Iron Maiden - The Final Frontier review
| Band: | Iron Maiden |
| Album: | The Final Frontier |
| Style: | Heavy metal |
| Release date: | August 2010 |
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
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.
'Sounds like shit' - this was my first thought when I heard the longish introduction to the album. "Satellite 15..." is so unlike anything that Iron Maiden have ever recorded. A crude, repeating drum pattern, distorted, spacy sounds, drunken guitars that go nowhere. Even the vocals, when they enter, sound strange. Not only does that intro suck, but it also sounds really weird. Fortunately, the song changes radically after 4 minutes into a remote semblance of a good song.
'What the hell have they done to Iron Maiden?' - that was my second thought. The opening tracks are decent enough for thousands of obscure bands who would be proud to have recorded them, but for Iron Maiden standards, they are sodding poor, and I mean really poor. "The Apparition" poor. "The Final Frontier" isn't utterly abysmal - resurrecting the spirit of the 70's metal, with a catchy chorus, it is remotely palatable. But to balance it, "Coming Home" is an Iron Maiden fan nightmare, sounding like it was recorded during the Fear of the Dark session, which, in my opinion, is the worst Iron Maiden album, with only 2 good songs.
The next six tracks brought back some of my faith in Iron Maiden. Long songs, catchy choruses, melodic solos, everything is seemingly in place. Seemingly - Maiden fans can at last feel at home, and utter a sigh of relief, because there will be no more experiments until the end of the album, at least not as blatantly obvious ones as the intro. But what follows isn't top-notch Maiden, it's mid-range most of the time. Solos aren't too memorable, vocal lines aren't too melodic, riffs don't stick in my head.
Only the last song, "When the Wild Wind Blows," can be honestly called excellent. The riffs supported by simple, but powerful drumming somewhere in the 7th minute of the song - in that solitary moment Maiden sounds really classy. The song isn't quite as good as Maiden's best classic tracks, but it's on a par with the good songs from the later period. Maybe the leading vocal theme sounds too joyful and optimistic, in spite of telling a grim tale, but the song is deliciously complex and rich, a real treat to end this album.
Having died during the first 4 abysmal songs, I was partially resurrected by some good ones that followed, of which, sadly, only one is brilliant. The Final Frontier clocks in at over 76 minutes, and most of these minutes are well spent, assuming you have a pair of paddles handy to shock you back to life after the cardiac arrest that you will undergo at the onset of this album. Better yet, start listening from "The Alchemist." You should be at least partially satisfied.
How do I rank this? I could try to turn a blind eye on the beginning of The Final Frontier. But 4 terrible songs out of 10 is quite a lot. Sorry guys, not this time around. I can't ignore 40% of the album. 1 point up for the last track.
Rating breakdown
| Performance: | 9 |
| Songwriting: | 7 |
| Originality: | 7 |
| Production: | 6 |
 | Written on 16.08.2010 by Writes overly honest and totally subjective reviews when fancy strikes him. Which is not often. Which is probably good, all things considered. |
Rating:
9.5
9.5
|
Rating: 9.5 |
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? 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 page 8 / 9
| Merchant of Doom Posts: 702  |
Shit, I didn't realise there were people still listening to Maiden in 2010... 
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| Posi76 Posts: 2  |
Personally, I must say I enjoy this album quite a lot. The more I listen to it, the more I like it. But hey, that's me.
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| vezzy Stallmanite Posts: 3493  |
Written by Merchant of Doom on 22.08.2010 at 14:03 What's wrong with that?
---- Licensed under the GPLv3. Relinquish proprietary software for a greater GNU/America.
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| Merchant of Doom Posts: 702 |
Written by vezzy on 22.08.2010 at 17:02 What's wrong with that? Nothing per se, but it's the same old sh*t, stuff I used to listen to when I was 12 and it still sounds like music for 12 year olds......
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| vezzy Stallmanite Posts: 3493 |
Written by Merchant of Doom on 22.08.2010 at 17:48 Oh, thank goodness. For a moment there, I thought you dismissed all old bands. Yeah, I agree. Same old, though not quite as old (not by year, ofc) as Metallica. That's something to be sick of.
---- Licensed under the GPLv3. Relinquish proprietary software for a greater GNU/America.
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| Merchant of Doom Posts: 702 |
I don't mind people my age playing "metal", as long as the "metal" is good... 
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| x-avier Posts: 46  |
I think this album is awesome.. once you can enjoy it a couple of times it gets very dam good. Even the first 2 tracks that are supposed to be baddest ones are enjoyable. The last song from the album is really really nice.
