CD Odyssey Disc 1301: Iron Maiden

As long-time readers will know, I almost always randomly select what album I’m going to review. Despite this randomness, sometimes the happiest accidents happen. That was the case here, where I rolled an Iron Maiden album only a couple of weeks having seen them live in Portland.

It feels like the universe is telling me I should review the show, so following this review that’s what I’ve done.

Disc 1301 is… Iron Maiden (Self-Titled)

Artist: Iron Maiden

Year of Release: 1980

What’s up with the Cover? It’s Iron Maiden’s perennial zombie monster mascot, Eddie! In later appearances Eddie will be equipped with an axe, a laser pistol, and even a tank. This is early in his career so all he’s got is a plain old white tank top and a smile to get him through un-life’s many challenges. Yes, that’s a smile. You should see what he looks like when he’s scowling.

How I Came to Know It: I’ve been an Iron Maiden fan since I was a kid. This particular album caught my eye when it was part of a broader re-release of their catalogue in 1998.

How It Stacks Up:  I have 11 Iron Maiden albums. Their self-titled debut lands respectably at #4.

Ratings: 4 stars

Iron Maiden’s 1980 debut is a seminal moment in the development of the massive musical landscape of metal that exists today. Yes, Black Sabbath came first, and Judas Priest had been at it for a few records themselves, but Iron Maiden’s arrival was a seminal moment in the development of the genre.

On their first record the band is still finding its style, and as a result is more of a blend of the early hard rock sounds of bands like Thin Lizzy and Sweet with the later “anthemic gallop” sound that they are now famous for.

Bruce Dickinson’s powerhouse vocals are missing from this record (he wouldn’t join the band until 1982) and instead we have Paul Di’Anno. Dickinson is one of rock’s great vocalists, but Di’Anno is no slouch, and on the band’s debut album he sounds great. He has a bit more of a punk edge than Dickinson, and while he can’t soar up into the notes Bruce can hit, he is an amazing singer in his own right.

It helps that bassist and songwriter Steve Harris was there from the beginning, meaning you are going to get brilliantly constructed songs and some of the most creative basslines in music. As ever, you can listen to Maiden’s soaring guitar riffs (fun) or let your ear drift down to the wizardry Harris is unleashing on the bass (equally fun).

“Phantom of the Opera” is good song to do both. In its seven minutes of glory you are treated to the galloping guitar riff Maiden is famous for, intricate basslines (including what is almost – gasp – a bass solo) and some killer guitar solo work from either Dave Murray or Dennis Stratton (to my shame I don’t know which – maybe it’s both).

And yes, “Phantom of the Opera” is the tale you think it is. Iron Maiden’s first album doesn’t have a lot of the literary and historical references of albums to follow - this one and an instrumental called “Transylvania” are about it - but these songs tease at what’s to come. They are also two of the best songs on a record with a lot of good ones.

“Remember Tomorrow” has the doom-filled punch of Black Sabbath mixed with the slow crooning of early Scorpions. I’m not sure what the hell it is all about, but that doesn’t make the song any less awesome.

Other songs are more straightforward hard rock, such as “Running Free,” which I was not surprised to find was one of the album’s singles. It reminded me a lot of Sweet with it’s pop-flavoured drum intro coupled with grimy staccato vocals and guitar licks. I liked it, but my ear gravitated more to the anthemic sounds of the Maiden I have known and loved all my life.

And despite misogynistic lyrics that have aged poorly, “Charlotte the Harlot” remains a killer tune with interesting musical transitions and a furious tempo. It covers some uncomfortable subject matter, however, so consider this a trigger warning if you decide to check it out.

The record is solid throughout, with exceptional musicianship and songwriting. It is easy to see how this band was going to go on to bigger things and soon.

Best tracks: Prowler, Sanctuary, Remember Tomorrow, Phantom of the Opera, Transylvania

The Concert: Friday, September 6, 2019 at the Moda Center, Portland

When Sheila and I travel we often adjust our travel window to maximize our ability to see a concert or two. That is what we did for our Portland trip earlier this month, and I’m glad we did.

