Best Tune on "Virtual XI" by Iron Maiden

Virtual XI



Recorded @ Barnyard Studios, Essex, England, 1997 – February 1998

Released 23 March 1998

Spun this twice for the first time in my life. Okay, THIS is more like it. Blaze still sounds crappy as hell (sorry, defenders of Blaze, I just don't understand where you're coming from), but the songs have way more staying power and the mix is slightly more even than the disaster before it. The songs are far more energetic and cohesive as well, and FOR ONCE we don't have to suffer through the fuckery of the dreaded i-VI-III-VII movement (more on that later). It's almost like they were finding their footing with Blaze on this album--I sometimes wonder what might have been had they done another record with him. My favorite would have to be Lightning Strikes Twice, a catchy monster of a rocker. The closer, Como Estais Amigos, is equally strong. There are weak tracks--Don't Look to the Eyes of a Stranger is almost terrible. I don't know why these boys think we benefit from hearing the song title over and over throughout the song. The Educated Fool tends to get goofy as well.

Looking forward to the next phase--REUNION. I've not heard nearly enough of those albums so I plan on putting a good amount of listening before diving into the subsequent polls.

OOooooo. It's either The Clansman or Futureal for me. I'll be back.........

**EDIT**
I voted for Futureal.

For the first time, I was going to refrain from voting in an album poll because, when I listened to this album on Spotify a few weeks ago, I found nothing worth voting for and "The Angel and the Gambler" I couldn't even get through. So bad, and almost 10 freakin' minutes! Reading your comments, maybe I should give it one more chance.

I prefer Bruce's live take on "Clansman" from "Rock In Rio" so from this album proper I'd say "Futureal"

None. Terrible album and god awful album cover. The nadir of their career.

I heard this thing once and didn't like it at all. I pretend it and the X Factor don't exist in my Iron Maiden discography. At least from here there's nowhere to go but up.

I kind of dig this album. Went with educated fool.
Futureal is also a very good track.

Man, Shay, this one's a toughie. Not an exciting album at all. The two that I remember liking were "Angel and the Gambler" and "The Clansman" so I voted for the former. The mid to late 90's were a tough time for me musically. Two stinkers each with replacement vocalists from Maiden and Priest, disappointments in Load and Re-Load, and no interest in VH3. It's no wonder I got so focused on FW and DT. Lol.

When it comes to the two Blaze albums I actually like this one a lil' better than X Factor - but in the long run, that's still kinda like saying you prefer having your hair set on fire over having your nuts slammed in a car door.

The Clansman. When Two Worlds Collide and Lightning Strikes Twice are also cool tracks.

It's a decent enough album, but loses out to probably all other Maiden discs except for No Prayer for the Dying.

Blaze's voice fit a lot better on the X-Factor.

I can't choose....... not because I like all songs, but because I don't like any.

I choose The Clansman - thanks to Bruce and Rock in Rio.

'The Clansman' by default. I saw Maiden perform it live with Bruce, so it's the only song I really know from that album.

Witchfinder wrote:

None.  Terrible album and god awful album cover.  The nadir of their career.

That was my first impression, but I'll give it one more chance. Just ONE

OK, I almost voted for "Don't Look to the Eyes of a Stranger" because it is catchy. It's so long and repetitive, though! If it was cut in half, it would be great. I notice that a lot with later Maiden songs. Such a shame cool songs are dragged out so. I voted for "Futureal." It's catchy and quick.

This one I've never been able to sit through all the way. I love Futureal and the Clansman, and not because of the live versions with Bruce, but because they're good songs. Everything else though just either drags on, or gets on my nerves.

It's strange that you say it's better than The X Factor because I really love that album, while this album is exactly like getting your hair set on fire, like FF said.

Oh, and the album cover's cool. Too cool for such a shit album.

I don't like the cover. Never did. I'll take Derek Riggs ahead of holograms any day.

The Clansman. Not as dark as The X Factor. I didn't hear or know about this album until maybe five years ago. I was rather detached in the 90-20's. I read about this album being pretty much universally panned, so I went in with low expectations. I was surprised. Not Bruce, and yet, it isn't the black hole of creativity either. My biggest irk is the keyboards.

My vote is for Lightning Strikes Twice.

Gawd, what an abysmal album! Blaze is just such a dull vocalist that it reminded me of one of the late great Sam Kinison's lines:

:Hey, you can be a land developer.

:Who me? I'm just a fry cook.

:It doesn't matter

The same analogy could be made for this very dark period of Iron Maiden. Seriously, you couldn't find anyone else better suited after Bruce left?

Without a doubt, The Clansman takes it, but that's because I remember Bruce actually giving this song some life when he came back. Thank God there isn't another Blaze album in the arsenal that I have to listen to.

The dude that sang on Cloven Hoof's A Sultan's Ransom (Russ North) was a contender for the vocalist spot, but was beaten out by Blaze. Apparently, IIRC, they picked Blaze because he was a friend of the band and played soccer with them frequently.

I like some of the material that came from the Blaze era, but I would've loved to had heard what they would've produced with Russ. That Cloven Hoof is a monster album.

Wurthless wrote:

The dude that sang on Cloven Hoof's A Sultan's Ransom (Russ North) was a contender for the vocalist spot, but was beaten out by Blaze. Apparently, IIRC, they picked Blaze because he was a friend of the band and played soccer with them frequently.

I like some of the material that came from the Blaze era, but I would've loved to had heard what they would've produced with Russ. That Cloven Hoof is a monster album.

I never knew that. I always told myself they chose him the way Metallica chooses a bass player. They choose him, pay him, and tell him what to play.

I'm shockingly surprised so many rank this BELOW X Factor. This is a much more cohesive album, far less derivative, better production, and Blaze actually nails his delivery here compared to his sloppiness before.

I mean, c'mon guys. No matter how much "atmosphere" Blaze brought to the band, his work on X Factor was a thing of all things ugly. He was pitchy as hell, couldn't stick to melody, had terrible sustain (a result of poor breathing technique), and had a minimal register. I mean, I like singers who aren't very "good," like Jagger and Springsteen, but Maiden's music is oil to Blaze's sludgy water. At least he firmed up a little here and on his future solo work.

These two albums are like somebody on a food truck saying, "would you prefer the poop or puke sandwich ?".

"Don'cha think I'm a savior?
Don'cha think I can save ya? Don'cha think I can save your life?

Don'cha think I'm a savior?
Don'cha think I can save ya? Don'cha think I can save your life?

Don'cha think I'm a savior?
Don'cha think I can save ya? Don'cha think I can save your life?

Don'cha think I'm a savior?
Don'cha think I can save ya? Don'cha think I can save your life?

Don'cha think I'm a savior?
Don'cha think I can save ya? Don'cha think I can save your life?

Don'cha think I'm a savior?
Don'cha think I can save ya? Don'cha think I can save your life?

Don'cha think I'm a savior?
Don'cha think I can save ya? Don'cha think I can save your life?"
(repeat 1000 times)

GAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH GET OUT OF MY HEAD!!!!