Posted on 07/20/2020 7:01:42 PM PDT by DoodleBob
In a brand new interview with TVMaldita, IRON MAIDEN drummer Nicko McBrain spoke about his 1999 conversion to Christianity and how being a Christian has affected his life as an artist.
"When I was a kid, I was very versed in Christianity — I went to Sunday school, and we had religious instruction as a lesson in schools in those days," he told host and fellow legendary drummer Aquiles Priester (see video below). "As I got older and I started to get wilder, religion didn't really play much of a [role] and I wasn't God-focused. In the '90s — probably '98, somewhere around there; maybe earlier — my wife was born again, and she started reading the Bible a lot. And she basically said, 'You wanna come to church with me one day?' And I said, 'Yeah, sure. I'll come with you.' And it was Sunday morning. I was sleeping. My wife thought, 'Is he coming? 'Cause I'm ready to go.' And I'll tell you what — it was as though God had gone like this: 'Get up. Come on. Enough.' So that was the first thing that I felt was really important. Anyway, we go to this church, and it was a little church, and I wasn't that impressed. It was all about raising funds and stuff. Now I know that to function and do charity work and missionary work, they need money. But this particular sermon wasn't cup of tea… Anyway, we went to a different church called Spanish River church. They had a chapel, and later on, they built a bigger church. The band was phenomenal. The music was just… I'd never been to a church where there was this contemporary rock music. And I remember standing, listening to this music, thinking, 'This is fantastic.' The pastor comes out, starts his sermon and he said a prayer. Normally, later on, he would close in prayer. And he basically said, 'Where you're standing now, ask God into your life. Ask Jesus Christ to come in there. Give your heart to him.' And I stood [with] closed eyes, and I swear that God and Jesus pushed me, and I kept moving forward as though I was being pushed over. I couldn't feel anything. And this is the God's honest truth — I thought, 'I haven't had a drink. I'm not in a hangover here.' I felt his presence. And right there and then, I gave my heart to God, and I asked Jesus in my life."
McBrain went on to admit that there have been times when he "turned away from the cross. And believe me, when you've gone focused and Jesus Christ-centered, it changes your life," he said. "I didn't stop drinking straight away — I still was partying. And then, looking at what happened to Bruce [Dickinson, IRON MAIDEN singer], when he had his cancer scare, and sitting on a plane with a serious hangover, basically, I said a prayer to God and said, 'Dear Lord, I promise I'm not gonna have another drink.' And that was five years and two months ago.
"The way it changed my life is it never makes you sinless, it makes you sin less," Nicko explained. "We've all got crosses to bear, baggage that we always hang around, and sometimes when you love the Lord, you read your Bible, you say your prayers to the governor, some of that baggage, all of a sudden it's gone. And it's a great savior for me."
A few years ago, McBrain spoke to Canada.com about how his faith allows him to play songs like "The Number Of The Beast", with lyrics like "666, the one for you and me." McBrain reasoned: "It's a story. If you look in the Book of Revelation, it tells you about all that, all that grief, all that business. And that, by the way, was a song written from a nightmare that [IRON MAIDEN bassist] Steve [Harris] had.
"I can tap people on the shoulder and say, 'I'm not glorifying him [the devil]'; if I was, then I wouldn't be Christian. Because I understand, and most Christian people understand, that sin is the Devil's domain, and the ultimate sin is death, but we have a way up, and that's where your faith and your Christianity comes into play. Sometimes I've had an opportunity to talk to people about my faith, and what I feel, and maybe that's the way the good Lord's working with me."
He continued: "To still be able to be in such a great band, where people think we're demonic or Satanic, most people that know and have a modicum of sense and intelligence know that not to be true. It doesn't take an Einstein to listen to the records and listen to the lyrics of the songs to know what's going on.