Seeing Iron Maiden was the fulfillment of a lifelong dream for me. As a kid I never got the opportunity, and later in life I was off exploring other musical genres as time slowly slipped away on Maiden’s career. When the opportunity came to see them perform in Portland (for the first time in over 30 years, no less) I jumped at it.

The Moda Center was set up for 15,000 fans that night and it was packed. Sheila and I got there early to check out the merch table. There were a lot of awesome shirts, but we ended up both liking this one the most.

Not a problem, since this is the only time we’re going to wear them at the same time. I was disappointed that they didn’t have a sticker for my lunch box, though. Ah, well.

My fellow Maiden fans were just as excited as I was, even the ones who’d seen the band multiple times. Everyone was friendly, and many were feeling no pain. I was sober, but still felt at home and among my people.

The Raven Age

The opening act was a band called The Raven Age. They played a kind of moody Gothic metal which was OK but didn’t inspire me to run out and buy their album.

Their main stage decoration were three wooden boxes that various band members would strike ‘totally metal’ poses on. It did not strike awe in me the way I believe the band intended.

I would have preferred a band like Sabaton as an opener but given that one of the Raven Age’s guitar players is Steve Harris’s son, I don’t see them getting replaced anytime soon.

Iron Maiden

Iron Maiden took the stage to the sound of 15,000 screaming fans in full-throat, me among them. These guys are all in their early to mid-sixties, but you wouldn’t know if from the energy they put out. From the opening notes of “Aces High” through to the final song of the encore the band’s energy never waned. They ran around the stage, they spun their guitars, jumped up and down and generally acted like a bunch of 12-year-old boys playing war. It was awesome.

Also awesome was how well they played. The musicianship was top notch and the songs sounded as crisp as the studio recordings, but organic and different enough to make the live versions special. Bruce Dickinson’s vocals still sound incredible. He hit every single note like he was 25, with the exception of the highest one in “Aces High.” For that, he rewrote the melody so he doesn’t have to. The song still sounded great.

The stage show was also brilliant. During “Aces High” there is a very realistic looking spitfire on wires ducking and wheeling above the band’s head. On “The Trooper” a 20-foot-tall Eddie comes out on stage and has a sword fight with Dickinson.

There was a giant Icarus figure, a massive demonic Eddie that burst out of the back of the stage and so much pyro we even felt the heat a couple of times in the nosebleeds.

Most of the non-fire effects were generated with inflatable models that were beautifully rendered.

In terms of the setlist, Iron Maiden was not touring a new album. I was a little disappointed at that, but it ended up just being a lot of their biggest hits and crowd pleasers. I was suitably pleased, most notably that they played “Flight of Icarus” which is one of my all-time favourite Maiden songs.

Iron Maiden that has lost very little over the years, and even after having played many of these songs live a thousand times, still puts every ounce of enthusiasm they have into each of them.

I found out later that there was even a small group of protestors outside, still angry at all the demonic imagery in the band’s stage show and lyrics. I bet it made Iron Maiden happy to know they were still causing moral outrage after all these years. Long live rock and roll.

CD Odyssey Disc 1078: Iron Maiden

People sometimes ask me how I come up with new music to listen to, since I don’t listen to the radio and don’t have any of those fancy new streaming services.

I’m lucky in that I have a bunch of musically inclined friends and we are always exchanging recommendations and sharing our latest finds. I also read a lot of music reviews. Beyond that the key is to be open minded and never miss an opportunity. If you hear a song in a store that you like, ask the clerk what it is. If you’re at a party and you meet someone for the first time don’t open with the tired old yawner “what do you do for a living” – ask them instead what their latest musical discovery is.

Friday night I exchanged recommendations with server at the pub and yesterday I did the same thing with my brunch server. Once it is clear you’re talking to another music fan you might as well see what they like. There’s a lot of music out there, and to discover the best stuff you’re going to need help.

