In celebration of the launch of Iron Maiden's 16th studio album, I went back and reviewed the discography of my all time favorite band. The review is in chronological order with my grade given to each album (maximum of 10) . At the end a "forced" rank of the 16th studio releases.
Soundhouse Tapes (1979) - N/A
The Soundhouse Tapes, the debut EP by Iron Maiden, was released on Nov/1979, it features three songs: "Prowler", "Iron Maiden" (both would appear in their debut LP) and
"Invasion" (which would later be in the Women in Uniform single).
It's easy to understand how this EP served as the springboard to their early success. The songs were relatively short but the riffs, twin guitar and galloping bass which formed the basis of their sound were already present. We also can see how a skillful songwriter Harris already was: great melodies, intros, bridges and awesome choruses. Dave Murray was already delivering very melodic solos.
Iron Maiden (1980) - 9.5
Mainly written by Harris, the debut LP featured 8 songs (4 on each side which would be their choice for many of the 80s albums) and 37 minutes.
The same comments from the EP apply here. The influence of Paul Di'Anno surely made the first songs more raw sounding and fast. It's known that he was a Punk fan. But the LP had already much more variety than what the EP showed. Interestingly, the two slower songs "Remember Tomorrow" and "Strange World" were co-written with Paul. And "Transylvania" was their first instrumental song. Also the progressive tendencies, tempo changes, and non-fixed-song-structure were already being born mainly with "Phantom of the Opera" in its 7m20s. Their first album already had their mascot Eddie on the cover by the artist Derek Riggs who would be the author of all Maiden covers until 1992. Certainly one of the top debut albums in heavy metal history.
Favorite Song: "Charlotte the Harlot"
Killers (1981) - 9.0
Soundhouse Tapes (1979) - N/A
The Soundhouse Tapes, the debut EP by Iron Maiden, was released on Nov/1979, it features three songs: "Prowler", "Iron Maiden" (both would appear in their debut LP) and
"Invasion" (which would later be in the Women in Uniform single).
It's easy to understand how this EP served as the springboard to their early success. The songs were relatively short but the riffs, twin guitar and galloping bass which formed the basis of their sound were already present. We also can see how a skillful songwriter Harris already was: great melodies, intros, bridges and awesome choruses. Dave Murray was already delivering very melodic solos.
Iron Maiden (1980) - 9.5
Mainly written by Harris, the debut LP featured 8 songs (4 on each side which would be their choice for many of the 80s albums) and 37 minutes.
The same comments from the EP apply here. The influence of Paul Di'Anno surely made the first songs more raw sounding and fast. It's known that he was a Punk fan. But the LP had already much more variety than what the EP showed. Interestingly, the two slower songs "Remember Tomorrow" and "Strange World" were co-written with Paul. And "Transylvania" was their first instrumental song. Also the progressive tendencies, tempo changes, and non-fixed-song-structure were already being born mainly with "Phantom of the Opera" in its 7m20s. Their first album already had their mascot Eddie on the cover by the artist Derek Riggs who would be the author of all Maiden covers until 1992. Certainly one of the top debut albums in heavy metal history.
Favorite Song: "Charlotte the Harlot"
Killers (1981) - 9.0
Less than one year after the debut, Killers was released with the difficult mission to follow-up the great predecessor. This time with 10 songs, including two instrumental songs: "Genghis Khan" and the intro "The Ides of March" (something that many bands still use but Maiden moved away from it). Adrian Smith took the place of Dennis Stratton on the guitars. His influence on the their sound was still limited (all songs were written by Harris, except the tittle track which was co-written with Di'Anno). Steve's bass is very prominent with great opening riffs in "Wrathchild" and "Killers". "Purgatory" and "Drfter" are great songs too, fast, melodic and heavy. Here we saw Steve giving Paul some hard ones to sing - a glimpse of why someone like Bruce would be needed. "Murders in the Rue Morgue" is another fast and fantastic track. Overall Killers sounds even rawer and more direct than the first album. The twin guitars, epicness and progressiveness were less apparent. Another notable difference is "Prodigal Son" which features an interesting acoustic guitar. The album was also the debut of Martin Birch as producer, a partnership that would last until 1992. Even if not as good as the first album, Killers is a great disc.
Favorite Song: "Murders in the Rue Morgue"
The Number of the Beast (1982) - 10
Just one year after Killers, one of the most acclaimed metal album of all times was released. Back to the 4 songs on each side format and almost ticking 40 minutes, the album was again mainly written by Harris. Despite the fact that this was Bruce Dickinson's debut in Maiden, what's very important for their sound is the fact that Adrian Smith already co-wrote 3 songs (2 with Harris and 1 with the drummer Clive Burr in his last album). The Harris/Smith duo delivered two of the best Maiden songs ever: "The Prisoner" and "22 Acacia Avenue". "Gangland" is not that great, but it doesn't interfere the overall experience. This was the first album without an instrumental song. All in all, "The Number of the Beast" is perfection, one of the best albums of all times. All songs are masterpieces and "Children of the Damned" one of my all time favorites. The arrival of Bruce and his amazing vocal range and technique gave Harris the freedom he wanted to combine heaviness and power with melody and progressiveness. The guitar duo Murray/Smith was like a perfect marriage and by now the riffs, solos and twin guitars rose to new levels. I mean, how perfect is the solo sequence of the title track?! Like their debut The Number closes with a 7 min epic track "Hallowed Be Thy Name" (one of the best album closer of all times).