"Okay, so Eddie's the mascot of the band, right? And he's a… sort of… well, he's a demon, you know! He's whatever you want him to be, you know? I mean, listen here, look at the number of the Beast, here he is, the Devil's the puppet! But you know, we're not glorifying Eddie as being evil. It's just … he's just a cartoon character.
"But people can look at that and say, 'Wait a minute, Nick. How can you say you're a Christian [when] you're playing in a band that's got this kind of stuff going on?'"
Tapped to replace Clive Burr in 1982 after touring activities for "Number Of The Beast" concluded, McBrain brought a degree of finesse and technicality that was largely missing from IRON MAIDEN's early output. Whereas Burr was often lauded for his heavy-handed, punk-oriented style, McBrain was largely the opposite, playing with a degree of dexterity and flair that helped primary songwriter Steve Harris take MAIDEN down more adventurous paths. He is now the third longest-tenured member of MAIDEN, behind Harris and guitarist Dave Murray.
McBrain spent his early drumming years playing for the likes of Pat Travers and French rockers TRUST, eventually falling onto the radar of Harris and MAIDEN during the group's initial European tour.
Their sound has always been amazing. Guitar harmonies, amazing lyrics.
Just a great band through and through.
Not surprised to see you commenting on this one...
I've seen them three times. Only once were they a let down but Alice Cooper opened (and was the better band that night so it wasn't a loss).
How many classic bands still release good new material and play with the gusto of young punks? One.
I visit their YouTube channel every month or so too. Great link. I wear my Maiden gear often.
They’re my favorite band. I really like the historically significant songs too.
Had one chance to see Maiden in the late 80’s and was getting ready to leave for the show and something happened, I think weather related and the show got canceled. Never had another chance to go
“Ghost of the Navigator”... it makes my foot magically smash the gas pedal to the floor everytime...
No Prayer For The Dying...
Judas Be My Guide...
These Colors Don’t Run...
For The Greater Glory of God...
So many excellent songs. Makes me want to grab one of my guitars and crank the amp up to “11”... :^)
Check out their Flight 666 DVD sometime. Great show.
I like them too, Wasted Years, Run to the Hills, Paschendale (underrated IMHO).
Listening to No Prayer for the Dying right now... :^)
They never got the airplay they deserved. But they’re still huge in spite of that.
The one time you won’t see Bruce playing around is when discussing his piloting. Someone asked if he cut up in the cockpit and made jokes over the intercom and he gave a firm no without the hint of a smile. It’s also why he has the short hair.
I couldn’t agree more and while I know he’s been saved for 20+ years now I can still relate. I’ve been saved for 33 years and to this day I still like a lot of metal, especially older metal. Not just Iron Maiden, but a lot of thrash bands like Metallica, Megadeth, Testament, Overkill and many more. There are some I wont mess with at all but those are mainly along the lines of Morbid Angel or Deicide, as I see them as outright blasphemy.
One of my favorites as well.
While I'm on the subject, my favorite "born again" musician is Bobby Steele, leader of the Undead and ex-Misfits guitarist (from when they were good). He used to run a Friday evening live showcase at an evangelical church in North Jersey.
Here is Bobby with a Chris Christie shirt saying "My Governor Can Eat Your Governor." Still punk, and still Christian.
Yes, but did he play with madness???
(sorry if it’s already been said)
(well played)
If eternity should fail,
Tears of a clown
For the greater good of God
Alexander the great
Transylvania
Also check out Sabaton
82nd all the way
Bismarck
resist and bite
metal machine
Lifetime of war
Last stand
Last battle
Etc
They are the biggest band in the world. They have no one that compares to them.
Your moniker reveals it.
I am a Christian and I like Iron Maiden, it goes way back.
I am also a guitar player so....
I see dark sadistic music as a fair warning of sorts...it’s more of a mocking of the devil and mans’s foolishness to me, rather than just evil.
It only reveals more our need for Jesus.
Everything that is not God, points to the need for God.
And yes, they rock.
See you Sunday..
It was supposed to mock Trump...FAIL!
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