey"

Most disappointing song: Man of Sorrows

Best lyrics: If Eternity Should Fail/Tears of a Clown

Best line: "Who motivates the motivator"

Best title: If Eternity Should Fail

Best intro: If Eternity Should Fail

Best outro: The Book of Souls

Bruce's best performance: The Book of Souls

Best chorus: Death or Glo...If Eternity Should Fail :D . Honor mentions to Tears of a Clown

Best pre-chorus: If Eternity Should Fail

Most catchy song: Speed of Light

Best bridge: If Eternity Should Fail

Best instrumental: The Red and the Black (specially between 09:39 and 12:29)

Best guitar solo: 03:22-03:41 of Tears of a Clown and 06:45-07:13/08:39-09:09 of The Red and the Black

Best main riff: Tears of a Clown

Best 18 minute song about a British aircraft that crashed in France during a storm: The British Angel and the French Gambler on a Aircraft - extended version. Blaze is on the piano and Nicko is doing back vocals.
"Don't you think i'm a saviour?
Don't you think i could save you fromafallingaircraft?
Don't you think i could save your wreckage?"
 
I haven't had much to say about the album here, mostly because it's a disappointment in my book. But this seems fun, here goes:

Best song: 'If Eternity Should Fail'
Worst song: 'When the River Runs Deep'
Surprisingly good song: 'Tears of a Clown'
Most disappointing song: 'The Red and the Black'

Best lyrics: 'If Eternity Should Fail'
Best line: "For me, eternity is nothing but a short while"

Best title: 'If Eternity Should Fail'

Best intro: 'If Eternity Should Fail'
Best outro: 'The Man of Sorrows'

Bruce's best performance: 'If Eternity Should Fail'

Best chorus: 'If Eternity Should Fail'
Best pre-chorus: 'If Eternity Should Fail'

Most catchy song: 'If Eternity Should Fail'

Best bridge: 'The Book of Souls'

Best instrumental: 'Empire of the Clouds', the bit after Nicko's drum solo thingy

Best guitar solo: 'Tears of a Clown' by Adrian Smith

Best main riff: 'Tears of a Clown'
 
Best song: Empire Of The Clouds

Worst song: Speed Of Light

Surprisingly good song: The Great Unknown

Most disappointing song: The Man Of Sorrows

Best moment: Shadows Of The Valley 5:50

Best lyrics: Empire Of The Clouds

Best line: "Into the valley of death, follow me now..."

Best verse: The Red And The Black (1st)

Best title: If Eternity Should Fail

Best intro: Empire Of The Clouds

Best outro: Empire Of The Clouds

Bruce's best performance: Empire Of The Clouds

Best chorus: The Great Unknown

Best pre-chorus: Death Or Glory

Most catchy song: Shadows Of The Valley

Best melody: Empire Of The Clouds

Best bridge: Shadows Of The Valley

Best instrumental: Empire Of The Clouds

Best guitar solo: Tears Of A Clown

Best main riff: Shadows Of The Valley

Best 18 minute song about a British aircraft that crashed in France during a storm:
 
Best song: The Book of Souls
Worst song: Death or Glory
Surprisingly good song: The Great Unknown
Most disappointing song: When the River Runs Deep

Best lyrics: The Red and the Black
Best line: ''Alien invasion brings nothing but death''
Best verse: The Red and the Black, verse 1

Best title: If Eternity Should Fail

Best intro: Man of Sorrows
Best outro: Empire of the Clouds

Bruce's best performance: The Book of Souls

Best chorus: The Red and the Black
Best pre-chorus: The Book of Souls

Most catchy song: The Book of Souls
Best melody: The Book of Souls pre chorus and chorus

Best bridge: If Eternity Should Fail

Best instrumental: Empire of the Clouds middle

Best guitar solo: Adrian Smith on Tears of a Clown

Best main riff: The Book of souls pre chorus riff

Best 18 minute song about a British aircraft that crashed in France during a storm: Death or Glory
 
Best song: Ir Eternity
Worst song: Shadows
Surprisingly good song: When Theo Rivers
Most disappointing song: The Man of Sorrows
Best moment: all solos Adrian Smith

Best lyrics: Empire
Best line: ir Eternity
Best verse: if Eternity

Best title: if Eternity

Best intro: When the Rivers
Best outro: Speed

Bruce's best performance: Ir Eternity

Best chorus: The Great
Best pre-chorus: if Eternity

Most catchy song:
Best melody:

Best bridge:

Best instrumental: the red

Best guitar solo: all solos by Adrian

Best main riff: Adrian in When the Rivers

Best 18 minute song about a British aircraft that crashed in France during a storm:
 
Best song:Empire of the Clouds
Worst song:The Man of Sorrows
Surprisingly good song:Tears of a Clown
Most disappointing song:Death of Glory
Best moment:The intro to Empire of the Clouds. The piano literally took me by surprise. Raised eyebrows and all.

