Virtual XI is Iron Maiden's second studio album with Blaze Bayley as vocalist. It retains
the Maiden feel while at the same time continuing their musical evolution and maturation.
Although there will always be people who are unable to accept this evolution, Virtual XI
demonstrates that the band has indeed overcome their painful transitional period and are now
continuing to do what they do best – making great music.
The album cover is once again by
Melvyn Grant, and returns to the familiar comic-book style. It is perhaps the most complex
album cover since
Somewhere In Time, depicting a boy who is immersed in a virtual reality of flaming holocaust
where the line between virtual and reality is beginning to blur.
Musically, Virtual XI is not as dark and brooding as its predecessor
The X Factor, and perhaps has more in common with
Somewhere In Time both in its futuristic mood and musical style.
Like all of the Maiden albums since
Somewhere In Time, Virtual XI has a touch of light synth in the background
of some songs. Also, there is a bit more vocal harmonies than we've seen before, on songs such as
'The Clansman'
and 'The
Educated Fool'.
One complaint about the Virtual XI North American edition is its promotion of America Online
(AOL) both on the CD packaging and on the enhanced (computer readable) portion of the CD –
apparently, the UK and European versions escaped this unfortunate commercial gimmick.
Albums should not be subject to such commercialisation and advertising gimmicks, which
in my opinion only cheapen the mood and feeling of the album. Perhaps it is an attempt to foster
the "virtual" aspect of the album, but there could hardly have been a worse choice than
AOL, which is reviled by the internet community. Fortunately, if you ignore the enhanced portion
of the CD, the rest of the album is rather good.
The CD packaging also contains pictures from the computer game
Ed Hunter from
Synthetic Dimensions. The game is a 1st-person (Doom-style) shooter, featuring
familiar terrain from many Iron Maiden album sleeves. The problem with computer games is that
their technology is virtually obsolete almost before they even hit the shelves. In 20 years the music
will still be as powerful as it is today, but the computer game will be a technological dinosaur.
In any case, the bottom line of any album is its music, and in this respect Virtual XI lives up
to its potential, solidifying Iron Maiden's position as one of the few surviving heavy metal powers
from the 80's. If anyone remained unconvinced by
The X Factor, Virtual XI should lay their doubts to rest.
The comments by Steve Harris were taken from the lyrics translation sheet that is included in
the Japanese double-CD version of the album.
Futureal (Harris, Bayley)
This is a fast and energetic opening track, from which the album's cover picture and futuristic theme
is derived. It is about being so involved in a virtual world that the line between fantasy and reality begins
to blur and dissolve. The character of the song even develops a certain paranoia –
"I feel them closing in" – which indicates that his mind has been severely
disturbed by his virtual activities and that he's really gone "in far too deep."
Whereas the actual virtual medium is undefined in the song, the lyrics describe quite accurately
what can be experienced playing
MUD
(Multi-user Dungeon) or MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game) on the internet,
which can completely take over your life if you're not careful. The idea for the song was probably inspired
by the many stories related in the press about on-line gamers who suffered from what is called nowadays
"cyber-addiction." Some took the game all too seriously and went as far as committing
suicide, while others literally "played to death" and died in front of their computer of heart failure
due to exhaustion. 'Futureal' is quite obviously a suicide note ("when you're reading this then I will be
gone") left by such an addicted player who somehow
realises that the people around him are getting worried, although he strongly denies to be in the wrong
– "Whenever anyone seems to treat me like a freak, it makes me see I'm the only one who feels,
that I know what is real." This kind of madness is sadly not uncommon among people who abusively
play on-line games. Although most of the gamers are perfectly sane and treat the virtual environment for
what it is – entertainment – some weaker minds "lose the plot" and sadly end up
considering the game more real than life itself and wondering "What is real?"
It it also noteworthy to point out that Blaze somehow revisited this topic on his 2000 concept album,
Silicon Messiah, mostly with the lyrics "From the first taste of this altered truth
I knew I could not live the way that others do" taken from the song 'The Hunger'.
