Iron Maiden - The Final Frontier review
| Band: | Iron Maiden |
| Album: | The Final Frontier |
| Style: | Heavy metal |
| Release date: | August 16, 2010 |
| Guest review by: | Death To Posers |
01. Satellite 15... The Final Frontier
02. El Dorado
03. Mother Of Mercy
04. Coming Home
05. The Alchemist
06. Isle Of Avalon
07. Starblind
08. The Talisman
09. The Man Who Would Be King
10. When The Wild Wind Blows
It seems like it's become trendy to dislike any music that becomes even somewhat mainstream. I am by no means bitter; I'm guilty of this prejudice quite often. So, when I saw the album votes go the way they did for The Final Frontier I wasn't shocked. But, in all honesty, I thought this album was pretty hard! This is one of Maiden's most successful albums to date and for a damn good reason. While it does sound different from anything they've done before, that doesn't make it worse. Do you really want three albums that sound exactly like Brave New World?
I for one was happy that Iron Maiden isn't sticking to the same sound. Even though their old albums are timeless classics, masterpieces in metal, I respect them for not being afraid to keep an open mind and try something new. This album definitely has a progressive feel to it, it's complex and on first listen I may have agreed and given the album an 8. The first time through I only liked "Coming Home," "Starblind," and "When The Wild Wind Blows." However, the more I listened to it, the more the songs started to grab me. The songwriting is excellent, probably my favorite part about the album. Steve Harris's bleak yet exciting vision is painted in a masterful fashion. I was hanging on every lyric, yet the structures of the songs are so different than what I'm used to from Maiden, but still great. Dickinson's voice seems to have lowered for this album, but it's a decent change: he seems somewhere between his old self and Bailey in terms of pitch. The guitar work on the album is excellent as always from Murray, Smith and Gers. There are great riffs and solos throughout the whole album. Nicko McBrain is easily one of the best metal drummers ever and is epic as ever on this release. His love for the music shines through in everything he does on this piece.
Even though the tracks they chose to make into singles/videos were great, they weren't my favorite on the album. My favorites have to be "Starblind," "When The Wild Wind Blows," "Coming Home," and "Isle Of Avalon." These songs are awesome and are worth the price of the album alone.
I can understand how this album is not for everyone, just like all music is not for everyone, but I don't think it deserves a 7.5 overall rating. This album made me think of that post in the Funny Stuff section "101 Rules of being a Metal Stormer" Rule #26 Never like a band's new album and Rule #65 Every Iron Maiden Album deserves a 10. Rules in conflict in this case, and while I know it's cliché to love everything with Dickinson, I can't deny that this album was easily my favorite of 2010.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 10 |
| Songwriting: | 10 |
| Originality: | 9 |
| Production: | 9 |
Written by Death To Posers | 18.01.2011
Guest review disclaimer:
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
This is a guest review, which means it does not necessarily represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
Rating:
7.2
7.2
|
Rating: 7.2 |
Iron Maiden have had ups and downs, but they consistently stuck to their unique style. 2006's A Matter of Life and Death saw a serious departure from that style towards a darker, more progressive sound - it was only a partial success. Unfortunately, Steve Harris and Co. felt encouraged, and decided to go further in their departures. The first 4 songs on The Final Frontier rank among the worst this band has ever committed and most of the time sound nothing like the Iron Maiden everyone knows. Departure from style my ass. If they wanted to depart again, the previous album was the way to do it. Read more ›› |
Rating:
6.6
6.6
|
Rating: 6.6 |
An album that skirts the title of worst album in Iron Maiden discography by fortune of existing in a world where Dance of Death exists, The Final Frontier is a well-intentioned album that seems stuck on autopilot for the most of its running time, bravely going where the band had not gone before... mediocrity. If you want a quick and concise description of this album, think "The Angel And The Gambler" in seven new guises! Read more ›› |
Comments
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Comments: 46
Visited by: 329 users
| Vikcen Metálico Posts: 971  |
Personally the albums "Dance Of Death" and "A Matter Of Life And Death" were disappointments... and when i finished to listen "The Final Frontier" i said, wow!, this is really good, for me a true welcome back.
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| Fat & Sassy! Elite Posts: 3857  |
"Do you really want three albums that sound exactly like Brave New World?" Yes. Yes, I do. On a more serious note, I uh... don't think this album is too much different than their last three albums. In fact, it reminds me of Brave New World more than their last album... just a lot more boring.