Favorite Song: "Children of the Damned"
Piece of Mind (1983) - 10
With their 4th LP, Maiden reached its classical line-up with the arrival of Nicko McBrain on the drums. This was the first album with a variety of writing credits. Out of the 9 songs, Harris wrote 3 songs and co-wrote other 3 . Bruce contributed in 3 songs, Adrian in 3 and Dave Murray in "Still Life". Piece of Mind doesn't have a title track which is very rare in their overall discography. However the words 'piece of mind' are spoken in the amazing "Still Life" song just before the guitar solo. This song also features a backwards message as intro. The album breaks the 40 min mark for the first time with 45 min and 3 songs above 6 min, including another epic closer "To Tame a Land". The album features mega hits and some of their best songs ever: "Where Eagles Dare" (Nicko showed what he was bringing!), "Flight Of The Icarus", "Revelations" and "The Trooper". By an incredible small margin Piece of Mind is not their best album. Maybe if they had gone with 8 songs...
Favorite Song: "Where Eagles Dare"
Powerslave (1984) - 10
Isn't Powerslave's cover perfect? Back when I was 8, I was fascinated by it. Honestly, that's how I got this album in the first place. Many consider Eddie and Maiden's art work as one of the reasons for their success. Based on my personal experience, I agree. Regarding the music, Maiden's 5th release went back to the 4 songs on each side format. Powerslave is a very direct and powerful album, no slow songs, no slow intros, lots of galloping bass and twin guitars. Bruce was singing brilliantly and the guitar solos are just great. With that said, their sound continued to evolve, now pushing the total length to just above 50 min with 4 songs above 6 min, including their longest track yet, the fantastic epic closer "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" by Harris with almost 14 min! Harris also wrote 3 other songs including "Losfer Words (Big 'Orra)" the first instrumental song since 81 and their best one. Other two songs were written by Bruce and the other two by the Smith/Dickinson duo, including the huge hit "2 Minutes to Midnight". "Flash Of The Blade" blew my little 8-year-old mind and continue to do so to this day. "Aces High" is one of their best ever. In sum Powerslave can easily be considered their best album, it's a masterpiece and all songs are just great.
Favorite Song: "Rime of the Ancient Mariner"
Somewhere in Time (1986) - 10
For the first time since their debut, Harris and company took a one year break from the studio. In 1985 they focused on the massive World Slavery Tour and the release of one of the best live albums of heavy music: Live After Death. Then in 86 they recorded and released Somewhere in Time. Its format is similar to Powerslave (4 songs each side, just above 50 min, 4 songs over 6 min and an epic closer) but this was the biggest leap they made to that date into a more progressive sound, including the use of keyboards. Reflecting the burnout of the huge 84/85 tour, this album has just one song with more than one writer, "Deja-Vu" by Murray/Harris. Adrian Smith stepped up and delivered 3 songs by himself and those are some of my all time Maiden favorites: "Wasted Years", "Sea of Madness" and "Stranger in a Strange Land". Harris wrote 3 other songs above 7 minutes: "Caught Somewhere in Time", "Heaven Can Wait" and the epic 8:35-minute long "Alexander the Great". Harris also wrote "The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner". Differently than the last 2 albums, Bruce doesn't have any writing credits in this one. And as previously and maybe even more here the riffs and guitar solos are memorable, the bridges and choruses are powerful and melodic. Perfection! When forced to rank, I must put Somewhere as Maiden's best album.
Favorite Song: "Sea of Madness"
Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (1998) - 10
Seventh Son of a Seventh Son closes what it is probably the best sequence of albums in the history of music (at least heavy). Basically from 82 to 88 - The Number, Piece of Mind, Powerslave, Somewhere and 7th Son are virtually at the same incredibly high level of perfection. Their seventh studio album is a transitional one though. On the one hand the progressiveness seen in the previous album is clearly there in 3 songs mainly: "Moonchild" (and its keyboard intro), "Infinite Dreams" (my all-time favorite Maiden song) and the epic almost 10 min long title track. On the other hand and very differently from Somewhere, the other 5 tracks are very short and with no more than 5 min, including their hit single "Can I Play with Madness" which is their shortest song since 1982's "Invaders". Those are more direct songs like the other hit single "The Evil That Men Do". Harris this time wrote or co-wrote all songs except "Moonchild" by Smith/Dickinson. Bruce got back into writing songs and co-wrote 4 songs. 7th Son is also a masterpiece that closed an era.
