"That which is dead, can eternally lie.
Yet with strange aeons, even death may die..." ---Iron Maiden/Metallica |
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When I was 14, my father bought me my first acoustic guitar.
While it wasn't an electric guitar like my brother's, it
was still a place to start; except that after a short
time, a week, I grew bored with the 6 strings. Me in my
infinite teen-age wisdom thought, "Hey, four strings should
be easier than six!" So I kept pushing for a bass guitar.
While I never got one, a friend began teaching me how to
play. I said it would be easier? How wrong I was. True, a
bass might be easier to play than a regular guitar, but
actually learning the cords was just as difficult. I gave
it up after just a single month of lessons.
My brother, Mike, on the other hand, developed a love of both
the electric guitar and Heavy Metal. It was from him
that I get my roots. I can remember sitting up in our
room, listening to him grind away on those strings,
jumping up and making faces as he contorted the guitar to
get the "right sound" from it. His long red hair flying
about his face, the ripped-up jeans and black
tee-shirts...all this left an impression on me.
Mike played mostly Dokken. I believe they were his favorite
band. But like any devoted "Metal-head", he played the
favorites like Ozzy, Metallica, Megadeth, a little Slayer,
and just a smidgen of Iron Maiden.
When I first heard him play "Wasted Years" by Iron Maiden,
I knew I'D found my favorite Heavy Metal band. Bruce
Dickenson's opera-like vocals wailing like a horrid banshee
gave them a unique sound. What got me more, though, was the
lyrics. Most of Iron Maidens songs had dealt with myths and
legends. They sung about mighty Icarus of the Greek myth,
The Ancient Mariner by Coolidge, about Ghengis Khan of
the Mongols, and they even had a song about The Phantom of
the Opera.
All-in-all, they had awesome songs, a cool
mascot (Eddie), and horrific teen-inspiring pictures of
torture and death! What more could a 14-year old want? As
I grew older, my tastes broadened somewhat. Now, I like just
about anything, from Garth to Handel, from
Tu-Pac to LeAnne, and from the Doors to Deicide. But what
will always remain is my sincere love and devotion for
those pioneers of Heavy Metal. A band that will always
exist in the hearts and minds of "Metal-heads" everywhere.
Iron Maiden is this band.
On these pages, you will find many references to Heavy Metal. The majority of it consists of Iron Maiden paraphernalia. But there are a few tid-bits from other bands. Take what you want from these pages, as the images and sounds are easily distributed on the internet.
Also on these pages, you will find all means and devices of decadence and dilapidation. So use the button-bar below and continue on....