See? They're quirky and progressive! It is very difficult to perform an album at half speed, while it sounds as if you're not playing it at half speed! now excuse me the copium is leaking out of the room
The funny thing is that is why Bruce left after Fear of the Dark. He wanted to do more acoustic tracks. And here we are. I couldn't disagree with Razor Fist, more, however. This album is fucking awesome. I don't judge any album unless I've listened to it at least a dozen times, at the minimum. This album is fucking awesome. And this is coming from a fan who holds Somewhere in Time as the apex. And if Razor thinks this sounds like some of the albums which came before it, I have to seriously question his "EAR".
@@pansophia93 but he is right though. There is still debates on this album (whether good or bad) to this day. I still personally think the album isn't all that and a bag potato chips and frankly I've gotten over it already. Anyone can like this album but if there's also negative feedback you'll have to accept the fact that you can't please everyone!
@@pansophia93 well, see...now I gotta question your 'ear'. If this is what you want from Maiden, then great. You're getting it. In spades. Double albums worth. Me? I like the old Maiden. I accidentally discovered a band called 'Icon of Sin' To me that sounds like the best Maiden album released in over a decade. You buy the new Maiden albums, I'll buy the Icon of Sin albums, and I'll see you at the Maiden nostalgia tours they do every two years. Cheers!
Id rather bands just do what they want to do intead of try to cater to friends and make something uninspired. Example: Darkthrone making heavy metal and doom instead of their classic sound
Maiden's strength in the 80s was that they could write longer songs like Hallowed Be Thy Name, Phantom of the Opera, Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Powerslave, and they were filled with so many different riffs, solos and sudden tempo changes that you were thoroughly entertained for the entire duration of the song without feeling its length. Maiden lost the ability to do this. Song length isn's their problem, just repetitiveness.
As a guitar player who learned most of my playing back in the early days of prime Maiden, I totally agree with you!! It's one thing to have epic songs with dips and curves and diversity in one song but another when it's just one looong, droney song. The other thing that bums me out about Maiden is the saaaaaame old gallops that come from a horse that has been whipped to death. I mean, I know it's a Maiden signature trait but, Damn!! And this sucks because I love Maiden and despite newer offerings, I always will!
I would also add that those earlier songs mentioned above were more aggressive, too, which the newer songs are not. For me Maiden were at their peak sound with Powerslave/Live After Death.
Agreed. Plus the lyrical quality have gone down so much. Feels like modern maiden is all about the existensial shit and war is bad m'kay. Really miss songs like Alexander the great, To tame a land, hallowed be thy name etc.
Spot on, I could not of summed it up any better. The last 3 albums are not for me, I haven't the patience for it, for me they lost the plot after "Brave new world"
Along with Clive Burr y'know the Drummer *THEY SHOULD'AVE NEVER GOTTEN FUCKEN RID OF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WASN'T EVEN A FUCKEN DRUG ADDICT LIKE DI'ANNO SADLY WAS BECAUSE DI'ANNO COULD SCREAM BLOODY HELLFIRE VENDETTAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*
Ever since A matter of life and death, I've been having to trim the repetitive choruses, cut out slumbering intros & outros, speed the songs up 1.25% (while keeping the key), and then do my best to adjust the muddy production. Usually I can edit out about 12-16 minutes of needless fluff, and in the case of their last two albums, I've gotten them where they can actually fit on an entire disc pretty easy. They need a producer that will actually tell them the words "No" and "Stop". They need a guy who will actually try to make the songs listenable without the listener getting fatigued only 3mins into a song. I don't have a problem with long songs (in concept), but there's only so much budget in an album for them. Rime of the Ancient Mariner only works (to me) because the previous songs didn't exhaust the listener's attention.
I totally agree with everything you've said, exactly my thoughts, I was a massive fan of them in the 80's, I don't understand how tracks from their newer albums get so many views, metal surely should be sharp, short and to the point, not long drawn out bore fests. You'd think they would have a least tried something different, every album since and including amolad to me are totally sh*t, id rather listen to fairground music.
@Maestro TheKLOWN Rime works for the same reason something like 2112 works - it's a complete story set to music. Things happen for a reason, the song progresses nicely, there are tempo changes that make sense - every second of this song has a reason to the there in the exact spot it appears. Newer Maiden songs don't usually work, because they seem to think that 3 minute acoustic intro + 12 minutes of the same doodling + 3 minutes of acoustic outro = awesome prog metal. Maiden isn't a prog band, none of them can write prog songs, and it's about time someone told them this. I quite liked Book Of Souls and the new one, but I fully acknowledge their problems of which Razor rants with his usual precision. The only sensible way to enjoy the title song is to play it on 1.25 speed, every acoustic intro and outro can be removed and there's absolutely no reason for any of these songs to be longer than 6-7 minutes.
Listening to present day Iron Maiden releases is like going to the nursing home and visiting your grandpa with Alzheimer's. He used to be so cool to hang out with, had amazing and hilarious stories to tell, and was always the life of any party he went to. But now he is a sad, grumpy old man, who barely recognizes you anymore, and is slowly dying of an uncurbable disease. Every time you see him in his current state, it makes you cry. That's what Iron Maiden is now. Conversely, Judas Priest and Accept are the other grandpa that that had a bit of a rocky road, but got the help he needed, and is still around and kicking ass. Hell, even great uncle Saxon has been doing well lately.
Priest was basically ALWAYS superior to Maiden with the exception of Killers.. But overall Priest was always a better band; better records better players.
"But got the help he needed, and is still around kicking ass". I can't take that seriously because Maiden got help too (bruce coming back) and are still kicking serious amounts of ass with age not slowing them down one bit.
Thanks to this video I gave Mindfreeze a spin and then proceeded to spin your entire catalog. Mindreeze is one of my favorite albums now, the cover reminds me of an old game HeXen.
@@kennethdavidson6508 that's actually why I don't really listen to metal anymore or at least not the newer stuff, the bands are soft and the fans are even softer. underground hip hop is where it's at right now if you want real hardcore shit.
To be honest, I really wish Maiden would listen to Iron Maiden, Killers, Piece Of Mind, Powerslave, Somewhere In Time and Brave New World for inspiration before even penning another song. They desperately need a shake up to try to freshen things up. Senjutsu is just Boredom in a Maiden sleeve
@@jacksonhill7552 I love it too. They put a lot of work into it, detail...great deep lyrics. I am also elated that maiden is still around and touring. Maiden is one of the hardest working bands around.....tour, tour, tour, album....and tour. Legends. cheers mate.
@@machupikachu1085 wow! The snippets I’ve heard are great! I’ll definitely give them more of a listen when I get a chance. Thanks for the recommendation 🤘
What's weird is that I mostly agree with your analysis of the album (Took me five different sit downs to finish it), but think that Book of Souls is their best post-reunion album. It feels much more inspired; like it has an intense energy to it despite having a bunch of long tracks. I also enjoyed Writing on the Wall minus the abysmal mixing. Overall I think post reunion Maiden is a mixed bag, but I would love it if Shirley got fired and they got a proper successor to the late, great Martin Birch. The talent is there, they just need to right person to bring it out. I'd love it if Maiden could have their own "Firepower" moment. The window is closing, though. I'd say they maybe have one or two albums left in them, max.
Ten years ago Iron Maiden was solidly my favorite band. When I listened to Senjutsu I couldn't help but feel the band is really showing its age, the album feels like a slow version of Brave New World. If you're a fan of Maiden the music isn't bad but nothing really stands out. And boy was I really looking for something to stand out halfway through the album. I'm not saying anything really different from Rageaholic here, but I guess I'm just here saying that even the fans are starting to notice. My top picks: The Writing on the Wall, Days of Future Past, The Parchment. 5/7 stars
Why are you in the comments of every Metal and Wrestling video? I mean, I'm glad there is another person in this world with those oddly specific interests but still.
War within me was a very safe album for blaze bayley, evidently for Iron Maiden, this was not a safe record, people who hate reunion era maiden can flock here and wish for the 80’s era songs to no avail, not realizing Iron Maiden have just moved on from that. A lot of his complaints are just opinions made to sound like fact, which there is nothing I fucking hate more, he’ll complain about too many songs having acoustic intros, but will he go and complain about a million bands having fucking drum roll outros to songs? No I don’t fucking think so, just because it’s an acoustic intro and therefore they all sound similar by virtue of being a fucking acoustic intro, doesn’t mean they don’t each have value to people who enjoy them. People like this guy who speak with so much energy behind his opinion can really make you think his opinion is fact, and if he thinks certain things make a song bad, people who also dislike those things about modern maiden will be quick to agree
I saw someone posting about the Senjutsu vinyl copies starting at over $80, coloured or not, what got me was them saying Maiden fans are both rich AND stupid, which is what created this situation lmao
Bands like Maiden, Metallica and Rage Against the Machine have essentially become the go-to bands for self-indulgent rich kids, and their CEO dads with mid-age crises. Highly ironic considering how they all started as street savy blue collar acts that challenged the music scene of their day with raw energy and lots of inspiration. None of them retain any of that any longer but the merch and live show ticket prices sure have inflated.
Posted this on True Heavy Metal page on fb It takes balls to argue with the most pathetic fanboys out there, the Iron Maiden ''fans'' . Fun fact : Maiden are hurting their own legacy by releasing shit album after shit album yet their ''fans'' will pretend they ''enjoy'' them until the end of times . My daughter's (14) exact words : ''I don't like Iron Maiden , i don't understand why they 're so famous '' after listening to the post-millennial albums first , so i had to explain her that '' these are not Maiden , go check the 80s albums'' . Ultra popular metal bands are the way for new people to get into metal but this is like a double edged knife , some of them will become serious metal listeners but most of them will bring their sheep mentality into a music genre that is totally opposite of sheep mentality . Quick example, Judas Priest were not playing football with Rock journalists and they were not playing Smoke on the water at weddings in communist countries to gain such popularity , nowdays JP fans are metal fans through and though and will criticise any bad music coming from Priest . Even Metallica fans are way more critic than Maiden fans , which makes it even more pathetic .
I agree it’s sad that Maiden fans accept all of these shit albums and are okay with it. They are ruining their chance for them to shake it up and make a great album. It’s like the band is trying to distance themselves from heavy metal and just downplays their past just to sound “progressive” Almost all of these new songs are them trying to replicate Fear of the dark and try to make the crowd sing along. They are more focused on making songs like that instead of pure kickass songs like in Powerslave or Piece of Mind. At least Judas Priest has class and respects heavy metal and embraces their past
I think Maiden switching back to writing 4-6 minute songs instead of these 10-12 minute songs is what Maiden might need. Concentrate on writing maybe one epic song and then 7-8 other songs that are 4-6 minutes longs similar to their earlier albums like Powerslave, Somewhere in Time, Seventh Son. It's also time probably time to kick Kevin Shirley(the producer/engineer) to the curb and try somebody new. A lot of my favorite bands used to use Kevin Shirley, Maiden is the only one I know that still uses him. Also to be considered is that Maiden simply can't go like they used to 30+ years ago. (Edit. I guess Razor was think the same as me? LOL)
I just read an interview with Nicko and he says the reason for the long songs is so they can accommodate their 3 guitarists and so they can all have a solo. So while Janick Gers is a great guitarist and I've got nothing against him as a person, he really shouldn't have stuck around after Adrian came back.
