Metal Reviews

I disagree with you:
1. He could actually be so hurt by 9/11 that he can't handle the emotion when trying to sing a song about it.
2. I don't think Barlow would leave for money. And the wellknown "wants to write his own music/lyrics" doesn't apply here as Barlow didn't leave to make his own music but to do something VERY different, was it something to do with law? I don't remember...
3. It doesn't matter if the band is a "poser" band/"real" band, the band can be whatever but if the person's heart isn't in it anymore, then there's not much u can do... (And this was also the official reason why Barlow left.)

Actually none of the songs were written to accomodate Owens' vocal style. He got to change/write some lyrics, but the album was already written when Barlow quit/got fired. He had recorded vocals for many of the songs already.

Like I said, I don't think I believe that the songs weren't sounding good with Barlow singing. Something tells me Schaffer was looking for something different and Barlow was also looking for an easy out. It makes no sense for someone to quit a band like this to get a Criminal Justice degree. My best friend has one and she's essentially a legal secretary. You need a lot more education after the CJ degree to become some FBI agent or whatever it is that Barlow wants to do.

Of course, that's all speculation on my part, which is why I said Jon should at least release the Barlow version of "Hollow Man" because it was written and recorded during the Horror Show sessions and Barlow's vocals are fucking amazing on that album! All the high notes he hits are fucking killer! I still think TGB would have sounded better with Barlow on vocals had he been able to perform at the same level he did on Horror Show and SWTWC.

My point is Barlow likely could make a lot more difference in his life and in others by singing and writing lyrics on whatever is bothering him, than whatever the hell he is doing now.

Also I saw Iced Earth live in 2002 in NYC with Barlow which was about half a year after 9/11 and Barlow seemed fine to me. I don't really understand why he would feel that what he was doing musically was any less important than whatever he is doing now. Being able to touch people around the world with his voice, lyrics and speeches during live shows is very significant iIMO, don't know why he walked away from us. It is like he let the terrorist win, by changing his life because of what they did. Something is just not right.

You have to be kidding. Dickinson singing Sign Of The Cross on Rock In Rio is good, but it just takes away the darkness of the song, the way Blaze sings it gives it that dark and erie feeling. It's the same with The Clansman. Dickinson's voice is too high to get that dark feeling, that the original version has.
Go and have a listen to Blaze's live album "As Live As It Gets" and listen to Sign Of The Cross.....so much better.
Blaze's voice suited those songs way better than Dickinson, as the albums were made to be compatible with Blaze's deep vocals.

This is what i hate about Maiden fans. Love Bruce, but jumped off the bandwagon when Blaze was in the band. True Maiden fans would have stayed with them through the Blaze era, as those 2 albums kick ass and was better than anything Maiden had done around that time (Fear Of The Dark, No Prayer For The Dying, Brave New World). The way Maiden sounded during the X-Factor period was awesome...so dark and gloomy, just what they needed as they were heading in the wrong direction from around FOTD, one of their worst albums IMO....
but i am getting sidetracked- this thread is about Iced Earth, although i wouldnt mind starting a thread about Maiden and their albums....

I don't consider maiden with blaze and bad, but with bruce they have such a 'vibe' that gives me the kinda feeling maiden music has got to give. but as you look at BLAZE, you can surely hear that blaze has some talent

Of course they have a vibe with Bruce, he was with them since 1982 (Number Of The Beast). They made some of their greatest albums during that period. It is hard for a band like that, to suddenly have a new singer which is not a human air-raid siren. Thats why those albums sounded different than the rest, cause Blaze couldnt sing that way...the music was meant for his vocal style and i rekon it worked really well

Have to agree with you on this one. I felt Blaze's voice blended well with the Maiden sound in X Factor and Virtual XI. But Bruce is the voice of Maiden, much like Ozzy was the voice of Sabbath. The other vocalists had a better vocal range and in my opinion were just so much better than Ozzy. But you will still find a vast majority favouring Ozzy as the Sabbath vocalist. And one more thing. I think FOTD is one of Maiden's best albums. :twisted:

I've made a new thread about Maiden and their albums.....leave this thread to talk about Iced Earth....

College is a much bigger commitment than people realize. It's not just about taking a few courses every semester for four years and then getting a degree. It's also about gaining the appropriate experience in your field (internships, part-time jobs, etc), getting to know people, and really developing the right connections. If Matt decided to go to college and stay in Iced Earth at the same time, he would have to be devoting how much time to studying, finding outside jobs related to his field of study, going to classes, practicing his music constantly, recording how many song demos, writing music, having to take time off during certain semesters to tour with the band, having to deal with the record companies, etc. Obviously, he had to make a choice between staying in Iced Earth and going to college and he rightfully chose the latter. Here's hoping Matt is playing his cards right and can get a good job in law enforcement.

I'm sure Barlow's departure had more to do with Jon than with Barlow.

Matt probably said something like, "Well, if you're kicking me out, I guess I could get a Criminal Justice degree or something."

Hehehe.

So why can't Barlow at least get some gigs in those "metal opera" albums like Ayreon, Genius, Avantasia, Aina, etc. to do vocals for a song or 2. Also would be nice if he can sing on a 1 or 2 songs on an Iced Earth album.

Maybe he'll return someday, I don't see Owens in the long-term with IE.

I see no reason to doubt the official statement from Iced Earth. Had the reason been something completely different I'm sure Barlow would have corrected it/sended his version of the departure.



This is actually a good idea! I hadn't even thought about it
(I mean doing some guest vocals on some other bands album. I don't think he will sing on any Iced Earth songs again...)

miss, the lyrics just didnt flow, it wasnt melodic at all, its like they where reading it out of a text book

I have to kinda agree with you on that one. I don't think that was true in general but on Red Barron/Blue Max the lyrics did seem kind of like they were being read out of textbook. I thought the rest of lyrics were good though.

Well, when singing about a historical person from the past like the Red Baron from WWI, it would be kinda hard not to seem like reading from a text book when mentioning historical events/dates/information in the song about the Red Baron.
Not to mention Red Baron/Blue Max is one of the best songs on the album.

Ya it is understandable. It's a good song but i just thought the lyrics seemed forced on that song compared to the others.