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| ponderer Posts: 153  |
As a good friend of mine from back home stated perfectly, the guitar production during the recording process hasn't been the same since Birch retired. There are a few problems with Maiden these days which are: 1. they are getting old 2. 3 guitars playing the same riffs without Birch in the studio behind the controls sounds like complete ass 3. they are getting old My biggest gripe here is the guitar work which just sounds like complete shit when they are all playing the same chords and simplistic riffs. When they break off and start doing their own things with someone doing rhythm, someone doing a lighter riff or harmony and then someone doing a solo it sounds fantastic. If you are going to have 3 guitarists at least put 'em to work properly instead of having them grind out the same tired sounding chords and riffs all the time. Lets all be honest with ourselves here. Does anyone seriously think Iron Maiden are ever going to do anything as tight as they did in the studio from Number of the Beast to Seventh Son ever again? Dream on. Everything they've done since Seventh Son has been hit or miss, mostly miss. There are scattered vague glimpses of the old Maiden here and there after Seventh Son but they are just too few and far between. I love Iron Maiden and they'll always remain one of my favorites since I came home with The Number of the Beast vinyl shortly after its release, but I'm starting to wonder if there's any magic left in this band? I'd pay to go see them in concert again and again, but I don't ever see them doing another Piece of Mind or Powerslave.
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| Eddie Misery Posts: 96  |
Written by ponderer on 24.08.2010 at 12:27 Aye. Agreed, fully. Piece of Mind...now there's a great Maiden album. I would be interested still to give their new one a listen, but..I don't imagine I'll be purchasing it any time soon. I'll just wait till someone I know gets it..lol.
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| ponderer Posts: 153 |
Written by Eddie Misery on 25.08.2010 at 05:19 it's not bad, don't get me wrong. There are a few bright spots, but overall it sounds tired and messy as has most of their stuff since way back when. After writing what I did yesterday I got in the car and popped in the discography and started from the first album and I'm working my way through the entire thing again. I absolutely love the band and the earlier stuff up through Seventh Son. The production was so tight and flawless! I commend the boys for continuing to put out decent heavy metal, but I seriously question how long they'll be able to continue coming up with material. Now if Maiden ever decided to go on the road and do a REAL Somewhere Back in Time tour with a setlist like say... 01. Prowler 02. Remember Tomorrow 03. Phanton of the Opera 04. Strange World 05. Charlotte the Harlot 06. The Ides of March 07. Wrathchild 08. Murders in the Rue Morgue 09. Killers 10. Prodigal Son 11. Invaders 12. Gangland _ INTERMISSION _ 13. Total Eclipse 14. Where Eagles Dare 15. Still Life (without Bruce fucking up the lyrics!) 16. To Tame a Land 17. Losfer Words (Big 'Orra) 18. The Duellists 19. Back in the Village 20. Sea of Madness 21. Deja Vu 22. Alexander the Great 23. The Prophecy 24. Only the Good Die Young Can you f'ing imagine?
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| JÄY Metal slave Posts: 1567  |
Written by ponderer on 25.08.2010 at 11:57 youre playing with madness
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| Eddie Misery Posts: 96 |
Written by JÄY on 25.08.2010 at 16:46 I love it! That would be amazing. That's a killer set. I really think they could tour multiple times -- so epic hah.
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| Rantude Posts: 1 |
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| blssdmf43 Posts: 1 |
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| Marcel Hubregtse Grumpy Old Fuck Elite Posts: 40071  |
Written by blssdmf43 on 01.09.2010 at 05:54 I am a Maiden fan back from the day as well (42 years old) and got into them through The Soundhouse Tapes, but this album certainly isn't classic Maiden at all. It shouldn't even be allowed in the same. The critic gave it a 7.2 which isn't bad at all. And about 1 to 2 points higher than I would rate it. I would want to know what you've been smoking or popping in order to be able to ssee this mediocre album as classic Maiden.
---- Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.) 05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996 
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| JohnDoe Account deleted |
JohnDoe
Account deleted Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 01.09.2010 at 15:12 7.2 is still a positive rating, it means the reviewer thinks the album is good.
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| Marcel Hubregtse Grumpy Old Fuck Elite Posts: 40071 |
Written by Guest on 01.09.2010 at 15:35 I know, that's what I said.
---- Member of the true crusade against European Flower Metal Yesterday is dead and gone, tomorrow is out of sight Dawn Crosby (r.i.p.) 05.04.1963 - 15.12.1996
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| JohnDoe Account deleted |
JohnDoe
Account deleted Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 01.09.2010 at 15:37 Right, but some people don't even bother to read the rating rules. 