I read that it's Steve who won't allow the shorter faster songs. I think it was Adrian who wanted to do them, and had some riffs ready to go, but Steve's all about the epics. Oh, and mixing has sucked since around Virtual XI. It's so muddy!
@@machupikachu1085 Oh, Raphael Mendes is a brilliant vocalist, I've seen loads of his 'What if Bruce sang for..." videos. Plus he spits out the lyrics like the younger Bruce did on things like Be Quick or Be Dead.
Writing on the Wall becomes a really good song if you play it on 1.25 speed. To think, a lot of these songs would require less strain on Bruce's vocals if they just sped up the tempo.
Theres not much to review. The last three albums have been pretty lack luster. Slow doom and sludge metal. I also am not a fan of the deep vocals that theyve been using on their experimental albums for years. I'd say tundra leech is probably the strongest of the 3. Also, still not much coming out about ted and fenriz. Fenriz started a new radio show
@@quorthonsinferno5119 arctic thunder is ok but old star can fuck itself. white snake fucking sucks and hardship of the scots rips off a riff from them.
"Senjutsu is more like an old man looking for an address." Never have I ever heard a better summation of modern Maiden in my life, and never have I laughed that hard at any point in a music review. That right there is why I love you Razor.
Huge Maiden fan so obviously don’t like hearing bad things about them however this review is pretty much spot on. The album was embarrassingly boring. The band really needs to change it up. Would love to hear with the next album the band write 10 songs all under 6 minutes each. Short and sweet
I’m 100% behind with you , zero chance of them writing an album of short sharp ragers again , Steve’s ego won’t let him . I’ve heard Adrian float the idea ,but from the sounds from the album he got shot down on that idea outside days of future past .
Same here, though considering Alice has one of the longest ongoing careers in rock, I wouldn’t be surprised that it could be awhile before that Mythos appears.
Manowar Mythos ...that's what I'm waiting for I love to hear Razor's take on how that band became the cartoon version of all they claimed to be against "WIMPS AND POSERS,.... LEAVE THE HALLLLLLL" *Manowar proceeds to leave
I don't agree with the assessment that acoustics should only be at the beginning or end of a record. At The Gates is known for having acoustic arrangements or just generally softer moments sprinkled throughout their records, but they use them as intensity control, letting the acoustics build up to that iconic Gothenburg sound or cool off a little after a sufficient sonic assault. In the event they do have a straight acoustic track, it's a fully realized song with melodies that developed in time, and they didn't overstay their welcome, usually clocking in at around two minutes. In Flames also did this during their prime years in the 90's; they would have acoustic interludes as a pallet cleanser so your brain didn't get bored of always having the metal at max. This is particularly prevalent in _The Jester Race,_ were sometimes the entire song slowed or even stopped for an acoustic bridge, but said bridge always carried on with the strength of it's melody and built back up to the death metal. Iron Maiden's problem is they think they're musically saying something profound, but the minimalism of acoustics counteractively brings hyper-focus how lacking their current copy/paste and disjointed assembly line style of songwriting really is. And having multiple songs in pressesion open with long, repetitive string arrangements that have little to nothing to do with the rest of the song not only kills what little momentum the song before it may have accumulated, but the acoustic intro itself becomes the bland norm it was trying to break from. Iron Maiden on _Senjitsu_ acts like its acoustic intros are moments where everything else goes dark and the spotlights and ten thousand sets of eyes are affixed solely on their orchestration grandeur, when really they're the loser who doesn't know how to socialize but thinks everyone at the party should still be paying attention to him because he brought a Yamaha and just learned how to play 'Stairway to Heaven.'
As an aging metalhead that worshipped Maiden in the early to mid 80s? I hate to say it, but I've gotta agree with Razor...only awesome thing about this album is the cover art, the rest is repetitive mediocrity at its most time consuming!
@Keith Nowak Dance of Death and Senjutsu can go to the charity shop tomorrow. I’m glad I didn’t buy the three in between. Doesn’t sound like I missed much.
I thought some were in time was there last great album they had some good one but nothing I would consider a masterpiece but like this album a lot .I think in time it well be consider one of there better album's. I am 57 and these guys are older than me so that they are making different music in 2021 is fine with me the old stuff will always be my favorite was listening to KILLERS and peace of mind my favorite album's that they sound totally different is fine with me like it the first time listen to it and like even more after playing it daily. ROCK ON MY FRIENDS. Up the IRONS BOYS
Apples and oranges, but Whitesnake 1987 was sitting on top of stereo while I forced myself through Senjutsu. Bang that on, uplifting, emotional, energetic, well-crafted, perfectly produced, 35 years old.
The album has no point. I can’t think of any time I would ever want to listen to this melancholy mediocrity. Over long intros/songs and the long noodling solos, the same as we have heard for decades, are like a maiden parody.
Hearing you call out Maiden fans for being the cancer that is killing Maiden reminds me of when I argued with Oasis fanboys (Yes, they apparently still exist,) over how bad the audio mixing was on "Know What I Mean" to the point that you couldn't even hear the guitar solo because the loudness was already peaked out. The fanboys tried to proclaim its perfection even though Noel himself has said the whole album was shit because everyone in the studio was blasted out on cocaine and didn't care in the slightest.
When I heard those filters on Bruce's voice I honestly thought it was a TOOL album for a second, but atleast when TOOL released Fear Inoculum you could still tell it was TOOL and that they want to give the fans something they've been craving for years at this point.
At least all the Muslim space noises and Adam Jones sounding like he just bought his first digitech pedal on Fear Inoculum are fun to laugh at. Nothing funny about Senjutsu.
@@imyoursuperbeast8220 The one thing a would love to see from Tool is that harder edge they had on the Opiate EP, Undertow, and Anemia. And much like Maiden they also need producer that will tell them "You need to make this shorter." This assuming they will release another album.
I find the parallels between the release of FEAR INNOCULUM and SINJITSU quite fitting. Great bands. Long wait. A huge DESIRE by the fans to love it, both releases being "mellow" to put it nicely, in comparison to their catalogue. Choose for yourself, do you like being into it? Could go either way.
@@nate-ds9tg why would anyone consider this crap good? Probably fanboys like yourself who defend your favorite band all the time should be open to a little criticism. If not, then God help you!
I don’t dislike the album, but I completely agree. Maiden is so much better than what is represented on this album. No tracks have the speed, energy or gallop of Aces High, Trooper, Where Eagles Dare, Two minutes, Run to the Hills….etc. Not what I was hoping for, but what I expected.
indeed, i miss the actual days where these guys had at least a modicum of skill before whatever drugs in their system ruined their career, once they could make a "few" good songs but all that talent has left the building like biden leaves a podium when his "speach" is over and he flees like the commie sucking coward he is!
Concur, its just about the right tempo for my 62 yrs old adze to clean out the garage and work in the yard AND annoy the s*** out of my "hip-hop" loving 20something yr old sons (they're adopted, "home environment" can't fix genes and a shit 21st century culture)
Isn't it kinda ironic though how the defenders of modern maiden claim that the band just refuse to repeat themselves and create something fresh when such a large chunk of both Senjutsu and Book of souls was old recycled riffs.
Fear of the Dark was incredible too. Along with Powerslave and Number of the beast the only Albums I can listen to start to finish without my brain wanting me to put something else. Seventh Son bored me to death, I didn't really like Somewhere in Time much. Brave New World was a letdown but I was interested enough to want to see how they evolved after that. Live after Death was the last Maiden album I listened to, never purchased it, never will, Maiden is dead to me.
It’s actually a really good album, one of their best in a long time. I just watched the video because Razofist is entertaining, but I disagree with him on this one.
@@JayManJax same here. Razorfist is great, I'd listen to him go off on any topic, I dont have to agree. Love Maiden, favorite band of my life.the album is good, but it does have some weak ass moments. I'm just happy they are still at it.
My sister and I saw Iron Maiden in 2013 for the Maiden England 25th anniversary tour, and it was one of the best concerts I have ever seen. A few friends of mine saw them on The Book Of Souls tour and one of them fell asleep during the concert. Imagine if they all go on THIS tour. Maiden’s post-2000 output has its moments, but I’m starting to come around to Razörfist’s way of thinking in regards to Brave New World being their last completely great album. Now I gotta go dig out my copy, wherever it is.😂
Brave New World has pretty much all of the same issues that he mentions here, minus the bloated song times. Lots of repeating choruses and recycled riffs. Half the songs are good, but the other half are god awful. A mixed bag, like most of Maiden's output post-reunion.
I'd go a little further back and say Seventh Son was their last truly great album. No Prayer and Fear of the Dark were both uneven... and it's been so long since I revisited the Blaze era, I wouldn't even want to comment on those albums... Brave New World and everything since could be condensed down to a pretty solid single CD highlight reel... maybe a 2 CD set if I was being generous. I don't mean any of this as a knock on Maiden... most bands (or creative folks in general) tend to have a 10 year peak and then all the innovation juices are dried up... no shame in that... but it is what it is... Many of the greats either died too young to rip off their past selves or became outright nostalgia acts in old age. I give Maiden all the credit in the world for refusing to do either, but that doesn't make their last two albums any less dull and tired sounding.
It's supply and demand people. If Maiden fans keep saying they love long boring song then they will continue producing these type of song. If Metallica fan hadn't trashed St. Anger then every Metallica album afterwards would have been St. Anger. It's just economics
Honestly Metallica fans have shit on every album since Justice in one way or another. Metallica just gets new fans. Only reason Anger didn't end the same way is that nobody could ever like that crap.
@@hyvll I'm not sure it's an ego issue per se, this boring prog stuff is obviously what he likes making these days. It's his band I guess but we could all do without it tbh. Just bring on live shows playing classics and we're good.
@@hyvlllolol yeah yeah...its a strong album mate..yeah...how about another 12 min song...its so strong mate...if he hears them then he isnt listening...too busy writing 12 min epic "strong songs" pmsl...pure shit!!!!!!!
@@slaughterzealibib I was there in '88 and Metallica fans shit on Justice too. Trashing the band is part of their 'thing' ... just like unconditional love is part of being an IM fan. But what do I know? I liked St. Anger :)
Theory time: back in 86 (the golden age of maiden) Bruce was getting tired and wanted to scale things back, be more acoustic than anything else, the band rejected the song ideas and instead continued with the golden age. Now, what if the acoustic songs that Bruce wanted to do were brought to this album and that why some of the 2on discs songs started with acoustic guitar, makes you think. Also I’m glad that I got Powerslave instead of Senjutsu for Christmas this year
Finally an honest review of modern Maiden!! I can't listen to anything after FOTD!! Bruce left, Blaze got in, Blaze left, Bruce got back... But the band seems to have forgotten how to compose energetic epic songs!! They're all dull, non-energetic stuff!! All middle-tempoed boring stuff!! Bruce is squealing out of his lungs, really struggling to get the high notes out. He still does great on live shows, like last Rock In Rio, in 2019. They're coming back next year, 2022, and I will be there for sure!! When I see friends saying they love some of the records that came after FOTD, I really try to understand what they see in these songs. And I really tried!! I put the songs on my iPhone, and tried listening to them. But no... They don't do anything for me!! I still keep a playlist of Maiden songs pre-Bruce leaving, that I sometimes listen to, like I've been doing for the past few days. But I can't stand the "newer" stuff. I'm still a Maiden fan, I still go to all their shows here in Rio! Best one, of course, was "Somewhere Back In Time Tour", that I saw here in Rio in 2009, with songs up to FOTD!! But none of the newer stuff get even close!!