Favorite Song: "Infinite Dreams"
No Prayer For The Dying (1990) - 8.5
Instead of continuing the progressive path, Harris decided to take the route of a more direct and raw sound already seen in some of the songs in the 7th Son album. This dichotomy led to the first lineup change since 1983 with Adrian leaving the band and replaced by Janick Gers who worked with Bruce in his solo album. For the first time since Killers, a Maiden album had 10 short songs 43 minutes which was a drastic change from everything they were doing during the 80s. The writing credits go mainly to Harris and Dickinson. Murray participated in 2 songs and Adrian still left his mark with "Hooks in You". Gers did not participate in the writing process. The style of Gers is very different from Adrian's, specially when it comes to the solos. Also the twin guitars are less prominent in NPFTD. Some of the songs are just too simple and not as memorable as in the 80's. Still there are some great songs like: "Tailgunner", "Holy Smoke", "No Prayer for the Dying", "Bring Your Daughter... to the Slaughter" and "Mother Russia". Not to the same level as any of the 80's album, NPFTD is still a good album and would be on my top 5 albums of that year. It's just that the bar that Maiden set to themselves is too damn high!
Favorite Song: "No Prayer for the Dying"
Fear Of The Dark (1992) - 8.0
Fear of the Dark is the ninth studio album released by Maiden. It was the last to feature Bruce Dickinson as lead vocalist until his return in 1999 and his worse album with Maiden.
Many other things changed with this album: Eddie was not drew by Derick Riggs, it was the longest album to date with almost 60-min and 12 songs (clearly influenced by the rise of the CD and decay of the Vinyl). It was the first album to be produced by Harris, and last to feature the work of producer Martin Birch (who retired after its release). Musically there were also changes. Gers co-writing 5 tracks, his first with Maiden. Besides Harris, Bruce and Dave also co-wrote songs, 5 and 2 respectively. Already in the previous album we could hear Bruce singing slightly differently, and this change was consolidated in 1992. If you check the live albums from that time you can certainly hear the difference. He wasn't going for high notes as much and using much more his throat to a less clear singing. Fear of the Dark is not a bad album, it does have some different but great songs: "Be Quick or Be Dead", "From Here to Eternity", and "Afraid to Shoot Strangers" (the best of the album). And of course the title track became very popular but I personally do not like it as much. It sucks that they play it in every single live show even when any song from the 80's is better. "Wasting Love" by Dickinson/Gers was a very different tune and the closest thing Maiden wrote to a ballad. It is a very good song and probably the best guitar solo Gers wrote.
Favorite Song: "Afraid to Shoot Strangers"
The X Factor (1995) - 8.5
The first Maiden album without Bruce since 1981 Killers and the band's first album to include Blaze Bayley. All in all it is a good album but so different from anything Maiden had ever done that maybe it should've been released under a different band name. The album is very dark and obviously the singing style and range from Bayley are so different from Bruce's that Harris probably had to adapt his writing to it. On the bright side, he took the opportunity to experiment. The album is yet longer than the predecessor, breaking the 1 hr barrier for the first time. It is much more progressive than the last two albums and with 5 songs above 6 minutes, including the dark and beautiful 11-min "Sign of the Cross" by Harris. Steve actually wrote or co-wrote every song except the very good "Man on the Edge" by "Bayley/Gers". Bayley actually co-wrote 5 songs and Gers 7! Another great track is "Lord of the Flies" which the live version with Bruce is as good as the 80's songs. This is the first album since Piece of Mind that there's no title track. If you didn't like this album, the worse was yet to come...
Favorite Song: "Lord of the Flies"
Virtual XI (1998) - 6.5
While the other 90's albums, even if not at the level of the 80's, were good, the same can't be said about Virtual XI which by far is the worse album that Maiden has even done. Not only in relative terms but also in absolute terms, it's just boring and uninspired. The album is not as long as X Factor and it went back to only 8 songs, but almost all of them quite long. The only two songs worth listening are "Futureal" and "The Clansman" (even better in the 1999 live version with Bruce). "The Angel and the Gambler" is the worst song ever written by Harris and also the worst recorded by Maiden period. During the Bayley period Bruce got together with Adrian Smith and released two fantastic metal albums Accident of Birth (1997) and The Chemical Wedding (1998). I'm sure those put further pressure on Harris to get his act together. If anything Virtual XI greatest accomplishment was to shake things up and get the band back on track.