Disc 1078 is…The Number of the Beast

Artist: Iron Maiden

Year of Release: 1982

What’s up with the Cover? Ever-present Iron Maiden mascot “Eddie” is controlled by the devil, but an even bigger Eddie controls that same devil with bloody marionette strings. Plus we have fire, lightning, and the storm clouds of hell. This cover offended all manner of mothers back in the early eighties, although mine weathered it pretty well, probably going no farther than a “oh, Virgil – that awful!” when my brother showed it to her.

How I Came To Know It: Everyone who was a metal fan in the eighties knew this album, and in my home town it blared out of muscle cars, house parties and ghetto blasters at every turn. The CD version has been in my collection as long as I can remember and still gives me fond memories of my teenage years.

How It Stacks Up:  I have been on a bit of a buying spree with Iron Maiden albums of late and now have 11. “The Number of the Beast” comes in at the lofty position of #2, narrowly beating out “Piece of Mind” (reviewed way back at Disc 2) and just behind “Powerslave” (reviewed at Disc 720).

Ratings: 4 stars but almost 5

“The Number of the Beast” is frequently espoused as Iron Maiden’s greatest record, and while for me it falls short of “Powerslave” it is still an amazing accomplishment.

The record is Maiden at their most fast and furious, with less emphasis on the long epic tracks of albums like “Piece of Mind” or their later work. Sure three of the eight songs exceed six minutes but trust me when I tell you that for Maiden that is practically radio friendly.

A case in point is the opening track “Invaders” which kicks off with a frantic drum line from Clive Barr (who would be replaced by Nicko McBrain later that year). Even after Barr’s drum punches you to start the song there is no respite, as the tune races forward at the front of the beat. The effect makes you feel like you have no time to breathe, not unlike the Viking invaders the song depicts.

Maiden have a great feel for how to make a record feel cohesive, and the speed metal of “Invaders” is followed by the doom-filled “Children of the Damned,” its slow menacing guitar riff the perfect foil after the audio assault of the previous track.

This album features two of Maiden’s most iconic songs. The title track and “Run to the Hills” both showcase Bruce Dickinson’s powerhouse, operatic vocals. Even though there is no keeping up with Dickinson as he soars into the chorus of “Run to the Hills” it doesn’t stop you from trying. Over the years the song has been sadly overplayed, but I still can’t resist it when it comes on, with its galloping beat, anthemic power chords and a tight and well-structured guitar solo. As for “The Number of the Beast” I can honestly say it scared me a little as a kid.

For some reason my Walkman thought “Hallowed Be Thy Name” was called “Total Eclipse” which was weird and had me temporarily nervous it was going to be some weird Bonnie Tyler cover. That would have been cool, but fortunately it was the right song – covering the cheerful topic of waiting to be hanged. I recently watched a video of two guys reviewing this song after hearing it for the first time and it gave me a new appreciation for Iron Maiden’s strong songwriting. How these guys could sit and head-bob and marvel at the song’s construction and then still decide they didn’t have room for it on their playlist was beyond me. Get a device with more memory!

As is tradition with an Iron Maiden album, there are plenty of historical and art references. We have the aforementioned Viking invaders of "Invaders", “Run to the Hills” telling the story of First Nations being attacked by Europeans, and “The Prisoner” is about the old sixties TV show of the same name.

One song I could have lived without was “22, Acacia Avenue” a song about going to visit a prostitute that has not aged well. The song revisits the character of “Charlotte the Harlot” off of their debut album but doesn’t add anything and isn’t as good a song either. The appeal to Charlotte to live a better life rings hollow surrounded as it is by the viewpoint of her lustful clients. When the protagonist tells Charlotte “you’re packing your bags, you’re coming with me” it feels less like a rescue and more like an abduction.

Despite this one misstep, “Number of the Beast” has earned its reputation as one of metal’s most iconic records and 35 years later it still sounds fresh and powerful.

Best tracks: Invaders, Children of the Damned, the Number of the Beast, Run to the Hills, Hallowed Be Thy Name

CD Odyssey Disc 964: Iron Maiden

Bands you grew up with are like old friends; even when you haven’t seen them in a while it feels like you can just pick up where you left off as soon as you connect again. Evem though this next album only came into my collection in the last five years, the band is an old friend making everything feel comfy and familiar.