There’s a time and a place for everything, but Maiden seems to think that time and place is all the time and right fucking here. In a vacuum, I actually rather liked the acoustic intro to The Parchment, had a decent tempo and felt like it was building a little ominous foreshadowing. But after the interminable Death of the Celts? Here, have some mashed potatoes to go with your scalloped potatoes, and would you like fries or a baked potato on the side? Give me some goddamn meat to bite into, please. And while we’re at it, can somebody please refill the coffee maker, we’re going to need at least another pot to get these guys up to speed.
Honestly, it feels like they felt as if they didn't do enough of the slower, longer stuff in the golden age, so they're making up for lost time a bit _too_ aggressively That said, in isolation, _Hell_ _On_ _Earth_ is a really good track
21st century Maiden writes songs like Bungie designing levels for the first Halo: "Hey you liked fighting that room full of enemies, right? Sweet! Here's the same room and the same enemies *twelve more times."* "Uh, thanks, I guess? At least the tank part was fun... What's next?" *"The Library."*
Honestly most of the riffs (besides the guitar harmonization bits) are pretty good hearing them once but they do drag on forever after hearing them 1000 times
I would love a breakdown of all the Bolt Thrower library. Maiden doesn't sound like Maiden. It's like they got a facelift. Now they sound like ANY band.
IIRC, Razör mentioned that he likes Death and Morbid Angel. I’d be interested to see what he thinks of melodeath tho, like Soilwork, Children of Bodom, Amon Amarth, In Flames (pre-2008), etc.
I couldn't agree more. Your Metal Mythos on Maiden that you did a few years ago was also spot on. I discovered Maiden when Killers was released and in my opinion that's where the band peaked. After Somewhere In Time I'd lost interest. And as you said its suffocating the lesser known bands from getting the recognition they deserve.
It's refreshing to finally see a direct and honest review of the album. Despite being one of my all-time favorite bands, I must say that this album is boring as f**k. This has been a brave review, telling things as they are, not giving a shit about trends or wanting to be indulgent just because "Iron Maiden is a classic band, they must be worshipped". Congratulations my friend!!!! You've got one more subscriber.
@@wesleyfarmer6519 I actually got into Razorfist by watching his metal mythos on Stryper. Not only was it excellent, it really showed me how informed and well researched Razor is on anything he digs his claws into. I have been a fan ever since, and would recommend it to anyone
"Its merely giving the fans what they want" We wanted good Judas Priest. They gave us good Judas Priest. The people want good Iron Maiden, and they give us bad Rush.
They need to sit down and listen to that song again, because they haven't come even close. I don't think Steve knows how to write guitar harmonies or riffs like were in that song, let alone anything else he did in the 80's.
They've been great doing different variations of the same five songs for 15-20 years, but eventually it gets old. The fans wanted more of the same and they've gotten it every single time. I can't imagine them breaking out of that cycle anytime soon.
I love Iron Maiden. Hands down one of the best bands in the world. But I can’t help but agree and it makes me sad. RazorFist you’re a fucking beast when it comes to discussing music 🤘🏻
I Haven’t really enjoyed a Maiden album front to back since Brave New World. Agreed about the vocals, too much shrill, that’s being said it’s another Mehhh record. Not great, doesn’t suck, tolerable but a far cry from the glory years.
@@jessebrennan7130 I try to be open minded, I go in expecting mediocre and if it’s better than that now It’s not bad. They NEED a new Producer, new ideas
I think the band lost their way with Dance of Death. I love "New Frontier" and "Montsegur" and even "Rainmaker", and there's a few other tracks on the album I don't own but still partake in, most of which were written by Janick. But the failure to call out the bad stuff is likely what led to the ongoing disaster that is AMoLaD. That one album, and the BAFFLING reception it got, is the reason why Maiden haven't thought to course-correct, but the spiral started with Dance of Death's bad tracks.
F**king A' Bubba! Especially Unbreakable, Delivering the Black and Rulebreaker Speaking of underrated bands that deserve their own Metal Mythos episodes.... How about Iced Earth (Dark Saga, Something Wicked This Way Comes) and Dreamland (Eye For an Eye and Exit 49).
The problem with Iron Maiden are its fans. The problem with Iron Maiden's fans is quite simple. Listen to any live recording where they attempt to clap in time with the music - It always goes out of time. This speaks volumes
dude dude dude, I was a Maiden fanboy , more from old school stuff, but still unapologetic nonetheless. I listened to your review and seriously thought about it. i always wondered if iron maiden had changed or I had. I always gave them leeway for being an older band. but after reflecting on your honest review I've changed my mind. if Priest can change and come back with excellent albums like firepower, then so can Maiden. I thank you for giving us a serious honest feedback instead of the usual fanboy positive reviews. I'm going to stop giving bands passes because they're 'older' bands. It pains me to say it but the album art has been carrying the band along more than the music. Hopefully Maiden will come back with a Firepower worthy album ( but I doubt it) but thanks for keeping me honest and keep the good reviews coming
Yes, Maiden can, but unfortunately they don't want!The biggest difference between the 2 is that Maiden dont' like to be categorized as a heavy metal band anymore and that shows for many years now...
@@METALSCAVENGER78 the biggest difference between the 2 is that JP is /was a supergroup .. Having said that YES Maiden were totally capable of making a great album that will appeal to metalheads , maybe not a new Powerslave but a new prayer ..or fear ..
Ningen Isu is a band that needs the attention of Razorfist. They have been going for decades and consistently put out bangers to this day. Hell, they just had a new album release not long ago.
The algorithm blessed me with knowledge of them not too long ago. Severely underrated and I should def set aside time to get more acquainted, being a lover of almost all J-Music.
Razor, over the years I have watched most bands that started out strong turn to mush as they age. It's pretty normal. When JP's Firepower came out, I was honestly shocked at how much they sounded like 80s JP, so rare it seems. And ironically I am literally playing Skyrim while listening to you rant about how this would make good background music for Skyrim LOL.
It was and still is lol...I had to listen to this drivel at 1.2 speed the whole way thru and it still crap...too many acoustic intros....it just loses it's impact when u repeat that stuff too much...as Razor says.."formulaic as fuck!!!!!!!!"
Haha. My friends and I always argued over the lyrics of that song! I mean heated debates. I was like “don’t listen to the lyrics, the music was awesome “
They have come a long way since I snuck off to the record store in 1982 to buy my first album, Number of the Beast. Now if only they would go half way back to when they were still good.
I'm not happy with Priest and their refusal to allow KK to come back, but, Senjutsu can't hold a SINGLE CANDLE FLAME to Firepower. One of the better albums released that year (I forget off the top of my head.)
firepower was that good it got me into priest,never game them a go prior and i was born in 86,but after giving it a listen i wound up listening to their older stuff and liked it,
I don't think "Darkest Hour" and "Hell on Earth" are all that bad. Had they been on a much better album, at worst they could've been considered pieces of mislead filler. On this record tho, it's like having a drink of really hot potable water after being stranded in the middle of the pacific ocean for months with no end on sight.
Maiden aren't even getting progressive rock/metal right with their endless chorus repeats. I thought half the point of progressive rock was having limited choruses or no choruses at all.
*"You know. Iron Maiden Are great. I'm just not so sure about their full-length albums."* - Razor's old boss. *You know Rageaholics, great cover art can make you do crazy things.* - Razorfist.
I can listen to 2112 by RUSH many times even though the song is 20 minutes long. The reason is because it is entertaining and interesting throughout.. The long songs on this Maiden album are just dull.
You know what? Thank you for being so unapologetically fucking honest. Maiden got me through one of the worst periods of my life and introduced me to the wide and wonderful world of heavy metal and honestly nowadays they repeat themselves more than a fucking parrot with Alzheimer's. Cheers, man. I'd buy you a pint if we were face to face.
The most frustrating part about this album, and pretty much every single Maiden album since Brave New World, has just been all the wasted potential. So many other great metal bands from Maiden's era have put out such better sounding music in the past twenty years or so, in their old style and sound and Maiden doesn't seem to ever be able get a clue that they should do that. FIVE FUCKING ALBUMS and only a small handful of songs that can barely, if at all, be talked about in with their greatest work and most Maiden fans act like each album is not only listenable and creative, but actually good. Eventually Maiden is going to have to retire and it will not be on a high note, but with a legacy of self indulgence and what could have beens.
😂😂😂😂😂 Clueless… Maiden already wrote their powerful and thundering in their past.. They can put out any music they want. They have earned that right. Don’t like?? DO NOT LISTEN
That while thing about Death of the Celts being over 10 minutes made my jaw hit the floor. It almost feels like they went "Y'know, David Bowie's final album had a title song that was 10 minutes long. I think we can beat that." At least the shifting tones made it feasible to have Blackstar be 10 fucking minutes long, because Bowie probably knew that playing essentially the same thing over and over a 10 minute stretch was gonna bore the tits off everyone. And Parchment being FUCKING 12 MINUTES LONG!?! WHAT WERE THEY *THINKING!?!* By Bowie above, no one's got THAT much patience for a song, not even an ADHD-riddled Aspie with an Audially-attuned brain. I know this... because *I* am an ADHD-riddled Aspie with an Audially-attuned brain.
I almost wounder if someone in the band was listening to Fates Warning's A Pleasant Shade Of Gray and thought to themselves "you know this carefully focused well thought out 58 minute multi-movement conceptual piece is quite fascinating and I really want to try writing something like it" and then started doing it only to let it get way out of control and become a meandering (and insufferable) 80 minute long slog of an album.
Other than the yunoreview from Anthony Fantano I have to say this is the first honest review I've seen of this album I've seen by far. When I pre-ordered this album I thought it'd be better than book of souls (which it is by like 10%). But needless to say it was a major let down just like it's predecessor. Maiden need a new producer, need to fire janick, and more importantly to write shorter songs to get they're edge back! Also, all the hard-core Maidennites pissing and moaning in the comment section validates the points of why the fans are even worse than the band itself!
I heard Senjutsu first and it was slow but decent so I was hoping for Iron Maiden to have their own Firepower album but then I got a meandering geriatric jam session of an album.
Given Razörfist’s somewhat unique status as a non-otaku westerner who understands actual Japanese culture (not the japaonophile theme park version of it of weeaboo imagination) and speaks Japanese AND as a music reviewer with an encyclopedic knowledge of metal who also doesn’t reflexively hate pop music just because it’s pop… I would really appreciate a Metal Mythos episode about Babymetal.
I've been a diehard Maidzen fan since 1982, but their last great album was powerslave. Best thing about this album is the cover. They need to get back to 4 minute hard rocking recipies. That's too much to ask though. They are too far gone at this point. At least we have the first 5 albums to listen to.
@@TheNoSuchThingPodcast I'm the same with SIT. I can stomach that album if I have to, saw that tour also. Everyone thinks 7th son is the best thing since sliced bread, it bores the shit out of me though lol.
@@TheNoSuchThingPodcast was that the summer with the egg incident ?? I'm sure that was a killer set. I actually saw them in the summer of 2019 here in NY. They were awesome and played for the most part all the classic maiden songs. I was right up front and I loved it. Have some vids in my channel also
That bit at the end of your rant about sh!t fans perpetuating sh!t content is also easily applicable to triple A video games. It would explain why the industry is drowning in mindless Assassin’s Creed and Uncharted clones that continue to get commercial and critical acclaim, despite how shallow and derivative they are.
