Disc 238 is...Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son
Artist: Iron MaidenYear of Release: 1988
What’s Up With The Cover?: Just another awesome Iron Maiden cover, featuring Eddie in some crazy fantasy art. In this picture we have a partially disembodies Eddie holding up some kind of crazy organ sack, or a ghost trapped in a translucent bag. I'm not sure what it all means - I'm not even sure what it all is, but I'm sure I like it.
How I Came To Know It: I have been an Iron Maiden fan since my early teens. I never actually owned this record until recently, but I always wanted to.
How It Stacks Up: I have seven Iron Maiden albums - basically the first seven. This album is technically great, but for me it is not my favourite. I'll say it is 6th or 7th out of the seven.
Rating: 3 stars.
I haven't reviewed Iron Maiden since I rolled "Piece of Mind" all the way back at Disc 2. That seems like a gap that might be the largest I'll see in the whole Odyssey. I guess we'll see.
This is the last album with the classic Iron Maiden lineup, and so I haven't pursued anything after it, although I'm told their most recent album is a nice come back. I might check that out down the road.
"Seventh Son" comes across as a very ambitious record. This can mean a record is destined for greatness, but it can also mean spectacular failure. In this case, the album manages to steer deftly between the two, and comes out as merely good.
The one song that stands out is the title track, which is yet another lengthy Iron Maiden opus - well over nine minutes. It ranges all over, from a fierce guitar riff driving the chorus, to an understated middle section a la "The Rime of The Ancient Mariner" through to a respectable (if slightly noodle-filled) fade out.
Iron Maiden's bass player, Steve Harris, is famous in metal circles. In truth, in the car I often have a hard time picking out the bass over Bruce Dickinson's singing, and the guitar-driven sound. However, as I write this I am listening to it on headphones, and the bass is far easier to hear (and yes, it is awesome).
"Seventh Son of a Seventh Son" doesn't overwhelm me, but the music is simply too well crafted and too well played to achieve less than a three. I only bought this album in the last few years, and it often loses out to my better-loved Maiden records, so I was glad to be reacquainted with it.
OK - enough about the music. Now is the time for a technology rant. This album is remastered and recorded on an 'enhanced CD'. However, after I uploaded the stupid program to run it, I can no longer view individual tracks, except through the incredibly inefficient built in interface on the CD.
I just want to look at the tracks and yes - I want to put them on my PC, and from there to my MP3 player. Why the hell can't I do this? In fact, the whole system is so cumbersome, I'm currently listening to the album through the pathetic little boom box in my hobby room (which is thankfully too stupid to know how to download the moronic interface).
I almost downgraded this record to 1 star (yeah, 1 star) I am so frustrated trying to play it, but my long and abiding love for Iron Maiden has prevented me from taking such puerile revenge.
Anyway - I hope to figure this out before too long, but for now, the experience has only enhanced my frustration.
UPDATE: OK - I cooled off and took another run at this, deleted the uploaded program, and successfully ripped the music so I can enjoy it without all the extraneous junk. It is OK, Iron Maiden, I love you again - just don't do that again.
Best tracks: Infinite Dreams, Can I Play With Madness, Seventh Son of a Seventh Son
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