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| RavenKing Posts: 1941  |
Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 01.09.2010 at 15:12 I'm 38 myself and discovered Maiden with the self-titled album, back in 1980. I must say I'm on Marcel's side. There's no way this dragfest of an album can belong to the same league as the 80s stuff.
---- 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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| Daniell _爱情_ Elite Posts: 6061  |
Written by blssdmf43 on 01.09.2010 at 05:54 Long live lack of critical insight and blind infatuation! Sadly, this album has zero things in common with classic Maiden. I'm sorry for you if you fail to notice that  Obviously, it's still pretty decent because, as I said before, musicians with such proficiency as Maiden can't really record something really bad. It can be disappointing, as is the case here, but it can't really be too bad.
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| DoomGuard Posts: 368  |
I disagree with your review on the first 4 songs, El Dorado is amazing, fucking amazing, shit-ton amazing
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| vezzy Stallmanite Posts: 3493 |
Written by Daniell on 02.09.2010 at 10:23 Virtual XI, anyone?
---- Licensed under the GPLv3. Relinquish proprietary software for a greater GNU/America.
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| RavenKing Posts: 1941 |
Written by vezzy on 11.09.2010 at 19:03 Maiden proved that they can be quite bad or even horrendous. Half of "Fear Of The Dark" is pure shit. "The X Factor" is pure shit. "Virtual XI" is pure shit. Lots of stuff after Bruce's comeback sucks too.
---- 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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| angel_heart Posts: 34 |
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| GT Coffee!! Staff Posts: 5101  |
I finally got the album today and have just listened to it for the first time. Wasn't as bad as I expected, but it's definitely not amongst their best works. I agree that the first four songs are very disappointing and the last being quite good. The songs in between are not memorable, but not bad at all.
----  Dreams are made so we don't get bored when we sleep
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| Bovinus Posts: 11  |
It wouldn't have been such a bad album, if it wasn't Iron Maiden. I listened to it, and thought at first that it was decent. Nothing outstanding, but still okay. Then I listened to The Number of the Beast (which is not my favourite, btw), and understood that The Final Frontier is shit, in regards to Maiden's standards. It's not bad, it's just uninspired, boring and overall mediocre. It's barely worth something between 5.5 and 6.
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| jimmy Posts: 42 |
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| Gummingurru Posts: 14  |
Written by blssdmf43 on 01.09.2010 at 05:54 dude,i think it's a fake . some troll created the profile just to leave this comment to make controversy.the only thing this profile has on metalstorm is his age and this message
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| BitterCOld The Ancient One Admin Posts: 15250  |
Just a point here... the album's score per MS users (notorious for over-inflating or tanking albums) is 7.5 with over 400 votes. of those 400+ votes, only 10 are 3 or less. virtually every album on the top 10 of all time releases has at least that many 1 votes from users engaging in gameplay with votes. nutshell: lots of votes, but comparatively not that many low votes... and still mid 7. for those who criticize the review, Dani P(hilth) wasn't far off from what metalstormers seem to thank.
---- get the fuck off my lawn. Beer Bug Virus Spotify Playlist crafted by Nikarg and I. Feel free to tune in and add some pertinent metal tunes!
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| Milena gloom cookie Staff Posts: 4603  |
Yes, I love commenting on old reviews, carry on... What bugs me about Maiden is that people tank new albums partially because they don't line up with the old stuff, and if they do like them, they must absolutely mention that "it's not as good as Powerslave but still". For people who say "I don't expect them to release another Powerslave", well, does anyone honestly expect out of 50+ band just having fun to release their best quality albums? I sure as hell don't. That shouldn't even be mentioned. Why keep expectations high when they shouldn't be? Out of the four "new" Maiden albums, I sometimes see AMOLAD as the weakest one and sometimes this one as the weakest one. I enjoy them a lot, though, but I think this one will "earn" that title in the end. These decent 76 minutes could have been very good 60 minutes. I'm a part of the prog crowd so I don't complain about length a lot but some of these meandered too much, like "Isle Of Avalon" and "The Man Who Would Be King". I didn't have a lot of alienation issues with the first half of the album because I already figured it would have been different, if not necessarily good, and I pretty much adore "Coming Home" (I'm getting tired of being the black sheep here  ). But I agree with the general feeling of the review. Some nice minutes to be found here, and "The Alchemist" should have been the intro, dropping that electro shizzle from the start of "Final Frontier" which would have come somewhere in the middle.
---- 7.0 means the album is good
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