Various Artists
A Call To Irons -
Tribute To Iron Maiden
[Dwell]
Iron Maiden used to be the coolest band around. They're responsible
for getting me into Metal in the first place, and I worshipped these
guys until the "No Prayer For The Dying" fiasco. I had the patches,
the denim jacket, the posters, Maiden tapes in the walkman,
headbanging my way through high school...I sound like an old idiot in a
rocking chair now, so let's get back to business: yet another Maiden
tribute, this time on Dwell Records. These guys have big plans,
there's a "A Call To Irons Vol 2" out and apparently a third one too.
Anyway here we go, track by track:
Opera IX "Rime of the Ancient Mariner": It takes a lot of balls to cover the ultimate 13 minute Maiden epic, and Opera IX are just that band. Their female singer rasps, sings, speaks and whispers her way through the trademark Opera IX sound (mystical, slightly muffled) with her typical Mediterranean accent, while the rest of the band keep the song interesting. Impressive...
Morgion "To Tame A Land": Another of Maiden's epics, and Morgion execute this one brilliantly. The down tuned guitars and growled vocals fit the song surprisingly well.
Angel Corpse "Genghis Khan": Wow! Angel Corpse give this instrumental the technical Death Metal treatment, syncopated drumming and all, and it works all the way.
Steel Prophet "The Ides of March/Purgatory": Damn good - flawlessly executed. The clean vocals aren't that exceptional, but it doesn't matter that much. They covered one of the best ever Maiden songs, which is another plus.
Ancient Wisdom "Powerslave": Bad vocals and muffled sound aside, this is pretty neat. There's a good solo in the middle, and on the whole it's convincing.
Vital Remains "The Trooper": Boring. A by-the-book cover, deathized Maiden without any spirit. Thumbs down.
Opeth "Remember Tomorrow": Not a very obvious choice, but Opeth pulls it off well, although the singing isn't very strong (trying to sing higher than Bruce/Kai/Halford is not a good idea, people).
Evoken "Strange World": A doom band playing Maiden? Yes, and damn impressive too. Very melancholic, even more depressive than the original.
Absu "Transylvania": Old metal worshippers Absu come up with a no-frills, close-to-the-original "Transylvania". Not terribly exciting, but not bad.
Solitude Aeturnus "Hallowed Be Thy Name": Very well done. Strong clean singing, and not that surprising. The song flows very well and it's light years better than that "unintentional self-parody" version Cradle of Filth recorded two years ago.
New Eden "Phantom of the Opera": Good but not great, this is a energetically played cover, but nothing really amazing.
In conclusion, "A Call To Irons" is one of the best tributes I've heard in the "modern Metal bands cover old Metal legends" category. Definitely worth getting (after you got at least the first two Maiden CD's of course). Especially for those of you that recognize themselves in the first paragraph.
© 1999 sybren
Opera IX "Rime of the Ancient Mariner": It takes a lot of balls to cover the ultimate 13 minute Maiden epic, and Opera IX are just that band. Their female singer rasps, sings, speaks and whispers her way through the trademark Opera IX sound (mystical, slightly muffled) with her typical Mediterranean accent, while the rest of the band keep the song interesting. Impressive...
Morgion "To Tame A Land": Another of Maiden's epics, and Morgion execute this one brilliantly. The down tuned guitars and growled vocals fit the song surprisingly well.
Angel Corpse "Genghis Khan": Wow! Angel Corpse give this instrumental the technical Death Metal treatment, syncopated drumming and all, and it works all the way.
Steel Prophet "The Ides of March/Purgatory": Damn good - flawlessly executed. The clean vocals aren't that exceptional, but it doesn't matter that much. They covered one of the best ever Maiden songs, which is another plus.
Ancient Wisdom "Powerslave": Bad vocals and muffled sound aside, this is pretty neat. There's a good solo in the middle, and on the whole it's convincing.
Vital Remains "The Trooper": Boring. A by-the-book cover, deathized Maiden without any spirit. Thumbs down.
Opeth "Remember Tomorrow": Not a very obvious choice, but Opeth pulls it off well, although the singing isn't very strong (trying to sing higher than Bruce/Kai/Halford is not a good idea, people).
Evoken "Strange World": A doom band playing Maiden? Yes, and damn impressive too. Very melancholic, even more depressive than the original.
Absu "Transylvania": Old metal worshippers Absu come up with a no-frills, close-to-the-original "Transylvania". Not terribly exciting, but not bad.
Solitude Aeturnus "Hallowed Be Thy Name": Very well done. Strong clean singing, and not that surprising. The song flows very well and it's light years better than that "unintentional self-parody" version Cradle of Filth recorded two years ago.
New Eden "Phantom of the Opera": Good but not great, this is a energetically played cover, but nothing really amazing.
In conclusion, "A Call To Irons" is one of the best tributes I've heard in the "modern Metal bands cover old Metal legends" category. Definitely worth getting (after you got at least the first two Maiden CD's of course). Especially for those of you that recognize themselves in the first paragraph.
© 1999 sybren