Disc 964 is…No Prayer for the Dying

Artist: Iron Maiden

Year of Release: 1990

What’s up with the Cover? This is actually the alternate cover for the remastered edition. The original is set a bit farther back and Iron Maiden mascot Eddie is using that free hand to choke some guy. Here he is reaching for you, which is equally disconcerting.

This cover also reminds me that over the weekend I bought a couple of new undershirts. There is nothing quite as pleasant as a fresh undershirt. Maybe if someone had replaced Eddie’s undershirt before he was entombed he might not have been so grumpy and grabby when he burst out later.

How I Came To Know It: As a teenager Iron Maiden was my favourite band but by the time this record came out in 1990 I had moved on to folk music and so I missed it. A few years back I was down at one of my local record stores (Ditch) talking metal with one of the staff, and he noted how much he loved the song “Tail Gunner” This led me to check this album out online and I liked what I heard. I also checked out 1992’s “Fear of the Dark” but it didn’t grab me the same. I think my Maiden collection is now complete going to want it. Of course, I thought that once before, so you never know.

How It Stacks Up:  I have eight Iron Maiden albums. Of those eight “No Prayer for the Dying” can’t crack the top half, but it comes close. I’ll say it is just shy of “Killers” at #6.

Ratings: 3 stars but almost 4

It isn’t often that a heavy metal band can trade in either a lead singer or lead guitarist and not miss a step, but Iron Maiden has managed to do both through their career. On “No Prayer for the Dying” vocalist Bruce Dickinson is already well established, so the newcomer is guitarist Janick Gers, replacing Adrian Smith.

It feels like sacrilege to even say that anyone can replace Adrian Smith, who gave me ten years of inspired music with Iron Maiden and who alongside Buck Dharma was my principal air guitar muse over the eighties. Fortunately when you have the brilliant songwriting and compositional inspiration of bassist Steve Harris, you can get away with things that would lay a lesser talent low, and such is the case with this record.

All of the core elements (save Smith) are there: Bruce Dickinson’s powerhouse vocals, great bass lines, a furious and rising energy and songs about humanity’s storied past and an imagined dystopian future.

Harris has long held a fascination with the Second World War and this continues on this record. He sings about a submarine crew on “Run Silent, Run Deep” and the opening track, “Tail Gunner” which celebrates the most dangerous job on a bomber. The song captures the recoil of the gun as Dickinson barks out “Tail gunner! You’re the tail gunner!” in time with the beat. You can almost feel the reverberation of each shot, and the visceral mix of excitement and fear of the gunner.

In terms of production and arrangement, the record is more stripped down than earlier Maiden, particularly the previous two records (1986’s “Somewhere in Time” and 1988’s “Seventh Son of a Seventh Son”). It creates space for introspective ballads such as the title track, which explores faith amid a world that feels increasingly detached. It is a lack of meaning that fits well in a time when the Soviet Union was collapsing around itself and we were all wondering “what’s next?”

“Public Enema Number One” is terribly titled, but its disturbed vision of the world’s ills is brilliant, as is the way the verses have furious guitar licks, only to descend into a thick and plodding doom of the chorus as Dickinson goes deep into his range to warn:

“Fall on your knees today

And pray that the world will mend its ways.”

The album loses a little steam near the end, with the sexually deviant “Hooks In You” and the dirty old man-inspired “Bring Your Daughter…to the Slaughter.” Both songs are on the wrong side of creepy, which on a metal album could be forgiven, but they aren’t that musically interesting either. The boys would’ve been better off adding a couple more history and science fiction tracks.

The record ends with “Mother Russia” a song that musically evokes both a military march and a ghost story in one place, which is fitting given it tells the story of how Russia is emerging in its new freedom, unsure of what comes next.

As Maiden albums go “No Prayer for the Dying” is not a classic great like “Powerslave” or “Piece of Mind” but few records are. It is however a solid entry into their discography and a demonstration that you can get back to basics and still sound fresh and vibrant.