💯 Good God I can't stand that formulaic bullshit. Slow intro > "kicks in" to same tempo, repeat. They've been doing this tired formula for way too long.
That's a lie though, just because gamejourno thinks its good doesn't mean people actually seriously play it. You can see this with Monster Hunter Rise too, where the majority of players have already gone back to Monster Hunter World because MHW is just that much more fun to play.
@@TrainingMacro Rise is good it’s just lacking content, and World was designed to appeal to the largest possible audience which is ironic considering it has the most boring monsters, and the most bland colorless art style of any entry in the series. Gen Ultimate and 3 Ultimate are the best by far, but they lacked the marketing of World and it’s multi platform advantage. I think the example your looking for is the Last of Us part 2, but games like that are the exception to the rule. Ghost of Sushima is a textbook example of Assassins Creed clone, and the masses lapped it up like dogs, ankle deep stealth and a bland open world be damned.
They are STILL a slumbering and lumbering dinosaur. Some ideas and riffs are really cool, but they ruin them by repeating them over and over and over again. Wayy to long and SLOW songs. Btw: this is the funniest and most honest review of a music album I have EVER heard!! All of it so fucking TRUE!
Dystopia was the highlight of all the old farts' albums released in the last 10 years. It sounded like Megadeth. Firepower was good too, but it just sounded like metal and didn't feel as nostalgic. Senjutsu sounded like something that wouldn't get you in the studio.
🤣 Your killing me! Thank you for being one of the few honest people on the tube. Not the, “I own the album so I have to defend it” zombie. I’ll go to a Maiden concert when.... they bring the original singer on tour and play the first 2 albums. 🤘😈🤘
This showed up in my notifications, but apparently it wasn't available in my country, until like a week later. EDIT: 14:56 - Haunt mention, THANK YOU RAZOR!
I'm as old as the fucking band, and this album makes me feel every fucking year of it. MOR AOR metal. And we needed *82 minutes* of this shit? And damn, I love Captain Beyond. Have the original 3D LP.
Hell yeah, so do i...must've listened to it a million fucking times and it never gets old. I've got the second one, "Sufficiently Breathless" and the third one, "Dawn Explosion" as well but there no where near as good. "Dawn Explosion" is the worst though.
Totally Agree mate I'm of the same age, I thought I was in a minority until I watched this guy's review and the comments, 80's maiden was top shelve, the last few albums they've done are f****n awful, long drawn out bore fests.
Iron Maiden's Eddie has gone through as many career changes as Yosemite Sam. In his day, Yosemite Sam was a Fur Trapper, a Red Coat, a Pirate, a Cowboy, a Carthaginian Soldier, an Astronaut, a Medieval Knight, an Arabian Sheik,... etc
Thank you for your review! For a moment there I was thinking am I the only one who thinks Senjutsu is a boring Maiden album. You nailed my feelings of current Iron Maiden. Great work!
I feel like post- millennium Maiden has an underlying theme no one is considering. After becoming so huge and playing so many stadium sized shows, it's like they write specifically to that. Music that is only interesting live with 10,000 cigarette lighters burning. Epically mundane. That being said, I still get chills from those familiar harmonies and scales when they happen. And that basic Maiden gallop always makes my head bang. I mean... These dudes are the same age as my grandpa and all that dude does is watch Bonanza, bitch about gas prices, and flirt with the fat waitress at Bob Evans serving him his 3pm meatloaf dinner.
I could not AGREE MORE! Finally a review that dares to say what, most likely, even the slowest Iron Maiden fans are thinking, but do not dare to say aloud. I honestly started to think that there are no sane Iron Maiden "fans" left on this planet, after reading half a dozen of 9/10 reviews of this album. Iron Maiden has reached a status which allows it to release any sort of crap and the fans devour it and ask for more. I have been waiting for Iron Maiden to put out a good album (where we have more than 1-3 good/decent songs) since X Factor and I have been disappointed more or less ever since. The only things you missed in your review, were the freaking keyboard sounds that sound like 10 dollar Casio quality and how annoyingly simplified they are on the album. You don't need keyboards if you have three freaking guitars which don't have enough to do as it is! I would rather listen to Gangland over any single song on this album. I would rather pick any of the songs from No Prayer or Fear of the Dark over this crap. Even some Blaze era songs are more ENERGETIC (which is usually not the adjective that comes to mind after listening to X-Factor or Virtual XI) and kick more ass than the songs here. Someone commented to me that the fans would shit their pants and go nuts over joy if the post-2000's Iron Maiden would release a song now, like Back in the Village, Still Life, Invaders or any of the similar "B-grade" songs and I could not agree more (note: love the forementioned songs...!). Where the hell are Maiden's standards and where have they been for the past 20-30 something years)? The only plus sides on the album are that Adrian at least still tries his best with the solos and there are some really minor attempts to do something outside the usual Maiden mold (mostly some intro parts and some unexpected drum beats - Nicko doesn't get stuck to his typical ride cymbal beat 90% of the time). That's pretty much it... SAD! P.S. Every time someone calls Maiden PROG, I die inside.
"The more you ingest this ass cancer the more it's on the menu", hilarious review again - He really cheers me up - I agree with him ,Maiden need to simplify their menu!!
Seeing this album ranked higher than Piece of Mind on some hack article broke me
Lol that has to be traumatizing
There's a bunch of shill reviewers out there, unfortunately.
"Huh, this sounds alright. Not really sure what he's getting so upset over" - Me not realizing I had the video going at 2X SPEED
LOL!
See? They're quirky and progressive!
It is very difficult to perform an album at half speed, while it sounds as if you're not playing it at half speed!
now excuse me the copium is leaking out of the room
Why doesn't Maiden just record an acoustic album? It's clear that that's what they want to do.
Just like bruce wanted to do after powerslave
The funny thing is that is why Bruce left after Fear of the Dark. He wanted to do more acoustic tracks. And here we are. I couldn't disagree with Razor Fist, more, however. This album is fucking awesome. I don't judge any album unless I've listened to it at least a dozen times, at the minimum. This album is fucking awesome. And this is coming from a fan who holds Somewhere in Time as the apex. And if Razor thinks this sounds like some of the albums which came before it, I have to seriously question his "EAR".
@@pansophia93 but he is right though. There is still debates on this album (whether good or bad) to this day. I still personally think the album isn't all that and a bag potato chips and frankly I've gotten over it already. Anyone can like this album but if there's also negative feedback you'll have to accept the fact that you can't please everyone!
@@pansophia93 well, see...now I gotta question your 'ear'. If this is what you want from Maiden, then great. You're getting it. In spades. Double albums worth.
Me? I like the old Maiden. I accidentally discovered a band called 'Icon of Sin' To me that sounds like the best Maiden album released in over a decade. You buy the new Maiden albums, I'll buy the Icon of Sin albums, and I'll see you at the Maiden nostalgia tours they do every two years.
Cheers!
Id rather bands just do what they want to do intead of try to cater to friends and make something uninspired. Example: Darkthrone making heavy metal and doom instead of their classic sound
Maiden's strength in the 80s was that they could write longer songs like Hallowed Be Thy Name, Phantom of the Opera, Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Powerslave, and they were filled with so many different riffs, solos and sudden tempo changes that you were thoroughly entertained for the entire duration of the song without feeling its length. Maiden lost the ability to do this. Song length isn's their problem, just repetitiveness.
As a guitar player who learned most of my playing back in the early days of prime Maiden, I totally agree with you!! It's one thing to have epic songs with dips and curves and diversity in one song but another when it's just one looong, droney song. The other thing that bums me out about Maiden is the saaaaaame old gallops that come from a horse that has been whipped to death. I mean, I know it's a Maiden signature trait but, Damn!! And this sucks because I love Maiden and despite newer offerings, I always will!
I would also add that those earlier songs mentioned above were more aggressive, too, which the newer songs are not. For me Maiden were at their peak sound with Powerslave/Live After Death.
Say that louder, especially for Exodus.
Agreed. Plus the lyrical quality have gone down so much. Feels like modern maiden is all about the existensial shit and war is bad m'kay. Really miss songs like Alexander the great, To tame a land, hallowed be thy name etc.
Spot on, I could not of summed it up any better. The last 3 albums are not for me, I haven't the patience for it, for me they lost the plot after "Brave new world"
Martin Birch is rolling over in his grave after listen to the production value of this album.
Along with Clive Burr y'know the Drummer *THEY SHOULD'AVE NEVER GOTTEN FUCKEN RID OF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WASN'T EVEN A FUCKEN DRUG ADDICT LIKE DI'ANNO SADLY WAS BECAUSE DI'ANNO COULD SCREAM BLOODY HELLFIRE VENDETTAS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*
If anyone asks my opinion, imma just link to this video. Spot on 🤘
Hi Mike like the vids, even though I’m a shit musician.
But does it prog?
@@kaboose111 🧐
True and I am a Maiden fan...but there's a reason why no one wants to hear the "New Stuff"
Aye!!!
Ever since A matter of life and death, I've been having to trim the repetitive choruses, cut out slumbering intros & outros, speed the songs up 1.25% (while keeping the key), and then do my best to adjust the muddy production. Usually I can edit out about 12-16 minutes of needless fluff, and in the case of their last two albums, I've gotten them where they can actually fit on an entire disc pretty easy. They need a producer that will actually tell them the words "No" and "Stop". They need a guy who will actually try to make the songs listenable without the listener getting fatigued only 3mins into a song. I don't have a problem with long songs (in concept), but there's only so much budget in an album for them. Rime of the Ancient Mariner only works (to me) because the previous songs didn't exhaust the listener's attention.
They need Andy Sneap. Maiden, Helloween and (to a lesser degree) Priest all need to do at least one album with him. Maybe even Metallica.
Helloween doesn't
I totally agree with everything you've said, exactly my thoughts, I was a massive fan of them in the 80's, I don't understand how tracks from their newer albums get so many views, metal surely should be sharp, short and to the point, not long drawn out bore fests. You'd think they would have a least tried something different, every album since and including amolad to me are totally sh*t, id rather listen to fairground music.
@Maestro TheKLOWN Rime works for the same reason something like 2112 works - it's a complete story set to music. Things happen for a reason, the song progresses nicely, there are tempo changes that make sense - every second of this song has a reason to the there in the exact spot it appears. Newer Maiden songs don't usually work, because they seem to think that 3 minute acoustic intro + 12 minutes of the same doodling + 3 minutes of acoustic outro = awesome prog metal.
Maiden isn't a prog band, none of them can write prog songs, and it's about time someone told them this. I quite liked Book Of Souls and the new one, but I fully acknowledge their problems of which Razor rants with his usual precision. The only sensible way to enjoy the title song is to play it on 1.25 speed, every acoustic intro and outro can be removed and there's absolutely no reason for any of these songs to be longer than 6-7 minutes.
@@jimthar17 Yo, Judas Priest already recorded Firepower with Andy.
I love Iron Maiden but even I found Razors “to de dodedadoo to de dodedadoo” part fucking hilarious. NEXT!
Also: accurate
I just was watching that part for a second time as I was reading your comment!😂
Especially when he follows it up with the intro to days of future past with the same repetitive guitar
That was just spot on
Listening to present day Iron Maiden releases is like going to the nursing home and visiting your grandpa with Alzheimer's. He used to be so cool to hang out with, had amazing and hilarious stories to tell, and was always the life of any party he went to. But now he is a sad, grumpy old man, who barely recognizes you anymore, and is slowly dying of an uncurbable disease. Every time you see him in his current state, it makes you cry. That's what Iron Maiden is now.