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| JÄY Metal slave Posts: 1567  |
Yeah, man...just gotta come in here and say that ratings seems, crazy to me. the craftsmanship on this is just not even close to perfect, like a 9.5 should be. But i know: opinions and all that stuff. Also, gotta agree with fatty, A Matter is quite different from the 2 before it.
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| Susan Smeghead Elite Posts: 6941  |
Written by Fat & Sassy! on 18.01.2011 at 03:51 Heh, I was thinking the exactly same thing. Loved Brave New World  He makes a good point, though: bands need to evolve! Even the mighty Maiden. I love when my favourite bands evolve and hate it when other fans cry about them changing. I haven't heard The Final Frontier yet but after reading this review I think I need to suck it up and listen.
---- "A life all mine Is what I choose At the end of my days" --The Gathering "A Life All Mine" from Souvenirs
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| Death To Posers Hate Thy King Posts: 268  |
Written by Fat & Sassy! on 18.01.2011 at 03:51 It reminds me of Brave New World in that it has a message in many of the songs, just like all of the releases since the reunion. I loved Brave New World as well, I was in no way implying it was a bad album. The Final Frontier does venture further than Brave new World, from what most Iron Maiden Fans are used to in my opinion. There are a lot of tracks that are surprising on this album that made a lot of people say "What The Fuck" but I respect them for doing something different and proving that they can do different styles successfully.
---- The word gen means "illusion" or "apparition." In India, a man who uses conjury is called a genjutsushi ["a master of illusion technique"]. Everything in this world is but a marionette show. Thus we use the word gen.
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| Angelic Storm Melodious Posts: 6675  |
Another hand going up here for being glad if they made another 2 albums like "Brave New World".  "A Matter Of Life And Death" was a very different album for Maiden, and I love that album. (aside from "The Greater Good Of God") For me, "The Final Frontier" suffers not because it is different, but because most of the songs feel long for their own sake, and sound pretty generic and lifeless. "Isle Of Avalon" is the only long, prog like track that I think completely works, and I love that song. Although "The Talisman" and "The Man Who Would be King" are also good songs. "Mother Of Mercy" is my fave on the album, with it's creeping, menacing vibe. "El Dorado" is also a good song which I enjoy. Most of the album just bores me though. Very little on it grabs me. 7.5 is not a bad rating by any stretch of the imagination, so I dunno why you'd have such a major problem with it being given that. A lot of people just happen to disagree with your opinion, thats all.
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| Death To Posers Hate Thy King Posts: 268 |
Written by Angelic Storm on 18.01.2011 at 07:21 That's totally understandable. Music is very dependent on taste, what sounds great to someone may sound like complete shit to another. I know that 7.5 isn't bad on the scale of Metal Storm, it's actually between good and great right? The thing is everyone on this site loves Metal, so while supposedly 6 is an average album, the real average is probably like a 7 or 7.5 or something, I'm too lazy to do the math  Comparatively, The Final Frontier, The Final Frontier ranks at 186 out of 238 releases in 2010 with at least 20 votes, I get that people don't think it's a bad album, but it's one of the weaker Metal releases on 2010 according to most I guess.
---- The word gen means "illusion" or "apparition." In India, a man who uses conjury is called a genjutsushi ["a master of illusion technique"]. Everything in this world is but a marionette show. Thus we use the word gen.
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| GT Coffee!! Staff Posts: 5101  |
A rating of 9.2 would suggest that this is one of Maiden's best albums, which it clearly isn't...and that's coming from a long time Maiden "fanboy". It has some really good songs and yes it continues on the path started by AMOLAD, but the songs just doesn't flow like they used to. And another thing: Bruce is getting older and so is his voice...he just can't pull of the high notes like he used to, so please take that into consideration when composing. And a rating og 7.5 is really not a bad rating...5 is bad, 6 is average, and so on
----  Dreams are made so we don't get bored when we sleep
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| vezzy Stallmanite Posts: 3493  |
Keeping an open mind to devolution, yeah.
---- Licensed under the GPLv3. Relinquish proprietary software for a greater GNU/America.
