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Quite Simply One Of the Most Impressive YouTube Projects I've Ever Seen

By Petr Navovy | Videos | June 3, 2022 |

By Petr Navovy | Videos | June 3, 2022 |

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I don’t think it’s exactly a secret that I’m a colossal fan of Iron Maiden. The lads from East London (sorry Bruce and Janick, that’ll always be the way to refer to you lot) are indisputably and without contest my favourite band of all time, with even the mighty Priest not having a hope of getting close to the levels of demented adoration I have for Maiden. I could go on for days and days about them, covering every facet from every angle and diving into obscure arcana with disproportionate detail. As I still have a shred of self-awareness remaining, though, I’ll refrain from doing that. At least not now.

What I will mention, as a means of segueing into what I’ve come here to post, is how much I love the drumming throughout Maiden’s discography. Whether it’s the solid, muscular groove of Clive Burr that powered their first three records, or my boy Nicko McBrain’s idiosyncratic, tom-happy, cinematic (if you need proof, look to ‘The Longest Day’ and ‘Empire of the Clouds’ as a start) perfection that has been an integral part of the band’s DNA since he first smashed his way into Maiden fans’ hearts with one of the greatest ‘Hi, I’m part of this band now’ intros of all time back in 1983, the percussion work on Iron Maiden records has never been less than phenomenal.

Nicko’s style in particular has evolved fascinatingly over the years along with Maiden’s sound, its emphasis going from a kinetic maelstrom to more of a grounded, colourful backbone. YouTuber and drummer David Winter decided to explore this evolution with a passion project that bleeds as much love, dedication, and skill as his hands must actual blood following its completion: A video that covers a segment of the drum part of every single studio Maiden album, up to and including the most recent release, ‘Senjutsu’. This is an absolutely insane piece of work, with David saying it took him 7 years in total to complete. I believe it. Mr. Winter, we salute you.