Today I offer an opinion on my personal discomfort with Iron Maiden for the last 20 years or so. What's your opinion? Are you on board with newer Maiden? Looking forward to your comments! Please comment, like, and subscribe!
Iron Maiden has been running on fumes for twenty years. It’s actually incredible how they can produce album after album with unbelievable uninteresting content so consistently. I’ve been a Maiden fanboy since 1994 but bought my last album in 2003 when “Dance of death” came out. I didn’t like that album. I’ve listened to all of the rest of them, just didn’t buy them. Because they were terrible imo. Their songs hasn’t interested my ears in decades because nothing interesting happens in them. No unique melodies, no unexpected chord changes and the songs go on and on and never ends. They’re so predictable that I sometimes laugh when hearing their new songs for the first time because I always know what comes next. I don’t like how the guitars been sounding the last decades either, way too harsh and dry. They seemed fuller and mixed better back in the day, difficult to explain really. Harris wrote much more interesting pieces in the 80s-90s than he’s capable of doing now. He’s treading water, repeating himself over and over. He might have Alzheimer’s, the rest of the band should have him checked out.
No martin birch, no maiden. Sad but true. The only good thing about modern maiden is that they have awakened everybody about what NOT to do, if u want to make a good sounding record.
Seventh Son is the last high quality album where every songs is incredible! If they had cropped the highlights of No Prayer and Fear Of The Dark into one album - it would have been great also
Huge Maiden fan. By far my favorite band. I disagree on AMOLAD, like it and BOS a lot, but agree 100000% on Kevin Shirley. He's holding Maiden back. He somehow manages to make Maiden's studio albums sound flat and lifeless compared to their live sound or especially the Martin Birch stuff.
Like I said, I can't remember anything from Life & Death, I should give it another spin. Book is my 2nd favorite after BNW since 2000. I just don't understand why every song has to be 10 minutes long (or longer). The chorus repeats sometimes takes away my will to live. lol
@@theemetallist6758 Yeah, AMOLAD may not be for you. Maybe try Lord Of Light from that record. It's a medium length song that does have a slow intro, but it's really moody and non-repetitive. This is what a longer song should sound like in my opinion. Up the irons!
Love AMOLAD as well. Thought the first two tracks weren't anything special considering the hype I heard before its release but hey...track three! Brighter Than A Thousand Suns! I hold that song up to anything they've done.🤘 Really enjoy the rest of the album as well.
For everybody complaining about Shirley, he's executing Steve's direction. Multiple articles exist where Adrian talks about disagreeing with the sound and he always concedes "It's Steve's band". He was co producing before Shirley and he's a horrible producer. Bass is way over blown, the drums are not mic'd, the mids are way too high and the vocals are mixed.too far back. BNW was before the band just let Steve lead the sound. Shirley is not at fault, the entire band is at fault for the sound because nobody pushes. As for songs, BNW is amazing. BoS if you cut to one album would be a top 5 Maiden record. AMOLAD has great songs but the production as awful. Steve stopped writing short songs back on Fear. Thanks the world Bruce and Janick writing killer songs and Adrian is by far the best soloer.
Dance of Death - Not terrible, but not great either. A Matter of Life and Death - There aren't many albums I hate, but I HATE this album. Seven times, I have listened to this human waste from front to back, and I detest it more with each listen. Final Frontier - Some moments here and there, but pretty crappy regardless. The Book of Souls - Has some great tracks; a damned near masterpiece if you cut down the length. Death or Glory was dope. Senjutsu - A solid first disc, but COMPLETELY trails off in the second disc. I was listening to Unlucky Morpheus' Angreifer, and I was thinking, Iron Maiden's acoustic intros wouldn't even be so bad if #1 they were used sparingly, and #2 there was some actual PAYOFF when the song actually began. Kevin Shirley is a big part of the problem. The apologists should also shoulder some of the blame, though. As Razorfist said, as long as the fanboys keep eating this up, it will stay on the menu.