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| Ellrohir Heaven Knight Posts: 8669  |
According to me, this album is great...maybe not as great as other Maiden releases, but definitely something worth listening...and "When The Wild Wind Blows" is one of their best songs ever
---- My rest seems now calm and deep Finally I got my dead man sleep 
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| Angelic Storm Melodious Posts: 6675 |
Written by Death To Posers on 18.01.2011 at 10:09 Exactly! Its just a shame that so many people have trouble grasping that simple fact. 7.5 is a decent score in anyone's book, or at least its should be... Anything 4 and below is a bad-terrible album. 5 or 6 indicates averageness. Not terribly bad, but nothing particularly notable either. 7 or 8 means its good, certainly above average. Some good points, but also some negative ones which keep it from being great. 9 or 10 obviously means its a great album, or even a classic. Id be surprised if this isnt how it works for most people using the out of 10 scoring system. Its certainly not a bad album, at least not to me it isn't. Its definitely a weak album by Maiden's standards, but its still better than some band's strongest efforts. Like all the other weaker Maiden albums, it has some great stand-out moments. But as a whole, it falls a bit short.
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| Daniell _爱情_ Elite Posts: 6101  |
Quote: No I don't. If they did sound exactly like BNW, I would be happy, because BNW was great. If these albums sounded completely different from BNW, but were great nevertheless, I would also be happy. It doesn't matter to me AT ALL if a band's album is similar or completely dissimilar. All I care about is good music. TFF has surprisingly little good music, and the boredom factor is through the roof. I recently came back to TFF and gave it a few more listens. I would rate it even lower now. This album is not evolution. It's withering atrophy.
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| nb Posts: 248  |
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| Death To Posers Hate Thy King Posts: 268 |
Written by vezzy on 18.01.2011 at 10:24 I'm sorry you feel that way. I can agree with most that this isn't an evolution from Brave New World, but I wouldn't call it a devolution either. To me, it's a successful experiment while most of you found it not to be, that's all.
---- The word gen means "illusion" or "apparition." In India, a man who uses conjury is called a genjutsushi ["a master of illusion technique"]. Everything in this world is but a marionette show. Thus we use the word gen.
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| Vikcen Metálico Posts: 971 |
Written by Death To Posers on 18.01.2011 at 20:49 I agree with that.
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| RavenKing Posts: 1941  |
Written by Angelic Storm on 18.01.2011 at 13:36 You forget that it's Maiden we're talking about here, so reasonable arguments and rationality don't work. So many people believe it deserves a rating of over 9, only because Iron Maiden is printed on the cover. Ratings, reviews, argumentation, logic, etc etc... Nothing works as it would normally do when it concerns mainstream metal bands like Maiden. I mentioned already, on other threads, that it is impossible to deny how some bands (Maiden being the archetype of this phenomenon) are immensely overrated. You have one more example and proof here. Some bands are objectively overrated and no matter how many times some people will try to convince you that it's only a matter of opinion, it won't change anything to facts. And fact is Maiden is probably the most overrated metal band in the world nowadays.
---- They shake your hand and they smile and they buy you a drink They say we'll be your friends we'll stick with you till the end But everybody's only looking out for themselves And you say who can you trust I'll tell you nobody
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| RavenKing Posts: 1941 |
Written by vezzy on 18.01.2011 at 10:24 That's the right answer to give to anyone who would blame you for your 'close-mindedness' because you dare to voice out loud that you think Maiden suck nowadays.
---- They shake your hand and they smile and they buy you a drink They say we'll be your friends we'll stick with you till the end But everybody's only looking out for themselves And you say who can you trust I'll tell you nobody
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| jimmy Posts: 42 |
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| Angelic Storm Melodious Posts: 6675 |
Written by RavenKing on 19.01.2011 at 00:19 Im not going to get into the overrated=fact/opinion debate again, because it just goes around in circles, and is tiresome. Ive stated my opinion on that already more than once, so it's pointless going over all that again. What I do agree with, is that for some people, they cannot accept that some people geniuinely dislike the album, or even like it, but dont rate it as highly as they think it should be. However, Ive seen this type of attitude displayed by fans of much smaller bands than Maiden, so its definitely not behaviour reserves for blind fanboys of mainstream bands. It probably just seems that way, because Maiden have much more fans than smaller bands, hence more fanboys. But Ive seen fans of even underground and extreme bands tearing into people purely for disliking an album/band they like, and refer to them as things like "posers" and "fags" for not liking it. The absurdity of the Diminished thread was a damning testament to that, which all stemmed from a reviewer giving that album a bad review. It was just shining a beacon on attitudes Ive seen displayed by many fans of more unknown, underground bands. The whole problem here, whether it's Maiden, or another mainstream band, or even an underground band, some people just cannot take reviews (or different opinions) with the pinch of salt that they should be taken with. At the end of the day, it is only one person's opinion. And in my eyes, putting so much negative emphasis on a review that you dont agree with only makes it look like the reviewers' opinon is of more validity, and worth. If you really love an album, what anyone else says about it, shouldnt matter a jot. Saying you disagree with a score/review is all fine, but when you say it's "wrong", thats when you're getting to the realms of people with insecurities about their own opinons and tastes.
