Album
Fear Of The Dark
1992 · Rock
31 collectors on Gatefold own this
Fear Of The Dark is a Metal album by Iron Maiden, originally released in 1992. On Gatefold: 245 pressings tracked, owned by 31 collectors.
About
Fear of the Dark is the ninth studio album released by British heavy metal band Iron Maiden. It topped the UK albums chart. Released on 11 May 1992, it was the final studio album to feature Bruce Dickinson as lead vocalist who left the band following the album's support tour to pursue a solo career. He was succeeded by Blaze Bayley, formerly of Wolfsbane, for two studio albums until Dickinson returned to Iron Maiden for the 2000 release of Brave New World. History: The album cover of Fear of the Dark was the first Iron Maiden album cover not to be designed by artist Derek Riggs. In an interview with MTV, Bruce Dickinson said they had asked three different artists to design a cover, and they then picked the best one. Melvyn Grant's illustration was chosen over the one Riggs submitted. Melvyn Grant has since drawn two more album covers for Iron Maiden, and the cover for their single "The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg" makes him the second most-used artist for Eddie after Riggs. The album's musical style showed some experimentation with "Be Quick or Be Dead", a speed metal song released as the album's first single, and "Wasting Love", the group's sole power ballad. The Gulf War track "Afraid to Shoot Strangers" was the band's most political song since "2 Minutes to Midnight". The album featured first time songwriting credits for Janick Gers and featured more keyboard work than the previous album. Only two songs off of the album, the title track, and "Afraid to Shoot Strangers", would survive on tours past 1993. "Fear of the Dark" became a popular live track and was the only song played on the Somewhere Back in Time World Tour not from the 1980s. "Afraid to Shoot Strangers" became a frequent addition on setlists during Blaze Bayley's tenure with Iron Maiden. Both critics and fans saw the album as a stale offering from an increasingly tired band. Dickinson's committment to the band was in question and the inclusion of a ballad left veteran fans disillusioned. Much mocked was Harris' 'Weekend Warrior,' which was viewed as an outdated view on 80's football hooliganism. The line "what you gonna do on Monday?" came in for much abuse. Metal Hammer criticised the lyrics on such tracks as 'The Apparition' and 'The Fugitive', but said the guitar solos redeemed the otherwise mediocre songs. "Be Quick or Be Dead," "From Here to Eternity," "Wasting Love," and a live version of the title track were released as singles. Fear Of The Dark Tour was the tour supporting the album.
via Last.fm
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Tracklist
- 1Be Quick Or Be Dead3:21
- 2From Here To Eternity3:35
- 3Afraid To Shoot Strangers6:52
- 4Fear Is The Key5:30
- 5Childhood's End4:37
- 6Wasting Love5:46
- 7The Fugitive4:52
- 8Chains Of Misery3:33
- 9The Apparition3:53
- 10Judas Be My Guide3:06
- 11Weekend Warrior5:37
- 12Fear Of The Dark7:16
Sound DNA
- Metal
- Heavy Metal
- heavy
- anthemic
- occult
Fear of the Dark is the ninth studio album by English heavy metal band Iron Maiden, released on 11 May 1992.
It was the last album with Bruce Dickinson in lead vocals (until his return in 1999) and the last to feature the work of producer Martin Birch (who retired after its release), also produced by Steve Harris.
"Be Quick or Be Dead", a fast tempo song in a heavier thrash style released as the album's first single.
"Wasting Love" was the group's first power ballad, which dates back to Dickinson's first solo album "Tattooed Millionaire"
"Afraid to Shoot Strangers", is a political song from the point of view of a soldier in the Gulf War, Dickinson would often introduce the song as an anti-war narrative.
"Fear Is the Key" is about the fear in sexual relationships resulting from AIDS. The song was written around the time when the band learned about the death of Queen singer Freddie Mercury.
"Weekend Warrior" is about football hooliganism.
According to the band's biographer, Mick Wall, the cover depicts Eddie, "as some sort of Nosferatu tree figure leering at the moon". It was the group's first not to be designed by artist Derek Riggs, whose contributions were rejected in favour of Melvyn Grant's.
According to Iron Maiden's manager, Rod Smallwood, the band began accepting contributions from other artists as "We wanted to upgrade Eddie for the 90s. We wanted to take him from the sort of comic-book horror creature and turn him into something a bit more straightforward so that he became even more threatening."
Following Fear of the Dark, Grant has produced several more covers for Iron Maiden, making him the band's second most-frequent artist after Riggs.
In 2022, in her music video LALISA' M/V, South Korean superstar Lisa from Blackpink sports a full outfit featuring a collage of Fear of the Dark artwork.
Reviews for the album were mixed, with AllMusic commenting that, while "easily an improvement over 1990's lackluster No Prayer for the Dying (both musically and sonically)", the release "still wasn't quite on par with their exceptional work from the '80s".
Sputnikmusic were more positive about the release, stating that "though many of the songs are still sub-par by their standards... the band returns to the lofty heights that they enjoyed for the entirety of the 80's".
Billboard gave it a positive review on release, saying Dickinson's voice "shows no sign of wear and tear" and the guitar work "sounds fresh and crisp".
In October 2011, Fear of the Dark was ranked No. 8 on Guitar World magazine's top ten list of guitar albums of 1992.
Fear of the Dark became the third Iron Maiden album to top the UK Albums Chart.
It is the band's most successful record in North America after the inception of Nielsen SoundScan in 1991, with 438,000 copies sold as of 2008.
Credits
The people behind it.
Performers
- Bruce DickinsonLEAD VOCALS PERFORMER, VOCALS VOCALS
- Dave MurrayELECTRIC GUITAR ELECTRIC GUITAR, ACOUSTIC GUITAR GUITAR
- Janick GersELECTRIC GUITAR ELECTRIC GUITAR, ACOUSTIC GUITAR GUITAR
- Michael KenneyKEYBOARDS OTHER , KEYBOARDS
- Nicko McBrainDRUMS PERFORMER, DRUMS
- Steve HarrisBASS ELECTRIC BASS, ACOUSTIC BASS, BACKING VOCALS PERFORMER, BASS
31 collectors on Gatefold own this · 245 pressings tracked on Gatefold
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