(1990)
Steve, Dave, Bruce, Janick and Nicko
2. Holy Smoke (Harris/Dickinson)
3. No Prayer for the Dying (Harris)
4. Public Enema Number One (Murray/Dickinson)
5. Fates Warning (Murray/Harris)
6. The Assassin (Harris)
7. Run Silent Run Deep (Harris/Dickinson)
8. Hooks In You (Dickinson/Smith)
9. Bring You Daughter...To the Slaughter (Dickinson)
10. Mother Russia (Harris)
There. That's that out of the way. So what does make this album not as good as Maiden's other albums (excluding Fear of the Dark; we'll get to that later)? Well, for starters, it's Bruce. His voice isn't what is was before this album, and it isn't what it is today either. It's still good, but there are parts in the album where he sounds real bad (the 'scream' in Hooks In You, for example). Often, he sings with no apparant melody, and this really becomes apparent when you try and sing along with him. Then there's some of Steve's songwriting, which (I'll just come out and say it, okay?) is not up to scratch in some places. Like The Assassin. Anyway, we'll get to that in a bit.
So. Tailgunner. It rocks. The way each instrument comes in, one after the other, building until Bruce comes in and the song kicks in. It's great, and, if anything, the first song on a Maiden album has never been bad. The chrous demonstrates that Bruce can still hit the high notes, albiet with a little difficulty, and they're not quite as high or quite as clean as they used to be. And no, the song isn't about gay sex.
His vocal decline is also well displayed in Holy Smoke. But to go into detail as to why Bruce isn't singing all that well on this track would just be plain rude, considering that the song is, for some reason, up there with Maiden's best, not beceause of lyrical quality (although they are good, particually "I've lived in filth, I've lived in sin, but I still smell cleaner than the shit you're in"), nor the musical side (because it's very happy and nice solos)... but because it's simply so much fun. There really is only one wat to listen to Holy Smoke, and that's while watching the video, which is absolutely hilariious.
Going well so far, eh? Next is a masterpiece, in the title track. Excellent guitar melodies, a superb instrumental section and introspective lyrics proove that 'Arry can still come up with the goods. It has the feel of an epic, even if it's shorter than Aces High.
Then there's Public Enema Number One. It's a great song, but it's let down by Bruce's vocals in the verses. They don't sound so bad just listening to them, but just try and sing-along with Bruce, and you'll see what I mean. He does a fine job on the chorus though, which, coupled with Dave's rocking melodies, are the best thing about the song. Next is Fates Warning, another fine Murray song, with a beautiful opening, which is once again let down by Bruce's vocals, also strangely, the chorus is fine. Hmmm....
Gaaaaaah. It's The Assassin. Maybe I'm being too harsh. It's at least funny. Bleh. The lyrics in the verses are okay, as is the music. The solos are quite nice, but... it's that bloody chorus. Fuck me. Seriously. What was Steve thinking? I can only hope that he had the backing "Better watch out!" parts added because he thought that the chorus would make everyone cringe. Because, reading its lyrics, that's what one does, and listening to it, you just laugh. It's locked in a fierce battle with Weekend Warrior and The Apparition for worst Maiden song ever. Still, there are times when I can really get into this song (as well as WW), but those times are few and far between.
Run Silent Run Deep. Reading the lyrics, before I'd even heard the song all the way through, I just knew it would end with that half-chorus sung with little or no music, really epic. I was right. Nothing wrong with it though, to be honest. It's a nice song.
Hooks In You is also a great song, which unfortunately suffers from being co-wriitten by Adrian but not played by him (what's worse, is you can immediately tell it's an Adrian aong). It's pretty obviousl that this is the third part of the Charlotte the Harlot series, and Bruce is fairly good all the way through, except when he tries to scream and it just sounds horrible.
Then there's the classic song Bring Your Daughter... To the Slaughter. The lyrics are seriously cheesy, and pretty stupid, all things considered, but it's still a great song, and the vocals are good throughout. It really comes alive when it's played in concert though,
The album ends with the Harris epic. This time, it's the shortest of all the epics, only five and a half minutes long, but all the masterful time changes are present, and the synth which is applied in places really compliments the mood of the song. It's definitely one of the best songs on the album.
So what are the reaons why this album isn't fantastic? Well, to sum it up: some pretty bad vocals from Bruce, sub-par songwriting from Steve in places and a lack of Janick songs (althought to be fair, it was his first album). I still really like it, but some of the flaws other peole have talked about really did show themselves when I tried to sing the album.
Question is, is it better than Fear of the Dark? Initially, I would have said yes. But now, no, mainly because Janick wrote some superb songs on FotD. I'm unsure if it's better than Killers, but if I keep listening to them both, the answer will probably be no.