Iron Maiden

[cd213 0]

I don't know if anyone picked up the new Iron Maiden album that dropped today, but for fans of them, GET IT NOW!!! It's 70+ minutes of great metal. I don't think it is their best album, but it is close. IT surly blows away most of anything new that has come out recently. Metal Heads unite and get this album and let's get it to #1!

[Slayer 0]

I picked it up right before the store closed, but have yet to listen to it yet.

 

A good sign is that the cover art is damn good, especially in light of the previous CD's cover

[DMann2003 0]

For those wondering- the title is "A Matter of Life and Death"

 

I might pick it up, has a 1hr bonus DVD with it.

[The Metal Maniac 0]

I found it today for only 11.99, plus tax. I nearly shat.

 

It is pretty damned good; "For the Greater Good of God" rocks.

 

Also, while looking for this CD, I found out that Blind Guardian have a new CD out too. Haven't listened to that one yet though.

[Epic Reine 0]

Very long album (not a bad thing) and not as fast as the others.

 

My favorite track is "For The Greater Good Of God" and "The Pilgrim" has a nice riff.

[Slayer 0]

I found that that Blind Guardian have a new CD out too.

I picked that one up too

[cd213 0]

I found that that Blind Guardian have a new CD out too.

I picked that one up too

 

 

I'm probably going to pick that one up next week when I have more cash.

[ZGangsta 0]

Oh yeah, I just picked up A Matter of Life and Death today and it definately rocks.

[Styles 0]

I've got it and am listening to it right now. Its amazing. Bruce's voice sounds literally as good as it ever has. This is also their heaviest souding album they've ever done, way more crunching riffs then galloping riffs like their usual. I hear a lot of Bruce's recent solo album influence in this which is a very good thing.

Im not sure why a lot of places are rating it a bit lower then Dance of Death (Then again most ranked Brave New World below DoD too which I disagreed with too, so whatever), I think this one is way superior and that DoD was kind of lackluster and boring in some ways, too produced sounding. This one sounds very "live" and full of energy.

Get it, and look for the version with the bonus DVD with making of documentary and music videos.

 

Oh, and here's the whole album to listen before you buy in streaming form! Enjoy! http://music.aol.com/songs/new_releases_fu...S00050000000011

[Guest CWMwasmurdered]

I'm enjoying it alot. I definetly agree with the love of "For the greater good of god".

[Styles 0]

I can't get "These Colors Don't Run" out of my head.

[Corey_Lazarus 0]

I've only heard the "single," if you can call it that, titled "The Reincarnation of Benjamin Briggs" (or something insanely close) off MusicChoice. And I agree with you, MJ: lots of Bruce's solo stuff influencing the sound. I was half-surprised to not see Roy Z playing guitar instead of the trio we have.

 

Also, Dance of Death was entirely underwhelming. I think I've listened to it a handful of times, maybe even less. Brave New World trumps it in so many ways. Such as, well, "The Wicker Man" being better than every song off Dance, and "The Thin Line Between Love and Hate" being just a great classic Maiden epic.

 

I'll be needing to pick this up. The lack of galloping that I'm hearing about is a little disheartening, truth be told, since the gallop (especially on the bass) is Maiden's trademark along with the harmonies that sound simple and prove to be somewhat tricky to play. This and Gwar's new one, Beyond Hell, are high up on my list.

 

Damn...new Maiden, new Gwar, I need to get me some Miasma, the new Mastodon (I forget if it's s/t or called Blood Mountain, I think the former)...hrmmm...have the new Unearth, the new SYL (not as good as Alien, but the studio version of "Far Beyond Metal" is very quality, including a guest appearance by Dave "Oderus Urungus" Brockie), the new Slayer, the latest Exodus...might get the new Corpse...

 

Shit yeah. I'm loving the downpour of good metal albums - REAL metal albums - that have been coming out this year.

[Slayer 0]

By contrast, I found DOD to be miles ahead of BNW.

 

I notice Laz doesn't mention the new BG album. He's keeping that one for himself

[Corey_Lazarus 0]

Please. You know I'd prefer the entire collection of Jag Panzer and Helloween than any other power metal.

 

Speaking of which...gimme some Jag Panzer recs. I always love the tracks included from them on Century Media's Identity samplers. I think it's a fucking shame that all of their samplers now are shitty metalcore bands (Manntis, WHAT THE FUCK?!) with a few good bands tossed in here and there (Nevermore always, Behemoth, Arch Enemy, Shadows Fall, etc. - the "big guys" for the label).

[Slayer 0]

gimme some Jag Panzer recs.

Anything for TSM's biggest Demons and Wizards fan

 

Age of Mastery, Mechanized Warfare or Thane to the Throne

 

The last one is a concept album based on Shakespeare's MacBeth

[ZGangsta 0]

By contrast, I found DOD to be miles ahead of BNW.

 

I notice Laz doesn't mention the new BG album. He's keeping that one for himself

 

I thought Brave New World kicked the crap out of Dance of Death. I don't think there are any really memorable songs off of Dance of Death (I still think it's a decent listen as an album though) aside from "Journeyman," whereas "Wicker Man," "Dream of Mirrors," and "Blood Brothers" all resonate with me from Brave New World.

[Black Lushus 0]

wait...there's a new SYL out?

[Slayer 0]

By contrast, I found DOD to be miles ahead of BNW.

 

I notice Laz doesn't mention the new BG album. He's keeping that one for himself

 

I thought Brave New World kicked the crap out of Dance of Death. I don't think there are any really memorable songs off of Dance of Death (I still think it's a decent listen as an album though) aside from "Journeyman," whereas "Wicker Man," "Dream of Mirrors," and "Blood Brothers" all resonate with me from Brave New World.