Just watched Razor's review 2 times. To your point,he's absolutely right. I've seen a lot of people calling it a "masterpiece!" Though I really enjoy the solo's on TWOTW,I'm not too keen on much else. Listening at 1.25 speed did help spice up some of the monotony.
I'd put Iron Maiden & Killers up against ANYTHING Maiden have ever released. Those 2 albums with Di'Anno are stellar! With ages ranging from Bruce,63 to Nicko,69, 17 albums and the fact Maiden have been road dogs non stop for the past 40 years It just may be they're stuck in a decades long rut,or the well has run dry. Sht canning Shirley may help remedy that there. Maiden could tour any album from Seventh Son
Kevin Shirley is a lazy ass yes man, and which is precisely why he's been floating around like a turd that refuses to flush. Judas Priest made fire power which is amazing while Iron Maiden is making plodding bore fests.
I agree with you. I’ve been listening to all the 21st century Maiden lately, and it does have some brilliant moments album to album. I think “Matter of Life and Death” is phenomenal pretty much all the way through. But each album other than that has songs that drag and drag and drag and drag. When they write really long songs and they work, they seem short. But when they don’t, it’s like ear torture. They need to include more 5mins or less bangers and I’d be much happier in general.
Had this for Senjutsu and Hell on Earth. Senjutsu drags and wouldve been better if it were 2 minutes shorter and it wouldnt even have missed any of the music. Hell on earth is a long song, but every time I listen to it it goes by in an instant, because it works0
Dianno Maiden kicked ass, as did early Bruce Dickinson Maiden. However, since the late 80s they have become boring, formulaic, and frankly, very early Genesis kicks their ass.
Totally agree! From Somewhere in Time back is near perfection. I never was a 7th Son fan. My favorite album since 1986 is Brave New World. Thanks for watching & commenting! Also~ early Genesis is amazing.
Killers was the first metal album I purchased not long after it was released, was the start of my 40 year love affair with metal 🤘 I still play everything up to and including 7 Son on a regular basis. The new album is the only one I have never purchased. Once bitten twice shy! But it is the same story for me with Metallica. I tolerated the Black album but the relationship really ended at Justice. Now I just feel old 😫😁
There's two answers: First, Maiden doesn't have a producer that is willing to tell them when. So many tracks Maiden has made during the 21st century would be boss as hell if they just cut the song in half or removed these meandering intros that go nowhere. You don't need every song to be 10+ minutes long. The second answer is that Maiden has HORRIBLE taste in their own music with Adrian Smith going as far to say that the first Maiden album is a bad album despite the fact that it's one of the greatest metal albums of all time.
Definitely agree with most of what you said. Kevin Shirley stood up to Alex Lifeson and made a brilliant back to roots recording with Rush for Counterparts. Working with Maiden he admitted they all like the slow intros and outros. Seems obvious with Rush he was into the creative process. With Maiden it's Harris signing his name to Kevin's paycheck.
@@theemetallist6758 love Counterparts myself. He wasn't the Producer but the Recording Engineer. He denied Alex reverb and insisted Geddy return to Fender basses and Ampeg amplifiers. It's well documented on Beyond The Lighted Stage Rush documentary.
Iron Maiden haven't made a decent album since Seventh Son, its just been constant disappointment, including Senjutsu which seems to be the worst of the lot!!
A bit harsh, but I tend to agree. BNW is good, I rarely listen to it though. I have a feeble for X Factor (my first Maiden album) and DoD, which has some nice tunes, but these albums are flawed nonetheless. Seems like something went missing after Seventh Son. Senjutsu is ass. As uninspired as it is bloated and pretentious.
@@Rupture_EX I don't think it's bloated at all. It's full of different ideas and inspirations, but they are all put together so well that the albums feels like an organic whole that is not a second too long. Most songs are kept short and trimmed (maybe apart the title track), the album is short and on point. Not a dull moment, full of focused energy.