Anyway, this is a great album opener with a catchy tune and some good guitar solos, and might be
Maiden's shortest song with lyrics.
This song was an idea that I'd had for quite some time but hadn't worked up into a full song
until the writing started for this album. I worked up all the music and vocal melody lines but I didn't have
a suitable lyric, so I asked Blaze to write something for it and very fine it is
too!
Growing numbers of stories in the press speak about gamers who play for extended periods of time
and suffer for it, some even dying apparently as a result of too much video gaming. Is online gaming
hazardous, even addictive as some claim? Keep reading to learn the latest news about this disturbing
phenomenon.
As more and more work, education and recreation involves computers, everyone needs
to be aware of the hazards of computer-related health disorders [...]. These conditions
can be serious and painful and if neglected can cause young and physically fit individuals
leave computer dependent careers or be permanently disabled. These conditions are far easier
to prevent than to cure once contracted, by having a healthy lifestyle and work habits and working
at ergonomically good workstation.
This page discusses what has been characterised as 'internet dependency',
cyber addiction' or even 'onlineaholics', and considers responses to 'internet addiction'.
More and more people are discovering the joys of the Internet. But once they arrive, some find it
nearly impossible to sign off. Here's what you can do to prevent on-line excursions from taking over
your life.
'The Angel And The Gambler' was the first single from the Virtual XI album, and was released
in two parts. Taken at face value,
it seems to be a light-hearted song about an incorrigible gambler and an angel that is attempting to save him
by persuading him to quit gambling. In a possibly unintended lyrical irony, an "angel" is also a term
for a rich person who finances a gambler, allowing him to keep gambling using the rich person's money.
This is quite a long song – nearly 10 minutes – but it is a bit more repetitive than most
of Harris's epic songs. It may not appeal to you at first, but it possibly will grown on you after a few listens,
although it could have been a bit shorter and less repetitive.
This was from an idea that I had when I was driving on the M4 motorway to Wales! Thank God
I had a small cassette recorder with me! The idea reminded me of The Who/U.F.O so I took it in that
direction. It's got a very 70s rhythm feel to it which I like
a lot.
Steve Harris
On an ironic note, it could also be a song about the complementarity of good and evil, implying
that these two notions need to co-exist and that it is impossible to envisage one without
the other. Awareness of good automatically generates that of evil too, as all light unavoidably
casts shadows. The same can be said about life that cannot be fully appreciated if death is ignored.
'The Angel And The Gambler' is in this way reminiscent of an episode in the old television series,
The Twilight Zone, which highlights the absurdity of a world with only good and no evil in it.
Here is a short summary of the story, as written by author Ray Kurzweil:
The gambler had not expected to be here. But on reflection, he thought he had shown some kindness
in his time. And this place was even more beautiful and satisfying than he had imagined. Everywhere
there were magnificent crystal chandeliers, the finest handmade carpets, the most sumptuous foods,
and, yes, the most beautiful women, who seemed intrigued with their new heaven mate. He tried
his hand at roulette, and amazingly his number came up time after time. He tried the gaming tables,
and his luck was nothing short of remarkable: He won game after game. Indeed his winnings
were causing quite a stir, attracting much excitement from the attentive staff, and from
the beautiful women.
This continued day after day, week after week, with the gambler winning every game, accumulating bigger
and bigger earnings. Everything was going his way. He just kept on winning. And week after week,
month after month, the gambler's streak of success remained unbreakable.
After a while, this started to get tedious. The gambler was getting restless; the winning was starting
to lose its meaning. Yet nothing changed. He just kept on winning every game, until one day,
the now anguished gambler turned to the angel who seemed to be in charge and said
that he couldn't take it anymore. Heaven was not for him after all. He had figured he was destined
for the "other place" nonetheless, and indeed that is where he wanted to be.
"But this is the other place," came the reply.
