The Pilgrim

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How good is The Pilgrim on a scale of 1-10?

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    38
A groovy harmonized lead kicks into a nice uptempo verse. The pre-chorus has some icky vocal harmonies, but the chorus is noticeably stronger. A brief queasy interlude and we do another round of verse through chorus.

Back to the queasy-sounding interlude, which breaks into a pretty great solo before returning to the pre-chorus and chorus. More queasiness, then we close things out with the opening riff.

Solid stuff here despite the stinky pre-chorus vocal harmonies. I actually like the queasy parts quite a bit. Let's say 7/10.
 
The first time I heard this song was a bit of a "wtf" moment for me, as it was so completely different from what I'd previously heard from Maiden and not at all what I'd expected. Since then, it's usually been at the bottom of the album for me, but somehow over the last year has risen higher and higher in my ratings to now stand right outside my Top 50. "The Pilgrim" has great drumming, fiery guitars, epic music, and a great vocal performance from Bruce. It's unassuming but god is it a great song. 9
 
8/10. I just love it. I love the Eastern influence on the music and the lyrics are mostly solid. While not a perfect track, it is very good.
 
One of the best intros from Maiden opens this hidden gem! Great riff, verses and pre-chorus. The actual chorus is brilliant. Awesome harmonies/melodies through the whole song - Egyptian feel to them (in the solo too). Fantastic solo from Janick. Great vocals from Bruce. Love the cymbals hits by Nicko. I would love to see this live again, but I think the song's chorus (or maybe I should say, the pre-chorus) is not transformed well live (like The Longest Day's chorus). 10/10
 
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Forostar said:
Re: Daily Song: The Pilgrim

Beautiful song. Janick wrote the lyrics and they are pretty decent.
“The Pilgrim”, which’s lyrics are written by Janick, is about the Crusades and the pilgrims of the Holy Land. (source)
Click to expand...

I did not know this. I wonder if there are any other lyrics written by Janick.

Also, we know H wrote some of Paschendale's lyrics, but has he written any others since SIT? We often just presume that Steve or Bruce are providing all the lyrics.
 
srfc said:
I did not know this. I wonder if there are any other lyrics written by Janick.

Also, we know H wrote some of Paschendale's lyrics, but has he written any others since SIT? We often just presume that Steve or Bruce are providing all the lyrics.
Click to expand...

I never knew Adrian wrote some lyrics for Paschendale.
 
While I wouldn't go quite that far as to say it's a hidden gem, I definitely agree about The Pilgrim being a very solid song. I like the general atmosphere and the dynamics of it. The lyrics are pretty good and overall, it's very neat and kinda typical "post-reunion rocker." While it does not quite manage to really stand out distinctively from the themercenarywildestdreamsrainmakerdifferentworldthealchemistspeedoflightdeathorglory category, I'd say it's better than many of the mentioned.
 
Kalata said:
I never knew Adrian wrote some lyrics for Paschendale.
Click to expand...

He said he researched it in the library, so I'm possibly jumping to a conclusion that he wrote lyrics, or maybe he even wrote all the lyrics? I only said he wrote some lyrics as some of the clunky lyrics about "german war propaganda machines" seems like Steve's style.
 
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6
Lyrics and especially the Celtic Gers-dancing like intro screw this otherwise great song. I'd wish this song were starting just with Janick’s riff or a brief drum solo instead.
 
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3.

I think this song has issues. Though I appreciate the pacing, I think the vocals would benefit from being slightly less rushed. I don't like the prechorus or chorus, and the intro/outro feel out of place.
 
6 - If I had to make a list of Iron Maiden‘s most routine songs, this would almost certainly be on it.

There’s nothing “wrong” with it. It has a signature riff, it shifts pace, the subject matter is interesting, it has a memorable chorus - well two actually - and it is identifiably Maiden.

But aside from the vaguely eastern sound of the solo and in the finale there is nothing that sets apart from a typical Maiden template and neither the story, the riffs, the rhythms, nor the melodies particularly resonate with me.

It’s almost the definitive six.

(6.1)
 
4/10

There's nothing particularly wrong about this song, but well...there's nothing particularly worth caring for here either. The song might as well disappear into the void and I can't say I would miss it much. That's a bit harsh, I know. I went back and forth whether I should give it a 4 or a 5. Right now, it's going to be the former.
 
My favorite thing about this song is the melody Janick plays after the choruses. This song has a lot to offer in the instrumental department, but the vocal parts don’t really go anywhere. Not a lot of memorable hooks and the lyrics have a lot of mystery but not a lot of intrigue. Kind of the definition of filler. Similar to Adrian and Different World, Janick’s guitar playing keeps this song above water, but just barely. Maybe this should’ve been an instrumental? 6
 
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