Favorite Song: "Futureal"
Brave New World (2000) - 9.0
When Maiden faced the bifurcation during 7th Son they decided to take the raw/direct approach of 1990's NPFTD. However, Brave New World would have been the natural follow-up of 7th Son had they taken the progressive route instead. But for Brave New World to be possible, Adrian and Bruce had to experiment with their solo careers and confirm that heavy metal is really what they are good at. The same goes for Harris who had to try new things and experiment with Virtual XI and X Factor to re-find his progressive passion. Like X Factor Maiden's twelfth album broke the 1hr length with 67 minutes but now with 10 songs. Only 3 songs are short, all the other ones are 6-min or longer, the longest being the fantastic "Dream of Mirrors" with 9:21. It was their first studio release since the return of Bruce and Adrian, it was also the band's first studio recording as a six-piece, as Janick Gers, who replaced Adrian in 1990, remained with the band. Brave New World is a fantastic record, if they had gone for 8 songs and cut the not-so-impressive "The Mercenary" and "The Fallen Angel" this album would be as good as what they did in the 80's. The band always touched the progressive sound since the song "Phantom of the Opera" from the debut album. The tendency intensified during the late 80's but Brave New World is the first album that could even be considered progressive metal. The writing credits are all over the place with contributions from everyone except the drummer Nicko. The one song written by one member only was the suburb "Blood Brothers" by Harris. The longer songs are full of tempo changes, instrumental parts, guitar solos and different song structures. Bruce is singing as good as, if not better than, during the 80's. We also saw the return of Derek Riggs who created the upper half of the artwork. It was the first album the band would record with producer Kevin Shirley who has worked with Iron Maiden on all subsequent releases. Brave New World was a triumphant return to the classic line-up (plus Gers) and one of the best metal albums of the 2000's
Favorite Song: "Dream of Mirrors"
Dance Of Death (2003) - 8.5
Dance Of Death was Maiden's second studio release since the return of Bruce and Adrian. Like Killers in 81, it also had a difficult mission to follow-up a great "debut". Like its predecessor this album was also long, 68 min but 11 songs. Including the band's first ever fully acoustic track, "Journeyman". Several songs were shorter and more direct like the opener "Wildest Dreams" , the single "Rainmaker", "Gates of Tomorrow" and their only song co-written by drummer Nicko McBrain, "New Frontier" which was the only song that Harris did not co-write. And the only song he wrote alone was "No More Lies". For the rest, all co-written songs with different contributions from everyone. Dance Of Death is a good album, but with less memorable songs than the predecessor.
Favorite Song: "Dance of Death"
A Matter of Life and Death (2006) - 9.5
Maiden's 14th album took the progressive path at full strength but also being very heavy. It does make you think of Dream Theater but still sounding very much like Maiden. The album ticks 72 minutes and features 10 songs. The trio Smith/Harris/Dickinson co-wrote 5 songs! Harris co-wrote every song in this album and one by himself, the longest song in the record with 9:23 "For the Greater Good of God" which is fantastic. Almost every song uses an arsenal of tools and changes with great heavy riffs, impressive solos, melodic harmonies and Bruce is singing like never before. I love this album, their best of the new century.
Favorite Song: "The Longest Day"
The Final Frontier (2010) - 8.5
Number 15th! An impressive mark and for a while some thought that it could be the last one. Even more impressive is that Maiden's kept the pace and direction from the predecessor and delivered yet another fantastic album. Their longest album until then is almost 77 minutes with 10 songs. A very similar format and feel as the previous album, albeit less heavy and less dark. Like the recent predecessors, writing credits are all over the place, but Harris did participated in all songs. And by himself Harris wrote the closer and longest song with 11 min: "When the Wild Wind Blows". With The Final Frontier Maiden continued to push the envelope and actually most of the songs are above 7 minutes. Same comments as previously apply here: Almost every song uses an arsenal of tools and changes with great heavy riffs, impressive solos, melodic harmonies and Bruce is once again impressive. New elements were also introduced, like the very distinct album intro which transitions seemingly into the single "El Dorado". One of the highlights is "The Talisman" is one of the best Maiden songs of their new era. But most of the other songs are also great, but The Final Frontier has some fillers and therefore is not as good as Brave New World or A Matter of Life and Death.
Favorite Song: "The Talisman"
The Book of Souls (2015) - 9.5
"forced" rank of the 16th studio releases:
1 Somewhere in Time
2 Seventh Son of a Seventh Son
3 Piece of Mind
4 The Number of the Beast
5 Powerslave
6 A Matter of Life and Death
7 The Book of Souls
8 Iron Maiden
9 Brave New World
10 Killers
11 The Final Frontier
12 The X Factor
13 Dance Of Death
14 No Prayer For The Dying
15 Fear Of The Dark
16 Virtual XI
Powerslave (1984) - 10
Isn't Powerslave's cover perfect? Back when I was 8, I was fascinated by it. Honestly, that's how I got this album in the first place. Many consider Eddie and Maiden's art work as one of the reasons for their success. Based on my personal experience, I agree. Regarding the music, Maiden's 5th release went back to the 4 songs on each side format. Powerslave is a very direct and powerful album, no slow songs, no slow intros, lots of galloping bass and twin guitars. Bruce was singing brilliantly and the guitar solos are just great. With that said, their sound continued to evolve, now pushing the total length to just above 50 min with 4 songs above 6 min, including their longest track yet, the fantastic epic closer "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" by Harris with almost 14 min! Harris also wrote 3 other songs including "Losfer Words (Big 'Orra)" the first instrumental song since 81 and their best one. Other two songs were written by Bruce and the other two by the Smith/Dickinson duo, including the huge hit "2 Minutes to Midnight". "Flash Of The Blade" blew my little 8-year-old mind and continue to do so to this day. "Aces High" is one of their best ever. In sum Powerslave can easily be considered their best album, it's a masterpiece and all songs are just great.
