THE FINAL FRONTIER

Iron Maiden - The Final Frontier (2010) * a three listens review

OK, we can conclude Iron Maiden has yet one more suprise for us. The Final Frontier is an album that can be mentioned in one sentence with the great Brave New World! This new album, with 76 minutes of new material, is in my opinion a balanced effort. The band has to manouver to keep the fans happy (by not being to progressive) whilst still making new music with bass-player and main composer putting his progressive stamp on the new material. The Final Frontier succeeds in being both a catchy and accessible album with enough moments to make it interesting for fans of the progressive metal genre.

Having that said, the album is not a flawless masterpiece. The album has two main problems for me. Iron Maiden still is kind of stuck in accesible song-writing with recognisable melodic parts to assure a safe song-progression for the normal metal-fans. Somehow the strength lies in how Iron Maiden manages to progress within their format. The second problem is the lesser song, the title track, The Final Frontier. The first five opening minutes, Satellite 15.., consist of progressive/space metal with an totally un-Maiden like approach. I love it! But right after that starts the poppy Final Frontier three chord song. I see no reason why these two opposite tracks were presented as one song.

There are some truly progressive moments on this album. The first halve of the opening track Satellite 15.... The Final Frontier is already mentioned, but there so much more! El Dorado has an very urgent sounding bridge, Mother of Mercy has inventive melodic song-writing and Coming Home and the Alchemist show great use of three-guitar melodies. The real treasure lies however in the longer tracks of the second halve of the album.

The last five tracks on the album are all longer that eight minutes! (Starblind is actually 7:48). All tracks have a story-line, as can be expected on an Iron Maiden epic.

Isle of Avalon is a real winner with a lot of atmospheric/progressive parts. The opening secton reminds me a bit of the dark chants of The Seventh Son of Seventh Son epic. The epic has many solo parts and a long section in 7/8! Whowh Iron Maiden.. they play prog! One solo section even sounds a bit like UK-era Allan Holdsworth.

Starblind is less good, but also an interesting epic. It suffers a bit from ordinary harmonics. Some riffs are however extremely catchy and the song remains good.

The Talisman is proggier and has a beautifull clean-guitar intro. The main heavy metal riff of the couplet theme has a nice dark twist. The melodic guitar-metal approach works really well on all parts here and the guitar solo's/themes are slightly progressive.

The Man Who Would be King is another winner. The opening section is quiet, reminding me abit of some X-factor moments. The progression of the song is strong, with great heavy metal riffs and intensive emotional moments. The extremely melodic un-Maiden like solo section in the middle is my favorite moment of the album. Truly progressive and very modern in a good sense.

When the Wild Wind Blows is the longest track of the album, running for eleven minutes. This is perhaps the most melodic epic of the album, but perhaps not (yet) my favorite. The harmonic normalities are the main problem, but the progression and melodic approach is still very strong.

Conclusion. The Irons are back with a very good album, actually with 76 minutes it can almost count for two albums! The first halve has great Maiden'ish songs with often catchy parts, great riffs and some progressive moments along the way. The second part is an epical, prententious (in a good sense) tour de force with FIVE EPICS IN A ROW. Satellite 15, Isle of Avalon and The Man Who Would be King are perhaps the biggest successes of this album, whilst the second halve of the opening track is perhaps the weakest part. All other parts fall between good and excellent. Four stars. Perhaps even more if my vinyl addition (which I haven´t ordered yet) has had five spins.

p.s. It´s amazing how THE band of my youth can still suprise me after such an intensive progressive journey I´ve been through the last years.

Is it really ten years since Bruce Dickinson returned to Iron Maiden on their Brave New World album? How time flies. The last couple of albums to feature Dickinson before his departure had been somewhat lack-lustre as were the two in the Blaze Bailey years. Since then Iron Maiden returned to some sort of form with three good solid releases but with The Final Frontier they've not only topped them all by a considerable margin but have made their finest record since at least Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son. It may be no coincidence that it was one of their most prog orientated albums as The Final Frontier can claim that distinction too.

