Review Summary: Rock In Rio=Maiden is back with a vengeance
If "Brave New World" wasn't a good enough indication that Maiden is back with a vengeance, I cannot think of a better one than this. I'm sure there will be plenty of argument as to whether or not this album is as good as "Live after Death", so you know what? I'm not even going to discuss it. One thing for sure is that this is certainly their best live album since that one.
What we have here is nearly two hours of excellent live metal. The new album, "Brave New World", is well-represented, with 6 of its 10 songs on here, done to perfection. Many of the old favorites can be found here as well, such as "The Trooper", "Hallowed Be Thy Name", and "The Number of the Beast", and they're as great as ever. Heck, even the Blayze Bailey songs sound great. But really, the only bad thing about them was Blayze, anyway. Hearing Bruce sing "The Clansman" is just awesome. You can just see William Wallace charging across the field, can't you? "Sign of the Cross" is well-made, but that instrumental section is just way too long. Yep, an awesome live album. However, there is one problem. There is NOTHING from "Somewhere in Time" on here! Not one song! How could they not include "Wasted Years", or "Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner"? I was really disappointed about that, but oh well.
Everything that actually is here is perfect. The musicians all play very tight, and Bruce further solidifies his position as one of the top metal vocalists. The crowd is very lively, and you can tell they're having a great time (why are foreign audiences so much more enthusiastic than American ones? What's the matter with us?). And, once again, we have Bruce screaming "Scream for me, Brazil!". Yep, you've heard that before.
This is just what I needed. The best album to come out this year, and one of the best live albums period. I'm sure Megadeth's live album is a good one too, but there's just no comparing it to this. Now all we need is a new studio album.
Up the Irons!!!