Favorite Song: "Rime of the Ancient Mariner"
Somewhere in Time (1986) - 10
For the first time since their debut, Harris and company took a one year break from the studio. In 1985 they focused on the massive World Slavery Tour and the release of one of the best live albums of heavy music: Live After Death. Then in 86 they recorded and released Somewhere in Time. Its format is similar to Powerslave (4 songs each side, just above 50 min, 4 songs over 6 min and an epic closer) but this was the biggest leap they made to that date into a more progressive sound, including the use of keyboards. Reflecting the burnout of the huge 84/85 tour, this album has just one song with more than one writer, "Deja-Vu" by Murray/Harris. Adrian Smith stepped up and delivered 3 songs by himself and those are some of my all time Maiden favorites: "Wasted Years", "Sea of Madness" and "Stranger in a Strange Land". Harris wrote 3 other songs above 7 minutes: "Caught Somewhere in Time", "Heaven Can Wait" and the epic 8:35-minute long "Alexander the Great". Harris also wrote "The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner". Differently than the last 2 albums, Bruce doesn't have any writing credits in this one. And as previously and maybe even more here the riffs and guitar solos are memorable, the bridges and choruses are powerful and melodic. Perfection! When forced to rank, I must put Somewhere as Maiden's best album.
Favorite Song: "Sea of Madness"
Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (1998) - 10
Seventh Son of a Seventh Son closes what it is probably the best sequence of albums in the history of music (at least heavy). Basically from 82 to 88 - The Number, Piece of Mind, Powerslave, Somewhere and 7th Son are virtually at the same incredibly high level of perfection. Their seventh studio album is a transitional one though. On the one hand the progressiveness seen in the previous album is clearly there in 3 songs mainly: "Moonchild" (and its keyboard intro), "Infinite Dreams" (my all-time favorite Maiden song) and the epic almost 10 min long title track. On the other hand and very differently from Somewhere, the other 5 tracks are very short and with no more than 5 min, including their hit single "Can I Play with Madness" which is their shortest song since 1982's "Invaders". Those are more direct songs like the other hit single "The Evil That Men Do". Harris this time wrote or co-wrote all songs except "Moonchild" by Smith/Dickinson. Bruce got back into writing songs and co-wrote 4 songs. 7th Son is also a masterpiece that closed an era.
Favorite Song: "Infinite Dreams"
No Prayer For The Dying (1990) - 8.5
Instead of continuing the progressive path, Harris decided to take the route of a more direct and raw sound already seen in some of the songs in the 7th Son album. This dichotomy led to the first lineup change since 1983 with Adrian leaving the band and replaced by Janick Gers who worked with Bruce in his solo album. For the first time since Killers, a Maiden album had 10 short songs 43 minutes which was a drastic change from everything they were doing during the 80s. The writing credits go mainly to Harris and Dickinson. Murray participated in 2 songs and Adrian still left his mark with "Hooks in You". Gers did not participate in the writing process. The style of Gers is very different from Adrian's, specially when it comes to the solos. Also the twin guitars are less prominent in NPFTD. Some of the songs are just too simple and not as memorable as in the 80's. Still there are some great songs like: "Tailgunner", "Holy Smoke", "No Prayer for the Dying", "Bring Your Daughter... to the Slaughter" and "Mother Russia". Not to the same level as any of the 80's album, NPFTD is still a good album and would be on my top 5 albums of that year. It's just that the bar that Maiden set to themselves is too damn high!
Favorite Song: "No Prayer for the Dying"
Fear Of The Dark (1992) - 8.0
Fear of the Dark is the ninth studio album released by Maiden. It was the last to feature Bruce Dickinson as lead vocalist until his return in 1999 and his worse album with Maiden.