Iron Maiden have never been afraid to include long songs on their albums but here there's no less than five that cross the eight minute barrier including the closing When The Wild Wind Blows which reaches eleven. Of course long songs alone don't make it prog but here Maiden are at their most inventive and least predictable for some considerable time with a collection of imaginative metal that frequently shifts from subtle restraint to powerhouse riffing in an instant with many twists and turns between. The riffs are much meatier and more satisfying, ditching those celtic sounding dual lead runs they frequently go into (though When The Wild Wind Blows does venture here at times) in favour of something more substantial. This is immediately apparent as soon as opener Satellite 15...The Final Frontier kicks in with its dark and brooding drawn out opening. This is Maiden as we've never heard them before and it's not until Dickinson's vocals kick in that you'd realise who you were listening to if you hadn't just put it in the Cd player. Around halfway it shifts into more traditional territory but nevertheless continues in fine style. Any metal album is only as good as its riffs no matter how good a performance and there's no shortage here, whether it be the shorter no messing around tracks like El Dorado or the longer pieces like Isle Of Avalon, an album highlight for sure.

As to be expected of a band that's been round the block a few times Maiden put in a fine performance with plenty of pleasing guitar work from the three pronged attack of Adrian Smith, Dave Murray and Janek Gers. Steve Harris's bass and Nicko McBrain's drums as always make a fine rhythm section, solid as a rock yet not lacking in dexterity. How McBrain keeps that fast right foot triplet kick drum pattern going (not unlike Somewhere In Time) on The Talisman I don't know and Dickinson's Air Raid Siren vocal chords are in amazingly good order for a man who's been stretching them to their limit for thirty odd years.

The Final Frontier is certainly a long album, only a few minutes short of the Cd's maximum capacity but fortunately down to the sheer consistent quality I'm confident it will hold your interest if you've ever had a liking for the band and most long term fans should be more than happy. I applaud Iron Maiden for not resting on their laurels and for stretching themselves so far into their career. The result is one of the best metal albums I've heard not only this year but in the last few at least.

Iron Maiden continues its 21st century winning strek with The Final Frontier, what will certainly go down as one of the most ambitious and artistic albums of the band's monolithic career. This record is filled with relentless-- and lengthy-- showcases of the band's always excellent brand of metal, showcasing peerless instrumental performances and nuanced songwriting, this time around with an even more epic sound and creative variety. The band absolutely nails this one, coming across as mature, sensative, and very heavy-metal.

The first thing fans of the group will notice is a sheer number of epic tracks on this album-- about 5 (though 7 might be closer to the truth), and they're all excellent. The compositions are first rate, as is the group's playing, which is very tight, intense, and melodic. These songs are self-contained and feel very focused, almost introverted actually. There are very few stand-up and shout choruses or iconic Maiden guitar solos which one will be likely to hear in concert: these songs have an air of craftsmenship to them not quite present in other albums. The shorter, more straight forward rockers are good, too, though they're eclipsed by the momentum and power held in tracks like "Isle of Avalon" and "Talisman". "Man Who Would Be King" features some very unique group playing during the bridge which will catch one's attention as well... just one of many new sounds Iron Maiden surprises us with with this release.

It's hard for me to chose a stand-out track, since all of them are so good, but then again, it's hard for me to say there is anything in this album which really grabbed me as strongly as their past few works. While not quite a masterpiece, Final Fronter plays like a prog-metal epic which blows away most metal albums I've heard lately with its style and effect. This is Maiden at their most progressive, most ambitious, but not quite they're most powerful. The Iron Maiden faithful will be more than pleased by the artistic direction of this most iconic of metal bands. They've come along way from "Run to the Hills"...and I am hoping their streak of excellence continues!

Songwriting: 4 Instrumental Performances: 4 Lyrics/Vocals: 4 Style/Emotion/Replay: 4

Rebuild where the ruins did stand - a fan's review

This is the fourth album of the band after their reunion about 10 years ago and it quite follows the short tradition the 6-piece set themselves both in terms of composing and of selecting poor covers for their releases (with the exception of Brave New World). The title of the album has confirmed the rumours for some that this is indeed the "Final Frontier" of the band. If this is true, then it would be neither the best nor the worst way to go.