Best tracks: Tail Gunner, No Prayer for the Dying, Public Enema Number One, Run Silent, Run Deep, Mother Russia

CD Odyssey Disc 720: Iron Maiden

Welcome to the weekend! I could have reviewed this next album two days ago, but I wanted to prolong the listening experience.

Disc 720 is…. Powerslave

Artist: Iron Maiden

Year of Release: 1984

What’s up with the Cover? Bow down before the great and powerful Eddie! Once again Iron Maiden makes their album cover all about their giant zombie mascot. This time he is playing the role of Egyptian god-king. Entrance to the Temple of Eddie is in the crotch, which I guess makes sense for a heavy metal album.

How I Came To Know It: I grew up with this record. When it came out I was 14 and an avowed Iron Maiden fan. I liked this album so much I literally bought the shirt – one of those black band t-shirts with the three-quarter length white sleeves. I loved that shirt.

How It Stacks Up:  I have seven Iron Maiden albums and “Powerslave” is easily the best. Sorry “Number of the Beast” apologists.

Rating: 5 stars

Metal doesn’t get any better than this. Music in general rarely gets better than this. “Powerslave” is everything you want in a metal album; overflowing with visceral energy, stellar musicianship, soaring vocals and thoughtful and intelligent lyrics. I’ve known this album for over thirty years and it still hits me right in the temple entrance every time I hear it.

Musically, the band has never been better. The songs are grounded as ever in the masterful bass playing of Steve Harris. On the album’s instrumental (the appropriately titled “Losfer Words”) you can really hear him grooving it out down low, but every single song has great bass moments. Just train your ear to dive under the guitar and vocal onslaught and Harris (along with drummer Nicko McBrain) will be there, delivering fascinating and creative rhythms.

This in turn allows guitarists Dave Murray and Adrian Smith and vocalist Bruce Dickinson to do their thing. They soar over top of the groove with majesty and power. The guitar solos throughout “Powerslave” are top notch, displaying incredible skill and speed, but never sacrificing the structure of the song to tricks. Every solo is incredible, and on each listen I dig a different one. This time around I really enjoyed the guitar work on “The Duellists.”

Bruce Dickinson is one of rock and rolls great voices, and he is never better than on this record. On “Aces High” his singing climbs through the stratosphere even as the planes in the song duel it out in the Battle of Britain. Every time you think he can’t hit that next note he hits it and then throttles up another notch. Listening to it feels just like flying.

“Aces High” brings me to another reason I’ve always loved Maiden; they sing about awesome stuff. Long before it was cool to be a geek, Maiden was making history and fantasy cool for metal heads. “Powerslave” has a great run of crazy song topics, including:

·         The aforementioned Battle of Britain

·         The Cold War

·         Professional duelists – twice!

·         Pharaohs of ancient Egypt

·         Samuel Taylor Coleridge’s “Rime of the Ancient Mariner”

“2 Minutes to Midnight” is the Cold War offering; a brilliant and scathing indictment of how close we came in the mid-eighties to starting the Third World War. Five years before the Scorpions sang “Wind of Change” we were buried in the Cold War with no way out. “2 Minutes to Midnight” is full of millions starving, body bags and children torn in two. It is a hopeless tale from a hopeless time. In 1984 its raw power had you raising your fist and yelling, because that was the only way to release the tension.

Every song has its moments, but I would be remiss not to mention the last two tracks in particular, “Powerslave” and “Rime of the Ancient Mariner.”

“Powerslave” is the tale of a pharaoh on his deathbed, realizing for the first time that for all his supposed godhood, he cannot forestall his own end. The language drips with dread and the tension born from a man who has absolute power in his hands, but is still a slave to time. Dickinson sets the stage over a surging guitar riff:

“Into the Abyss I’ll fall – the eye of Horus

Into the eyes of the night – watching me go.

Green is the cat’s eye that glows – in this temple

Enter the risen Osiris – risen again.”

I love the archaic use of the caesura in the verses, and when the song drops down to the chorus it is filled with minor chords and menace. Death is coming, and will leave you but a shadow that haunts the massive edifices you built that now celebrate your folly.

