The Final Frontier Reviews Thread

Starblind coming better to me after some more listenings. New ratings :

Satellite 15... The Final Frontier : 8,5
El Dorado : 8,0
Mother of Mercy : 8,5
Coming Home : 9,0
The Alchemist : 8,5
Isle of Avalon : 9,75
Starblind : 9,75
The Talisman : 9,75
The Man Who Would Be King : 9,5
When the Wild Wind Blows : 10,0
 
snake plissken said:
Just a stunning record from start to finish. Nothing more to be said.

Couldnt have said it better myself.. I got the CD yesterday, even though I have been listening to the leak since Monday.. The sonic quality just made this recording that much better.. Bass sounds prominent, Bruce is right up front but not enough to overshadow the music, fucking killer guitar sounds from all 3 guitarists (Kevin was able this time to really pull all 3 out in the mix - and that is very hard to do). Nico sounds great, beautiful polished high-ends mids, just everything.. Great production this time. IMHO - best of the 2000 reunion stuff and almost as good as SSOASS..

The material itself is absolutely incredible, and for anybody to say this sounds the same as usual, or its boring..yadyadayada.. siimply has not listened to it more than once. It is impossible to understand this album in one spin, let alone 10... It took me 3 full days of non-stop listening to "get it"..

Well, it hit me upside the head like a fucking sledgehammer - THIS WILL GO DOWN AS ONE OF THE BEST METAL ALBUMS OF ALL TIME . COME ON YOU IRONS!!!
 
I agree, Top 10 list - covering all genres...

This is definately material that will impress any music critic (especially tracks 6 - 10).. Funny thing is, you have these suposed Maiden fans at other forums bitching that its boring... I say to them, get over it - you will never get a POM or Powerslave #2 from Maiden again.. and I am thankful for that (even though they are my 2 favorite albums).. We have already been down that road..

Personally, I could give a shit what anyone outside this forum thinks. Any music lover with half a peanut in their head knows just how brilliant TFF is.
 
Rivet_Head said:
I agree, Top 10 list - covering all genres...

This is definately material that will impress any music critic (especially tracks 6 - 10).. Funny thing is, you have these suposed Maiden fans at other forums bitching that its boring... I say to them, get over it - you will never get a POM or Powerslave #2 from Maiden again.. and I am thankful for that (even though they are my 2 favorite albums).. We have already been down that road..

Personally, I could give a shit what anyone outside this forum thinks. Any music lover with half a peanut in their head knows just how brilliant TFF is.

I will bet my life that anyone who bitches about the band now gave up on them when Bruce left. That is the main difference between this forum and most others.

Right now, another prick kicked down the door in that forum to poop on Maiden. His assertion is this: Maiden aren't complex because they are covered by a bunch of bands, therefore it must be easy to play Maiden tunes.

In no way do bands cover Maiden due to influence and admiration, nor does it take practice to learn any of it.
 
Suicidehummer said:
Wrong song, it's TMWWBK

Yeah, I knew I got that wrong, but then I just stopped caring haha.

My opinion on these songs keep changing.  The album is so balanced.  It's like they were able to hit all sides of what they're capable of.  It's complex, it's fun, it's epic, it's emotional, it's got energy, etc.  Really great stuff. 
 
Really... Well, I have a buddy that covers Yngwie Malmsteen to the tee... Hmmm.. I guess Yngwies playing isnt complex either, right :shred:

Like I said, I could care less what they say over there. The idiotic point that the A-hole made is enough for me to not even want to argue it. Is that the best he can come up with??

:edmetal:
 
Well after listening it for a few time I think I can review it more or less already, so here it goes some thoughts about it.

- Satellite 15..The Final Frontier
The intro is different and cool...for the first 5 or 6 times, after that it gets boring (at least for me!),and I see myself usually skipping it to the 4:40min! Different, but i think it would work better as a single track!
Despite this, to me the best comes next when the riff to The Final Frontier starts. It's the typicall IM opening song, a catchy rocker  (I like them all since BNW)and this one doesn't dispaoint one bit. Bruce is great on the track, he pushes the song forward, the chorus is great! Love the solos, specially Adrian one (love his tone! He and Dave have both such unique tones that you recognize at the first note they play, few guitar players do that for you!)! In my opinion, this song has the best Dave solo on the cd, it's good (but imo since DOD his solos are getting shorter, slower and some of them don't really add anything to the song, but I suppose this is a matter of opinion!=))

- El Dorado
Another cool rocker, the riff despite simple is powerful. The pre-chorus is different and nice, chorus is good but not the best on cd. I don't think  the solos add anything to the song, but nontheless a good song!