I have always considered Brave New World as the "benchmark" of any post-2000 releases as I do not think it is fair, for various reasons which I will not explain here, to compare with the glory of the mid-80s era of the band. Since 2000 and Wickerman the band has not succeeded in producing impressive openers of great quality and this is confirmed here with the title track and El Dorado. The former wastes half its duration with an uninspiring spacey intro and finally bursts into a rather simple rocking riff that stays through the entire track, verse and chorus. The latter is meant to be a crowd pleaser, a song written to be played live, and I am sure it will succeed in its purpose. Although slightly more adventurous than its predecessor, it fails to impress with its repetitive patterns and relatively silly lyrics. The chorus does not do much to improve the situation and the track closes in exactly the same way as it opens.

The first glimpse of Maiden's compositional ability appears in Mother of Mercy. Faithful to their recent tradition of war-and-death-related songs (i.e. The Mercenary, Montsegur, Paschendale), the band delivers another epic-themed composition. Great guitar work, epic tempos and meaningful lyrics comprise the first really interesting track of the album which only suffers from the relatively weak chorus vocal lines. Coming Home shows the first signs of prog-related approach, with its astounding opening riff (that is fortunately repeated in the track), one the band's best in recent years. The track evolves as a mid-tempo "power-ballad" but the quality of the warm vocal melodies (resembling Dickinson's personal works) takes this composition a level higher, making it definitely one of the highlights. The moment a genuine Maiden fan always yearns for comes with The Alchemist. Fast-tempo, dual or triplicate high-pitched guitar riffs, heavy verse and two (!) bridges lead to the majestic chorus that could please even the most demanding listener; certainly a composition that takes us back nearly 25 years in the band's catalogue.

This concludes the first half of the album that is based on relatively short-mid duration tracks (not taking into account the intro of the opening track). It is interesting to observe that the second half accounts for more than 44 minutes, consisting of 5 long compositions.

Isle of Avalon, as the title suggests, deals with themes of fantasy and mysticism, unveiled through an opening clean guitar theme that brings to mind patterns similar to 7th Son, both lyrically and atmospherically. Slowly building up, the first distorted riffs appear after 2.5 minutes and the track peaks at its mid-point with a great variety of solos and rhythm guitar passages lasting 2 minutes, giving the second evidence of adventurous song-writing. The opening riff is brought back to the equation and a similar development leads to the track's conclusion. Almost identical in song-writing approach, evolvement and quality is Starblind. However, the "mellow" parts are shorter, allowing more space and time in the three guitarists to deliver multiple and interesting ideas; and they do succeed.

The Talisman brings us back to the times of The Rime of the Ancient Mariner, both thematically and structurally, although of shorter duration. The long, bard-like acoustic intro prepares for the forth-coming epic sequence of the story which is developing through dual guitar phrases, bridges and long verses, interrupted by a single minute of adventurous soloing. Compared to the two previous tracks, this epic lacks strong melodic choruses and inspired guitar work for its most part, and sadly falls into repetition at times. Unfortunately, the album concludes with two rather weak compositions, the closing track resembling the approaches followed in The X Factor and Virtual XI, a "curse" from which the band has still not fully escaped.

The Man Who Would Be King, although starting encouragingly, falls into a blunt verse after 2 minutes and never seems to recover from this. The only glimpse of hope appears in the chorus section but this is not enough to save the track. When the Wild Wind Blows is, from start to finish, a huge a disappointment, although many will disagree with me. Childish bass lines that unfortunately reflect to the guitar and vocal melodies and weak lyrics about the end of the world comprise the picture. Mid-way the track turns into a constant mid-tempo, but fails to improve the quality and the overall feel of indifference.

The Final Frontier will not remain as a classic, will not shake the foundations of the rock/metal history, will not disappoint or delight the band's fans. However, it is another decent album added to their discography that deserves some respect and apologies from the author for the length of this review.