“Rime of the Ancient Mariner” may be the song that hooked me on poetry. Lyrically two sections of the song are lifted straight from the Coleridge poem, but for the most part it is a masterful summary of the original 625 line poem into a song just under 100. It does so without losing the tone, themes or emotional power of the original. My only quibble is they didn’t squeeze in my favourite line from the original, “Hold Off! Unhand me, gray-beard loon!”

“Rime of the Ancient Mariner” is not just a lyrical masterpiece, it is an epic metal song, that although almost 14 minutes long never loses its focus. It is like a miniature classical composition, filled with all the things – masterful bass, incredible guitar licks, and operatic vocals – that makes the whole album great. It could well be the greatest metal song ever written. It is definitely top five.

“Powerslave” follows 1982’s “Number of the Beast” and 1983’s “Piece of Mind.” Living up to either of those classic metal albums would have been a herculean task. “Powerslave” not only matches them both, it surpasses them.

Best tracks: all tracks 

CD Odyssey Disc 679: Iron Maiden

I keep rollin’ random albums and the Odyssey keeps rollin’ on. Here’s the latest.

Disc 679 is…. Killers

Artist: Iron Maiden

Year of Release: 1981

What’s up with the Cover? Iron Maiden’s long-time mascot, Eddie. Here we see Eddie early into his career of mayhem. He was very hands-on back then, although the hands on in this case are those of Eddie’s victim, clutching at his t-shirt. Never mess with a metal-head’s tight white t-shirt. No wonder Eddie felt it necessary to hack him bloody with his hatchet.

How I Came To Know It: I have only vague recollections of this album as a kid, since I was pretty young when it came out (eleven). I discovered it after I had become a devoted Iron Maiden fan through their later records.

How It Stacks Up:  I have seven Iron Maiden albums, and I like all of them. I’ll put this one 4^th or 5^th out of 7, simply because there is so much awesome to choose from.

Rating: 4 stars

Bruce Dickinson is one of rock and roll’s great vocalists, but as “Killers” demonstrates, Iron Maiden was a pretty kick ass band before he even joined them.

Maiden’s first two albums were made with vocalist Paul Di’Anno, and as much as I love Bruce Dickinson, Di’Anno is not a huge step down. His vocals don’t have the same awesome power at the top range, but he comes close and on songs like “Wrathchild” he delivers a raw roar that has its own qualities that Dickinson can’t produce.

That isn’t to say this version of Maiden is that different than the next. The soaring melodies and power riffs that would define them a year later on Dickinson’s debut, “Number of the Beast” are already taking shape here, particularly on the title track, which has the same hectic pace and classical underpinnings. Di’Anno brings a hint of punk to the equation, but with plenty enough power to remain solidly as one of the founders of the new wave of British heavy metal.

If anything, “Killers” demonstrates how bassist Steve Harris is the core of the band. Harris writes the vast majority of the songs, and the rest of the boys are there to play along – fortunately with a lot of skill. Harris is the architect of the Maiden sound, delivering anthemic melodies, grounded in intricate bass licks that always lurk in the background.

In fact, you can enjoy “Killers” equally well listening to the vocals and guitar riffs, or letting your ear drop down and just grooving on Harris’ masterful bass playing. Because this album is a bit sparser than many that would come later, the bass stands out even more.

Subject-wise, the band is already grooving on all those great characters from history and literature that thoughtful teenage boys dig. We’ve got the monstrous horror of Edgar Allan Poe’s “Murders in the Rue Morgue.” Here the story is reimagined from the perspective of someone who is innocent but caught at the scene of the crime with blood on their hands, and forced to flee. It is a thoughtful twist on the original story.

The historical offering is the instrumental “Genghis Khan” which seems a worthy topic of any heavy metal band. I’ll just say Iron Maiden does him justice. As the album progresses the band works in songs about the souls of the damned, tormented ghosts and the murderers that sent them to their graves. It is ghastly good fun all around.

