Rating: 
Summary: Interesting concept, needs better execution...
Review: Not strictly a concert video, Iron Maiden's "Raising Hell" combines a live concert with a theatrical show. Interspersed between the heavy metal barrage that is Iron Maiden, are theatrical productions and magic tricks, with a "horror" theme. These interludes, performed by illusionist Simon Drake, do get a bit gory at times, and break up the continuity of a "normal" concert. This style of presentation may not appeal to everyone.The performance taped in 1993 at Pinewood Studios in London, features Bruce Dickinson, Steve Harris, Dave Murray, Nicko McBrain and Janick Gers, performing material up to the "Fear Of The Dark" release. This was apparently Bruce's last performance with Maiden in the 90's, before splitting, at least temporarily, for a solo career. Unfortunately, the quality of sound mix is uneven, and on some songs, Dickinson's vocals can barely be made out over the sound of the guitars. One wonders how this could have happened. As this is his final performance, Bruce doesn't save his voice when singing a number like "The Trooper". The trouble is we can't always hear him. The guitar sound is cranked up right in front, and Harris's bass and McBrain's drums are also overpowered at times in the mix. Overall the video presentation is not bad, we do get to see the band from various angles, but it could have been better. We see too much of the audience, especially on some of the shots of the front of the stage, the angle is low and the heads and upraised arms of the members of the audience fill the bottom of the screen. The song selection is a good mix of newer songs and classic favorites. As expected songs from the most recent release are prominent. "Be Quick Or Be Dead", "Fear of the Dark" and "Afraid to Shoot Strangers" are welcome additions to the set which includes staples like "Hallowed Be Thy Name", "Wrathchild" and "Iron Maiden". Also included are songs from the later Adrian Smith period, "The Evil That Men Do", "Heaven Can Wait" and "The Clairvoyant". A nice blend of songs from the band's entire history. This is also an opportunity to see "new" guitarist Janick Gers, who is definitely more active on stage than Adrian Smith. He has the material down and has no problems with the harmony guitar parts. On some songs he show himself capable of a pretty good imitation of Smith's original solos. His own soloing style is less melodic and relies more on speed and flash. No one plays guitar like Dave Murray. His trill filled soloing style is unique, and has become a signature of the Iron Maiden sound. The man is outstanding here, as his fingers blaze across the fretboard like lightning. He appears a more confident musician than in the past, with more of a stage presence than before. Very nice to see him step forward this way. In the mix, his solos always seem louder than Janick's. While the presentation may not be to everyone's liking, and the sound mix could have certainly been better, "Raising Hell" does have its good points. Bruce and the boys do give an energetic performance. Iron Maiden are one of the pioneers of British metal, and you get some of their best songs in the DVD format. Both Bruce Dickinson, and Adrian Smith have since rejoined Maiden, and a DVD release of concert material is supposed to be forthcoming. Until then, this will have to suffice.
Rating: 
Summary: A great trip of rock and camp!
Review: Okay, maybe I'm easily amused, but the horror illusion sequences I found incredibly campy and I just laughed with them...I didn't take it seriously. I'm not sure why they chose to do this, but I really have no complaints either, maybe because they kept them short. I've only seen the band live once, back in 1985 when they were huge in the States, and was shocked at how small this venue seems...the set is amazing, the performances great, the crowd response energized. I have no regrets about this purchase. PS: I agree about the strange sound mix. I'm not impressed with that.
Rating: 
Summary: Some decisions by Maiden simply amazes me...
Review: Some decisions by Maiden simply amazes me... It seems that sometimes they dont'know how ridiculous they can be. This once majestic band decided to release a show mixed with a magician presentation. Alright, I'm not against innovations... But to release a show featuring the tour when Bruce Dickinson had already decided to leave, when the atmosphere amongst the band member were not good due to that (check their official biography, RUN TO THE HILLS) is not a ver clever choice. Also, to face that guy Janick Gers is a real test of perseverance. He's the most untalented guitarist ever to front a mega band. I think he runs and runs around to disguise his lack of playing.
