John Silver
Electric Buddy
Hey man, no. Just no. Running Free eats thru everything Balze did.
Your Maiden blasphemy
- Thread starter mckindog
- Start date
karljant
Ancient Mariner
The X Factor is easily my favorite 90's album also and my 6th overall (tied with Killers) also ahead of TNOTB but two places behind Piece Of Mind (#4). But then again... one of my all time Maiden favorites.
Diesel 11
As you scream into the web of silence...
karljant
Ancient Mariner
The Book Of Souls isn't one of my favorites but I consider it far from being a bad album.
Yes, I do concur it has some progressions that sound a bit forced and pointless. For instance The Red And The Black has a ton of excellent parts but also features this kinda clumsy structure and cheesy details lose some steam. The main riffs are huge, the "ohhohhohhohh" part is anthemic, the final sequence of solos and harmonies is top notch and the chorus is simply beautiful. But then again there's that pointless bass intro, the annoying guitar lead following Bruce's vocal line on the verses (come on! Maiden can pull something better more creative than that!) and most of all how can you only play that chorus a single time during 13 plus minutes? Nevertheless all the parts that build the bulk this song are so amazing that it ends up being great nonetheless. If they perfected those points I bet it would have been an instant classic. Empire Of The Clouds is not my cup of tea but I have to admit it's really well played and constructed. If you love Dream Theater (not my case) and Maiden then this song is for you! And although I don't like it that much it's plain for all to see the monument that this 18 minute beast is. Unlike many people I really like When The River Runs Deep but if the chorus going down to half tempo is a great twist it almost begs to be repeated at the same tempo of the verses by the end... but sadly that never happens. If Eternity Should Fail is a really good opener... really like it but nothing too exciting. Props to its theatrical features (intro and outro). Speed Of Light is a enjoyable yet forgettable hit single type track. The same goes to the melancholic Tears Of A Clown and the Piece Of Mind type of rumbling rhythm of Death Or Glory. A trio of OK ,enjoyable and easy listening songs but nothing more than that. The Great Unknown is one hell of a song... slowly building till it bursts into a state of the art chorus. And speaking of state of the art we come to the title track his (IMO) the zenith of this record. Pompous and heavy, nicely structured and man... THAT CHORUS! Remarkable. As for the other two songs they aren't stinkers but are a bit flat and forced compositions.
I like what Maiden tried to do in this release. A couple of new ideas (the piano, the double disc format, etc) while reinforcing the old school Maiden blueprint even more (theatrical intros even more present, The focus on an acient civilization and historical events, a lot of epic tracks even longer than what they normally do, a ton of solos and dual guitar harmonies, etc...). But the music itself is a bit exhausting and disconnected here and there. And that's normal since it's a double disc. I like its predecessor and Dance of Death more (AMOLAD a lot more) but nonetheless it's a great record when you remember this is the 16th album of a band that released its 1st record 35 years prior to that date and still sounds energetic, fresh, doesn't shrink when compared to the quality of their top releases and still brings new lines to Maiden's legacy. And that makes me value it even more.
Yes, I do concur it has some progressions that sound a bit forced and pointless. For instance The Red And The Black has a ton of excellent parts but also features this kinda clumsy structure and cheesy details lose some steam. The main riffs are huge, the "ohhohhohhohh" part is anthemic, the final sequence of solos and harmonies is top notch and the chorus is simply beautiful. But then again there's that pointless bass intro, the annoying guitar lead following Bruce's vocal line on the verses (come on! Maiden can pull something better more creative than that!) and most of all how can you only play that chorus a single time during 13 plus minutes? Nevertheless all the parts that build the bulk this song are so amazing that it ends up being great nonetheless. If they perfected those points I bet it would have been an instant classic. Empire Of The Clouds is not my cup of tea but I have to admit it's really well played and constructed. If you love Dream Theater (not my case) and Maiden then this song is for you! And although I don't like it that much it's plain for all to see the monument that this 18 minute beast is. Unlike many people I really like When The River Runs Deep but if the chorus going down to half tempo is a great twist it almost begs to be repeated at the same tempo of the verses by the end... but sadly that never happens. If Eternity Should Fail is a really good opener... really like it but nothing too exciting. Props to its theatrical features (intro and outro). Speed Of Light is a enjoyable yet forgettable hit single type track. The same goes to the melancholic Tears Of A Clown and the Piece Of Mind type of rumbling rhythm of Death Or Glory. A trio of OK ,enjoyable and easy listening songs but nothing more than that. The Great Unknown is one hell of a song... slowly building till it bursts into a state of the art chorus. And speaking of state of the art we come to the title track his (IMO) the zenith of this record. Pompous and heavy, nicely structured and man... THAT CHORUS! Remarkable. As for the other two songs they aren't stinkers but are a bit flat and forced compositions.
I like what Maiden tried to do in this release. A couple of new ideas (the piano, the double disc format, etc) while reinforcing the old school Maiden blueprint even more (theatrical intros even more present, The focus on an acient civilization and historical events, a lot of epic tracks even longer than what they normally do, a ton of solos and dual guitar harmonies, etc...). But the music itself is a bit exhausting and disconnected here and there. And that's normal since it's a double disc. I like its predecessor and Dance of Death more (AMOLAD a lot more) but nonetheless it's a great record when you remember this is the 16th album of a band that released its 1st record 35 years prior to that date and still sounds energetic, fresh, doesn't shrink when compared to the quality of their top releases and still brings new lines to Maiden's legacy. And that makes me value it even more.
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The Flash
Dennis Wilcock did 9/11
I'm not as harsh as you on it, but my opinion isn't too far off from this. If Eternity Should Fail is the only track that sticks with me from an otherwise forgettable album.
CriedWhenBrucieLeft
Meme Only Account
karljant
Ancient Mariner
Me too. That kind of refrain is simply amazing and the keyboards play an important part in the effect.
Operations666
Educated Fool
So do I. In fact I think the live version of The Red and the Black is the definitive version, much better than the studio version.
Ruflux
Ancient Mariner
I disagree, but mostly because of how terrible the patches used are. Seriously, they sound like a 90s video game MIDI soundtrack, it's just bad.
Christoffer
Nomad
The Red and the Black is the WORST song on Book of Souls!