Editing Virtual XI (section)

==Songs==
Stylistically, Bayley states that ''Virtual XI'' "was a more upbeat album [in comparison to its predecessor], because we'd survived the ''X-Factor''... we were a band and, I felt, we were on our way."<ref>{{cite book|last1=Paterson|first1=Lawrence|author-link=Lawrence Paterson|title=Blaze Bayley: At the End of the Day|publisher=Blaze Bayley Recordings Ltd.|year=2009|page=69}}</ref> According to Harris, "[[Futureal]]", whose lyrics were written by Bayley, is "about being locked up in virtual reality", and describes it as "a quite straightforward rocker but done Maiden style."<ref name="Wall 317">{{cite book|author=Wall, Mick|author-link=Mick Wall|title=Iron Maiden: Run to the Hills, the Authorised Biography|edition=3rd|publisher=Sanctuary Publishing|year=2004|isbn=1-86074-542-3|page=317}}</ref> Regarding the album's second single, manager [[Rod Smallwood]] claims that he "had a bit of a battle with Steve" over releasing "Futureal" instead of "[[The Angel and the Gambler]]" as the album's lead single, but "Steve put his foot down."<ref name="Wall 317"/> According to Harris, "The Angel and the Gambler" "is the story of these two characters, one guy who's been a bit of a rogue, a fly by night, and an angel who gets sent down to try and put him right – except he isn't having it."<ref name="Wall 317"/>

Of the album's remaining songs, "Lightning Strikes Twice" is, according to Harris, "a never say never-type song&nbsp;... It's a very positive, hopeful song which you can read in lots of different ways."<ref name="Wall 318">{{cite book|author=Wall, Mick|author-link=Mick Wall|title=Iron Maiden: Run to the Hills, the Authorised Biography|edition=3rd|publisher=Sanctuary Publishing|year=2004|isbn=1-86074-542-3|page=318}}</ref> "The Clansman" was inspired by the film ''[[Braveheart]]''<ref>{{cite journal|title=The Rest of the Beast|journal=Kerrang! Legends|first=Simon|last=Young|issue=2|pages=124–126}}</ref> which Harris states is "about what it's like to belong to a community that you try and build up and then you have to fight to stop having it taken away from you".<ref name="Wall 318"/> Speaking about "When Two Worlds Collide", Harris says, "Lyrically, I think Blaze was trying to write about the different sort of worlds he's lived in and maybe about how his world has had to change and adapt to the world of being Iron Maiden's singer."<ref name="Wall 318"/> "The Educated Fool" is, according to Harris, about "growing older and everyone expecting you to be wiser but how somehow the older you get and the more you know, the less you have the answers for any of it."<ref name="Wall 318"/> "Don't Look to the Eyes of a Stranger" is inspired by Steve Harris' observation, from a parent's point of view, that "every stranger is a possible threat",<ref name="Wall 319">{{cite book|author=Wall, Mick|author-link=Mick Wall|title=Iron Maiden: Run to the Hills, the Authorised Biography|edition=3rd|publisher=Sanctuary Publishing|year=2004|isbn=1-86074-542-3|page=319}}</ref> while "Como Estais Amigos" is a tribute to the soldiers on both sides in the [[Falklands War]];<ref>{{cite book|last1=Paterson|first1=Lawrence|author-link=Lawrence Paterson|title=Blaze Bayley: At the End of the Day|publisher=Blaze Bayley Recordings Ltd.|year=2009|page=70}}</ref> its lyrics were written by Bayley and the music by Gers, making this the first Iron Maiden album where Steve Harris did not write or co-write the final song.

After [[Bruce Dickinson]] rejoined the band, Iron Maiden continued to play both "Futureal" and "The Clansman" in concert. While "Futureal" was only performed live in 1999, "The Clansman" appeared in the group's setlists until 2003; it was also used during 2018's [[Legacy of the Beast World Tour|Legacy of the Beast]] tour. Live recordings of both songs with Dickinson on vocals have been released officially: "Futureal" was issued as a B-side to "[[The Wicker Man (song)|The Wicker Man]]" single, while performances of "The Clansman" can be found on the live albums ''[[Rock in Rio (album)|Rock in Rio]]'' and ''[[Nights of the Dead]]''. The ''Rock in Rio'' recording was also included on Iron Maiden's 2011 compilation CD ''[[From Fear to Eternity (album)|From Fear to Eternity]]''.

Four songs that were written during the sessions for ''Virtual XI'' ended up on its follow-up ''[[Brave New World (Iron Maiden album)|Brave New World]]'': "Nomad", "Dream of Mirrors", "Mercenary" and "Blood Brothers".

[[Blaze Bayley]] recorded solo versions of "Futureal" and "When Two Worlds Collide" on his live album ''[[As Live as It Gets]]''. He regularly performs the album's closing song "Como Estais Amigos" in concert, a song which never appeared on any Iron Maiden setlist.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.setlist.fm/stats/songs/blaze-bayley-3bd680d0.html?songid=23d1781b|title=Como estais amigos by Blaze Bayley Concert Statistics &#124; setlist.fm|website=setlist.fm}}</ref>

The track "The Clansman" was sampled by singer [[Brandy Norwood|Brandy]] in her song [[Afrodisiac (Brandy album)|"I Tried"]].<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.blabbermouth.net/news/pop-singer-brandy-samples-iron-maiden-audio-available/|title=Pop Singer Brandy Samples Iron Maiden|access-date=28 November 2011|date=29 June 2004|publisher=[[Blabbermouth.net]]}}</ref>