Poll: Best Iron Maiden 'epic'

[Vegard Pompey]

@EspaDa's posts in the top 5 thread have reminded me this was something I wanted to gauge the community's opinion of. By 'epic' I mean their songs that meet most of these conditions; are over 7 minutes long, have a nonstandard song structure, have a sense of narrative, have a grandiose subject matter, are album closers etc etc. You know what I'm talking about. Hallowed be Thy Name and so on.

Since polls on this forum can only have 10 choices, I picked what I perceived to be the 10 most popular or notable ones. This unfortunately meant I couldn't include masterpieces like "Don't Look to the Eyes of a Stranger".

 

[Vilden]

This is really hard tbh. Went with Rime of the Ancient Mariner, I think it is the most "complete" and the song that fits the "epic" tag the best.

Still, SSOASS, Sign of the Cross, Hallowed Be Thy Name and To Tame a Land are all up there.

I think SSOASS could be #1 with a less repetitive chorus.

 

[HamburgerBoy]

Rime of the Ancient Mariner, easily one of metal's greatest songs and just about the definitive Maiden song. All the others listed up to Alexander the Great are 10/10 songs though, as is 22 Acacia Avenue which is absolutely an epic despite what anyone might say. Alexander might get second place but any of them could easily qualify except for maybe Phantom, which is just a tad primitive compared to the rest. Seventh Son has a shit chorus and the bridge gets a bit recycle-y, though the shredding proto-Hangar 18 ending is cool. Fear of the Dark doesn't feel like an epic, it's just a longer anthem song. Sign of the Cross is really good and Paschendale could have been if it wasn't for a few design flaws. Empire of the Clouds is respectable and surprisingly doesn't feel overlong, but I don't really like it that much.

 

[CiG]

"To Tame a Land" (forever) > "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" > "Alexander the Great" > "Hallowed be Thy Name" > "Phantom of the Opera" > "Seventh Son of a Seventh Son" > "Fear of the Dark" > not so familiar with the rest.

 

[The Ozzman]

Paschendale master race. No other Maiden epic gives me the chills every time I listen to it

 

[Vegard Pompey]

My ranking:

To Tame a Land
Phantom of the Opera
Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Seventh Son of a Seventh Son
Paschendale
Alexander the Great
Hallowed Be Thy Name
Sign of the Cross
Fear of the Dark
Empire of the Clouds

I've always found Rime of the Ancient Mariner a bit plodding, and I'm not a fan of the spoken word part. Ultimately it's not a big deal because the "the curse it lives on in their eyes..." part is almost enough by itself to make it a 10/10, just explaining why it's not #1.

Empire of the Clouds is interminable garbage imo, but I included it in the poll because it's one of their most ambitious songs so maybe there are some people who actually like it? Every other song is fantastic.

 

[Vegard Pompey]

It saddens me of how dismissive you all are of Phantom of the Opera. I wish To Tame a Land wasn't so damn good, so I could vote for Phantom of the Opera.

 

[CiG]

I don't think it's fair to call it being dismissive considering you're asking us to rank best to worst (more appropriately least best) some of the greatest Iron Maiden songs laid down, ever.

 

[Vegard Pompey]

I suppose. You should check out Paschendale.

 

[CiG]

I'm actually slowly going through the Iron Maiden discography right now and rating them on RYM so eventually I definitely will.

 

[Marchosias]

I was extremely torn between Phantom of the opera and Rime of the ancient mariner.

Had to turn back and listen to them both to decide.

In the end i say Rime of the ancient mariner by a small margin.

 

[Dazed and Brutal]

Went the safe route with Rime, but Paschendale has warm spot in my heart

 

[EspaDa]

Only one song can win this one!

When you know that your time is close at hand
Maybe then you’ll begin to understand, life down here is just a strange illusion

Rime of the Ancient Mariner, Alexander the Great, and Paschendale are also great tracks.

 

[Oblivious Maximus]

Went against the grain with Paschendale though every song listed is pretty brilliant.

 

[Talos of Atmora]

These are all great but I have to go with Rime.

 

[Vegard Pompey]

Didn't know Paschendale was so popular! Glad I included it in the poll.

 

[Vilden]

Rime live is probably my best Maiden moment ever.

BTW way too little love for Sign of the Cross here tbh.

 

[EspaDa]

It's a great but very repetitive song. Could be 2 or 3 minutes shorter.

 

[Omni]

"Phantom of the Opera" might not be their most technically perfect epic, but it has a place in my heart because it was the first Iron Maiden song that I heard. I would have liked to hear the song as it was originally intended, because it was going to have a much more striking arrangement.

 

[Slammed]

Rime of the Ancient Mariner for me but a close second for Empire of the Clouds.