Highlights: Coming Home, The Alchemist. Worth mentioning: Isle of Avalon, Starblind.

It's good to see the positive reviews here after hearing a lot of negative comments about this latest MAIDEN album. In fact my brother-in law who is one of the biggest IRON MAIDEN fans I know told me he thought this latest record was "crap". I'm glad I purchased it anyway.This is a concept album and a sci-fi one at that, and considering it clocks in at over 76 minutes it's taken me some time to appreciate. In fact it was the fifth listen before I felt they had pulled off another winner. It's interesting too how proggy this is, not since "Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son" have they delved so deeply into Prog-Metal.

I love how this starts with "Satellite Is...The Final Frontier" and the heavy, almost industrial feel as the drums pound.The drums let up 2 1/2 minutes in as the vocals cry out reminding me of FATES WARNING.The drums are back ! Check out the guitar 4 1/2 minutes in.Then the song kicks in with vocals. Nice. Ripping guitar solo 6 1/2 minutes in. "El Dorado" makes me shout "Hell Yeah !" Check out Harris ! We're galloping now then the vocals join in. Guitar solo before 4 minutes then back to Harris and that galloping rhythm. Killer track. "Mother Of Mercy" is more laid back including the vocals. It kicks in at 1 1/2 minutes then the tempo picks up. I like the chorus. Nice bass too. Guitar solo 3 minutes in followed by a great sounding rhythm. "Coming Home" settles right down before a minute then it picks up as contrasts continue.Tasteful guitar after 3 1/2 minutes then it becomes more passionate. Excellent track.

"The Alchemist" hits the ground running as vocals join in. Some nice chunky bass then the guitar lights it up. "Isle Of Avalon" is a top four track for me along with the opening two songs and the one that follows this one. Love how this sounds instrumentally. It kicks in at 3 minutes to a fuller sound. Great sound before 5 minutes as the guitar grinds it out with a heavy hythm.Themes are repeated. Amazing ! "Starblind" sounds so good when it kicks in before a minute.Vocals stop 4 minutes in as the guitar comes to the fore and we get a light show. Vocals return after 6 minutes. "The Talisman" features spoken words and acoustic guitar to start. It kicks in hard before 2 1/2 minutes. An interesting instrumental section from 6 to 7 minutes follows. "The Man Who Would Be King" is mellow with vocals to start. It kicks in before 3 minutes. Nice bass. It settles some to end it. "When The Wild Wind Blows" opens with the wind blowing before the vocals come in after a minute. It kicks in a minute later. A change before 4 minutes. It's heavier before 7 minutes with vocals. Nice bass. A guitar solo follows before 9 minutes then it settles after 10 minutes to how the intro sounded with the wind blowing.

This for me is a complete success and one where the band challenged themselves perhaps a little more than they have in quite some time. 4 stars but it could go up because i'm just starting to really appreciate it now (7th listen). For what it's worth my first MAIDEN album "Piece Of Mind" was purchased the year it came out and I went to their concert in Toronto that year in support of that album. Long time fan.

Coming Home

Since the return of Adrian Smith and Bruce Dickinson in 1999, Iron Maiden has constantly been pumping out high-quality heavy metal albums that rival their classics in the eighties. A Matter of Life and Death was one of my favorite Maiden albums of all time, so I was naturally curious to hear how they would follow up such a masterpiece. Although The Final Frontier isn't quite up there with the band's finest efforts, this is still another amazing album by the legends of British heavy metal. This has everything that's great about Iron Maiden in a nutshell - galloping basslines, progressive epics, and breathtaking vocals. If you're new to Maiden, I don't recommend starting here, but this is essential for anyone who's a more seasoned listener. Let's hope this isn't the final frontier for these guys - they can still wipe the floor with the competition! Up the Irons!