- Mother of Mercy
Love the start of this one with the clean guitars, melody is pretty cool! In the chorus Bruce does sound a bit strained like many have said but i like the chorus anyway! Solo is cute! The outro is good as well! Another good song by Adrian of course!

- Coming Home
Reminiscent from Out Of the Shadows, Coming Home is probably the most friendly radio track of the cd (besides the Final frontier) and it's beautiful!! I love the verses and when the guitars become distorted the song is taken to another level,a true classic imo! Potential to become a fan favourite live, the chorus i awesome! Both solos are beautiful!

- The Alchemist
This is the fast paced song which remembers the 80's maiden sound. When I first heard it i thought it was a filler and boring, but i changed since then. It's a good song, that works. The solo is nice as well, Janick made it fun! (I'm not  his biggest fan when it comes to solos lol).

- Isle of Avalon
With a familiar intro, this song took some listens to fully enjoy. Maybe the intro is a bit too long (although beautiful) and when all band kicks in it really become an awesome song! All melodies are inspired, Bruce’s vocals are great and the guitar work is amazing. From the first solo to the end it’s just A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. The instrumental takes you into a journey, Adrian solo and leads are truly unique and Steve’s bass is everywhere! Love Adrian licks at the end of the song! Amazing song by Adrian, one of the best for sure!

- Starblind
Slowly as usual, it quickly becomes a nice rocker. All vocal lines are different and because of that, it took me some time as well to fully dig this song. But now it’s easile of my favourites. Riff is pretty strong and the chorus is great (I found Bruce voice weird at first but now I love him on this song!) and the little bluesy licks sound so good. From 4:08, just like IOA is an instrumental adventure, Adrian solo is spectacular, and Dave has his moment too. I love the small passage before the breakdown. Love this song from start to finish!

- The Talisman
I have to start by saying that this is imo the best composition from Gers (along with The Legacy) since he is in IM. The intro is too long (half of its length would be ok). Love the vocal melodies on this one for sure, despite Bruce seems strained in some places! Steve is back to the galloping sound and Nicko drumming is as tight as ever! The solo is different (thank god Janick isn’t in overdrive mode on this one)and fits the song so well! Love this track as well!

-The Man Who Would Be King
The intro is so inspired, one of the best intro’s I have ever heard! Love the way Bruce sings in it. Verses are nothing short of powerful and the powerful guitars seem to drive the song into a powerful chorus…which doesn’t quite happen imo. The song is well structured but the chorus could have used some work imo! Then comes the solo which I’m not too keen on it, not bad but I’d prefer a solo like Dave’s on Reincarnation and not this kind of solo, but the truth is that it fits the song. One word for the outro, is beautiful I love it! Good song but could be better imo!

-When The Wild Wind Blows

The masterpiece of the Final frontier is this song imo! It screams perfection in every second! Since I’ve heard the sample I thought this song could be special and Harris didn’t disappointed me. The intro is magical, I LOVE the vocals over the simple but amazingly beautiful guitar melody, and while I was hearing the song for the first time I was smiling the all time lol. It gave me shivers when the song gets harder with Bruce shining singing with so much emotion on this voice! He drives the song and imo he has here his biggest moment! The song despite not being too complex, has some changes which make it even more amazing. The verses just before Adrian solo kicks so much ***, and then Adrian does his awesome solo and the harmony kicks in! I was jawdropped. Dave solo imo is nothing special (however is tone makes for it lol) and at 6:42 start the best instrumental passage on the cd (and one of the best ever from Maiden imo). I’m in love with Nicko’s drumming from this specific part (till the end of the song acyially), he takes the song to another level. Janick solo is actually very good in the song (in my standards) lol.
After the “Armageddon” that was the song, when it goes back to the intro, to the “calm”, I was almost crying. I loved this song,magical!! It’s my new favourite Maiden song! =)

I rank this cd really high, probably my new 2nd favourite IM album ever, after Powerslave and before AMOLAD and imo it has some of the best IM songs (specially Adrian epics and WTWWB).

The songwriting is brilliant, the member’s technical wizardy is all over the songs, it has beautiful inspired vocal melodies, some good solos (I still think since DOD guitar solos have been getting “worse”) and Bruce voice is still great. I love the cd!
 