The album ends with “Drifter,” a song that expertly mixes all the elements heard on the album so far. Harris has a ridiculously fast and amazing bass section, lead guitar Adrian Smith is given a chance to tease some seventies blues-rock out of his guitar and Di’Anno adds a punky edge to the whole thing that at times has him sounding like a young, angry Paul Stanley. The song moves in and out of different tempos as well, presumably because to do anything less would be to bore the genius that is Steve Harris.

“Killers” is a great record that is too often lost in the shadow of “Number of the Beast” and the coming of Bruce Dickinson. For all that, it has rightfully earned a place as one of Maiden’s classic albums, bloody hatchet and all.

Best tracks (with artists): Wrathchild, Murders in the Rue Morgue, Another Life, Genghis Khan, Drifter

CD Odyssey Disc 238: Iron Maiden

Before this review I got all pumped up watchin my favourite hockey team (Go Bruins) defeat our arch-rivals (Canadiens). There were 13 goals, over 170 minutes in penalties, great scores, great fights and all manner of good fun. Now, to music.

Disc 238 is...Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son
Artist: Iron Maiden

Year 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

CD Odyssey Disc 2: Piece of Mind

There are times when the randomness of the universe is a real gift. Of my hundreds of discs, the second disc in the CD Odyssey after rolling Judas Priest is...Iron Maiden. You just can't script this kind of stuff.

I've done a lot of driving today, so I am already through disc 2! At this rate I could be finished in two years! I'm sure that's what Odysseus said as well. Instead, his buddy Aias went crazy and stabbed himself in the thigh, then Odysseus spent 10 years as Calypso's love slave and got home a decade later to find his house overrun with freeloaders.

But I digress...

Disc 2 is...Piece of Mind


Artist: Iron Maiden

Year of Release: 1983

How I Came To Know It: In my youth, I loved Iron Maiden. Love is not too strong a word. I could sing the lyrics to 'Rime of the Ancient Mariner'. I knew that Bruce Dickenson put his pants on one leg at a time, but I still thought he made gold records (yeah, I know that's a different Bruce Dickenson). Due to financial consideration, I never owned Piece of Mind as a kid, but I knew many of the tracks. I'm glad to bring it back to its righftul home (mine), now that I am an old rock n' roller with a paycheque.

How It Stacks Up: I have 7 Maiden albums. I'd put this one 3rd best, and a strong third at that! The only reason it is third is that 1 and 2 are that good - but let's not get ahead of ourselves, we've got a lot of sailing left before we reach the Blessed Isles...

Rating: 4 stars

Piece of Mind has everything a young (or old) metal-head could want. Bruce Dickenson has the best metal pipes in the business (Dio's are pretty good as well) and he wails. The guitars rule. In particular, I love the crazy-assed shit that Maiden will write about.

This album features songs about:
- The 1968 Action/War film "Where Eagles Dare"
- The Book of Revelations
- The myth of Icarus, who died flying too close to the sun.
- World War Three
- Man Discovering Fire
- Dune (more specifically, an ode to Paul Atreides).

Also, all these songs are good! OK, the one about discovering fire is not so good, but the movie covering the same topic is far worse.

In addition to reminding me of a great myth, "Flight of Icarus" always reminds me of an art project some guy did in my "Greek Mythology" class when I went to UVIC.

We were tasked in making a creative interpretation of a a Greek myth. One day during the assignment - the class arrives to find all the curtains in the room drawn (it was the second floor of Clearihue Building).

As everyone settles in, we start hearing "No Icarus! Don't fly so close the sun! The wax holding on your wings will melt! No, Icarus! No!!!!" It sounds like someone in the courtyard outside is off their rocker. As he yells, someone pulls the curtains back. On the roof outside, he has placed the bottom half of a mannequin - looking like it has crashed through the roof, face first (bottom up - and prominent).

Down in the courtyard, it was our classmate yelling - rooms all around were looking down, thinking him quite mad.

I thought he was quite awesome. Kudos to you, fellow Myth Student - whoever the hell you were. Thanks for the memory.

OK - back to the record:

Best tracks: Flight of Icarus, Revelations, The Trooper, Sun and Steel, To Tame A Land.

Do you have an opinion about this album? Post it! Or lurk - that is good too.