Conversely, Judas Priest and Accept are the other grandpa that that had a bit of a rocky road, but got the help he needed, and is still around and kicking ass. Hell, even great uncle Saxon has been doing well lately.
Exactly what I've been saying!
Priest was basically ALWAYS superior to Maiden with the exception of Killers.. But overall Priest was always a better band; better records better players.
Yeah? Maiden is wayyyyy bigger and have more better albums. They also sound just as good live as they ever did, if not better.
"But got the help he needed, and is still around kicking ass".
I can't take that seriously because Maiden got help too (bruce coming back) and are still kicking serious amounts of ass with age not slowing them down one bit.
@@paschalmaiden It's not about which band is "bigger." It's about which band is BETTER, and Priest IS BETTER. Ok?
"From Genesis To Revelation clearly curb stomps this shit" that has to be one of the biggest disses I've heard as a Genesis fan
Tbh, even 80s genesis is more listenable than this overwritten and badly produced crap. And that's church.
I wonder if Razor’s a fan of Genesis. I would love for him to do a Mythos on Genesis.
“Glorified Aztec Mescaline Hallucination”
🤣 And yes, “Firepower” is a damn masterpiece!
After watching this vid I will check out Firepower!
@@PiaseckiAdam22 You really should. It's THAT good.
firepower ....best JP album since Defenders
@@theplayersclub1126 What?Better than Painkiller?Cut the bullshit
@@METALSCAVENGER78 yeah..not a huge painkiller fan...some filler. at the time i wasnt ready for the scott travis assault
Thanks for giving Haunt some love ❤️
Your band (bands, really) is killer, bro. Godspeed!
Only discovered Haunt recently. Absolutely loving your stuff. The main riff in the song "Ghosts" is so beautiful \m/
Thanks to this video I gave Mindfreeze a spin and then proceeded to spin your entire catalog. Mindreeze is one of my favorite albums now, the cover reminds me of an old game HeXen.
Holy shit! Hey Trevor, you rock!
"it's metal, grow a dick"
I burst out laughing at this for a good 5 minutes. I don't know why it hit me as so funny, but it is.
I thought - Number of the Beast part 2 Electric chugaloo was Hilarious
@@kennethdavidson6508 facts
because you're 12 years old
@@kennethdavidson6508 that's actually why I don't really listen to metal anymore or at least not the newer stuff, the bands are soft and the fans are even softer. underground hip hop is where it's at right now if you want real hardcore shit.
What an opinion, there's plenty of stuff if you actually look lol
"The biggest problem is maidens fans"...I couldn't agree more
Absolutely. They praise this boring recycled stuff and retaliate against anyone who says they are disappointed with the new album.
There is absolutely nothing wrong with supporting a band you have respect for
That's true. I'm personally guilty of this one. I said too much time "eh cmon its fkn Maiden". No more. Let's help them grow ;)
The fans are usually the worst. They like to ruin everything forever.
@@gerpir dude, Nicko is 70. How much more do you think they'll grow? They're old rich guys who'll never get close to what they were in the past.
To be honest, I really wish Maiden would listen to Iron Maiden, Killers, Piece Of Mind, Powerslave, Somewhere In Time and Brave New World for inspiration before even penning another song. They desperately need a shake up to try to freshen things up. Senjutsu is just Boredom in a Maiden sleeve
personally I am just stoked that Iron Maiden is still making music, I really like the album
@@jacksonhill7552 I love it too. They put a lot of work into it, detail...great deep lyrics. I am also elated that maiden is still around and touring. Maiden is one of the hardest working bands around.....tour, tour, tour, album....and tour. Legends. cheers mate.
Check out the album 'Icon of Sin' here on TH-cam. It's the Maiden album you want. Trust me. You'll thank me later.
Cheers!
@@machupikachu1085 wow! The snippets I’ve heard are great! I’ll definitely give them more of a listen when I get a chance. Thanks for the recommendation 🤘
What's weird is that I mostly agree with your analysis of the album (Took me five different sit downs to finish it), but think that Book of Souls is their best post-reunion album. It feels much more inspired; like it has an intense energy to it despite having a bunch of long tracks. I also enjoyed Writing on the Wall minus the abysmal mixing. Overall I think post reunion Maiden is a mixed bag, but I would love it if Shirley got fired and they got a proper successor to the late, great Martin Birch. The talent is there, they just need to right person to bring it out. I'd love it if Maiden could have their own "Firepower" moment. The window is closing, though. I'd say they maybe have one or two albums left in them, max.
I agree about Book of Souls. IMHO, the best thing they did since Fear of the Dark.
😂😂😂
Brave New World???
Ten years ago Iron Maiden was solidly my favorite band. When I listened to Senjutsu I couldn't help but feel the band is really showing its age, the album feels like a slow version of Brave New World. If you're a fan of Maiden the music isn't bad but nothing really stands out. And boy was I really looking for something to stand out halfway through the album. I'm not saying anything really different from Rageaholic here, but I guess I'm just here saying that even the fans are starting to notice. My top picks: The Writing on the Wall, Days of Future Past, The Parchment. 5/7 stars
It's been that way since Dance of Death !
We are happy they are still making music..
They are “showing their age” because they are old!!
So once again, Blaze Bayley releases an album in the same year as Maiden and, once again, his is better.
Why are you in the comments of every Metal and Wrestling video? I mean, I'm glad there is another person in this world with those oddly specific interests but still.
War within me was a very safe album for blaze bayley, evidently for Iron Maiden, this was not a safe record, people who hate reunion era maiden can flock here and wish for the 80’s era songs to no avail, not realizing Iron Maiden have just moved on from that. A lot of his complaints are just opinions made to sound like fact, which there is nothing I fucking hate more, he’ll complain about too many songs having acoustic intros, but will he go and complain about a million bands having fucking drum roll outros to songs? No I don’t fucking think so, just because it’s an acoustic intro and therefore they all sound similar by virtue of being a fucking acoustic intro, doesn’t mean they don’t each have value to people who enjoy them. People like this guy who speak with so much energy behind his opinion can really make you think his opinion is fact, and if he thinks certain things make a song bad, people who also dislike those things about modern maiden will be quick to agree
True
The only fillers pre-2000 are Quest for fire, Assassin and Apparition
@@marinhrabric6162 I fucking love Quest for fire. It's better than anything post-Somewhere in Time from this band.
I saw someone posting about the Senjutsu vinyl copies starting at over $80, coloured or not, what got me was them saying Maiden fans are both rich AND stupid, which is what created this situation lmao
Bands like Maiden, Metallica and Rage Against the Machine have essentially become the go-to bands for self-indulgent rich kids, and their CEO dads with mid-age crises. Highly ironic considering how they all started as street savy blue collar acts that challenged the music scene of their day with raw energy and lots of inspiration. None of them retain any of that any longer but the merch and live show ticket prices sure have inflated.
Posted this on True Heavy Metal page on fb
It takes balls to argue with the most pathetic fanboys out there, the Iron Maiden ''fans'' . Fun fact : Maiden are hurting their own legacy by releasing shit album after shit album yet their ''fans'' will pretend they ''enjoy'' them until the end of times . My daughter's (14) exact words : ''I don't like Iron Maiden , i don't understand why they 're so famous '' after listening to the post-millennial albums first , so i had to explain her that '' these are not Maiden , go check the 80s albums'' .
Ultra popular metal bands are the way for new people to get into metal but this is like a double edged knife , some of them will become serious metal listeners but most of them will bring their sheep mentality into a music genre that is totally opposite of sheep mentality .
Quick example, Judas Priest were not playing football with Rock journalists and they were not playing Smoke on the water at weddings in communist countries to gain such popularity , nowdays JP fans are metal fans through and though and will criticise any bad music coming from Priest . Even Metallica fans are way more critic than Maiden fans , which makes it even more pathetic .
I agree it’s sad that Maiden fans accept all of these shit albums and are okay with it. They are ruining their chance for them to shake it up and make a great album. It’s like the band is trying to distance themselves from heavy metal and just downplays their past just to sound “progressive” Almost all of these new songs are them trying to replicate Fear of the dark and try to make the crowd sing along. They are more focused on making songs like that instead of pure kickass songs like in Powerslave or Piece of Mind. At least Judas Priest has class and respects heavy metal and embraces their past
I think Maiden switching back to writing 4-6 minute songs instead of these 10-12 minute songs is what Maiden might need. Concentrate on writing maybe one epic song and then 7-8 other songs that are 4-6 minutes longs similar to their earlier albums like Powerslave, Somewhere in Time, Seventh Son. It's also time probably time to kick Kevin Shirley(the producer/engineer) to the curb and try somebody new. A lot of my favorite bands used to use Kevin Shirley, Maiden is the only one I know that still uses him. Also to be considered is that Maiden simply can't go like they used to 30+ years ago. (Edit. I guess Razor was think the same as me? LOL)
I just read an interview with Nicko and he says the reason for the long songs is so they can accommodate their 3 guitarists and so they can all have a solo. So while Janick Gers is a great guitarist and I've got nothing against him as a person, he really shouldn't have stuck around after Adrian came back.
I read that it's Steve who won't allow the shorter faster songs. I think it was Adrian who wanted to do them, and had some riffs ready to go, but Steve's all about the epics. Oh, and mixing has sucked since around Virtual XI. It's so muddy!
Check out the album 'Icon of Sin' here on TH-cam. It's the Maiden album you want. Trust me. You'll thank me later.
Cheers!
@@machupikachu1085 Oh, Raphael Mendes is a brilliant vocalist, I've seen loads of his 'What if Bruce sang for..." videos. Plus he spits out the lyrics like the younger Bruce did on things like Be Quick or Be Dead.
Writing on the Wall becomes a really good song if you play it on 1.25 speed.
To think, a lot of these songs would require less strain on Bruce's vocals if they just sped up the tempo.
Too bad Nico can't even do that.
@@Ratkill9000
Then he should play less complicated drum beats, faster.
@@1krani Or at least start to give a shit.
I'd like to see Razör review the Darkthrone albums that were released after the Metal Mythos.
Theres not much to review. The last three albums have been pretty lack luster. Slow doom and sludge metal. I also am not a fan of the deep vocals that theyve been using on their experimental albums for years. I'd say tundra leech is probably the strongest of the 3. Also, still not much coming out about ted and fenriz. Fenriz started a new radio show
I can sum it all up in 1 word: shit
@@quorthonsinferno5119 arctic thunder is ok but old star can fuck itself. white snake fucking sucks and hardship of the scots rips off a riff from them.
They not even worth it
Eternal Hails is a boring heavy Metsl album that is slowed down and made to sound like doom. Not worth a 2nd listen
"Senjutsu is more like an old man looking for an address."
Never have I ever heard a better summation of modern Maiden in my life, and never have I laughed that hard at any point in a music review.
That right there is why I love you Razor.
There is a lot “emperor’s new clothes” because it is Maiden. The reviews are so positive. I wasn’t going to buy it, I wish I hadn’t.
@@TheRonaldbaxter same here.
Huge Maiden fan so obviously don’t like hearing bad things about them however this review is pretty much spot on. The album was embarrassingly boring. The band really needs to change it up. Would love to hear with the next album the band write 10 songs all under 6 minutes each. Short and sweet
I’m 100% behind with you , zero chance of them writing an album of short sharp ragers again , Steve’s ego won’t let him . I’ve heard Adrian float the idea ,but from the sounds from the album he got shot down on that idea outside days of future past .
