You Maiden freaks probably already have this, but I've just heard disc 1 of Maiden's new live record, Death on the Road, from November 2003 of the Dance of Death tour.
My first impression was that the guitars are fucking thick! Well, 3 guitarists. Davey on the left, Adrian the middle, Jan the right. Nicko sounds fucking great. You drummers, (Johnnie, I'm looking in your direction), I'd love to know what y'all think of Kevin Shirley's production here; I rather like the drum sound. Doesn't sound like the drummer is hitting a pillow, like most studio productions nowadays. Steve Harris recently said that Shirley in the studio had finally captured their live sound, and after hearing this, I would agree. However, as usual, it's mastered TOO FUCKING LOUD! I noticed a lot of clipping. No fault of Shirley's.
Anyway, the band sounds and plays spectacularly, of course; after 25 years, they should. Bruce is probably the weakest, but not as bad as some of the tracks on Live After Death that were recorded at the end of that tour. He doesn't have the range he used to, but he does alright. I was really impressed with the band's performance on The Trooper; Adrian and Jan doubled up on Adrian's solo, and listen for Nicko's double kick in the solo break.
In the end, 2 discs, AGAIN back catalog classics, with sprinklings of Dance of Death. Seems superfluous, to me. Nice to have live recordings of Iron Maiden ca. 2003, but still a bit redundant. However, a fucking solid performance, so not a waste of money.
Up the Irons, Rivetheads!
Edit: Nicko doesn't double-kick, but plays that type of pattern with one foot. "Out of the Silent Planet", for example. It was cool to hear that in The Trooper.
My first impression was that the guitars are fucking thick! Well, 3 guitarists. Davey on the left, Adrian the middle, Jan the right. Nicko sounds fucking great. You drummers, (Johnnie, I'm looking in your direction), I'd love to know what y'all think of Kevin Shirley's production here; I rather like the drum sound. Doesn't sound like the drummer is hitting a pillow, like most studio productions nowadays. Steve Harris recently said that Shirley in the studio had finally captured their live sound, and after hearing this, I would agree. However, as usual, it's mastered TOO FUCKING LOUD! I noticed a lot of clipping. No fault of Shirley's.
Anyway, the band sounds and plays spectacularly, of course; after 25 years, they should. Bruce is probably the weakest, but not as bad as some of the tracks on Live After Death that were recorded at the end of that tour. He doesn't have the range he used to, but he does alright. I was really impressed with the band's performance on The Trooper; Adrian and Jan doubled up on Adrian's solo, and listen for Nicko's double kick in the solo break.
In the end, 2 discs, AGAIN back catalog classics, with sprinklings of Dance of Death. Seems superfluous, to me. Nice to have live recordings of Iron Maiden ca. 2003, but still a bit redundant. However, a fucking solid performance, so not a waste of money.
Up the Irons, Rivetheads!
Edit: Nicko doesn't double-kick, but plays that type of pattern with one foot. "Out of the Silent Planet", for example. It was cool to hear that in The Trooper.