Many other things changed with this album: Eddie was not drew by Derick Riggs, it was the longest album to date with almost 60-min and 12 songs (clearly influenced by the rise of the CD and decay of the Vinyl). It was the first album to be produced by Harris, and last to feature the work of producer Martin Birch (who retired after its release). Musically there were also changes. Gers co-writing 5 tracks, his first with Maiden. Besides Harris, Bruce and Dave also co-wrote songs, 5 and 2 respectively. Already in the previous album we could hear Bruce singing slightly differently, and this change was consolidated in 1992. If you check the live albums from that time you can certainly hear the difference. He wasn't going for high notes as much and using much more his throat to a less clear singing. Fear of the Dark is not a bad album, it does have some different but great songs: "Be Quick or Be Dead", "From Here to Eternity", and "Afraid to Shoot Strangers" (the best of the album). And of course the title track became very popular but I personally do not like it as much. It sucks that they play it in every single live show even when any song from the 80's is better. "Wasting Love" by Dickinson/Gers was a very different tune and the closest thing Maiden wrote to a ballad. It is a very good song and probably the best guitar solo Gers wrote.
Favorite Song: "Afraid to Shoot Strangers"
The X Factor (1995) - 8.5
The first Maiden album without Bruce since 1981 Killers and the band's first album to include Blaze Bayley. All in all it is a good album but so different from anything Maiden had ever done that maybe it should've been released under a different band name. The album is very dark and obviously the singing style and range from Bayley are so different from Bruce's that Harris probably had to adapt his writing to it. On the bright side, he took the opportunity to experiment. The album is yet longer than the predecessor, breaking the 1 hr barrier for the first time. It is much more progressive than the last two albums and with 5 songs above 6 minutes, including the dark and beautiful 11-min "Sign of the Cross" by Harris. Steve actually wrote or co-wrote every song except the very good "Man on the Edge" by "Bayley/Gers". Bayley actually co-wrote 5 songs and Gers 7! Another great track is "Lord of the Flies" which the live version with Bruce is as good as the 80's songs. This is the first album since Piece of Mind that there's no title track. If you didn't like this album, the worse was yet to come...
Favorite Song: "Lord of the Flies"
Virtual XI (1998) - 6.5
While the other 90's albums, even if not at the level of the 80's, were good, the same can't be said about Virtual XI which by far is the worse album that Maiden has even done. Not only in relative terms but also in absolute terms, it's just boring and uninspired. The album is not as long as X Factor and it went back to only 8 songs, but almost all of them quite long. The only two songs worth listening are "Futureal" and "The Clansman" (even better in the 1999 live version with Bruce). "The Angel and the Gambler" is the worst song ever written by Harris and also the worst recorded by Maiden period. During the Bayley period Bruce got together with Adrian Smith and released two fantastic metal albums Accident of Birth (1997) and The Chemical Wedding (1998). I'm sure those put further pressure on Harris to get his act together. If anything Virtual XI greatest accomplishment was to shake things up and get the band back on track.
Favorite Song: "Futureal"
Brave New World (2000) - 9.0
When Maiden faced the bifurcation during 7th Son they decided to take the raw/direct approach of 1990's NPFTD. However, Brave New World would have been the natural follow-up of 7th Son had they taken the progressive route instead. But for Brave New World to be possible, Adrian and Bruce had to experiment with their solo careers and confirm that heavy metal is really what they are good at. The same goes for Harris who had to try new things and experiment with Virtual XI and X Factor to re-find his progressive passion. Like X Factor Maiden's twelfth album broke the 1hr length with 67 minutes but now with 10 songs. Only 3 songs are short, all the other ones are 6-min or longer, the longest being the fantastic "Dream of Mirrors" with 9:21. It was their first studio release since the return of Bruce and Adrian, it was also the band's first studio recording as a six-piece, as Janick Gers, who replaced Adrian in 1990, remained with the band. Brave New World is a fantastic record, if they had gone for 8 songs and cut the not-so-impressive "The Mercenary" and "The Fallen Angel" this album would be as good as what they did in the 80's. The band always touched the progressive sound since the song "Phantom of the Opera" from the debut album. The tendency intensified during the late 80's but Brave New World is the first album that could even be considered progressive metal. The writing credits are all over the place with contributions from everyone except the drummer Nicko. The one song written by one member only was the suburb "Blood Brothers" by Harris. The longer songs are full of tempo changes, instrumental parts, guitar solos and different song structures. Bruce is singing as good as, if not better than, during the 80's. We also saw the return of Derek Riggs who created the upper half of the artwork. It was the first album the band would record with producer Kevin Shirley who has worked with Iron Maiden on all subsequent releases. Brave New World was a triumphant return to the classic line-up (plus Gers) and one of the best metal albums of the 2000's
Favorite Song: "Dream of Mirrors"
Dance Of Death (2003) - 8.5
Dance Of Death was Maiden's second studio release since the return of Bruce and Adrian. Like Killers in 81, it also had a difficult mission to follow-up a great "debut". Like its predecessor this album was also long, 68 min but 11 songs. Including the band's first ever fully acoustic track, "Journeyman". Several songs were shorter and more direct like the opener "Wildest Dreams" , the single "Rainmaker", "Gates of Tomorrow" and their only song co-written by drummer Nicko McBrain, "New Frontier" which was the only song that Harris did not co-write. And the only song he wrote alone was "No More Lies". For the rest, all co-written songs with different contributions from everyone. Dance Of Death is a good album, but with less memorable songs than the predecessor.