I find it interesting that so many people have such difficulty with this album. I find it a much easier listen than AMOLAD (which was so thematically heavy) and the fact that there are basically 3 straightforward kick-ass rock songs on here as opposed to basically two on AMOLAD (Out of the Shadows was more of a midtempo balladish thing) I would have figured that this one would have fared better. But maybe it's just that the scene is shifting. My friend Sam was a huge Maiden fan, and I can't for the life of me get him to listen to this one or AMOLAD, in fact he acts like an asshole whenever I try to by literally responding to me with "Meh." which seems alright online, but doing it in person is just incredibly rude.
 
Cap Maronis said:
I find it interesting that so many people have such difficulty with this album. I find it a much easier listen than AMOLAD (which was so thematically heavy) and the fact that there are basically 3 straightforward kick-ass rock songs on here as opposed to basically two on AMOLAD (Out of the Shadows was more of a midtempo balladish thing) I would have figured that this one would have fared better. But maybe it's just that the scene is shifting. My friend Sam was a huge Maiden fan, and I can't for the life of me get him to listen to this one or AMOLAD, in fact he acts like an asshole whenever I try to by literally responding to me with "Meh." which seems alright online, but doing it in person is just incredibly rude.
I feel sorry for Sam... he's really missing out with this one..

I seem to remember a time when Pink Floyd's Dark Side of The Moon got a luke-warm reception... and the same with Queensryche's Operation Mindcrime. Of course, the rest is history.
 
This will surely change over time.

Satellite 15...The Final Frontier: 8 (Satellite 15: 7, The Final Frontier:9)
El Dorado: 7.5
Mother of Mercy: 9
Coming Home: 10
The Alchemist: 9
Isle of Avalon: 10
Starblind: 9.5
The Talisman: 9
The Man Who Would Be King: 9
When the Wild Wild Blows: 10

Notes: I think Satellite 15 is decent, but I do like the part when Bruce comes in with the clean guitars. Sounds like something right off The Wall. I also think Coming Home is a very special Maiden song, and I stand by my "10" rating. The two songs I have the hardest time grasping are The Talisman and The Man Who Would Be King, but I still recognize them as great songs. I am understanding each more every day, so I bet my ratings will be higher this time next week.

Truly an awe-inspiring record. Maiden are masters of their craft.
 
Satellite 15....The Final Frontier
Two separate, very different tracks, one block of text. Satellite 15 begins, and feels like just an demonstration from Maiden of how different the album is going to be. Then, as Bruce's voice comes in, I find myself somehow taken away, as if I, too, was living my last moments alone in the space, trying to get contact to someone so I could be saved, even if I knew it's not going to happen. On the other hand I feel like the track was useless, and on the other I think it contributes to the album in it's way. Hard to decide!
As I said, S15 feels like Maiden is hoping to show to the listener that they are changing, and this album is going to be something new; thus it's quite ironic that The Final Frontier is a basic Iron Maiden rocker, which could in my opinion fit on many Iron Maiden albums without feeling out of place. Lyricwise, however, it's more about new Maiden, due to the theme and the repeated The Final Frontier in the chorus. There's basically nothing wrong with the song, but it doesn't surprise or astonish either. 5/10 For S15 and 6.5/10 for TFF.

El Dorado
This is the slowest grower, it would seem. At first when it was released it caused only negative feelings in me, and now, after repeated listens, I'm finding it a bit better. I like the melody, lyrics (which I've liked from the beginning really) and the "spoken" verses, but still I haven't fully grasped it yet. It's a song that I always want to skip the most, but I think it'll get to me... eventually. I've heard it's better live, and I'd like to believe that, but I'm not sure I would like to see it played on the next tour.
6/10

Mother of Mercy
To repeat words typed many times already, this song would fit on AMOLAD. But only for the lyrics, and then it has it's own distinct feeling with those too, specially in the chorus. The chorus is excellent; some could say Bruce sounds strained in it, but I feel it fits the kind of out of energy, out of will to live and and fight on- atmosphere of the song. Kind of marching-song feeling to it a couple of times also. Catchy one, and nice ending.
8.5/10

Coming Home
Great atmosphere, emotional song, good guitars, lyrics, etc... I think this song has been covered thoroughly already. Feels like an incredible live-song indeed.
8.75/10

