Album Rating: 1.0

"Iron Maiden were always straight ahead in their approach musically. None of them were virtuosos on their instruments"



Please tell me you're trolling. If you're not, please go re-listen to all of Iron Maiden's albums with the bass turned up and write an apology letter to Steve Harris.

Album Rating: 2.5

Judging from your ratings limited to the metal genre it doesn’t surprise me you consider Harris a virtuoso…You may consider the term to be synonymous of good or interesting, or inventive but that is not the case. The term refers to the highest technical ability an instrumentalist possesses. Harris is unique in his approach regarding metal bassists, but galloping won’t make you a virtuoso mate. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qVGeyZqsqUs

Album Rating: 1.0

Dude, you're talking jazz fusion on a metal review. That's like posting on a Mustang forum about how

fast your Nissan is. Yeah they're both cars, but we're talking completely different breeds here.



While you are absolutely grammatically correct in regard to the word virtuoso, when used in the

context of this review my description was apt.

Album Rating: 4.5

Im glad the album has finally got a mixed review, I love the album personally but it's nice to see somebody who doesn't give their viewpoints on it. Some really interesting content in the review aswell.

Album Rating: 3.0

1st of all, latest pos from me, good job, good writing, interesting points!

especially the before-last paragraph where your point becomes clearer.



but it is exactly this tension that maiden build in this well structured album that make some songs very dark and special

lord of the flies with bruce is weak, the same from the band blaze is a killer



and still... Di Anno is da best hehe

Album Rating: 2.5

@Black Lama



Well your analogy suggests that each genre has its virtuosos…it doesn’t work that way imo. Nonetheless let’s follow your frame of mind; I could accept an argument that the likes of Friedman, Rhoads, VH, Petrucci or Myung are virtuosos…Murray and Harris aren’t though. That doesn’t mean they are not great…personally I would pick Maiden over Theater as a group extract, without second thoughts. I also love punk music and punk musicians were never technically proficient. The reason I stated their lack of virtuosity, was a mean to accentuate their ability to create some prog-ish tunes with simple building blocks. That means they cover up their technical deficiencies when compared to other prog bands (e.g. Rush, Theater etc) with creative structuring and musical knack…I was actually complimenting them! Their lack of theoretical or compositional knowledge though, spells bigger problems when they need to tackle something out of their inherent musical comfort zone (e.g. a baritone).

Album Rating: 2.5

@MusicSlayerHQ



Cool man, quite mature of you to go through my review with an open mind, considering you love this album.



@piroga 84



Well, the subject of tension is a long one and needs thorough analysis… yet even if you describe the X Factor’s audible result as tension (in musical analysis tension is something completely different tbh), I would like some release. 70 minutes drags too far away.

I prefer Bruce tbh but I also like Di’Anno… in fact I would pick Di’Anno when it pertains to songs from the first two albums, over Bruce’s later renditions of the same tunes. But Bruce is adequate on them …now imagine Di’Anno trying to cover Bruce’s songs… in for a good laugh. Cheers!

Album Rating: 3.5

I really like the Bruce versions of the songs on this album, but it's not just him, the live mix trumps the album version. Bruce actually has a relatively deep voice, so his versions of Di'Anno's and Blaze's stuff are always competent.

Album Rating: 2.5

Yeah… well Bruce is a top notch metal vocalist. Putting aside range and technical ability compared to Di’Anno and Blaze there is another quality Bruce possesses, contrary to Blaze especially… His voice is expressive. His notes are much more coloured and interesting, he provides punctuation… textures. Blaze is a one trick pony, prosaic if you may, mainly adding contour with variations in the volume (loudness) of his delivery.

Album Rating: 3.5

Not to mention, and this may not be his fault exactly, but there were some flat notes that were left in for some reason. I can't remember if Harris produced this one but it definitely could have been better.

Album Rating: 2.5

Harris, along Nigel Green who I believe is a sound engineer, not a producer. I also believe that Virtual XI had a worse production than this...

Interesting review Dr, have a pos.
Imho your rating is a bit harsh. I like this dark, atmospheric even depressing side of Maiden. Also the lyrics of the album are quite interesting.

Album Rating: 2.5

Thnx! Well... to each his own. The lyrics, as I stated in my review, are pertinent to the overall "feel" of the album.

Album Rating: 3.5

Production is solid, has some great tunes, the dark tone is a good change of pace, and Blaze's vocals fit the music well here. Too bad Virtual XI wasn't as good.