Favorite Song: "Dance of Death"
A Matter of Life and Death (2006) - 9.5
Maiden's 14th album took the progressive path at full strength but also being very heavy. It does make you think of Dream Theater but still sounding very much like Maiden. The album ticks 72 minutes and features 10 songs. The trio Smith/Harris/Dickinson co-wrote 5 songs! Harris co-wrote every song in this album and one by himself, the longest song in the record with 9:23 "For the Greater Good of God" which is fantastic. Almost every song uses an arsenal of tools and changes with great heavy riffs, impressive solos, melodic harmonies and Bruce is singing like never before. I love this album, their best of the new century.
Favorite Song: "The Longest Day"
The Final Frontier (2010) - 8.5
Number 15th! An impressive mark and for a while some thought that it could be the last one. Even more impressive is that Maiden's kept the pace and direction from the predecessor and delivered yet another fantastic album. Their longest album until then is almost 77 minutes with 10 songs. A very similar format and feel as the previous album, albeit less heavy and less dark. Like the recent predecessors, writing credits are all over the place, but Harris did participated in all songs. And by himself Harris wrote the closer and longest song with 11 min: "When the Wild Wind Blows". With The Final Frontier Maiden continued to push the envelope and actually most of the songs are above 7 minutes. Same comments as previously apply here: Almost every song uses an arsenal of tools and changes with great heavy riffs, impressive solos, melodic harmonies and Bruce is once again impressive. New elements were also introduced, like the very distinct album intro which transitions seemingly into the single "El Dorado". One of the highlights is "The Talisman" is one of the best Maiden songs of their new era. But most of the other songs are also great, but The Final Frontier has some fillers and therefore is not as good as Brave New World or A Matter of Life and Death.
Favorite Song: "The Talisman"
The Book of Souls (2015) - 9.5
The Book of Souls is Maiden's 16th studio album and was released on 4 September 2015. It is the band's first studio double album and longest to date, with 92 minutes. The album was again produced by Kevin "Caveman" Shirley. It will be released 5 years and 1 month after 2010's The Final Frontier, their longest gap between studio albums. It will also contain their longest song to date "Empire of the Clouds" with 18min and written by Dickinson who also wrote alone the 8-min album opener "If Eternity Should Fail". He also paired with Smith to write two other tracks. Smith also co-wrote two other songs with Harris. He wrote by himself the second longest track the 13-min "The Red and the Black". Harris wrote 2 songs with Gers, including the title track (high hopes for this 10:30-min song). The album features a very simple cover with a "primitive" Eddie which caused some disappointment among some fans.
Iron Maiden's sixteenth studio album and first studio double album is an audacious project. While not perfect, The Book of Souls is full of excitement, new ideas and classic Maiden elements. Their longest album to date, with a total length of 92 minutes, flies by under soaring vocals, amazing guitar work and vigorous galloping bass lines.
Bruce's "If Eternity Should Fail" opens the double disc with keyboards and vocals a la Rainbow with a similar flavor we saw in Final Frontier. Overall a great mid-tempo track that reminds me of a Dio song. It features a memorable chorus and fantastic solos. Then the single "Speed of Light" from the duo Smith/Dickinson follows and it's a very direct song with great guitar riffs. It has a live feel to it and reminds me of the Fear/No Prayer era. Sightly compromised by over repetition of the chorus at the end. First Steve's credit, in cooperation with Adrian, comes with "The Great Unknown". A fantastic song that builds up slowly to a powerful melody and a classic Maiden bridge and chorus follow. Next is "The Red and the Black", the only track solely credited to Harris. An instant classic, it opens with a bass solo ("Blood on the World's Hands" style) and then a galloping bass a la "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" sets the tone for this 13 min track. The verses are great, always over cool guitar riffs. And the guitar solos are looong but so awesome, think of "Phantom of the Opera". It will be a live favorite! "When the River Runs Deep" is cool up tempo direct song Piece of Mind style. Then the title track closes CD1 and it is a magnificent classic Maiden long track. An acoustic intro similar to "The Talisman" gives way to an "ancient" riff sort of Rainbow's "Gates of Babylon". The song structure is classic Maiden: Full of powerful melodies and a galloping bass. Despite being a Gers/Harris song, it does sound a lot like something out of The Chemical Wedding.
The most likely hit single "Death or Glory" is another Smith/Dickinson track that opens CD2. It's also a classic Maiden short song with memorable chorus, melodic verses, bridges and great riffs. "Shadows of the Valley" is another Gers/Harris song, but interestingly the intro riff is just like Smith's "Wasted Years". But the similarities stop there and the track develops beautifully into a typical Maiden modern song. Smith/Harris's "Tears of a Clown" is based on comedian Robin Williams' depression and suicide in 2014. It sounds fresh and different. "The Man of Sorrows" drops the ball and doesn't add much to the album, the only filler. The release's final song, "Empire of the Clouds" is now the band's longest song at 18 minutes in duration. The track written by Dickinson features himself on piano for the first time and is based on the 1930 R101 airship crash. This is really a Bruce song and could be on his latest solo album. But it still is a great way to close an album and do something different. A masterpiece in itself, but that could certainly a bit shorter.