Ray Kurzweil [1999], The Age of Spiritual Machines
On a more philosophical note this time, there is an interesting Sufi story, related to
an angel and a gambler, and quite appropriate to the song when you think about it. It can be
found in the collection of such stories, Wisdom of the Idiots, compiled by Idries Shah
and published in 1970:
There once was a dervish devotee who believed that it was his task to reproach those
who did evil things and to enjoin upon them ‘spiritual’ thoughts so that they might find the right path.
What this dervish did not know, however, was that a true teacher does not apply the same fixed principles
to everyone, because unless the teacher knows exactly what is in the heart of the student, the teacher
may achieve the opposite of what he or she desires.
However, one day this particular devotee came upon a man who gambled excessively and who did not
know how to stop. The dervish decided to intervene, and so he decided to monitor the gambler. Every time
the gambler went to the gambling den, the devotee placed a stone in a pile outside the gambler’s house
to mark the sin, so that the growing pile would accumulate as a visible reminder of evil.
And so each time the gambler left his house for the gambling den, he felt guilty, and each time he returned,
he felt worse, as the pile of stones had grown. And each time the devotee placed a stone on the pile,
he felt both anger at the gambler, and a sense of personal pleasure – he called it
"Godliness" – in having recorded the sin.
This process continued for twenty years. And each time the gambler saw the devotee, he said to himself:
"Would that I understood goodness. How that saintly man works for my redemption. Would that
I could repent, let alone become like him, for he is sure of his place in heaven."
It so happened that, through a natural catastrophe, both men died at the same time. An angel came
to the gambler and said to him, gently, "You are to come with me to paradise."
The gambler protested, saying, "How can that be? I am a sinner and must go to hell.
Surely you must be here for the devotee who has tried to reform me for the last two decades?"
But the angel replied, "The devotee? No, he is being taken to the lower regions as we speak."
"What justice is this?" shouted the gambler, forgetting his situation. "You must have gotten
your instructions reversed," he added.
"Not so," said the angel. "This is how things stand: for twenty years, the devotee
has been indulging himself with feelings of superiority and merit. He wound up putting those stones
on that pile for himself, not for you, and now he must redress the balance."
"And how have I earned a reward?" asked the gambler.
"You are to be rewarded because every time you passed the devotee, you longed first for goodness,
and then thought of the devotee in a charitable way. It is goodness which is rewarding you
for your fidelity."
Idries Shah [1970], Wisdom of the Idiots
In the song, the first two verses introduce us to a compulsive gambler who is not very successful,
but who keeps trying his luck anyway, hoping that things will change ("But you're not gonna win,
you'd better go back again"; "But you're down on your luck and what will the next day
bring"). Then, the first bridge brings us to see things from the gambler's perspective. He seems
to be addressing God and wonders why an angel was sent to try and save his wretched and
somehow meaningless life ("So what does it matter, so why don't you answer,
so why did you send an angel to mend?"). Then, the next verses could correspond to the angel's
– quite sarcastic – view of the gambler's life. Pay special attention to these lines:
Nothing to lose but so much to gain A little danger, it goes without saying But what do you care, you're gonna go in the end
It looks here like the game is now seen as life itself; life and all the gambles we have to take,
regardless of the fact that we'll all die – leave the casino – in the end. There is
indeed "so much to gain" during life, and the "little danger"
is an inherent part of it and of this apprenticeship that many refer to as experience.
The following bridge evokes again the possibility that forviveness or damnation are both possible,
whichever way life is led down on earth. But the gambler faces his responsibilities and gives in
to temptation ("I'll suffer my craving, my soul's not worth saving, so why don't you go,
just leave well alone") in a line strangely reminiscent of another one found in
'Sign Of
The Cross': "Lost the love of heaven above, chose the lust of the earth below".
The only difference here is that the gambler consciously rejects the angel and the redemption
he could bring.