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| RavenKing Posts: 1941 |
@Angelic Storm: I agree that fanboyism and not being able to accept that some people dislike what you like is not exclusive to mainstream metal bands but it simply gets completely out of proportion when famous bands are involved. That's why it is much more annoying in the end. It's as if there is the normal rule and a completely different rule as soon as famous bands are involved. Imo, most people loose their ability to judge reasonably when mainstream metal bands are involved.
---- They shake your hand and they smile and they buy you a drink They say we'll be your friends we'll stick with you till the end But everybody's only looking out for themselves And you say who can you trust I'll tell you nobody
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| Angelic Storm Melodious Posts: 6675 |
Written by RavenKing on 19.01.2011 at 00:54 It does get out of proportion, but like I said, I think that's mainly because mainstream metal bands have a huge number of fans, so you'll obviously see a bigger proportion of those attitudes displayed than with smaller bands. Which does make it more annoying. The actual fanboyism is no worse, but it seems worse because of the volume of those displaying the fanboyish attitudes. I think the only real difference is, with some fanboys of bigger bands, they feel like because the band is so huge, that fact on its own means that they are (or in their eyes should be) immune to criticsm. And not just harsh criticsm, but criticsm of any kind. Which is why I have came under fire from some Maiden fanboys, despite the fact my criticsms of what I consider Maiden's weaker albums are nowhere near as harsh as a lot of other people's. I do agree totally with what you're saying. haha 
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| RavenKing Posts: 1941 |
Written by Angelic Storm on 19.01.2011 at 01:07 I pretty much agree, I think. But, from my point of view, it's not only a matter of mainstream bands having more fans (it plays a big role but doesn't explain everything). I see a certain level of indoctrination in all this. If you re-read your last paragraph carefully and think about it, maybe you will agree with me about this level of indoctrination. For some fans, it is simply impossible for famous bands to fail and they simply can't conceive that people can really think an album from x or y band sucks. As if the thought that "this band is perfect by definition and everything they do is awesome" has been embedded in their brain.
---- They shake your hand and they smile and they buy you a drink They say we'll be your friends we'll stick with you till the end But everybody's only looking out for themselves And you say who can you trust I'll tell you nobody
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| Death To Posers Hate Thy King Posts: 268 |
I will admit that I am an Iron Maiden Fan, I loved most of their albums and their music brings me back to my days I miss. I wouldn't call myself a "fanboy" because that seems to be in the same boat as a dick rider, which I am not. . There have been bands that I've been fans of, such as Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer (Although not a huge fan), Forbidden, Astral Doors, Exodus (in The 90's), Iced Earth etc. That have taken a turn for the worse and IMO made them not as great to listen to. This isn't one of those albums to me, Iron Maiden has released awesome music since Brave New World.
---- The word gen means "illusion" or "apparition." In India, a man who uses conjury is called a genjutsushi ["a master of illusion technique"]. Everything in this world is but a marionette show. Thus we use the word gen.
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| RavenKing Posts: 1941 |
Written by Death To Posers on 19.01.2011 at 04:02 I understand your point of view. However, if you ask me, Maiden belongs to all those bands who turned to crap, just like Metallica or Iced Earth. I still like Maiden's old stuff (not that I listen to it often but I can still enjoy it when I hear it) but I've never been able to like anything they have done after SSOASS. And sorry but I think they released nothing worth listening to after that.
---- They shake your hand and they smile and they buy you a drink They say we'll be your friends we'll stick with you till the end But everybody's only looking out for themselves And you say who can you trust I'll tell you nobody
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| Death To Posers Hate Thy King Posts: 268 |
Written by RavenKing on 19.01.2011 at 05:01 I respect that. A lot of my friends feel the same way, they don't like the new Maiden at all.
---- The word gen means "illusion" or "apparition." In India, a man who uses conjury is called a genjutsushi ["a master of illusion technique"]. Everything in this world is but a marionette show. Thus we use the word gen.
