Metal Reviews
Metal Reviews
Ed Hunter IRON MAIDEN |
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Unless you are one of those completist IRON MAIDEN fans, like me, you wouldn't really be running out to get this for the music alone because
all twenty songs are available elsewhere and in a considerably less expensive version than this three disc set. Why you would be picking this neat little package up is for the CD ROM game, "ED HUNTER." The game is comparable to "DOOM" in that it is incredibly violent but it is the journey through the worlds and history of IRON MAIDEN as incorporated in the game that make this thing special and, I must say, sinfully fun! I wish that I could tell you more about the game itself than how much fun I, and the few that I have allowed time with it, have had trying to track down Eddie in our computer generated private eye persona but I can't seem to live past the second level, yet. The coolest thing about this game, for me, is that I can't help but flash back to the days when I had just run home from the record shop with one of the new MAIDEN albums, threw it on the turntable, (yeah, I am that fucking old!), slipped on the headphones and stared at the album cover as the image and the music took me on a journey far, far away. Now, I can do the same thing only the images have been made for me and I am an active participant in the vision. Cooler than cool. There are customizable options to the game such as the ability to have whichever MAIDEN song you like from the twenty included as background music for your quest. I usually pick "Wrathchild" to accompany me as I shoot bottle throwing punks in the face. Oh yeah, occasionally photos of the band members will pop up and if you are quick enough you will be able to shoot them and get an extra life! Be Quick Or Be Dead indeed! Good fun for the family? Not really but neither is rock and roll and that is the way it should be! Released by EMI/Chrysalis Review by David Lee. |
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Voila! MAIDEN manages the task with ease and may very well have even surpassed the need to own some of those previous live collections. Like the title suggests this was recorded at the “Rock in Rio” festival where better than a quarter million Metal maniacs gathered to hear nearly every classic in the MAIDEN cannon done with the then new six man lineup. The resulting show simply had to be one of MAIDEN’s best with all three guitars cutting across one another so that not only could they reproduce any studio track live but could add, elongate and warp each into something familiar but new without losing a bit of punch. The interplay between Janick Gers, Adrian Smith and Dave Murray during “2 Minutes to Midnight” is mind melting. All the while Nicko McBrain (drums) and Steve Harris (bass) thunder on louder and prouder than ever before. The set list comes close to replicating the standard “BRAVE NEW WORLD” tour which is to say a fat slice of “greatest hits” fluffed out with the best of the current record and a few less-obvious “other” tracks. You get up to date versions of “Wrathchild,” “The Trooper,” “Iron Maiden,” “The Number of the Beast,” “Sanctuary,” “Hallowed be thy Name” and “Run to the Hills” to sing along to word for word but then you have Bruce Dickinson led versions of Blaze Bayley era tracks “Sign of the Cross” and “The Clansman” to simply marvel at. All totaled two discs filled with a classic MAIDEN live experience that will cause infinite frustration for those who feel they have to choose either this or the classic 80’s live package, “LIVE AFTER DEATH.” In an attempt to make the choice favor the new disc a pair of enhanced videos were added, (“BRAVE NEW WORLD” and “A DAY IN THE LIFE”) as “bonus” features, one to each disc. You can’t possibly lose traveling in either direction but if you are growing a bit weary of hearing “Scream for me Long Beach Arena”, “ROCK IN RIO” is guaranteed to rejuvenate your appreciation of live MAIDEN. Released by Portrait/Columbia Records Review by Vinnie Apicella [va85@columbia.edu] P.O. Box 20252
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"Brave New World" IRON MAIDEN |
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The anticipation involved with this new IRON MAIDEN album, at least in the metal community, has been just short of that which one would expect form a parent awaiting a new born. "Will it be healthy, will it look like us, will we really love it just as much as the others?" The answer to all is, yes, of course we will. In fact, I expect that this MAIDEN munchkin will be stronger, better looking and more loved than any of the MAIDEN offspring of the last decade. The strength of "BRAVE NEW WORLD" lies firmly in the dogged dedication to the metal artform that these six sonic statesmen exhibit in each note, phrase and passage put to tape. As returning lead
vocalist Bruce Dickinson observes, "This kind of music, metal,
hard rock or whatever you want to call it, has suffered from the death
of a thousand cuts in recent years. It's had to go underground again
and it's about A more true sentiment may never have been expressed even if its author may not fully realize the responsibility that has been heaped largely on his back. Fortunately, Dickinson and the rest of IRON MAIDEN 2000, have put forth an album of epic proportions that justifies the singers confidence. IRON MAIDEN, whether they realize it or not, are the father figures of the metal genre and as such they have set a respectable example for the youngin's to follow with "BRAVE NEW WORLD." This album harkens back to the golden era between "NUMBER OF THE BEAST" and "POWERSLAVE" with a definite nod to the production quality of Dickinson's last few solo albums. Everything is grand and crisp and perfectly crafted for the live stage. The obvious lead single was and is "The Wickerman" and is the only thing on the entire record that has even the slightest chance of getting some radio and MTV play but then again IRON MAIDEN's fortunes were never dependant on those mediums. What made MAIDEN the legendary band that it is has always been their ability to transport the listener to another place, either real or imagined, and to explode it all in full color. Here we are taken to the "Brave New World" of dreams where we meet Angles, Navigators, Mercenaries, Nomads and a host of others, each with their own story to tell. Forced to pick a favorite of my own, yours may differ as each track has its own charm, I would choose the epic, "Blood Brothers." "Blood Brothers" is a Steve Harris composition and rides on for better than seven minutes through a bit of Harris's personal melancholia. By the end of