The last verses after the solos are composed of warnings given to the gambler by the angel,
exhorting him to be careful in his choices and to base his judgement on experience and past mistakes
("You've made your mistakes, won't play it the same again"), as well as berating him
for his foolishness to pursue his quest for futile pleasure ("You have been warned but
still you plunge in, you play high stakes but there's nothing to win"). This could apply to
all of us who gamble our lives in search of other sensations that may not be worth it in the end.
Obviously, as the very last bridge points rightly out, the decision is ours to make, and certainly
no one else's.
To conclude, a word needs to be added about the repetition of the chorus. Although this is a more
than decent song, many people dislike it because of this repeatedness, and a friend of mine even
jokingly dubbed this song 'The Angel And The Never-Ending Chorus'. This apparent abuse of the lyrics
(the chorus is repeated 12 times before the solos and another 10 times at the end of
the song!) may have some significance, although it is not clear which it can be. Maybe the "Angel"
is simply hammering those words into the gambler's brain in order to make him react and ponder
their true meaning. It certainly made a few Maiden fans react to it!
A compulsive, or pathological, gambler is someone who is unable to resist impulses to gamble.
This leads to severe personal and/or social consequences. The urge to gamble becomes so great
that tension can only be relieved by more gambling.
Problem gambling is gambling behavior which causes disruptions in any major area of life:
psychological, physical, social or vocational. The term "Problem Gambling" includes,
but is not limited to, the condition known as "Pathological", or "Compulsive"
Gambling, a progressive addiction characterized by increasing preoccupation with gambling,
a need to bet more money more frequently, restlessness or irritability when attempting to stop,
"chasing" losses, and loss of control manifested by continuation of the gambling behavior
in spite of mounting, serious, negative consequences.
On the surface 'Lightning Strikes Twice' is about an approaching thunderstorm, and the music does
justice to this concept with its slow and quiet start which soon bursts into powerful guitar chords for
the verses and choruses. But the chorus "maybe lightning strikes twice" seems
to hint at a deeper meaning to the song. It is said that lightning never strikes the same place twice,
and to suggest that maybe it will is perhaps a statement about fate and hope. Lightning being generally
used as an ominous sign, it is also likely that the narrator feels another crisis coming up in his life,
one he had to face already in the past and that is about to reoccur – "And as I wait
and I look for an answer to all the things going round in my head I ask myself could it be a disaster
and when it's maybe threatening to happen again." Like many good songs,
the meaning is open to personal interpretation, and the song itself is excellent.
This started as an initial idea of Davey's and we just picked it up from there
and worked it into a complete song together. I wrote the lyrics after coming up with
the words for the chorus during the arranging of the music with Dave. He liked the idea
of the title so I wrote the lyrics around that.
Lightning is a powerful natural electrostatic discharge produced during a thunderstorm.
Lightning's abrupt electric discharge is accompanied by the emission of visible light
and other forms of electromagnetic radiation. The electric current passing through
the discharge channels rapidly heats and expands the air into plasma, producing
acoustic shock waves (thunder) in the atmosphere.
'The Clansman' is clearly inspired by the 1995 movie
Braveheart starring and directed by Mel Gibson. Another film about the History of Scotland
was also released the same year, namely Rob Roy, and Steve said it was an inspiration for the
song as well. But, whereas William Wallace was a true hero of Scotland and contributed massively in
the struggle against the English, Rob Roy – although considered a hero too by many –
was nothing more than a crook, a thief and a double-agent, who never really did anything in the fight
for the freedom of his country.
The song describes the struggle of the Scottish clans to free themselves of English oppression, and
the ill-intentioned people who tried to see some analogies with the Ku-Klux-Klan in the lyrics are sorely mistaken.
This is a song about freedom and resistance against an oppressor, and there is no hint of racism in it
whatsoever – and those who think there is are urged to re-read the lyrics! The chorus itself
is especially reminiscent of William Wallace's final dying cry "Freedom!"
in the movie (in reality, considering that the poor man had just had his bowels removed, it would have been
nothing more than a whisper, if anything). This is an epic Harris song, equal to any of his past epics including
'Rime
Of The Ancient Mariner' or
'To Tame
A Land'.