They just need to cut ties with that yes man of a shit producer Kevin Shirley. Im sorry, but he sucks! He should have reined them in a long time ago!
"Who's your audio engineer, Aquaman?" lol. Classic.
still waiting on that Alice Cooper Mythos. hint hint. :)
Just a girl with a dream
Same here, though considering Alice has one of the longest ongoing careers in rock, I wouldn’t be surprised that it could be awhile before that Mythos appears.
Manowar Mythos
...that's what I'm waiting for
I love to hear Razor's take on how that band became the cartoon version of all they claimed to be against
"WIMPS AND POSERS,.... LEAVE THE HALLLLLLL" *Manowar proceeds to leave
ill add my 10c and say id like to see a warlock or thor mythos
@@MetalMe55iah there's a good warlock discography review by Metal Skool you may like.
It’s like their only takeaway from listening to 2112 on repeat is that it’s very long
Acoustic intros should be saved for first tracks or epic ass finale’s on concept albums. NOT EVERY FUCKING TRACK
I don't agree with the assessment that acoustics should only be at the beginning or end of a record. At The Gates is known for having acoustic arrangements or just generally softer moments sprinkled throughout their records, but they use them as intensity control, letting the acoustics build up to that iconic Gothenburg sound or cool off a little after a sufficient sonic assault. In the event they do have a straight acoustic track, it's a fully realized song with melodies that developed in time, and they didn't overstay their welcome, usually clocking in at around two minutes. In Flames also did this during their prime years in the 90's; they would have acoustic interludes as a pallet cleanser so your brain didn't get bored of always having the metal at max. This is particularly prevalent in _The Jester Race,_ were sometimes the entire song slowed or even stopped for an acoustic bridge, but said bridge always carried on with the strength of it's melody and built back up to the death metal.
Iron Maiden's problem is they think they're musically saying something profound, but the minimalism of acoustics counteractively brings hyper-focus how lacking their current copy/paste and disjointed assembly line style of songwriting really is. And having multiple songs in pressesion open with long, repetitive string arrangements that have little to nothing to do with the rest of the song not only kills what little momentum the song before it may have accumulated, but the acoustic intro itself becomes the bland norm it was trying to break from.
Iron Maiden on _Senjitsu_ acts like its acoustic intros are moments where everything else goes dark and the spotlights and ten thousand sets of eyes are affixed solely on their orchestration grandeur, when really they're the loser who doesn't know how to socialize but thinks everyone at the party should still be paying attention to him because he brought a Yamaha and just learned how to play 'Stairway to Heaven.'
The worst part is that it's the SAME fucking intro, copy & paste metal.
That was pretty much what most of the Final Frontier was
As an aging metalhead that worshipped Maiden in the early to mid 80s? I hate to say it, but I've gotta agree with Razor...only awesome thing about this album is the cover art, the rest is repetitive mediocrity at its most time consuming!
@Keith Nowak Dance of Death and Senjutsu can go to the charity shop tomorrow. I’m glad I didn’t buy the three in between. Doesn’t sound like I missed much.
I thought some were in time was there last great album they had some good one but nothing I would consider a masterpiece but like this album a lot .I think in time it well be consider one of there better album's. I am 57 and these guys are older than me so that they are making different music in 2021 is fine with me the old stuff will always be my favorite was listening to KILLERS and peace of mind my favorite album's that they sound totally different is fine with me like it the first time listen to it and like even more after playing it daily. ROCK ON MY FRIENDS. Up the IRONS BOYS
Apples and oranges, but Whitesnake 1987 was sitting on top of stereo while I forced myself through Senjutsu. Bang that on, uplifting, emotional, energetic, well-crafted, perfectly produced, 35 years old.
Sounds like they are channeling late 80's King Diamond.
The album has no point. I can’t think of any time I would ever want to listen to this melancholy mediocrity. Over long intros/songs and the long noodling solos, the same as we have heard for decades, are like a maiden parody.
Hearing you call out Maiden fans for being the cancer that is killing Maiden reminds me of when I argued with Oasis fanboys (Yes, they apparently still exist,) over how bad the audio mixing was on "Know What I Mean" to the point that you couldn't even hear the guitar solo because the loudness was already peaked out. The fanboys tried to proclaim its perfection even though Noel himself has said the whole album was shit because everyone in the studio was blasted out on cocaine and didn't care in the slightest.
I loved oasis. Only had a couple of good albums in them sadly
When I heard those filters on Bruce's voice I honestly thought it was a TOOL album for a second, but atleast when TOOL released Fear Inoculum you could still tell it was TOOL and that they want to give the fans something they've been craving for years at this point.
Well to be fair, every Tool album pretty much sounds exactly the same. Have a bass line, sprinkle in repetitive guitar playing towards the end. Fin
At least all the Muslim space noises and Adam Jones sounding like he just bought his first digitech pedal on Fear Inoculum are fun to laugh at. Nothing funny about Senjutsu.
@@imyoursuperbeast8220 The one thing a would love to see from Tool is that harder edge they had on the Opiate EP, Undertow, and Anemia. And much like Maiden they also need producer that will tell them "You need to make this shorter." This assuming they will release another album.
I find the parallels between the release of FEAR INNOCULUM and SINJITSU quite fitting. Great bands. Long wait. A huge DESIRE by the fans to love it, both releases being "mellow" to put it nicely, in comparison to their catalogue. Choose for yourself, do you like being into it? Could go either way.
Thank YOU! I'm also puzzled by "fans" touting this as anything other than BORING!
The band could have just called this album Iron Maiden Name, because they clearly changed it when they married the fans.
And I'm puzzled by people like you who don't understand the concept of musical opinions.
@@nate-ds9tg Exactly
@@nate-ds9tg why would anyone consider this crap good? Probably fanboys like yourself who defend your favorite band all the time should be open to a little criticism. If not, then God help you!
I don’t dislike the album, but I completely agree. Maiden is so much better than what is represented on this album. No tracks have the speed, energy or gallop of Aces High, Trooper, Where Eagles Dare, Two minutes, Run to the Hills….etc. Not what I was hoping for, but what I expected.
indeed, i miss the actual days where these guys had at least a modicum of skill before whatever drugs in their system ruined their career, once they could make a "few" good songs but all that talent has left the building like biden leaves a podium when his "speach" is over and he flees like the commie sucking coward he is!
Concur, its just about the right tempo for my 62 yrs old adze to clean out the garage and work in the yard AND annoy the s*** out of my "hip-hop" loving 20something yr old sons (they're adopted, "home environment" can't fix genes and a shit 21st century culture)
Maiden is old now, theyre not a boy band any more
I mean, dudes are on their 60s... it's part of the course.
Age is no excuse. Tom Hunting is also approaching 60s, and fighting a fucking cancer, and yet he plays like he's still 30.
Isn't it kinda ironic though how the defenders of modern maiden claim that the band just refuse to repeat themselves and create something fresh when such a large chunk of both Senjutsu and Book of souls was old recycled riffs.
Iike the album alot what's the issue
They reached songwriting perfection on Powerslave and production sound perfection on Somewhere In Time. It’s all been downhill from there.
YES!!!
@Bryan Darby Couldn't agree harder
I Think AMOLAD Was amazing too
Fear of the Dark was incredible too. Along with Powerslave and Number of the beast the only Albums I can listen to start to finish without my brain wanting me to put something else.
Seventh Son bored me to death, I didn't really like Somewhere in Time much. Brave New World was a letdown but I was interested enough to want to see how they evolved after that. Live after Death was the last Maiden album I listened to, never purchased it, never will, Maiden is dead to me.
@@TheBayzent seventh son needs several listens. Atleast for me. I used to dislike it but now its my favorite maiden album
All I'm gonna say is this: it is insane how aesthetically badass the campaign has been, but I genuinely fear listening to the damn thing.
Same. I couldn't even get through the later half of Book of Souls
It’s actually a really good album, one of their best in a long time. I just watched the video because Razofist is entertaining, but I disagree with him on this one.
Yeah thats why I like Crypt Sermon.
@@LucasFeniks Wish they'd release more music though
@@JayManJax same here. Razorfist is great, I'd listen to him go off on any topic, I dont have to agree. Love Maiden, favorite band of my life.the album is good, but it does have some weak ass moments. I'm just happy they are still at it.
My sister and I saw Iron Maiden in 2013 for the Maiden England 25th anniversary tour, and it was one of the best concerts I have ever seen. A few friends of mine saw them on The Book Of Souls tour and one of them fell asleep during the concert. Imagine if they all go on THIS tour. Maiden’s post-2000 output has its moments, but I’m starting to come around to Razörfist’s way of thinking in regards to Brave New World being their last completely great album. Now I gotta go dig out my copy, wherever it is.😂
They should make eddy biden next lol
Brave New World has pretty much all of the same issues that he mentions here, minus the bloated song times. Lots of repeating choruses and recycled riffs. Half the songs are good, but the other half are god awful. A mixed bag, like most of Maiden's output post-reunion.
I looooove Brave New World, saw the tour (Halford and Queensryche opened) it. Was. Awesome.
I'd go a little further back and say Seventh Son was their last truly great album. No Prayer and Fear of the Dark were both uneven... and it's been so long since I revisited the Blaze era, I wouldn't even want to comment on those albums... Brave New World and everything since could be condensed down to a pretty solid single CD highlight reel... maybe a 2 CD set if I was being generous.
I don't mean any of this as a knock on Maiden... most bands (or creative folks in general) tend to have a 10 year peak and then all the innovation juices are dried up... no shame in that... but it is what it is... Many of the greats either died too young to rip off their past selves or became outright nostalgia acts in old age. I give Maiden all the credit in the world for refusing to do either, but that doesn't make their last two albums any less dull and tired sounding.
Their 2019 tour was way worse … THAT one i almost fell asleep.
It's supply and demand people. If Maiden fans keep saying they love long boring song then they will continue producing these type of song. If Metallica fan hadn't trashed St. Anger then every Metallica album afterwards would have been St. Anger. It's just economics
Honestly Metallica fans have shit on every album since Justice in one way or another. Metallica just gets new fans. Only reason Anger didn't end the same way is that nobody could ever like that crap.
I'm not sure Steve would ever hear the complaints... his head is so much up is a*s, the only thing he can hear is the voice of his own ego.
@@hyvll
I'm not sure it's an ego issue per se, this boring prog stuff is obviously what he likes making these days. It's his band I guess but we could all do without it tbh.
Just bring on live shows playing classics and we're good.
@@hyvlllolol yeah yeah...its a strong album mate..yeah...how about another 12 min song...its so strong mate...if he hears them then he isnt listening...too busy writing 12 min epic "strong songs" pmsl...pure shit!!!!!!!
@@slaughterzealibib I was there in '88 and Metallica fans shit on Justice too. Trashing the band is part of their 'thing' ... just like unconditional love is part of being an IM fan.
But what do I know? I liked St. Anger :)
Theory time: back in 86 (the golden age of maiden) Bruce was getting tired and wanted to scale things back, be more acoustic than anything else, the band rejected the song ideas and instead continued with the golden age. Now, what if the acoustic songs that Bruce wanted to do were brought to this album and that why some of the 2on discs songs started with acoustic guitar, makes you think. Also I’m glad that I got Powerslave instead of Senjutsu for Christmas this year
Finally an honest review of modern Maiden!!
