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Iron Maiden - The X Factor CD (album) cover

THE X FACTOR

Iron Maiden

 

Prog Related

3.18 | 398 ratings

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toroddfuglesteg
2 stars Listen without prejudice.

I was pretty sure the seventy minutes long album would be an endurance test. This, the first Blaze Bailey album is not particular loved by Iron Maiden fans. It was also totally ignored by myself on it's release and it is only now I have given it a fair hearing.

.....maybe not a bad thing because it is only music that should be the basis of my opinion. So music it is, then. The first track Sign of The Cross is actually not bad at all. It is very long, clocking in on around eleven minutes. Lord of the Flies is a straight rock'n'roll tune and nothing good. I do not understand why it is still on Iron Maiden's setlist. Man on the Edge is also OK. Fortunes of War is quickly forgotten. The same goes for Look for The Truth. Aftermath is horrible and going nowhere. Judgement Of Heaven is one of the worst songs Iron Maiden has ever recorded. The rest of the songs are pretty bad too. None of these songs deserves to be remembered.

The sound is off course dominated by Blaze Bailey. His voice never fitted Iron Maiden. That's not his mistake. He was wrong man at the wrong time for Iron Maiden and he has been made into a scapegoat for all the ills of this period of Iron Maiden's career. The lack of really good tunes is the one thing I notice on this album. There is nothing here that stands out, with the exception of Sign Of The Cross. At times, this album is a painful experience. Judgement Of Heaven is just sheer pain and I do not know if I should cry or just stare shamefully at the floor.

This is a poor Iron Maiden album. It is also a controversial album. What was Steve Harris & thinking when they released it ?

2 stars.

toroddfuglesteg | 2/5 |

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