In fact, this song would be perfectly at home on any of the Maiden albums from the Golden Age.
Started as two separate ideas, then put them together and it worked! It's got a Celtic flavour
to the music which is why I wrote the lyrics about the Scottish clans. They were inspired also by the
Braveheart and Rob Roy films.
Sir William Wallace of Elerslie, hero of Scotland and true patriot, his desire for peace and freedom
united the clans, gained the loyalty of the people, struck fear into his enemies and defied the cruel hand
of an evil, warring and invading king – Edward 'Longshanks' Plantagenet I of England.
Rob Roy MacGregor was the chief of the Clan Gregor who styled themselves the "Children
of the Mist." The clan's motto was "Royal is our race," and they were descended
from a brother of the great Scottish king Alpin.
In the highlands of Scotland in the 1600s, Rob Roy tries to lead his small town to a better future,
by borrowing money from the local nobility to buy cattle to herd to market. When the money is stolen,
Rob is forced into a Robin Hood lifestyle to defend his family and honour.
Taken at face value, this song is about the collision of worlds, such as perhaps an asteroid or comet
colliding with the earth. It is a concept that has enjoyed a fair amount of publicity in the late 1990s, with the
1998 summer blockbusters
Deep Impact and
Armageddon drawing attention to the subject.
Even though the lyrics could have been deeper, 'When Two Worlds Collide' is a good song with a good
tune and some nice guitar riffs and solos.
Obviously, another interpretation comes to mind: that of the collision of two different cultural worlds.
May it be the crusades, with Christian knights entering Jerusalem and meeting the world of Islam, or
the first encounter of the Europeans with the North-American Indians, History is paved of such examples
and the shock of these different cultures generally creates a lot of turmoil, with one civilisation trying
to anihilate the other, leaving "the anger, the pain of those who remain."
This was from an idea by Dave, who worked with Blaze and then I worked with both of them,
adding parts to the music, part of the chorus melody line and arranging the song. Dave wrote most of
the music and Blaze wrote the lyrics.
'The Educated Fool' is about the deep and introspective mid-life realisation that most people eventually
reach, where they begin to realise that their education and ideals are not really relevant to what is important
in life. But the song also seems to be a statement of hope, to put these things into a proper perspective
and face the ultimate meaning of life (whatever that might be) head-on.
This is also the first song where Steve Harris's father is mentioned ("I want to meet my father beyond"),
as he had recently passed away. The other song that mentions Steve's father is
'Blood Brothers'
("Just for a second a glimpse of my father I see"),
yet another life-questioning song, although on a more general level.
Musically this is an excellent song, with powerful emotion, some great vocal harmonies, and classic
Maiden riffage. Definitely this is one of the best songs on the album.
This started from the guitar melody line that you hear at the beginning and it fitted really well
with a couple of other ideas that I had at the time. It turned out very strong and is one of Blaze's
favourites on the album.
Steve Harris
Don't Look To The Eyes Of A Stranger (Harris)
This song is about the pervasive fear that is ingrained into the very core of modern society. As children
we are taught to fear strangers, and this fear carries over into society as a whole. It is a fairly long song,
with a number of interesting tempo changes and an excellent mid-song instrumental section.
'Don't Look To The Eyes Of A Stranger' has an interesting – and most probably unintentional
– tie with the lyrics of
'Killers'.
Whereas the story is seen from the perspective of the attacker in
'Killers',
this one takes us into the anguished mind of the victim. The possibility to relate one song
to another is yet another element that makes Iron Maiden so great.
This is another idea which I'd had for a while but hadn't managed to work up into a full song
until now. I wanted it to sound a bit orchestral as it had a majestic feel to it. It also sounded very ominous
so I wanted to make the end part completely mad and manic, I think Jan's not too sure about that part
but I think it works great!