I can't listen to anything after FOTD!! Bruce left, Blaze got in, Blaze left, Bruce got back... But the band seems to have forgotten how to compose energetic epic songs!!
They're all dull, non-energetic stuff!! All middle-tempoed boring stuff!!
Bruce is squealing out of his lungs, really struggling to get the high notes out.
He still does great on live shows, like last Rock In Rio, in 2019.
They're coming back next year, 2022, and I will be there for sure!!
When I see friends saying they love some of the records that came after FOTD, I really try to understand what they see in these songs. And I really tried!! I put the songs on my iPhone, and tried listening to them. But no... They don't do anything for me!!
I still keep a playlist of Maiden songs pre-Bruce leaving, that I sometimes listen to, like I've been doing for the past few days. But I can't stand the "newer" stuff.
I'm still a Maiden fan, I still go to all their shows here in Rio! Best one, of course, was "Somewhere Back In Time Tour", that I saw here in Rio in 2009, with songs up to FOTD!! But none of the newer stuff get even close!!
There’s a time and a place for everything, but Maiden seems to think that time and place is all the time and right fucking here. In a vacuum, I actually rather liked the acoustic intro to The Parchment, had a decent tempo and felt like it was building a little ominous foreshadowing. But after the interminable Death of the Celts? Here, have some mashed potatoes to go with your scalloped potatoes, and would you like fries or a baked potato on the side? Give me some goddamn meat to bite into, please. And while we’re at it, can somebody please refill the coffee maker, we’re going to need at least another pot to get these guys up to speed.
Honestly, it feels like they felt as if they didn't do enough of the slower, longer stuff in the golden age, so they're making up for lost time a bit _too_ aggressively
That said, in isolation, _Hell_ _On_ _Earth_ is a really good track
21st century Maiden writes songs like Bungie designing levels for the first Halo:
"Hey you liked fighting that room full of enemies, right? Sweet! Here's the same room and the same enemies *twelve more times."*
"Uh, thanks, I guess? At least the tank part was fun... What's next?"
*"The Library."*
@@DaMaster012 lmao
Honestly most of the riffs (besides the guitar harmonization bits) are pretty good hearing them once but they do drag on forever after hearing them 1000 times
It's the same rift, now. At this point an AI can play a nu Maiden song start to finish and you'd be none the wiser.
12:05 - I thought I was about to hear The Proclaimers sing, "When I wake up, well you know I'm gonna be..."
And I will write a shit-ty album
And I will write some shit-ty songs
Maiden will sing 500 chorus repeats and they will sing 500 more...
@@Natendowii
Just to BE that band that sang ONE thousand chorusses as an utter bore
@@Nightdarea-chorus repeat chorus repeat chorus repeat chorus repeat chorus repeat chorus repeat
I would love a breakdown of all the Bolt Thrower library. Maiden doesn't sound like Maiden. It's like they got a facelift. Now they sound like ANY band.
A Bolt Thrower Mythos would kick ass. Too bad Razor doesn’t really do Death Metal.
It's possible, since Razorfist has said that he does like some Death Metal bands, but not a lot.
IIRC, Razör mentioned that he likes Death and Morbid Angel.
I’d be interested to see what he thinks of melodeath tho, like Soilwork, Children of Bodom, Amon Amarth, In Flames (pre-2008), etc.
I am pro anything Bolt Thrower. Good or bad, bring it RazörFist. In the name of the Emperor let none survive.
You can thank their s%it producer for that.
I couldn't agree more. Your Metal Mythos on Maiden that you did a few years ago was also spot on. I discovered Maiden when Killers was released and in my opinion that's where the band peaked. After Somewhere In Time I'd lost interest. And as you said its suffocating the lesser known bands from getting the recognition they deserve.
It's refreshing to finally see a direct and honest review of the album. Despite being one of my all-time favorite bands, I must say that this album is boring as f**k. This has been a brave review, telling things as they are, not giving a shit about trends or wanting to be indulgent just because "Iron Maiden is a classic band, they must be worshipped". Congratulations my friend!!!! You've got one more subscriber.
Can’t wait to see the reviews for the last two Stryper albums, too!
You know as someone isn’t the most religious person Stryper is fucking awesome.
As far as I know he is into them. Some consider the most recent one their best one.
@@wesleyfarmer6519 I actually got into Razorfist by watching his metal mythos on Stryper. Not only was it excellent, it really showed me how informed and well researched Razor is on anything he digs his claws into. I have been a fan ever since, and would recommend it to anyone
"Its merely giving the fans what they want"
We wanted good Judas Priest. They gave us good Judas Priest. The people want good Iron Maiden, and they give us bad Rush.
Maybe they were in a... rush?
Sounds like they are always trying to repeat the awesomeness of Hallowed Be Thy Name.
They need to sit down and listen to that song again, because they haven't come even close. I don't think Steve knows how to write guitar harmonies or riffs like were in that song, let alone anything else he did in the 80's.
They've been great doing different variations of the same five songs for 15-20 years, but eventually it gets old. The fans wanted more of the same and they've gotten it every single time. I can't imagine them breaking out of that cycle anytime soon.
I love Iron Maiden. Hands down one of the best bands in the world. But I can’t help but agree and it makes me sad.
RazorFist you’re a fucking beast when it comes to discussing music 🤘🏻
He's a beast when discussing anything.
@@mr.brenman2132He is an underachieving moron
I Haven’t really enjoyed a Maiden album front to back since Brave New World. Agreed about the vocals, too much shrill, that’s being said it’s another Mehhh record. Not great, doesn’t suck, tolerable but a far cry from the glory years.
Totally agree. That’s the last one I’ve listened to in entirety. They have been stuck in a musical rut- ditch more like it
@@jessebrennan7130 I try to be open minded, I go in expecting mediocre and if it’s better than that now It’s not bad. They NEED a new Producer, new ideas
I think the band lost their way with Dance of Death. I love "New Frontier" and "Montsegur" and even "Rainmaker", and there's a few other tracks on the album I don't own but still partake in, most of which were written by Janick. But the failure to call out the bad stuff is likely what led to the ongoing disaster that is AMoLaD. That one album, and the BAFFLING reception it got, is the reason why Maiden haven't thought to course-correct, but the spiral started with Dance of Death's bad tracks.
Yup. I really like Brave New World.
Agree, and the Brave New World Rock in Rio DVD is awesome too
So with that Maiden trudge-a-thon out of the way, how about a Primal Fear retrospective for the Mythos?
THIS^
I agree!
F**king A' Bubba! Especially Unbreakable, Delivering the Black and Rulebreaker Speaking of underrated bands that deserve their own Metal Mythos episodes.... How about Iced Earth (Dark Saga, Something Wicked This Way Comes) and Dreamland (Eye For an Eye and Exit 49).
@@TwistedMe13 ICED FKING EARTH would be amazing
@@TwistedMe13 Last 4-5 albums by Primal Fear put every British metal band to shame.
Razör's leveled up his singing abilities.
Indeed. He's got a real nice voice, both singing and roasting.
Unfortunately... all of this is true.
The problem with Iron Maiden are its fans. The problem with Iron Maiden's fans is quite simple. Listen to any live recording where they attempt to clap in time with the music - It always goes out of time. This speaks volumes
roflmao
That lead break in The Time Machine sounds like a reworked Dance of the Dead.
So glad Maiden released a new album. I was getting tired of using Book Of Souls as my sleep aid.
Oh, Maiden is progressing alright- straight toward becoming metal ASMR.
dude dude dude, I was a Maiden fanboy , more from old school stuff, but still unapologetic nonetheless. I listened to your review and seriously thought about it. i always wondered if iron maiden had changed or I had. I always gave them leeway for being an older band. but after reflecting on your honest review I've changed my mind. if Priest can change and come back with excellent albums like firepower, then so can Maiden. I thank you for giving us a serious honest feedback instead of the usual fanboy positive reviews. I'm going to stop giving bands passes because they're 'older' bands. It pains me to say it but the album art has been carrying the band along more than the music. Hopefully Maiden will come back with a Firepower worthy album ( but I doubt it) but thanks for keeping me honest and keep the good reviews coming
Yes, Maiden can, but unfortunately they don't want!The biggest difference between the 2 is that Maiden dont' like to be categorized as a heavy metal band anymore and that shows for many years now...
@@METALSCAVENGER78 the biggest difference between the 2 is that JP is /was a supergroup .. Having said that YES Maiden were totally capable of making a great album that will appeal to metalheads , maybe not a new Powerslave but a new prayer ..or fear ..
I hate to say it, but this album is a one time listen for me. It just felt tired, and had zero punch.
Ningen Isu is a band that needs the attention of Razorfist.
They have been going for decades and consistently put out bangers to this day. Hell, they just had a new album release not long ago.
I fucking love them. Colour Out of Space and Namahage are my favorite songs
The algorithm blessed me with knowledge of them not too long ago. Severely underrated and I should def set aside time to get more acquainted, being a lover of almost all J-Music.
Hell yeah
Grampa metal.
Tony Iommi Should look into this band
Razor, over the years I have watched most bands that started out strong turn to mush as they age. It's pretty normal. When JP's Firepower came out, I was honestly shocked at how much they sounded like 80s JP, so rare it seems. And ironically I am literally playing Skyrim while listening to you rant about how this would make good background music for Skyrim LOL.
Last time I was this early, people still thinks iron maiden is a legitimate medieval torture device.
This album would still work as torture tbh
It was and still is lol...I had to listen to this drivel at 1.2 speed the whole way thru and it still crap...too many acoustic intros....it just loses it's impact when u repeat that stuff too much...as Razor says.."formulaic as fuck!!!!!!!!"
As a Maiden fan since the early 80s this is totally true...
This album reminds me of lyrics from "Quest for Fire". "In a time when dinosaurs walked the earth" is the impression this all gives me.
Drawn by a quest for songs ! They searched for at least ten years !
Nothing on senjutsu approaches how fun /silly that song is
Haha. My friends and I always argued over the lyrics of that song! I mean heated debates. I was like “don’t listen to the lyrics, the music was awesome “
They have come a long way since I snuck off to the record store in 1982 to buy my first album, Number of the Beast. Now if only they would go half way back to when they were still good.
I'm not happy with Priest and their refusal to allow KK to come back, but, Senjutsu can't hold a SINGLE CANDLE FLAME to Firepower. One of the better albums released that year (I forget off the top of my head.)
Albums like firepower show that you can pay homage to your older work while innovating at the same time.
Firepower was generic af
@@stainedclass7894 it had a handful of killer tracks but it gets old fast with a lot of filler.
firepower was that good it got me into priest,never game them a go prior and i was born in 86,but after giving it a listen i wound up listening to their older stuff and liked it,
Priest and Firepower may not be flawless, but energy and passion are still there. Unlike in Maiden since Bruce's departure.
I don't think "Darkest Hour" and "Hell on Earth" are all that bad. Had they been on a much better album, at worst they could've been considered pieces of mislead filler. On this record tho, it's like having a drink of really hot potable water after being stranded in the middle of the pacific ocean for months with no end on sight.
I love Hell on earth
80's Maiden: THE WHOLE ALBUM SLAYS!!!
Post 2000 Maiden: I don't think these two songs are all that bad....
Never thought I’d hear Razor mention Captain Beyond lol
Maiden aren't even getting progressive rock/metal right with their endless chorus repeats. I thought half the point of progressive rock was having limited choruses or no choruses at all.
*"You know. Iron Maiden Are great. I'm just not so sure about their full-length albums."* - Razor's old boss.