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| RavenKing Posts: 1941 |
Written by Susan on 18.01.2011 at 04:49 People don't see the difference between change and evolution. It is not because a band changes that it automatically evolves. Just changing is not enough to be called evolution. To be called evolution, changes must be an improvement. When changes are for the worst, there is no evolution. I'm sick of reading all those comments saying "I'm glad they evolve", each time a band takes a bad turn and starts to suck. Also, I see it as dismissing the previous stuff as "not so good" sometimes. It is even a hypocritical point of view, as some people praise albums from a band (albums in a certain style), then when the band takes a very different direction, the same people are saying "I'm glad they moved from their not-so-good old style to this". P.S See this post as a general reflexion and not necessarily related to TFF or Maiden.
---- They shake your hand and they smile and they buy you a drink They say we'll be your friends we'll stick with you till the end But everybody's only looking out for themselves And you say who can you trust I'll tell you nobody
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| Angelic Storm Melodious Posts: 6675 |
Written by RavenKing on 19.01.2011 at 05:01 You know that I disagree with you here, but I do respect your opinion and your right to air it. Unlike some idiots, Im sure.  (although I do find it very difficult at the moment to deny that Iced Earth have turned to crap. hehe Im hoping its just a blip though...)As for the indoctrination thingy, I think there is an element of that in all blind fanboyism. Although I think the reasons for someone being indoctrinated by a mainstream band is different from what I highlighted earlier with the intolerant extreme metal fans. I think in cases with a band like Maiden, its mainly the band themselves, and the size of the band. (and in some cases, their popularity, which is really lame!) This can make some like anything the band does just because it is them, and also dismiss all criticsm as invalid, as they see the band as beyond criticsm due to their size. I think with the intolerant fanboyism in extreme metal fans, its more about wanting to fit in with peers, and with a particular scene of metal. So the denouncing of things seen as "untr00", and of fans who dislike their brand of metal is all tied in with that. The need to fit in, or more particularly, the need of not wanting to be seen in any way as a "poser", can blind people's judgement, and ability to be completely honest about their musical opinions. The outcome of the indoctrination in both cases is equally lame, but as I said, it seems worse from mainstream fanboys, just because you see it more often.
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| RavenKing Posts: 1941 |
@Angelic Storm: In Iced Earth's case, I see the 'turning to crap' as recent, so perhaps not all is lost with this band. However, if they follow the direction they took on TCOM, it will be undoubtedly crappy, if you ask me. As for indoctrination, I think we can't use this word to describe the "tr00" or "Kvlt" attitude displayed by some extreme metal fans. To me, indoctrination implies 'being conditioned/influenced by society or majority", which is not the case of extreme metal fans. In their case, it is more elitism and the will 'to be different'. It is not blind trust in the general widespread point of view. It can also be a way to express hatred against society.
---- They shake your hand and they smile and they buy you a drink They say we'll be your friends we'll stick with you till the end But everybody's only looking out for themselves And you say who can you trust I'll tell you nobody
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| Angelic Storm Melodious Posts: 6675 |
Written by RavenKing on 19.01.2011 at 05:29 Yeah, I do of course, totally agree with you about Iced Earth. Even "Framing Armageddon" had a good few redeeming moments, even if as an overall album it was lacking compared to their old classics. I think the only way Jon can pull Iced Earth out of their current rut, is to completely steer away from the bland stuff that so badly infected the last album. Whether he will, or can do that remains to be seen, but Im still waiting with baited breath for the next album to see if he still has what it takes. I have my doubts, but most bands with long careers and large discographies usually have at least one or two duds in there, so I'll let him off with TCOM if the next album is a good one. Well, I think the extreme metal scene is it's own society really, so I cant really agree with you there. I do agree with the "will to be different" thing though. I guess how that turns into intolerance and blind fanboyism is when someone wants to be different for it's own sake, and so their opinions and criticsms are not coming from a totally honest place, but from a need to be seen as somehow "special", or "superior", and shunning the status quo (not the band!) just because. There are some people who are just different naturally and as a matter of course. And there are those who desperately want to be different, and to be seen as that. And some will compromise their integrity in order to be seen as that. I have had my opinions bashed by both elitists and mainstream band fanboys, so I do see the closed minded and intolerant mindsets displayed from both groups very much as arriving at the same place via different avenues.
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| Doc G. Full Grown Hoser Staff Posts: 9718  |
Quote: Sorry to say, it's got nothing to do with trends, and more to do with quality. As for the review...All opinions on the subject matter aside, this was a pretty dry, uninformative review; "I like the guitars, I like the bass, I lik the drums, I like the vocals, I like the songwriting. The end" is pretty much all I got from this. Too much "I like this" and not enough "Why I liked this".
---- "I got a lot of really good ideas, problem is, most of them suck." - George Carlin
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