The Alchemist
Also covered nicely. Great fast paced heavy rock.
8.5/10

Isle of Avalon
First lengthy song on the album. Feels like it lasts 9 minutes, which isn't a bad thing however. Fine lyrics, melodies, Bruce sounds excellent! If I had to mention a part of the song that feels a bit out of place, it would be "I hear her crying the tears of an angel..." somehow there's not just such a flow in the change from the faster part. I also dislike the ending. Overall it's quite mystic song that I think immerses the listener very well.
9/10

Starblind
Best song on the album. I can't really give any objective review of this, it sounds too good. Decent intro, great verse, awesome pre-chorus; the way Bruce sang Starblind made my jaw drop down and go through the floor until the end of the song for the first time. There's just that something in this song, that made it such a magical experience for me.
10/10

The Talisman
A song that still needs more listening. The intro is mostly boring in my opinion, and the first listen was very, very much unlike with Starblind. I could have had trouble picking up my jaw after the excellent previous song, but The Talisman brought it back and nearly crushed my upper jaw - I found Bruce's singing incredibly annoying. There was a post about that song, so I'll just quote a part of it:
Forostar said:
Riding the waves and the
storm is upon us.
The winds lash the sails but
The ropes keep them tight.
Off in the distance a
Dark cloud approaching.
None could imagine what
There Was to come.

I've gotten used to it, though, and I suppose I'm hearing the song a bit more like those who love it by now. I like the lyrics, Maiden knows how to do this sea-stuff; atmosphere is good. I believe I will grow fond of this with time.
7/10 as of now, though it has potential.

The Man Who Would Be King
Good chorus is a thing that comes first to my mind when I think of this song. I really like that. The verses also have kind of tired feeling, which fits the lyrics of the song. It's least surprising of the songs in the end, feels a bit uninspired, but not a bad one regardless. Good guitars, though there's this annoying "aaaaaaaaa...." at the background after about 4:00. I truly enjoy the chorus anyways.
8/10

When the Wild Wind Blows
Fantastic melody, fantastic song overall, again something that has been gone through many times. Fantastic and powerful lyrics, delivered in such a great, a bit calm manner. "He sees a picture on the wall/It's falling down, upside down...".
10/10

The album was top notch, I love the new sounds here and there, and the lyrics too. It could be called almost coherent in it's incoherence - you'll learn to expect new and different twists. The album also seems to be getting better with every listen. Also it shouldn't be compared to the 80s stuff (like Powerslave etc.) in my opinion, it's too different. Suppose some people will do that anyways.
Overall I'd give it 9.5/10
LordMaiden said:
"The main problem is that the band has struggled to make a truly memorable song on this album."

This guy is an idiot.
Don't blame him. The album is just too filled with great songs to have special ones that stand out all the way, and he didn't realize this.  :)
 
Well, my problem with it is, someone could easily make the case that every song is memorable. So how this dude says there isn't a single song that is, makes me think he's an idiot.

I'm constantly baffled by people who expect 80's material by Maiden. Is it just a coincidence the people who don't happen to know all of Maiden's albums?
 
LordMaiden said:
Well, my problem with it is, someone could easily make the case that every song is memorable. So how this dude says there isn't a single song that is, makes me think he's an idiot.
My thoughts basically.  :lol:
 
LordMaiden said:
This guy is an idiot.

I don't think so, he seems to know deeply the situation and after all he states that
'despite all the negativity I may have displayed, I do think that The Final Frontier is a very good album.'

He has some good points in his review like this one :

There are times where the music incorporates elements of progressive to force their new ideas through, and other times where the band uses a gallop or fast-paced riff to solely retain their signature sound. Basically, I think Iron Maiden is in a place where they are not completely sure of what they want to do with their music.

I've noticed some parts where the gallop is used very oddly, just to maintain the signature,
while in BBC interview topic (Maiden chat) Adrian express this uncertainty which the reviewer speaks about.
 
Rivet_Head said:
I feel sorry for Sam... he's really missing out with this one..

I seem to remember a time when Pink Floyd's Dark Side of The Moon got a luke-warm reception... and the same with Queensryche's Operation Mindcrime. Of course, the rest is history.
The last universally praised IM album was powerslave.
 
Albums are often listened to a single time prior to reviewing.  Most great albums warrant MULTIPLE listens.  (I find most things that appear *GREAT* after a single listen often lack staying power).  I wouldn't want to publish my opinion of anything based on a single listen, including Maiden.  I liked the album immediately but absolutely was in love with it by the fifth listen....and so my thoughts would have differed with some resonance.
 
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