Best lyrics:The Red and the Black
Best line:Magic Carpet float away, an October faithful day
Best verse:The beginning part of IESF

Best title:The Red and the Black

Best intro:Empire
Best outro:Empire

Bruce's best performance:The Book of Souls

Best chorus:The Red and the Black
Best pre-chorus: The Great Unknown

Most catchy song:Speed of Light
Best melody:The Book of Souls

Best bridge:The Book of Souls

Best instrumental:The Red and the Black

Best guitar solo:The Red and the Black

Best main riff:Empire of the Clouds

Best 18 minute song about a British aircraft that crashed in France during a storm:Empire of the Clouds
 
Okay, since I have nothing better to do...

Best song: Empire Of The Clouds
Worst song: The Great Unknown
Surprisingly good song: The Man Of Sorrows
Most disappointing song: The Red And The Black
Best moment: The last three minutes of "Empire Of The Clouds"

Best lyrics: Empire Of The Clouds :innocent:
Best line: "Reef in a sail at the edge of the world..."
Best verse: The first verse of "If Eternity Should Fail

Best title: If Eternity Should Fail

Best intro: Speed Of Light
Best outro: Empire Of The Clouds

Bruce's best performance: Empire Of The Clouds ;)

Best chorus: If Eternity Should Fail
Best pre-chorus: Death Or Glory

Most catchy song: If Eternity Should Fail :oops:
Best melody: Empire Of The Clouds :facepalm:

Best bridge: The Book Of Souls

Best instrumental: The Man Of Sorrows

Best guitar solo: (blank)

Best main riff: Sigh...you know, the one about reefs in sails at the edge of the world and waiting in lines for the ending of time.

Best 18 minute song about a British aircraft that crashed in France during a storm: Um...hehehe...I'm out.

Geez, it's painfully obvious that If Eternity Should Fail and Empire Of The Clouds are my two favourites from the album. So, that makes me biased for once :D
 
Best song: I guess it's still the title track, although TRATB is a serious opponent.
Worst song: Death or Glory
Surprisingly good song: When the River Runs Deep
Most disappointing song: Empire of the Clouds
Best moment: Either that part around the tenth minute of TRATB or 5:24 in Shadows of the Valley.

Best lyrics: If Eternity Should Faiů
Best line: "It came as no surprise // And now of course we’ll never know"
Best verse: Best verse musically: TRATB, best verse musically compared to the rest of the song: WTRRD :p

Best title: If Eternity Should Fail, no contest.

Best intro: Empire of the Clouds
Best outro: IESF. It's pure Wensleydale.

Bruce's best performance: Shadows of the Valley

Best chorus: IESF, I guess.
Best pre-chorus: Tears of a Clown

Most catchy song: The Red and the Black
Best melody: Again, 5:24 of SITV

Best bridge: Again, what is that second half of SITV? If it's a bridge, then that.

Best instrumental: TRATB

Best guitar solo: I'm itching to say H's work under the last choruses of IESF, but I guess that doesn't count and it might not even be completely true. So... I guess Janick in TBOS. But this is the one question I don't really have an answer to yet.

Best main riff: The Book of Souls

Best 18 minute song about a British aircraft that crashed in France during a storm: Well, there's only one and it's not the best, so...
 
Best song: The Book of Souls
Worst song: The Man of Sorrows
Surprisingly good song: When the River Runs Deep
Most disappointing song: Empire of the Clouds (sorry Bruce... all the hype surrounding this song before the album raised my bar too high)
Best moment: The instrumental part after the solos in TRATB. The ending part of TBOS is a fair runner-up.

Best lyrics: If Eternity Should Fail
Best line: "The morning sunrise, red before the blue" (Empire of the Clouds)
Best verse: "When the world was virgin, before the coming of men, just a solar witness - the beginning of the end" (If Eternity Should Fail)

Best title: If Eternity Should Fail

Best intro: If Eternity Should Fail
Best outro: The Book of Souls

Bruce's best performance: Speed of Light

Best chorus: If Eternity Should Fail
Best pre-chorus: The Great Unknown (good stuff)

Most catchy song: If Eternity Should Fail
Best melody: The Book of Souls

Best bridge: The Book of Souls

Best instrumental: The Red and the Black

Best guitar solo: Wow... I mean... The guitars on this album are SUPERB. Really hard to pick just one solo.

Best main riff: When the River Runs Deep (IT FUCKING KICKS ASS)

Best 18 minute song about a British aircraft that crashed in France during a storm: hmm... a tough one. Empire of the Clouds maybe??
 
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