Product Details

• Actors: Blaze Bayley
• Format: AC-3, Color, DVD, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: All Regions
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Metal Mind
• DVD Release Date: August 28, 2007
• Run Time: 145 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B000RMJ4C6
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #248,841 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

BLAZE BAYLEY:ALIVE IN POLAND - DVD Movie

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars No recommended, July 29, 2008

By 

M. Fonseca "carmarthen" (Thunder) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Alive in Poland (DVD)

It suffers from the modern trend of editing the bloody thing so fast that you'll suffer a headache. Also, amazing Blaze guitarists Wray and Slater are gone. (although the guitar work in the new album THE MAN WHO WOULD NOT DIE is very good). Buy at your own risk

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Blaze - Bayley - Is - ALIVE!!", April 8, 2010

By 

vikingfuneral (Texas) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Alive in Poland (DVD)

First, I'll go ahead and do Amazon's job for them and provide the product info that should be listed for this DVD:

Concert: Total Time: 1:31:57
1. Intro-0:49
2. Speed of Light-4:22
3. The Brave-3:33
4. Futureal-2:43
Blaze (Alive intro)-2:20
5. Alive-4:08
Blaze (Tough as steel intro)-1:31
6. Tough as Steel-4:44
7. Man on the Edge-5:13
8. Virus-6:19
Blaze (10 Seconds intro)-0:41
9. 10 Seconds-5:41
10. Two Worlds Collide-7:42
11. Look for the Truth-6:06
Blaze (Kill & Destroy intro): 1:30
12. Kill & Destroy-4:44
13. Silicon Messiah-6:09
14. 10th Dimension-6:09
Encore-0:30
15. Sign of the Cross-9:28
16. Born as a Stranger-6:42
Stage exit band interviews-0:53

Blaze Interview:41:43

Band Interview: 10:13

Additional special features: "Hollow Head" video clip; Photo Gallery; Band Biographies; Blaze Discography; 6 page color insert booklet with band photos.

Now on to the review of the DVD: IT ROCKS!! I've watched it several times, and enjoy it more each time. If you are a fan of Blaze (or perhaps unfamiliar with his work and looking for a place to start), or of Iron Maiden (how could anyone NOT be a fan of Iron Maiden??), or just good music, and especially live concerts, you need to own this DVD. This DVD is "As Live As It Gets" (to borrow the title of Blaze's earlier live CD, which frankly is not nearly as good or as "Live" as this DVD, due to poor editing). Blaze is really playing to the crowd here, and his earnestness and sincerity truly shine through. He and his band are very gracious towards Poland and the Polish metal fans, and you can tell that the people really do appreciate it (as an American it kind of makes me sad to consider just how stifling and drab life is in communist/socialist countries that they react so strongly to just the little hint of freedom that rock n' roll music signifies). Blaze is constantly interacting with the crowd throughout, often prefacing the songs with interesting expository intros, explaining what the songs are about or telling little stories that segue into the song titles. The song "10 Seconds" starts out with a nice little bass intro/crowd teaser, and during "Look for the Truth" Blaze gets down from the stage and goes up to the front row of the audience, shaking hands and high-fiving the crowd, all while simultaneously rendering in letter perfect fashion the intense and melancholy opening lines of the song, a really nice moment that displays his skill, professionalism, and genuine empathy with the audience as well as the sincerity of his music. Other highlights of this all around great show include an absolutely rockin' version of "Alive", a passionate rendition of "Silicon Messiah", and a solid delivery of "Man on the Edge" extended out with a nice crowd teasing/fist pumping intro.

The extras on the DVD are worthwhile, the centerpiece being the 42 minute interview with Blaze in which he talks about his early days with Wolfsbane, lengthy discourse on his time with Maiden (I found particularly interesting his mention of the fact that when Steve Harris first introduced his ideas for "Sign of the Cross" and tried to explain the song to Blaze and the other Maiden members, none of them could even understand what he was talking about), and discussion of his solo albums up to that point. The band interview, while much shorter, is nevertheless also interesting and informative.

Which brings me to a point I would like to address: with all due respect to the opinions of the other reviewers, Blaze's band here is just not that bad. I admit that I myself used to think that they were holding Blaze back, and indeed several of them are awfully young (the drummer and one of the guitarists have since been replaced anyway). Yes they do make some evident mistakes during this show (which as far as I'm concerned just makes it that much more live), and on some of the more difficult Maiden tunes (i.e., "Virus", "Sign of the Cross"), no they don't quite pull it off. But let's be fair-who are you going to find that CAN duplicate Iron Maiden? Uh, like, maybe... NOBODY?? Of Course these guys are not going to be able to reproduce Maiden; it is unrealistic to expect them (or anyone else) to do so. But at least they are willing to try, and on some of the "simpler" songs (if there is such a thing as a simple Maiden song) like "Look for the Truth" or "Two Worlds Collide" they actually do a pretty good job. At least give them an E for effort (and the Bermudez brothers, particularly David on bass, I think does a really good job here). Compared to what otherwise passes for "music" nowadays, Blaze and his band are all over it, the top of the heap (Blaze actually sings, not just screams, and both of his guitarists actually play LEADs, not just chords and riffs).

With that said, I do admit that the shortened version of "Sign of the Cross" is a bit of a disappointment. Up to the point where they skip the middle part, they had been doing a somewhat uneven, but still passable, version, and the short passage just prior to the bridge (the part they left out in this version) they had done really well, with the Bermudez brothers doing it just like Steve and Davy do on "Rock in Rio", standing next to each other watching each others' guitars to get the timing right. Yes it is unfortunate that they didn't play the whole thing (if Blaze wanted to do an edited version of a Maiden song, he should have played "The Angel & the Gambler", now there's a song that needs some paring down), but ok, all it means is that Blaze's band, though good and giving their all, is not Iron Maiden. But we already knew that, and "not being Iron Maiden" isn't a crime.

So don't sweat it, and by all means do not let that one fact dissuade you. This is an excellent DVD and an absolutely awesome show by a great singer and a lively, energetic band. Buy it now, you won't have time to regret it, you'll be too busy rockin' and headbangin'.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Blaze Bayley is on, band is off, April 20, 2008

By 

maiden rule! "Maiden Rule" (IDaho) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Alive in Poland (DVD)

I was hesitant to buy this DVD because of the new band. I understand that the new band went through a lot of work to learn songs from Blaze and Maiden era. So with that said, I will be skeptical purchasing Blaze Bayley's new album based on this performance. The drummer is the worst of the bunch here but fortunately he was replaced in time for the new album? The rest of the band is just ok but no match to Blaze's powerful voice which was ON! -saving this live performance. I give 5 stars because of Blaze's outstanding vocals and showmanship -after all- it is called Blaze Bayley!

highlights: Alive, The Brave, Man on the Edge, Futureal, Ten Seconds, Virus, Look for the Truth, Born as a Stranger - all played well and of course Blaze Bayley himself.

lows: the horrible version of the Sign of the Cross although again Blaze was so ON! (I don't like songs being shortened because of lack of ability to play all difficult parts), Silicon Messiah, Tenth Dimension. Thankfully they didn't play Stare at the Sun here probably only to butcher it too.

side notes: The camera editing was all over the place and could of been focused more on who was playing what during guitar solos. For instance, when a guitar solo is played, why the focus in on the bass player?
The extra video of Hollow Head is definitely a plus.
I firmly believe Blaze deserves a much better band.

This DVD is worth it and deserves no less than 5 stars because Blaze music is prob the best metal out there in this century.