Steve Harris
Como Estais Amigos (Gers, Bayley)
This was written by Jan and Blaze, with Jan writing the music and Blaze the vocal melody lines
and lyrics. It's a sad but powerful song, quite dark but dramatic, about the Falklands war. I think it makes
an excellent albums closer.
Steve Harris
'Como Estais Amigos' is a tribute to the Argentinian people, especially the soldiers who died in the 1982
Falkland Islands War with Britain.
The title translates literally to "how are you friends". The song has a sad and powerful mood,
and closes the album on a reflective and emotional note.
The conflict for the Falklands stemmed from the fairly appalling political and economic situation
of two countries that claimed sovereignty over the same wind-swept pieces of rock in the South Atlantic.
The invasion of these islands was attempt to regain popularity by the Argentinian government,
a military dictatorship at the time, and served unvoluntarily the cause of the British Tory government,
which was not particularly appreciated by its people either. A surge of misplaced nationalism and
extreme jingoism occurred in both countries, fuelled by their respective leaders and by the press,
leading to statements like "These islands are ours" or "Our boys are fighting
a rightful war" on either side. The people of Argentina and Great-Britain were blissfully
forgetting their respective political woes, as well as the recession, to concentrate on what was
happening on the Falkland Islands.
British troops on the march in the Falklands
What everyone was also ignoring is that the soldiers they sent out there were not ready for this type of conflict.
The Argentine combattants were not properly trained, and most of them were young conscripts who were
not even sure of what they were fighting for (some reports state that some of them had been told that the British
had invaded the main land and were not even aware of the exact location where they had been shipped to).
On the other side, the British soldiers were trained professionals who were ready for a conflict in Europe,
but not 8,000 miles away from home. The official final death toll of over 255 British and
some 750 Argentinians does not reflect the real losses that occurred because of the war: many combattants
on either side suffered subsequently of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorders, and the rate of suicides was so high
that the number of casualties almost doubled in the 20 years that followed the conflict, both in Britain
and Argentina. This is not such a surprise when you consider that most of the attacks degenerated into
hand-to-hand combat with knives and bayonets – probably the most horrifying experience for a soldier.
Shall we keep the fires burning Shall we keep the flames alight Should we try to remember What is wrong and what is right
This seems to be a plea to bring the Argentinians and British together in peace and to put aside any hatred
that may have been felt at the time or even now. The sacrifice of those who fought and those who fell
should not be forgotten, and should serve as a lesson for peace for the generations to come. It was sad
to hear about an incident at an Iron Maiden concert in Argentina, where a minority of so-called "fans"
started some trouble when the Union Jack was waved during
'The Trooper'.
Those people obviously still held a grudge against Britain, even over 20 years later –
although I suspect that most of them were not even born when the Falklands War took place –
and completely missed out on the real significance of this flag-waving during this particular song
(Sharon Osbourne made the same mistake during a gig in the US in 2005). It's dumb people
like that who support unnecessary bloody conflicts and make "the wickedness and sadness
come to visit us again."
No victory and no vanquished Only horror, only pain
The psychological effect of combat is a concept which encompasses a wide variety of processes
and negative impacts, all of which must be taken into consideration in any assessment of
the immediate and long term costs of war. This entry will address the wide-spectrum psychological
effects of combat, to include: psychiatric casualties suffered during combat, physiological arousal
and fear, the physiology of close combat, the price of killing, and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
(PTSD).
This page is intended to demonstrate that The Falklands War was a display of both political
and military miscalculations that ultimately lead to war, and to explain the political, strategic
and military lessons that can be learned from this conflict.
This song was an idea that I'd had for quite some time but hadn't worked up into a full song
until the writing started for this album. I worked up all the music and vocal melody lines but I didn't have
a suitable lyric, so I asked Blaze to write something for it and very fine it is
too! 
