- Apr 5, 2003
- 2,668
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Iron Maiden - A Matter Of Life And Death
EMI / Sony Music Entertainment - September 5th, 2006
By Brandon Strader
The first two seconds of the new Iron Maiden abomination are brilliant. There's a guy making an "Aiiee!" sound in a goofy voice. Iron Maiden really needs no introduction, so let's hop right in. There are a few things you may notice when the first track, "Different World", starts up. First, the guitar work sounds like it could be handled by one guy with a possible solo or lead on top, for a max of two guitarists and that's being polite. The rhythm section isn't as complex as to suggest there are three guitarists in the band. When they start doing a three-part guitar lead harmony in the first song, you can tell they have three guys there, yet with studio layering they could have done it with one guy anyway. I think the point is, the rhythms are weak and powerchord-fueled, just like the majority of their previous work. A lot of powerchords, and familiar progressions. The production isn't so great, as it lacks a lot of high-end and treble in the mix and on the crashes and hats.
It's easy to tell Bruce Dickinson is really putting effort into his vocals, as they sound full of strength and large. He's really yelling them out with heavy metal fervor. "These Colours Don't Run" smoothly enters with a couple broken chords and a melodic guitar lead played overtop. The heavy rhythms and vocals enter the song, and you can immediately tell it is Iron Maiden not only because of the distinct sound and vocals, but because they totally raped their past material yet again to make another song that sounds like a lot of the songs they've already done. It's incredible that they've got the same part in so many different songs, it's almost sickening. The rhythm in the chorus of "These Colours Don't Run" vaguely reminds me of "Wicker Man" just to name one similarity. Half way through the song they enter a good passage with a keyboard orchestration and a slowly sweeping guitar guitar performance, which is really one of the better and touching moments of the album that seems to dictate all of the hardship the guys have gone through.... or perhaps it's just a moment of good songwriting and I may be exaggerating a bit with the whole "hardship" angle. The solo is something we could actually learn to play, rather than the shredfests these guys are known for, so that is very cool. Dickinson enters the track closer to the end with some "choir" vocals along with the rhythm that are pretty cool. Then the song descends back into the mediocre verse, and eventually ends with the cool clean passage from the opening.
A Matter of Life And Death is sort of like a mixed bag. You've got the same ol' stuff from previous albums and the typical Maiden material, yet there are also a lot of great moments and passages mixed throughout the album. If they had taken all these great passages and combined them into one 10-minute song, and just scrapped the rest, they would be well on their way to their next good album. Instead we've got this mixture of a lot of bad and some good. People will buy this and love it because, well, it's from Iron Maiden and they don't know any better. Instead of AMOLAD, I must recommend Raising Hell and Rock In Rio. Maiden is really one of those bands that should stick to the live performance of their old material, which is why Raising Hell is so incredible - plus it's got illusionists in it, what's cooler than that? Definitely check out A Matter Of Life And Death, give it a couple listens, and if you like it, buy it. It won't be everyone's cup of tea, especially not fans of the earlier Maiden genius.
6.5/10
UM's Review Rating Scale
Official Iron Maiden Website
Official Sony Music Website
EMI / Sony Music Entertainment - September 5th, 2006
By Brandon Strader
The first two seconds of the new Iron Maiden abomination are brilliant. There's a guy making an "Aiiee!" sound in a goofy voice. Iron Maiden really needs no introduction, so let's hop right in. There are a few things you may notice when the first track, "Different World", starts up. First, the guitar work sounds like it could be handled by one guy with a possible solo or lead on top, for a max of two guitarists and that's being polite. The rhythm section isn't as complex as to suggest there are three guitarists in the band. When they start doing a three-part guitar lead harmony in the first song, you can tell they have three guys there, yet with studio layering they could have done it with one guy anyway. I think the point is, the rhythms are weak and powerchord-fueled, just like the majority of their previous work. A lot of powerchords, and familiar progressions. The production isn't so great, as it lacks a lot of high-end and treble in the mix and on the crashes and hats.
It's easy to tell Bruce Dickinson is really putting effort into his vocals, as they sound full of strength and large. He's really yelling them out with heavy metal fervor. "These Colours Don't Run" smoothly enters with a couple broken chords and a melodic guitar lead played overtop. The heavy rhythms and vocals enter the song, and you can immediately tell it is Iron Maiden not only because of the distinct sound and vocals, but because they totally raped their past material yet again to make another song that sounds like a lot of the songs they've already done. It's incredible that they've got the same part in so many different songs, it's almost sickening. The rhythm in the chorus of "These Colours Don't Run" vaguely reminds me of "Wicker Man" just to name one similarity. Half way through the song they enter a good passage with a keyboard orchestration and a slowly sweeping guitar guitar performance, which is really one of the better and touching moments of the album that seems to dictate all of the hardship the guys have gone through.... or perhaps it's just a moment of good songwriting and I may be exaggerating a bit with the whole "hardship" angle. The solo is something we could actually learn to play, rather than the shredfests these guys are known for, so that is very cool. Dickinson enters the track closer to the end with some "choir" vocals along with the rhythm that are pretty cool. Then the song descends back into the mediocre verse, and eventually ends with the cool clean passage from the opening.
A Matter of Life And Death is sort of like a mixed bag. You've got the same ol' stuff from previous albums and the typical Maiden material, yet there are also a lot of great moments and passages mixed throughout the album. If they had taken all these great passages and combined them into one 10-minute song, and just scrapped the rest, they would be well on their way to their next good album. Instead we've got this mixture of a lot of bad and some good. People will buy this and love it because, well, it's from Iron Maiden and they don't know any better. Instead of AMOLAD, I must recommend Raising Hell and Rock In Rio. Maiden is really one of those bands that should stick to the live performance of their old material, which is why Raising Hell is so incredible - plus it's got illusionists in it, what's cooler than that? Definitely check out A Matter Of Life And Death, give it a couple listens, and if you like it, buy it. It won't be everyone's cup of tea, especially not fans of the earlier Maiden genius.
6.5/10
UM's Review Rating Scale
Official Iron Maiden Website
Official Sony Music Website
Sorry, couldn't help myself... 