*You know Rageaholics, great cover art can make you do crazy things.* - Razorfist.
I can listen to 2112 by RUSH many times even though the song is 20 minutes long. The reason is because it is entertaining and interesting throughout..
The long songs on this Maiden album are just dull.
Agreed and I love both bands.
Accepts new Album To Mean To Die is way better then Maidens new album
By far a better album better band also. Accept kick butt.
You know what? Thank you for being so unapologetically fucking honest. Maiden got me through one of the worst periods of my life and introduced me to the wide and wonderful world of heavy metal and honestly nowadays they repeat themselves more than a fucking parrot with Alzheimer's. Cheers, man. I'd buy you a pint if we were face to face.
The most frustrating part about this album, and pretty much every single Maiden album since Brave New World, has just been all the wasted potential. So many other great metal bands from Maiden's era have put out such better sounding music in the past twenty years or so, in their old style and sound and Maiden doesn't seem to ever be able get a clue that they should do that. FIVE FUCKING ALBUMS and only a small handful of songs that can barely, if at all, be talked about in with their greatest work and most Maiden fans act like each album is not only listenable and creative, but actually good. Eventually Maiden is going to have to retire and it will not be on a high note, but with a legacy of self indulgence and what could have beens.
😂😂😂😂😂
Clueless…
Maiden already wrote their powerful and thundering in their past..
They can put out any music they want.
They have earned that right.
Don’t like?? DO NOT LISTEN
@@W13-i7q I was already doing that, but thanks for the advice.
That while thing about Death of the Celts being over 10 minutes made my jaw hit the floor. It almost feels like they went "Y'know, David Bowie's final album had a title song that was 10 minutes long. I think we can beat that." At least the shifting tones made it feasible to have Blackstar be 10 fucking minutes long, because Bowie probably knew that playing essentially the same thing over and over a 10 minute stretch was gonna bore the tits off everyone.
And Parchment being FUCKING 12 MINUTES LONG!?! WHAT WERE THEY *THINKING!?!* By Bowie above, no one's got THAT much patience for a song, not even an ADHD-riddled Aspie with an Audially-attuned brain. I know this... because *I* am an ADHD-riddled Aspie with an Audially-attuned brain.
I almost wounder if someone in the band was listening to Fates Warning's A Pleasant Shade Of Gray and thought to themselves "you know this carefully focused well thought out 58 minute multi-movement conceptual piece is quite fascinating and I really want to try writing something like it" and then started doing it only to let it get way out of control and become a meandering (and insufferable) 80 minute long slog of an album.
Other than the yunoreview from Anthony Fantano I have to say this is the first honest review I've seen of this album I've seen by far. When I pre-ordered this album I thought it'd be better than book of souls (which it is by like 10%). But needless to say it was a major let down just like it's predecessor. Maiden need a new producer, need to fire janick, and more importantly to write shorter songs to get they're edge back! Also, all the hard-core Maidennites pissing and moaning in the comment section validates the points of why the fans are even worse than the band itself!
Not the best nor worst Maiden album but it’s definitely their most depressing album.
Virtual XI was their most depressing album, this one is that feeling you get when you're starving, and listening to this will not cure that feeling!
It is the weakest
@@trendmassacre8423
Virtual XI
I remember skipping through that at the record store
I never got beyond the intro's
I heard Senjutsu first and it was slow but decent so I was hoping for Iron Maiden to have their own Firepower album but then I got a meandering geriatric jam session of an album.
Imagine most songs trimmed to 3-4 min and 2 or so "epics" for 8 min. That would be a banger
Given Razörfist’s somewhat unique status as a non-otaku westerner who understands actual Japanese culture (not the japaonophile theme park version of it of weeaboo imagination) and speaks Japanese AND as a music reviewer with an encyclopedic knowledge of metal who also doesn’t reflexively hate pop music just because it’s pop… I would really appreciate a Metal Mythos episode about Babymetal.
Or *LOUDNESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!*
I've been a diehard Maidzen fan since 1982, but their last great album was powerslave. Best thing about this album is the cover. They need to get back to 4 minute hard rocking recipies. That's too much to ask though. They are too far gone at this point. At least we have the first 5 albums to listen to.
100%. Powerslave was a total beast. Like SIT a bit. 7th son was terrible
@@TheNoSuchThingPodcast I'm the same with SIT. I can stomach that album if I have to, saw that tour also. Everyone thinks 7th son is the best thing since sliced bread, it bores the shit out of me though lol.
@@rrguitar1 I think it was 2001 they played ozzfest. They only played songs up until powerslave . It was amazing
@@TheNoSuchThingPodcast was that the summer with the egg incident ?? I'm sure that was a killer set. I actually saw them in the summer of 2019 here in NY. They were awesome and played for the most part all the classic maiden songs. I was right up front and I loved it. Have some vids in my channel also
@@rrguitar1 I think so. Sharon gave Black Sabbath fans eggs to throw or something?
That bit at the end of your rant about sh!t fans perpetuating sh!t content is also easily applicable to triple A video games. It would explain why the industry is drowning in mindless Assassin’s Creed and Uncharted clones that continue to get commercial and critical acclaim, despite how shallow and derivative they are.
Amen to that!! 👏👏👏
And the movie industry, too. It's nothing but product consumption.
💯 Good God I can't stand that formulaic bullshit. Slow intro > "kicks in" to same tempo, repeat. They've been doing this tired formula for way too long.
That's a lie though, just because gamejourno thinks its good doesn't mean people actually seriously play it. You can see this with Monster Hunter Rise too, where the majority of players have already gone back to Monster Hunter World because MHW is just that much more fun to play.
@@TrainingMacro Rise is good it’s just lacking content, and World was designed to appeal to the largest possible audience which is ironic considering it has the most boring monsters, and the most bland colorless art style of any entry in the series. Gen Ultimate and 3 Ultimate are the best by far, but they lacked the marketing of World and it’s multi platform advantage. I think the example your looking for is the Last of Us part 2, but games like that are the exception to the rule. Ghost of Sushima is a textbook example of Assassins Creed clone, and the masses lapped it up like dogs, ankle deep stealth and a bland open world be damned.
They are STILL a slumbering and lumbering dinosaur. Some ideas and riffs are really cool, but they ruin them by repeating them over and over and over again. Wayy to long and SLOW songs.
Btw: this is the funniest and most honest review of a music album I have EVER heard!!
All of it so fucking TRUE!
Right? At least with their older long songs, they didnt just repeat the same riff ad nauseaum
As usual, the best tracks on this album are the shortest ones, shame theres only like two of them...
I wish I could like this comment more than once!
As a massive Maiden fan I have to agree with everything you've said.......Maiden have lost there way big time
Whole thing at 1.25x speed is better. But the “Thundering Lumbering Brachiosaur” comparison describes this album perfectly on normal speed.
Dystopia was the highlight of all the old farts' albums released in the last 10 years. It sounded like Megadeth. Firepower was good too, but it just sounded like metal and didn't feel as nostalgic. Senjutsu sounded like something that wouldn't get you in the studio.
Absolutely,dystopia kicks ass
Nahh fam. Maiden has 5 amazing albums post 2000
🤣 Your killing me! Thank you for being one of the few honest people on the tube. Not the, “I own the album so I have to defend it” zombie. I’ll go to a Maiden concert when.... they bring the original singer on tour and play the first 2 albums. 🤘😈🤘
This showed up in my notifications, but apparently it wasn't available in my country, until like a week later.
EDIT: 14:56 - Haunt mention, THANK YOU RAZOR!
The first 2 Iron Maiden Albums were the best.
Absolutely agree!! Give me DiAnno and Burr anyday !!
I'm as old as the fucking band, and this album makes me feel every fucking year of it. MOR AOR metal. And we needed *82 minutes* of this shit?
And damn, I love Captain Beyond. Have the original 3D LP.
Hell yeah, so do i...must've listened to it a million fucking times and it never gets old. I've got the second one, "Sufficiently Breathless" and the third one, "Dawn Explosion" as well but there no where near as good. "Dawn Explosion" is the worst though.
Totally Agree mate I'm of the same age, I thought I was in a minority until I watched this guy's review and the comments, 80's maiden was top shelve, the last few albums they've done are f****n awful, long drawn out bore fests.
Iron Maiden's Eddie has gone through as many career changes as Yosemite Sam.
In his day, Yosemite Sam was a Fur Trapper, a Red Coat, a Pirate, a Cowboy, a Carthaginian Soldier, an Astronaut, a Medieval Knight, an Arabian Sheik,... etc
Thank you for your review! For a moment there I was thinking am I the only one who thinks Senjutsu is a boring Maiden album. You nailed my feelings of current Iron Maiden. Great work!
I feel like post- millennium Maiden has an underlying theme no one is considering. After becoming so huge and playing so many stadium sized shows, it's like they write specifically to that. Music that is only interesting live with 10,000 cigarette lighters burning. Epically mundane. That being said, I still get chills from those familiar harmonies and scales when they happen. And that basic Maiden gallop always makes my head bang. I mean... These dudes are the same age as my grandpa and all that dude does is watch Bonanza, bitch about gas prices, and flirt with the fat waitress at Bob Evans serving him his 3pm meatloaf dinner.
Not really heard any maiden stuff since seventh son of a seventh son , but Dickinson really sounds like a tired old man phoning it in on this album.
Yep, nothing after 7th son is worth hearing.
You had me at "doodily God damn do"
Hadn't seen this yet glad Sean peck told me to check it out when he was on my podcast!!!
This album BLOWS! Maiden hasn't been good in long time, just my opinion. GREAT review!
Well said. The Last decent Album is Dance Of Death. At least in my opinion.
I could not AGREE MORE! Finally a review that dares to say what, most likely, even the slowest Iron Maiden fans are thinking, but do not dare to say aloud. I honestly started to think that there are no sane Iron Maiden "fans" left on this planet, after reading half a dozen of 9/10 reviews of this album.
Iron Maiden has reached a status which allows it to release any sort of crap and the fans devour it and ask for more. I have been waiting for Iron Maiden to put out a good album (where we have more than 1-3 good/decent songs) since X Factor and I have been disappointed more or less ever since. The only things you missed in your review, were the freaking keyboard sounds that sound like 10 dollar Casio quality and how annoyingly simplified they are on the album. You don't need keyboards if you have three freaking guitars which don't have enough to do as it is!
I would rather listen to Gangland over any single song on this album. I would rather pick any of the songs from No Prayer or Fear of the Dark over this crap. Even some Blaze era songs are more ENERGETIC (which is usually not the adjective that comes to mind after listening to X-Factor or Virtual XI) and kick more ass than the songs here. Someone commented to me that the fans would shit their pants and go nuts over joy if the post-2000's Iron Maiden would release a song now, like Back in the Village, Still Life, Invaders or any of the similar "B-grade" songs and I could not agree more (note: love the forementioned songs...!). Where the hell are Maiden's standards and where have they been for the past 20-30 something years)?
The only plus sides on the album are that Adrian at least still tries his best with the solos and there are some really minor attempts to do something outside the usual Maiden mold (mostly some intro parts and some unexpected drum beats - Nicko doesn't get stuck to his typical ride cymbal beat 90% of the time). That's pretty much it... SAD!
P.S. Every time someone calls Maiden PROG, I die inside.
"The more you ingest this ass cancer the more it's on the menu", hilarious review again - He really cheers me up - I agree with him ,Maiden need to simplify their menu!!