The music on The Final Frontier is unquestionably Iron Maiden. If you enjoyed the epic song structures and heavy production on A Matter of Life and Death, you should love everything about Iron Maiden's fifteenth full-length. This album is filled to the brim with progressive heavy metal epics. The second half of the album really bombards you with epic after epic - only one of the five songs is under 8 minutes. There are still some traditional Maiden anthems like "El Dorado" or the emotional "Coming Home", but it's safe to say that the vast majority of this album is the most progressive stuff Steve Harris & co. have ever written. Just listen to a song like "The Man Who Would Be King", the acoustic guitar in "When the Wild Wind Blows", or the instrumental break in "Isle of Avalon" and you'll know what I mean. There's even an atmospheric/industrial opening to "Satellite 15... The Final Frontier". If you've disliked the direction Iron Maiden has been pursuing, there's no doubt you'll dislike everything about these songs. But if you're someone like me who loves recent Maiden music, there's definitely a lot to love on this 77 minute album. Although the running time can seem a bit daunting at times, there's enough variation to eliminate that "samey feeling" that usually comes along with a near 80-minute album.

One thing that's obvious about any Iron Maiden release is that you're guaranteed to hear some of the best musicians in the industry. Whether it be the prominence of Steve Harris's bass playing, the multilayered guitar harmonies from Janick Gers, Adrian Smith, and Dave Murray, the amazing drumming from Nicko McBrain, or the iconic vocals of Bruce Dickinson, everything about the delivery of The Final Frontier is perfect. The production is also really sharp and enjoyable. The sound is almost identical to that on A Matter of Life and Death, which is always a good thing. Iron Maiden has always been known for their terrific production, and The Final Frontier is no exception.

Conclusion:

The Final Frontier is yet another shining success in a discography filled with gems. Although this isn't the best album from post-2000 Iron Maiden, it's proof that they can still create amazing music. Until this Maiden lineup ceases to exist, I have a feeling that they will keep making great heavy metal. 4 stars are well deserved for The Final Frontier. Although this isn't essential for any Maiden newbies, any fan of the band should definitely pick this up. UP THE IRONS!

The Final Frontier is the 15th full-length studio album by British heavy metal act Iron Maiden. The album was released in August 2010 by EMI. The lineup for The Final Frontier features the same six that have recorded the last three albums before this one so there´s no inconsistency there.

Fortunately the same can be said about the music on the album. I think it´s safe to say that you get exactly what you expect when listening to The Final Frontier. The last couple of albums have displayed a preference towards longer epic tracks ( even semi-progressive at times) and the more hard rocking fast tracks have taken the backseat. That´s also the case on The Final Frontier, but tracks like El Dorado and especially the fast- paced and powerful The Alchemist, prove that Iron Maiden are still able to put on hard rocking action when needed. There´s sci-fi atmosphere and lyrics to boot on the album and it´s hard not to think of the equally sci-fi themed Somewhere in Time (1986), while listening to tracks like Satellite 15... The Final Frontier, Isle of Avalon and Starblind. The overall sound on the album is unmistakably the sound of post-2000 Iron Maiden though. I have a personal preference for the faster paced Iron Maiden tracks, but it´s hard to complain about the lack of fast tracks when the rest of the tracks on the album are of such high quality. If I have to air a minor complaint, it would be about the writing formula on the longer epic tracks, which all start with a couple of minutes quiter building up drama before the songs really get going. Now back when there were only 1-2 epics on each Iron Maiden album, that trick worked very well, but I could wish for some variation, when 8 out of 10 tracks start like that ( I might be exaggerating a bit, but you get the picture).

As always when talking about an Iron Maiden album, the musicianship is one of assets that needs mentioning. Bruce Dickinson sounds exactly like he did in 1982, which is an unbelievable achivement. Doesn´t the man and in particular his voice age? Apparently not, because he still wails like an air sirene and hits the high notes with ease. The instrumental part of the music still offers plenty of melodic guitar soloing, harmony themes, precise and organic drumming and those powerful and melodic basslines from Steve Harris. The keyboards are placed very tastefully in the mix and work as atmosphere enhancement.

