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With 2025 marking my fifth year of being a member of Metalstorm, I have been in a reflective mood; seeing how my tastes in music have changed in that time and how my tastes are often at odds with the (incorrect but) majority opinion regarding artists and albums. Perhaps one of the biggest aberrations that generated discussion were my opinions on Iron Maiden; namely my preferences in their recorded output. It occurred to me that I had never fleshed out my opinions bar the odd album across the career, so in a pique of self indulgence I decided to lift the curtain after five years and put my thoughts on record as to how I like my Maiden's made of Iron.
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Iron Maiden - Piece Of Mind The definitive Maiden album, the real jewel in the crown of a star studded discography, the....Masterpeace (hey, if they can alter a phrase, so can I). At the peak of their powers matched with youthful abandon, just remember the skip button when "Quest For Fire" starts, and songwriting prowess that hit its stride. Easily my favourite album by the band. Standout tracks: "Where Eagles Dare", "The Trooper", "Still Life" |
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Iron Maiden - A Matter Of Life And Death While the prog/reunion era has largely been more miss than hits for me, the one album where, for a brief (well, Hour and eleven minutes) somehow everything coalesces and the stars align. The band's prog tendencies are matched by a standard of songwriting that creates a mix that is as captivating as it is all conquering. The band's sonic tangents are interesting instead of self indulgent and fit the sonic aesthetic of the song rather than feeling like meandering padding; Bruce's vocal parts are powerful yet atmospheric and the runtime is filled with interesting twists and turns that are anchored by some of the best guitar work the band has produced. Standout tracks: "The Longest Day", "For The Greater Good Of God", "Lord Of Light" |
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Iron Maiden - Powerslave Often the definitive [band]Iron Maiden[/band] for many metalheads, I am a big fan of the album (and artstyle, Riggs outdoing himself with that cover) thanks to some of Maiden's best work, from the calling card cut "2 Minutes To Midnight", the epic that is "Rime Of The Ancient Mariner" (if only Maiden could tap into the latter nowerdays when doing long tracks) and a whole host of cuts that will get any metalhead headbanging. i find the album dips slightly in the middle section, that holds it back from being the band's best work. Standout tracks: "2 Minutes To Midnight", "Flash Of The Blade", "Rime Of The Ancient Mariner" |
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Iron Maiden - Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son Perhaps the album that my opinion has changed the most on since I got into Maiden way back when, while its heavy synth empathsis adds to a new wrinkle to proceedings; its focus on prog rubbed me the wrong way. Over time however, this album has grown on me to become one of my favourite Maiden releases; with its experimentalism highlighting that the band needn't be hamstrung by rigid adherence to any formulas. From the faux reggae breakdown in "Can I Play With Madness" to the unabashed, full on prog worship of "Moonchild", it opened the door to the band's change of direction come the 90's. Still do not get the love for "Infinite Dreams" however, that remains one of the band's overhyped hits. Standout tracks: "The Evil That Men Do", "The Clairvoyant", "Only The Good Die Young" |
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Iron Maiden - Iron Maiden Starting off with their strongest foot first, the band's debut album remains one of the strongest in their burgeoning arsenal. With its raw and unpolished sound coupling perfectly with the punk attitude that Di'Anno brings to proceedings, the debut album occupies a unique spot in the band's discography that mixes ambition with youthful spirit on a budget that seemingly didn't allow for much beyond the smallest of audio touch ups. If you want to hear what Maiden sounds like as a work in progress and stripped down then this is the album for you. Standout tracks: "Running Free", "Phantom Of The Opera", "Iron Maiden" |
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Iron Maiden - Brave New World The reunion era started off with one hell of a bang, marking a return to a songwriting consistency that had abandoned them during the Blaze interim. From opening riff to closing refrain [i]Brave New World[/i] signalled a comeback that saw the band pursue further glories than merely reveal in former ones. Combining the catchiness of their 80's period with their new focus on prog, it is a best of both worlds situation that marks a crossing the rubicon moment in the band's history. Standout tracks: "The Wickerman", "Ghost Of Navigator", "Dream Of Mirrors" |
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Iron Maiden - Fear Of The Dark Perhaps my most controversial opinion, I think Fear... is a hidden gem and the bright spot in a decade that wasn't the kindest to Maiden. While I'm under no illusions that this album doesn't have its flaws ("Wasting Love" and my time), when it clicks, it highlights how Maiden can spread their wings and do it well when they put their mind to it. The barnstorming thrash styles of the opening bite "Be Quick Or Be Dead" ranks among one of their best ever opening tracks, while the rock ready "Fear Is The Key" shows the band have range. Standout tracks: "Be Quick Or Be Dead", "Judas My Guide", "Fear Of The Dark" |
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Iron Maiden - Somewhere In Time This album is somehow simultaneously the most overlooked, yet most cherised album of the 80's; a duality that seems oddly befitting to the album in question. Until the recent "The Future Past" tour, you'd be forgiven for thinking this album is awful given the band rarely played anything beyond "Wasted Years" and "Heaven Can Wait" off of it; which perhaps created a self fulfilling prophecy, especially given the former of the two tracks is perhaps the weakest on the album. A solid album that is definitely sounds like the 1980's. Standout tracks: "Sea Of Madness", "Stranger In A Strange Land" "Alexander The Great" |