The only songs I did like off BNW were "Ghost of the Navigator", "The Mercenary" and "Brave New World" (moreso the live version off RiR, as the original studio version had no energy). "Wicker Man" is one of their most overrated songs, and the rest of it was just kinda bleh. I think part of my opinion is heldover from '00 when it came out and I was cynical about the reunion, but even listening to it now my opinion hasn't changed.

 

By contrast, it was apparent Maiden was really clicking by DoD's release, and there are far fewer "bad" (where bad by Iron Maiden standards is still better than most anything else) songs on here, IMO. The only songs I didn't care for were "No More Lies" and the title track, or rather, "Chicken Dance of Death"

 

As for this current CD, hopefully I can finally give it a spin today and offer up my thoughts later

[Red Baron 0]

You are all on crack to think Dance of Death was a horrible album, especially compaired to Brave new world.

[Epic Reine 0]

I enjoyed Brave New World a lot more than Dance of Death. The Wicker Man, Blood Brothers, The Fallen Angel, Dream Of Mirrors, and Out Of The Silent Planet all rule.

[Styles 0]

Brave New World is way better then DoD in my opinion. I think A Matter... beats them both though. I really like BNW, but I just wasn't impressed with DoD overall. Montesgur was the only really great track IMO. Rainmaker and Wildest Dreams are good short punchy tracks but I think Different World on Matter of L&D is better. The epics like Dance of Death and Paschendale sounded way too produced and not organic with all the orchestra parts and other computer generated enchasers. Face in the Sand and Journeyman are good tracks if a bit plodding and lifeless at times, they just don't "rock" much if you get what I'm saying, and No More Lies is held back by being too long and repetitive. And really the rest of the tracks just sound like uninspired filler (Gates of Tommorow? Age of Innocence? New Frontier?)

This new album just has so much more punch and energy and liveliness to it, from Bruce's voice souding way more powerful to the guitars being very heavy and driving rather then just sort of playing along in the background.

[ZGangsta 0]

By contrast, I found DOD to be miles ahead of BNW.

 

I notice Laz doesn't mention the new BG album. He's keeping that one for himself

 

I thought Brave New World kicked the crap out of Dance of Death. I don't think there are any really memorable songs off of Dance of Death (I still think it's a decent listen as an album though) aside from "Journeyman," whereas "Wicker Man," "Dream of Mirrors," and "Blood Brothers" all resonate with me from Brave New World.

The only songs I did like off BNW were "Ghost of the Navigator", "The Mercenary" and "Brave New World" (moreso the live version off RiR, as the original studio version had no energy). "Wicker Man" is one of their most overrated songs, and the rest of it was just kinda bleh. I think part of my opinion is heldover from '00 when it came out and I was cynical about the reunion, but even listening to it now my opinion hasn't changed.

 

By contrast, it was apparent Maiden was really clicking by DoD's release, and there are far fewer "bad" (where bad by Iron Maiden standards is still better than most anything else) songs on here, IMO. The only songs I didn't care for were "No More Lies" and the title track, or rather, "Chicken Dance of Death"

 

As for this current CD, hopefully I can finally give it a spin today and offer up my thoughts later

 

I think I need to give Dance of Death another listen.

 

After a couple days though so far, I'm thinking A Matter of Life and Death kicks both their asses.

[Guest Agent of Oblivion]

Did I see something called "Chicken Dance of Death" mentioned up there?

[Slayer 0]

I tend to refer to the song "Dance of Death" as "Chicken Dance of Death" due to the fact that the repeated string-synth portion (starting about three minutes in) sounds similar to the infamous wedding reception song.

 

I remember coming to the conclusion because I purchased DoD around Xmas 03 and was listening to it heavily right before my friend's wedding at that same time.

[The Metal Maniac 0]

Everyone who thinks Paschendale isn't one of Maiden's best tracks ever is out of their minds. There, I said it.

 

Seriously though, I think I'd agree that BNW is better then DoD, but not by very much. I think both the albums are damned good, and since I've had less then a week to be able to listen to and judge AMOLAD, I wouldn't say it blows those albums out of the water. I may indeed decide that it is a better album when I've had more time to ponder on it, but not right now.

 

Also, I don't get saying that Bruce's voice has more power to it then normal; his voice sounds a little more buried in the mix then I'm used to. Mebbe that's just my imagination though...

[Slayer 0]

I'll probably have to give it a few more lessons, but a cursory listen today has me putting this barely ahead of BNW, and still a fair bit behind DoD

[Corey_Lazarus 0]

My problem with Dance of Death is that it's utterly forgettable. Brave New World at least has the stigma of being the first Maiden album with Bruce on board in nearly a decade, whereas Dance of Dead has...a decent intro, a few long songs, and shitty coverart. I guess I'll have to give it a few more listens, because I don't see what makes it better than Brave New World at ALL.

 

Still haven't grabbed A Matter of Life and Death yet...I had all weekend to do so, too. Well, minus the drunken escapades of Friday night...or the hangover-while-at-a-friend's-wedding shit of Saturday...or the girl's-sick-so-we're-staying-home adventures of this day.

 

...yeah, I had all weekend to.

[MillenniumMan831 0]

Everyone who thinks Paschendale isn't one of Maiden's best tracks ever is out of their minds. There, I said it.

 

Hell, I love that song. It leads off their Greatest Hits album. Always thought it would make a good tune for an ECW music video.

[pochorenella 0]

Fun fact for those who care: A Matter of Life and Death debuted this week on Billboard's Top 200 chart at #9, making it the first time in Maiden's history that they charted in the Top 10 albums. Their previous high was #11 for Somewhere in Time.

[Corey_Lazarus 0]

Yeah, I heard that today. Kinda weird that a band that's so highly regarded as Iron Maiden has never had an album debut in the top 10.