The Final Frontier might not be a revelation in the band´s discography, but since we´re dealing with a band that pretty much play by the device: "if it ain´t broken, why fix it", I don´t expect revelations when I put on a new Iron Maiden album. I expect high quality heavy metal and engaging playing from the musicians involved and that´s exactly what I get when listening to The Final Frontier. The Final Frontier is another excellent heavy metal album in a long line of excellent albums by Iron Maiden and a 4 star rating is fully deserved. While I could live with Iron Maiden releassing quality albums in the vein of this one for the rest of their active career, I do still hope they might surprise us with something a bit different again sometime in the future. Just like they did back in 1986 when they released Somewhere in Time.

'The Final Frontier' - Iron Maiden (8/10)

Iron Maiden's career is a perfect example of one that managed to not only achieve greatness, but maintain it with a relative consistency. Sure, there are a handful of albums from the nineties that are generally considered 'weaker' than the others, but when some fans of the band- myself included- regard a lot of their new stuff to be on par with the classic material, that's damned near unheard of. Upon the release of "The Final Frontier" (Maiden's fifteenth studio release to date), the band had been together for the better part of 35 years in one shape or another. Admittedly, their style has not changed much this time around, although given that their sound has earned them a cross-generational legion of fans, this isn't such a bad thing. "The Final Frontier" is an epic quest of heavy metal, and it's home to some of the best tracks the band has ever done.

Iron Maiden may have generally stuck to a signature sound throughout their career, yet especially since 2000's "Brave New World", they have been going down a more progressive path with their music. Maiden already had plenty of experience with the proggy, epic form of metal throughout the eighties; "Phantom of the Opera", "Alexander the Great", and "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" all come to mind. With "Brave New World" however, the progressive direction they had always acknowledged began to take a greater step forward. Of the three new millennium albums that came before this, "The Final Frontier" rests at a general par. It may be a tit less consistent than "Brave New World" or even "A Matter of Life and Death", yet it makes up for it with its highlights. As "Dance of Death" impressed me most with "Paschendale" and its haunting title track, "The Final Frontier"s greatest contribution to Maiden's discography is through a few of its best moments.

Among these 'highlights' are the eerie opener "Satellite 15... The Final Frontier", an intensely atmospheric introduction recalling Dickinson's work with Ayreon, building up gradually and making way for a rock-oriented latter half. "The Man Who Would Be King" is a progressive powerhouse with some of the album's best guitar work. Above all else however, is the epic "When the Wild Wind Blows". Based on a similarly titled animated film, it's a sombre piece of music that tackles the topic of nuclear war from the everyman's perspective. Unlike a million thrash metal bands who may fetishize nuclear war as something 'epic' or extreme, "The Final Frontier"s highlight focuses on the feelings of confusion and helplessness that arise from the catastrophe. Within ten minutes, "When the Wild Wind Blows" enjoys an impressive emotional arc, ranging from the intimate to the balls-out epic. It was a real joy to hear something like this on one of the band's latest releases- one of my now-favourite Maiden tracks, and on I would rank up there with the band's longstanding epics.

The instrumentation is a little more laid back on "The Final Frontier" than they have been in the past. The guitar solos are still as fiery as ever, but Iron Maiden put less of an emphasis on speed here than they did on "A Matter of Life and Death" and prior. In its place, Maiden's proggy undertones have taken a step up. In the end however, these changes are minute in the overall scope. Iron Maiden are largely up to their old tricks once again, and though some fans will be disappointed to hear the development (or lack thereof) in the band's sound, their style still sounds fresh and vital.

Iron Maiden's Final Frontier continues the "business as usual" thrust of their post-Brave New World reunion. Once again, you have a brace of compositions which suit the band's musical direction from their golden age between Number of the Beast and Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, and which wouldn't embarrass any of those albums by their inclusion. (Indeed, the opening track Satellite 15 pulls off a futuristic rendition of the Maiden sound far more successfully than Somewhere In Time ever did.) Fans of the band's progressive leanings will be glad to hear them indulged here, with the songwriting centre of gravity clearly shifted towards their longer and more intricate types of song, and whilst it isn't the groundbreaking classic the very best Maiden albums were it's still a solid album that deserves a prominent place in the band's canon.