the number you can feel something tugging at the gut and the strongest
of men will feel the need to fight off a tear or two. It is simply
one of the most brilliant pieces of music ever created not just by
MAIDEN but With Dickinson,
Adrian Smith, Janick Gers, Steve Harris, Dave Murray and Nicko McBrain
all making music under the IRON MAIDEN moniker there is added justification
to the adage regarding the strength that comes from numbers. In the
case of "BRAVE NEW WORLD" the numbers are strengthened still
further by the undiminished faith in what it is they do. Released by Portrait/Columbia Records Review By David
Lee |
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"Edward The Great" Iron Maiden |
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Before picking apart the track selection and yet another stab at mass market consumption that's seeing them slowly gain ground on Rock band gone capitalist kings in disguise, Kiss, I want to first comment on the absolutely awe-inspiring cover art for the hands down leaders of coincident underground album artistry. All Hail Eddie, indeed! Better yet, buy his "Ed Hunter" CD-Rom; it's worth the price of admission solely for the characterization if not the stodgy Doom-like game play. "Edward The Great" is their latest foray into the keep the motor running derby while life on the road and at home prevails upon the development of new material - but rest assured, according to Mr. Harris, the acceleration pedal shall be depressed soon enough. Does the Metal world need another Maiden comp? Nah. But then considering that '98s "Best Of The Beast" seemed to somehow fly by unnoticed, and given the fact that Iron Maiden is indeed back to the reclaim their rightful throne as indisputable industry leaders, why let the grass grow too high? Sure some will view this as another rip off stab at gaining a few extras from the fan as the band regains the monumental momentum they hadn't known for fifteen years; Others will welcome the fact that Maiden's still releasing anything together and against, still, the opposing winds of industry commercialism. The re-releasing of two full catalogs within the span of, what, two or three years, was a little nonsensical, for sure, but then again, can there be such a thing as over saturation in a truly "Metal" market these days anyway? So here we have "Edward The Great," a by design by-product of Eddie's latest six-disc archive casket set from a few months back, and mainly the subservient initiative for the "new" fan just discovering or rediscovering the band, as the case may be. Be it known that there are no overlapping tracks between this and those. And for the new fan, there's some priceless material here that you're lucky enough to pick up on now - all the classics from "Run To The Hills," "The Number Of The Beast," "The Trooper," "Wasted Years," "The Wicker Man…" and of course, the late great Eddie's dominance, embossed in great detail on the front cover, though oddly enough, nowhere to be found again within the contents. For those of an already established fan base, well, it's Iron Maiden, so you're not buying it for the remastered songs you already have anyway; it's just another addition to your collection, and as far as collections go, it's not earth shattering but gets the job done. Again I'll revert to "Best Of The Beast" that was a full on spread of the many faces of Maiden during their then 20 year anniversary. So with the exception of a couple of the newer tracks here, you're basically getting the same thing, only with the added advantage of hearing Blaze Bailey digitally remastered twice over! Most everything that's supposed to be here is; the band is represented well, though I would question the fact that nothing from their first two albums is included - two very essential albums as any true fan will tell you. So if the idea is to exploit only the Dickinsonian period, why then was there a need to include "Man On The Edge" and "Futureal?" Not bad songs by any means, in fact I wouldn't mind it if they included "Sign Of The Cross," "Aftermath," or "Lightning Strikes Twice." We could probably do without "Can I Play With Madness," one of four inclusions from their poor sounding "Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son" 1988 release which is a little too overexposed here. For those who didn't get an earful of their last live release, "Live In Rio," that's absolutely necessary for any such initiation into the world of Maiden and the universal acclaim they continue to boast - here you'll get a quick glimpse of its monumentality with the closing, "Fear Of The Dark," originally done on 1992's under appreciated album of the same title. Lastly, the 24 page cover leaflet, done on glittery, glossy paper, mainly involves song lyrics and a couple unforeseen group photos, with the random skull, snake, and gold emblem thrown in for regality. So for the newcomer, "Edward The Great" is an essential acquisition into the world of one of Metal's all-time great packages. For the long time fan, there's
nothing I or anyone else can write here to convince you to buy or
not buy - you already know the songs, you probably already have the
remasters, and you might even be a little bit pricked about missing
the "Brave New World" tour. But as a fan, it's something
you'll inevitably add to the collection because, well, that's what
we do… Released by Sanctuary Records: http://www.sanctuaryrecordsgroup.com/ Review by Vinnie Apicella [va85@columbia.edu] P.O. Box 20252
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