The magic part is ludicrous, annoying, childish. this show is all cliche and no quality. Skip it and stick to LIVE AFTER DEATH, or, even better, the show at The Rainbow with Paul Di'anno.
Rating: 
Summary: raising hell
Review: the best of the world! Up the irons!
Rating:
Summary: Maiden great, Drake laughable, 5.1 awful
Review: The concert is very enjoyable, but do not even attempt to listen to the 5.1 mix. The 2.0 sounds fine with great separation of Dave and Janick. I know the 5.1 is awful by any standard, but I am not sure any concert is really meant to listen to in the 5.1 format- I haven't found one yet. I think all concerts sound better in regular stereo. As for the horror, the first time through is funny, but you can easily skip it on repeated viewings on DVD. No Live After Death, but they look and sound great and it is an inexpensive DVD.
Rating:
Summary: Not a bad concert. The DVD, on the other hand...
Review: The minute I saw this on DVD I grabbed it. It wasn't expensive and the idea of a digital 5.1 remix was appealing. So, I opened the case and looked at the underside of the disc: dual-layered. "This isn't just going to sound great, it'll look great, too.", I thought. Let the concert begin! Right away I noticed the 5.1 mix was a bit off. What happened to Bruce? Switched to the 2.0 stereo track and suddenly I could hear the lyrics. After watching the whole concert in 2.0 I went back to make sure the 5.1 mix wasn't just bad at the beginning. Nope. This thing was terrible all the way through. If this is "remastered", give me a good, old-fashioned, two channel PCM track anyday. Of course, they didn't include a PCM track, opting instead for a tolerable, but unimpressive 192kb/s DD track. As this is a concert, video quality should take a backseat to audio. However, with the audio is such poor condition, there's really nothing left but the video. Surprise of surprises, it doesn't fare much better than the 5.1 remix. I know the quick editing, constantly changing lighting, and rapid movement make compression a hard task, but there's no excuse for this level of artifacting. On a dual-layer disc, a 113 minute running time and a total of only 576kb/s dedicated to audio there's a great deal of room for a higher video bitrate. I don't care how foggy the stage is or how quickly the camera passes over the crowd, this is sloppy work, plain and simple. If you're a die hard Iron Maiden fan, you may enjoy this, as the concert itself is entertaining. However, a casual viewer looking for a good concert video to show off their sound system with will want to look elsewhere.
Rating: 
Summary: Disappointing
Review: The so called 5.1 is terrible. I could not hear any vocals. I had to play it on regular two channel stereo for it sound descent at all. The special effects in between songs were cheesy. The band can still jam, but the DVD was poorly mixed. I's rather just listen to one of their CDs.
Rating:
Summary: Better than Rock in Rio
Review: THIS DVD IS GREAT. IT SHOWS MAIDEN AT THEIR BEST WITH MAGIC IN BETWEEN. THE ONLY THING IS DICKINSON'S VOCALS ARE A LITTLE DROWNED OUT. HOWEVER THIS IS STILL A HARD HITTING AWESOME PREFORMANCE. AND HAS A GREAT SET LIST, GET THIS INSTED OF "ROCK IN RIO" IT'S WELL WORTH IT
Rating:
Summary: Awesome DVD
Review: This DVD is sick... The sound quality is not the best but the quality of the video makes up for it. Check out the set design too... It's soo good.
Rating:
Summary: Good show, okay sound
Review: This dvd suffers from a bad sound mix. If you have a good 5.1 sound system you can adjust your center channel to compensate however. That's why I give it 4 stars despite the out of the box muddled mix. Otherwise stick with the stereo track, which to me sounds flat in comparison. I liked the magic show. I don't know why alot of the reviewers are giving Simon a hard time. Yes the acts are cheesy, but what magic isn't. Simon takes the role of macabre host and makes it his own. His antics are short and serve to slice up the music segments just enough to keep things hoping without interfering with the flow. Cut the guy some slack. He helps take what could be just another concert to the next level. The horror aspect is the whole point of this dvd, it's something different. It's perfect for a good halloween get together, or for any time you are in a mood for music with ambience. If you don't like the magic show, get Rock In Rio instead and be done with it.
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