I don't even see whats good about Brave New World. It was paint by the numbers. I think the last spark of genuine talent were Be Quick or Be Dead and Tailgunner.. everything since then are just autopilot record deal obligations
Apart from 'Matter' I agree with all. For me it's just that album and 'Brave' in 30 years that were above average. In effect it died after Seventh Son.
I probably didn't give "Matter" enough time, I was probably really into something else at the time. I wasn't really into 7th Son either... but I still play BNW regularly.
I'm so glad Harris and Dickinson doesn't give a shit about these typo if opinions. The music is cinematic and grandiose. I listen to classical music like Bethoveens 9th.the sound is fine the music is fine.
Ok , I totally agree with you about 21st century Maiden" there's something that is not registering with old school Maiden as I am" I think the songs are way to friggin long! For starters " And their so forgettable! It's so disappointing to me too" I will listen to their new release and I played numerous times and I can't remember one damn song!:(.. I joke about this " I call them the heavy Metal "YES" the band "YES" LOL" " I know I'm in the minority of this , However, I love " Paul Dianna Era" It's so Punk Metal" I love it!! It's raw , heavy and punk metal with Hooks" in my opinion and I believe it's true" The greatest Maiden song ever recorded and put on Wax is "REMEMBER TOMORROW" co-written By 'D'ianno" Metallica believes it is also Metallica did a incredible Version of "REMEMBER TOMORROW" why is Metallica so Damn good at recording other bands songs and making them their own"" I first saw Maiden in 1983 ' on piece of mind " tour " 8$ lol with a very cool underrated band "FASTWAY" opened and they were Awesome" you should like them being a UFO" FAN EVEN THO PETE WAY " NEVER PLAYED ON ALBUM" one of best Bass players of all-time! By the way""!
Unpopular opinion -- What's wrong? Nothing. I actually enjoy the hell out of all Iron Maiden, from the debut to Senjutsu, they're just one of my all-time favorite bands. A Matter of Life and Death is my No. 3 favorite Maiden album behind Powerslave and Piece of Mind -- absolutely love the hell out of AMOLAD. Senjutsu has actually risen to No. 8 in my rankings after starting out about 12th. An unpopular observation: Most of the people who dislike latter-day Maiden *just don't like long songs*. That just my observation, people just don't really like long songs anymore -- I guess Rime of the Ancient Mariner is the upper limit of people's attention span? I'm fine with them, I don't mind many of the long songs. I don't really like The Final Frontier or Book of Souls, just they way they were produced, they're muddy and dull sounding. All in all, I appreciate the rant -- I'm just of the opposite opinion. We all have different ears.
On the recommendation of you and several others, I've been giving AMOLAD some more listens. I'm probably not a huge fan of longer songs~ good point. I find a lot of latter day Maiden to be too repetitive, so the length of the songs seem extraneous. Even Heaven Can Wait from back in the day could have done with some trimming IMO. I enjoy the insight of other fans. Agreement with me is not my goal. Thanks for watching!
Well, 2 minute acoustic intro after 2 minute acoustic intro, doesn't cut it. Chorus repeat after chorus repeat, doesn't cut it. The same dancing guitar melody after the same dancing guitar melody, doesn't cut it. They need a new producer that with force them to do rockin' songs again, no longer than 4 or 5 minutes. Songs that know when to end. I love Rime Of The Ancient Mariner, but I don't need attempt after attempt, after attempt, to create something epic like that on every album. That's what made Mariner so unique. I agree with Di'anno and Razorfist, they need a shakeup. Get a new producer....
I asked someone who listens to Iron Maiden why the albums post Brave New World have not been quite as good as that Album yet, considering that he states what you said here that Kevin Shirley is the issue, along with the band's ego. Yet Kevin Shirley was also the producer on Brave New World and it was successful so I was wondering why that was.
My guess is that Shirley influence over the band may have grown over time. Also the band continues to go in a progressive rock direction, but I feel progressive rock should be more interesting and less repetitive than Maiden has been. Good question! Thanks for watching.
Firepower and Invincible Shield blow Senjutsu and Book of Souls away. Iron Maiden lack harmony they were famous for on newer releases. The production sounds muddy and overblown.