Now "low expectations is the key to happiness" some would say. But when it comes to Maiden that is very difficult, we always expect something. It took about ten full listens through to get rid of my own expectations and appreciate The Book of Souls for what it is: A 2015 Maiden masterpiece, album of the year. But, I do not think it's better than the 80's albums with Bruce (as some are saying) and that's because in relation to their own discography, I have 3 remarks: 1. Many songs could be shorter and feel overextended (double album syndrome?) 2. Repetition: a lot of ideas seem to be recycled from previous albums. 3. A few songs sound more like Bruce's solo album than Maiden's (not exactly an issue since his albums are amazing too). With this caveat out of the way, the album is still fantastic, it's Maiden.
Favorite Song: "The Great Unknown"
Iron Maiden's sixteenth studio album and first studio double album is an audacious project. While not perfect, The Book of Souls is full of excitement, new ideas and classic Maiden elements. Their longest album to date, with a total length of 92 minutes, flies by under soaring vocals, amazing guitar work and vigorous galloping bass lines.
Bruce's "If Eternity Should Fail" opens the double disc with keyboards and vocals a la Rainbow with a similar flavor we saw in Final Frontier. Overall a great mid-tempo track that reminds me of a Dio song. It features a memorable chorus and fantastic solos. Then the single "Speed of Light" from the duo Smith/Dickinson follows and it's a very direct song with great guitar riffs. It has a live feel to it and reminds me of the Fear/No Prayer era. Sightly compromised by over repetition of the chorus at the end. First Steve's credit, in cooperation with Adrian, comes with "The Great Unknown". A fantastic song that builds up slowly to a powerful melody and a classic Maiden bridge and chorus follow. Next is "The Red and the Black", the only track solely credited to Harris. An instant classic, it opens with a bass solo ("Blood on the World's Hands" style) and then a galloping bass a la "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" sets the tone for this 13 min track. The verses are great, always over cool guitar riffs. And the guitar solos are looong but so awesome, think of "Phantom of the Opera". It will be a live favorite! "When the River Runs Deep" is cool up tempo direct song Piece of Mind style. Then the title track closes CD1 and it is a magnificent classic Maiden long track. An acoustic intro similar to "The Talisman" gives way to an "ancient" riff sort of Rainbow's "Gates of Babylon". The song structure is classic Maiden: Full of powerful melodies and a galloping bass. Despite being a Gers/Harris song, it does sound a lot like something out of The Chemical Wedding.
The most likely hit single "Death or Glory" is another Smith/Dickinson track that opens CD2. It's also a classic Maiden short song with memorable chorus, melodic verses, bridges and great riffs. "Shadows of the Valley" is another Gers/Harris song, but interestingly the intro riff is just like Smith's "Wasted Years". But the similarities stop there and the track develops beautifully into a typical Maiden modern song. Smith/Harris's "Tears of a Clown" is based on comedian Robin Williams' depression and suicide in 2014. It sounds fresh and different. "The Man of Sorrows" drops the ball and doesn't add much to the album, the only filler. The release's final song, "Empire of the Clouds" is now the band's longest song at 18 minutes in duration. The track written by Dickinson features himself on piano for the first time and is based on the 1930 R101 airship crash. This is really a Bruce song and could be on his latest solo album. But it still is a great way to close an album and do something different. A masterpiece in itself, but that could certainly a bit shorter.
Now "low expectations is the key to happiness" some would say. But when it comes to Maiden that is very difficult, we always expect something. It took about ten full listens through to get rid of my own expectations and appreciate The Book of Souls for what it is: A 2015 Maiden masterpiece, album of the year. But, I do not think it's better than the 80's albums with Bruce (as some are saying) and that's because in relation to their own discography, I have 3 remarks: 1. Many songs could be shorter and feel overextended (double album syndrome?) 2. Repetition: a lot of ideas seem to be recycled from previous albums. 3. A few songs sound more like Bruce's solo album than Maiden's (not exactly an issue since his albums are amazing too). With this caveat out of the way, the album is still fantastic, it's Maiden.
Favorite Song: "The Great Unknown"
"forced" rank of the 16th studio releases:
2 Seventh Son of a Seventh Son
3 Piece of Mind
4 The Number of the Beast
5 Powerslave
6 A Matter of Life and Death
7 The Book of Souls
8 Iron Maiden
9 Brave New World
10 Killers
11 The Final Frontier
12 The X Factor
13 Dance Of Death
14 No Prayer For The Dying
15 Fear Of The Dark
16 Virtual XI
