I know there are a lot of Maiden fans here....
3 or 4 years ago I passed on getting into Aria (I didn't learn of them until that time), as their lengthy discography and Russian language scared me away.
But I've gotten into Russian-language bands the last few years and recently decided to give them another listen.... wow!! Aria is truly the Russian version of Maiden, and they excel at the style!
I've only heard about the first half of their discography, but it's right in line with pre-SIT/SSoSS era Maiden.
Check em' out...
Here is the section of their homepage that lists their CDs (click on the CDs to find samples... I recommend hearing tracks 2 through 4 from their debut... they're killer, and it's only their debut!!):
http://www.aria.ru/publications/albums.html
Not all of these are full-length however, so see the "A" page of MCDR to see which CDs are full-length:
http://www.angelfire.com/music5/metalcd ... pageA.html
From what I've heard so far, the ratings (by colleagues) are accurate.
Also, Sentinel Steel (
http://www.sentinelsteel.com/) has their CDs in stock and they're $7.88, but Denis is having a sale (!!), so they would actually be $2 less ($5.88!!!).
Anyway, I spent the time to post this because I'm so confident in their quality....
Clint