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Iron Maiden - Killers In terms of their classic albums, [i]Killers[/i] was one of the last ones I heard in full, with the band rarely playing much off it beyond the incendiary "Wrathchild", I left it until last...and kicked myself for not giving it a chance sooner than I did. While the debut has a charm and rawness that endears itself to me, [i]Killers[/i] is trade's in some of that rawness for songwriting and production refienment that is an equal trade; though one that doesn't appeal as much to me (though is still a great release). Standout tracks: "Wrathchild", "Killers", "Ghengis Khan" |
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Iron Maiden - The Number Of The Beast The review that defined my early time on this site, my opinion put the cat amongst the pigeons to say the least...but I still stand by them. This album is literally 50/50 (unless you pick up a version with "Total Eclipse" which does tilt the scales onto the side of there being more good than bad) to the point that shuffling the tracklist would mean I could skip side A if you swapped "Gangland" and "The Prisoner" around. Side B however contains some of the best tracks in all of metal, and compensates for the shortcomings in preceding tracks. Standout tracks: "The Prisnor", "Hallowed Be Thy Name", "The Number Of The Beast" |
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Iron Maiden - No Prayer For The Dying Ooh, we're nearly halfway there whooah, it's no prayer, take my hand, we'll Slaughter your daughters I swear, woah, it's no prayer....While the change in direction doesn't bother me, in fact, the willingness of Dickinson to use harsher vocals next to more raw guitar work added a dimension that I think the band should have embraced more. No Prayer ends up being a halfway house that ultimately pleases few Maiden fans, though for a few tracks the band hint of what could be. Standout tracks: "Hooks In You", "No Prayer For The Dying" "Bring Your Daughter To The Slaughter" |
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Iron Maiden - Senjutsu It should come as no surprise that the reunion era largely comprises the lower end of this list; for they all travel in the same direction as each other, namely prog metal levels of length but without the content to fill out with must listen to moments. [i]Senjutsu[/i] at least packs in more memorable moments and passages than many of the reunion albums; so ranks as one of their better efforts of the last twenty five years. Standout tracks: "Stratego", "Death Of The Celts", "Hell On Earth" |
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Iron Maiden - Virtual XI While I do find myself a part of the 'and justice for Blaze' camp, it is only because albums like [i]Virtual XI[/i] highlight that when given quality material he could make a good go of things (not as good as the band's prior vocalists, but not the sole cause of the 90's retreat into mediocrity); it was just unfortunate he was given scraps to work with for the most part. With the band turning course from the dark, moody themes that painted [i]X Factor[/i] into a self imposed corner; "Futureal" blows the cobwebs away and turns a page. There are still more bad tracks than good for sure, but those good moments still rank high in Maiden's pantheon. Standout tracks: "Futureal", "Lightning Strikes Twice", "The Clansman" |
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Iron Maiden - Dance Of Death My first Maiden album and one that delayed my becoming a fan by a few years. Admittedly I was right near the beginning of my journey into metal at that point, and the idea of a song running over the the three minute mark seemed crazy to me; explaining why the album's two shorter tracks "Wildest Dreams" and "Rainmaker" were the only ones I enjoyed at the time. Over time I came to realise my folly in overlooking much of the album; while I do enjoy it much more than I did back then, by Maiden's standards it is a lot more filler than killer for sure and still can't compete with the rest of their discography. Standout tracks: "Rainmaker", "Dance Of Death", "New Frontier" |
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Iron Maiden - The Book Of Souls Despite having been out a decade at the time of writing, [i]The Book Of Souls[/i] remains one of the least listened to albums in their discography; the unrestrained tendancy to repeat passages for far too long, while also throwing in parts that merely serve to bloat the tracks than bolster them; [i]The Book Of Souls[/i] is only saved by having some moments of brilliance amongst its overly long runtime. Standout tracks: "The Red And The Black", "If Eternity Should Fail", "Empire Of The Clouds" |
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Iron Maiden - The X Factor While it's easy to throw the Blaze era at the bottom of the list and throw said singer under the metaphorical bus (or would it be Ed Force One?) by placing the blame squarely on him, it would not only be unfair on the man, but would miss the mark of the real problem with the Blaze era, namely, the song quality just isn't there. There is a reason that since Bruce's return to the band that they've largely cherrypicked what tracks they acknowledge the existence of, because not even Bruce could breathe life into a "Look For The Truth". Still, there are a few tracks that, at least, proved this ill fated experiment could, occasionally, work when the stars aligned and Blaze was given material of note to front. Track Picks: "Sign Of The Cross", "Man On The Edge" |
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Iron Maiden - The Final Frontier The true nadir of Maiden's long and illustrious career, where their unrestrained prog tendencies collapses in on itself under the sheer weight and amount of content they pack in here. While the preceeding album managed to get the balance perfectly, here it is the opposite, lacking much in the way of anything interesting outside the odd scattered moment that is buried underneath a glut of disinteresting material. While I can tolerate the closing "When The Wild Wind Blows", the rest of the album is a collection of scattered ideas that aren't worth sitting through the runtime to seek out. To say I actively avoid this album is an understatement, the lone album I avoid listening to. Track picks: "When The Wild Wind Blows" |
Disclaimer: All top lists are unofficial and do not represent the point of view of the MS Staff.
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