To answer the Q........The fans, for keep saying "it is a masterpiece" with every progpop nonesense they've put out since Brave new world. So yeah, the socalled fans are the problem imo. I like my MaIden to be heavy metal......and they have not fully been that since somewhere in time. Fun fact, Judas Priest have been kicking their arse since 2000 when it comes to Heavy Metal.
Weird comparison, seeing as JP and IM have never at any point been the same type of metal. JP is just standard rebel metal, Breaking The Law for example. IM has never been anything like that, they’ve always been more melodic, storytelling metal.
There are 4 tracks from 21st Century Maiden that are in my top 10 Maiden songs of all time! With that said, I do have a few issues. Production, length and cover artwork.
I think I could safely say that several songs from BNW are in my top 10. Definitely Ghost of the Navigator and probably Dreams of Mirrors. Thanks for watching!
I love Nicko as much as anyone, but the main problem is that the drumming is lifeless. Put a younger drummer in there and things will perk up. I know - they would never do that to Nicko. Just thought I’d point that out since no one else seems to get it.
Nicko obviously does well for being 70, but your point is well taken. I found Clive to be faster and more fluent on the kit. Clive had a definite Ian Paice vibe. So a younger drummer I'm sure would have much the same effect. Thanks for watching!
Great rant, Sir, but like most modern IM songs it was 9 mins too long lol. Should've just said get a producer with some balls, rant over. Have to agree, 2 or 3 good songs on a 70+ min album makes an average record at best. I've listened to all the new songs on YT and quite liked most of them for a first listen but having the time to play it all again becomes part of the problem, maybe it's a boomer thing? As for the BS live/compilation/re-issued albums, that's Maiden's problem as they're so desperate to reach the 100 million LP sales, they don't give a shit about milking their fans.
Some great Moments since dance of death some things on books of souls were good senjitsu is a bit stale for me especially the second song it just sounds like they were trying to redo powerslave but slower
Maiden dosnt write and record music for the fans, they do it for themselves..I happen to love that principle. I also happen to appreciate everything they have ever created..brilliant band!
Fair point. I feel the same way about Rush~ don't care for much after Permanent Waves, but I wouldn't want to keep doing Moving Pictures over & over. The difference is I don't like Rush anywhere near as much as Maiden. Thanks for watching!
Personally I can't stand everything after Seventh Son, and even though Brave New World was an improvement over the previous four albums I really cannot bear to listen to the Bruce revival period. All of the 80s Maiden albums were riff driven with strong instrumental energy. By Brave New World the only strength is the vocal melody, so they have some decent SONGS, just not TRACKS. What I've come to accept is that modern-day Iron Maiden is that they have good songs but are pretending to be a heavy metal band. Brave New World could have been played on any instruments (and they seem to favour a string synth backing more than anything else). Maiden guitars now are just ponderous backing for decent vocal melodies, and the production/arrangement is utterly predictable and mediocre. That was NEVER a Maiden weakness, but it is now.
Huge Maiden fan but do have issues with new album. The best analogy is cake! It's this overly large cake. It's got all your favourite ingredients. But sadly it's just been overbaked to the extent that it's stodgy and you struggle to digest easily. The prog feel is just overdone and it needs to be broken up with some shorter snappier rockier tracks. Great albums need light and shade.
Nothing is wrong with Iron Maiden. They record what they want, buy it or don't buy it. This geezer has his opinion, but if you're and Iron Maiden fan then be a fan otherwise move on.
The people I know that liked Maiden in the 80s and early 90s don't like Maiden now, and the people I know that like Maiden now like AC/DC more than Maiden.
I'm intrigued by your comments. I would think people who like the streamline approach of AC/DC would not be into the rather long-winded Maiden material. Interesting...
