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I have often wondered why anyone would want to try and fill the
shoes of a vocalist in a major band. I mean just look at all the
undeserved rubbish some of which gets far too personal, that artists
like Blaze Bayley, Tim 'Ripper' Owens and Andi Deris have had to endure
from the fans and media, as they must already be under such enormous pressure
to live up to expectations. Sure, it would be a great buzz to be a
member of such a band, but is it really worth it?
Blaze Bayley's voice may not be for everyone, but the two Iron Maiden albums he appeared on being The X Factor and Virtual XI
didn't exactly feature their best material overall, or set the world
on fire did they? So why does he deserve so much flack? Is his
voice really that bad? I don't think so.
Tim 'Ripper' Owens has a great voice, though I can't really comment on his Priest
contributions as I lost interest in the band before he joined, but
even though I may be in the minority I really enjoyed his time and
what he brought to Iced Earth. Ripper really gelled with their music
but in the end his time was cut short, to be replaced by former
vocalist Matt Barlow.
Helloween's Andi Deris also had big shoes to fill replacing Michael
Kiske, but Andi has done an admirable job, Master of the Rings is
still one of my favorites from the band. As Michael Kiske has said before,
he's not interested in singing in a metal band anymore, even though
he still seems to lend his voice to metal related projects.
I know fans are passionate, some to the extreme about their music,
and sure I have been upset in the past like when Michael Kiske left
Helloween, or Tarja was axed from Nightwish, and not to mention
Damien Wilson leaving Threshold, that's amongst others I could go on
with. I would love for them all to still to be in their respective
bands, but it isn't going to happen, and I'm still enjoying the
music from all parties.
A band could easily just call it a day, or persist with line-up
problems but the effects of such a move wont benefit their material,
so instead change happens and sometimes it works and others it
doesn't for the better, and if so we have plenty of other choices
available. Too much negativity doesn't help anyone.
Scott Jessup
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