Shirley we could go on about the latest production for a while. I’ve heard this argument before and do miss the Martin Birch years. But I do still like the new music. Thank you for the rant but respectfully disagree. The melodies on the last two albums are beautiful IMO. And don’t you think Steve has earned the right by now to do what he wants? Like it or not? Not beholden to a producer like Bob Rock who tells Kirk he can’t do guitar solos anymore on Metallica albums? I do agree about Blaze Bailey solo work being much better than his days with Maiden. Saw him here in Akron a few years back. Great show. Up the irons! Keep it going!
Thanks Tim! We go way back and I know you know your music. I admit I'm being nostalgic, but I think they're still capable of much better records with a little "fine tuning" Certainly not a like a Mutt Lange production dictatorship. I agree they should create the record they want, I've said the same thing about Rush (I haven't cared for much they've done since anout 1980). But I never loved Rush the way I LOVED Maiden. I appreciate you watching!
No problem with Maiden.Old ass maiden fans either seem to have lost their hearing by now or are stuck in the 80's hillbilly sound whereas Maiden is moving fantastically with time. Modern maiden is as great as old 80's and better than the 90's . Book of souls and Senjutsu is awesome and Seventh son is their greatest album ever along with Powerslave and Brave new world - sorry you butt hurt first two 80's albums people 😂
@@bishowacharya4005 thanks for watching! The fact that you like 7th Son makes us Maiden fans for very different reasons. I do like BNW a lot, but Senjutsu is ear cancer.
I don't understand what’s the point of this video. You don't like 21st maiden (the title should be 2000's maiden because bnw is still a 20 st album) and why are you relevant to say that something is wrong with them. Maiden are one of the few old bands that constantly release albums, go on massive tours and there is NOTHING WRONG with them, if you don't like it, go listen to something else and enjoy.
"Gates Of Tomorrow" from Dance Of Death is the ONLY Maiden song from the 21st century "maiden" catalog that actually sounds like it could've been on Somewhere In Time. Listen to that one particular song again and just imagine it with Martin Birch's SWIT Production. It's the only song that is good out of the entire lot of 21st century Maiden...period! In all honesty though, they're peak WAS Somewhere in Time! After that it was never the same, a slow decent into absolute shit!
nope. we're just old enough to remember when Maiden were an actual Metal band and not a weak excuse for an hard rock band. and i wish i could blame it on age, but Judas Priest killed that notion w/Firepower.
I wouldn't go so far as saying they're overated. Brilliant early work and still great live. Btw what does"het" mean? Maybe your English is "Overated" as well.
@@randybayle4383 overrated indeed. How many good albums are there ? 80s thats it. All the rest is poop if it wasnt for eddie they wouldnt be half as successful .
@@randybayle4383 Steve could shit in a jar and the hordes of Maiden fanboys would still praise it as if it were the Mona Lisa. Overrated (yes, two r's) AS FUCK. PS: I absolutely adore their 80s stuff, but that was 4 decades ago...
@@SwissCheese667 thanks for the spellcheck but "adore"...did I spell that correctly and did you actually use that word regarding Heavy Metal music Sweetheart? 🤣
Ok , I totally agree with you about 21st century Maiden" there's something that is not registering with old school Maiden as I am" I think the songs are way to friggin long! For starters " And their so forgettable! It's so disappointing to me too" I will listen to their new release and I played numerous times and I can't remember one damn song!:(.. I joke about this " I call them the heavy Metal "YES" the band "YES" LOL" " I know I'm in the minority of this , However, I love " Paul Dianna Era" It's so Punk Metal" I love it!! It's raw , heavy and punk metal with Hooks" in my opinion and I believe it's true" The greatest Maiden song ever recorded and put on Wax is "REMEMBER TOMORROW" co-written By 'D'ianno" Metallica believes it is also Metallica did a incredible Version of "REMEMBER TOMORROW" why is Metallica so Damn good at recording other bands songs and making them their own"" I first saw Maiden in 1983 ' on piece of mind " tour " 8$ lol with a very cool underrated band "FASTWAY" opened and they were Awesome" you should like them being a UFO" FAN EVEN THO PETE WAY " NEVER PLAYED ON ALBUM" one of best Bass players of all-time! By the way""!
