Iron Maiden Albums (24)
What The Critics Say
Like Cheap Trick's At Budokan (1979) and the Who's Live at Leeds (1970), Iron Maiden's seminal Live After Death (1985) successfully established its creators as rock & roll legends from pole to pole. Little has changed for the band in the nearly 25 years between that album and 2009's Flight 666, a two-disc set recorded in 16 different cities (and nearly as many countries) during the group's first leg of their 2008 "Somewhere Back in Time" world tour. Even the set lists are similar, with "Churchill's Speech" serving as the launch pad for the quadruple threat of "Aces High," "Two Minutes to Midnight," "Revelations," and "The Trooper." That the band still sounds as tight and engaged as ever may be the primary reason behind its enduring legacy, but it's the fans who number in the millions and sing every word that makes the disc so special. Also, the fact that ageless frontman Bruce Dickinson piloted the band's customized (as in longtime mascot "Eddie" looking out from the rudder") Boeing 757 during the jaunt is pretty f*cking cool. ~ James Christopher Monger, All Music Guide
'A Matter of Life and Death'
Release Date 8/25/2006
Tracks 10
Label EMI
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What The Critics Say
2003's Dance of Death marked the triumphant return of old-school Iron Maiden. Gone were the murky, over-produced set pieces that clogged 2000's Brave New World and in their place fell blistering slabs of Piece of Mind-era metal. That trend continues with their 14th full-length album, Matter of Life and Death, a more elaborate and meandering experience than Dance of Death, but a rewarding one for fans willing to indulge the group's occasional excess. At over 70 minutes, Matter of Life and Death is closer to 1988's woefully underrated Seventh Son of a Seventh Son than it is to Piece of Mind, but with far less keyboard tickling. Recorded live in the studio, epics like "Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg," "Brighter Than a Thousand Suns," and the brutal "Longest Day" -- the whole record is a loosely-knit song cycle with war at its core -- exhume prog rock complexity and discipline yet manage to bristle with the kind of small-club intensity usually reserved for acts half their age. At just over four minutes, opener "Different World" -- a near twin of Dance of Death's "Wildest Dreams" -- is the only cut that screams single, but it's also the most misplaced. On a record that positions beloved avatar Eddy on top of a tank with a machine gun leading a weary troop of skeletal soldiers to their doom, any act of brevity, no matter how expertly crafted, sticks out like a saxophone solo. [Matter of Life and Death is also available with a bonus DVD that includes videos, live performances, and rehearsal footage.] ~ James Christopher Monger, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Recorded in December at the Westfalenhalle Arena (Dortmund, Germany) during the band's 2003 Dance of Death tour, the two-disc Death on the Road deviates little from Iron Maiden's countless other live albums. While blissfully heavy on the group's excellent -- and suitably theatrical -- new material, longtime fans do not need any more live versions of "Number of the Beast," "Hallowed Be Thy Name," "Run to the Hills," or "The Trooper." All that said, Iron Maiden do not disappoint, laying to waste any notions that they can't hold themselves to the performance standards of their younger days. Even Bruce Dickinson, despite a voice that's now often more choked than feral, can barely keep himself from leaping into the crowd, and it's that kind of enthusiasm that makes each and every live release -- and there are a lot of them -- worthwhile to some degree. ~ James Christopher Monger, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Drummer Nicko McBrain kicks off Iron Maiden's 13th studio record with an uncharacteristic one-two-three-four before launching into the rousing opener, "Wildest Dreams." This bar-band sensibility permeates Dance of Death's first three refreshing yet unremarkable tracks before shifting into the more familiar fantasy rock of previous releases. That shift begins with the remarkable "Montsegur," a brutal, melodic assault that recalls the group's glory days and showcases lead singer Bruce Dickinson at his venom-spitting best. The anthemic "New Frontier" is a musical sibling to the band's 1982 classic "Number of the Beast" and eclipses any doubt about the band's ability to keep up with the phantom specter of age. Despite the dark imagery and the ferocity of the performances, there's a looseness to the record that conveys a surreal sense of fun. They enjoy playing together, and that more than anything shines through on old-fashioned rockers like "No More Lies" and "Gates of Tomorrow." No Iron Maiden album would be complete without a Dungeons and Dragons-style epic, and they deliver on the hammy title track and the lush closer, "Journeyman." The group's innate ability to consistently cater to its fans' stubborn tastes, while maintaining a level of integrity that other veteran bands displace with unintentional Spinal Tap zeal, is a testament to its talent and experience. While the keyboard-heavy sound of their previous release, the excellent Brave New World, creeps into some of the more indulgent tracks, Dance of Death is a triumphant return to form for these heavy metal legends. ~ James Christopher Monger, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
With the reunion studio disc Brave New World failing to recapture the imagination and intensity of Iron Maiden in America and even in many places in the band's European homeland, going to Brazil seemed like a smart move. It was one of the few places that a quarter of a million people would turn up to see the act in 2001, and judging from the audience response, the band's set list didn't bother them much, either. At times, you had to be wondering what they were listening to. The band's energy is in abundance here (it's hard to mail in a performance in front of so many people who seem to scream at every single move the band makes). Includes some of Dickinson's CMC solo stuff and six tracks off the aforementioned Brave New World. The majesty of the classic material saves the day, and even though they had a sympathetic foreign crowd by the short and curlies, the band was smart enough to close the set with the classic material. Simply put, you can't go wrong with a closing volley of three tracks from Number of the Beast and a couple more from the band's eponymous debut. The likes of "The Trooper" and "Wrathchild" sound even better next to anything the band recorded after Seventh Son of a Seventh Son. ~ Brian O'Neill, All Music Guide
'Brave New World'
Release Date 5/18/2000
Tracks 10
Label EMI Europe Generic
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What The Critics Say
The return of Iron Maiden's "classic" Dickinson/Harris/Murray/Smith/McBrain lineup (plus third guitarist Janick Gers) in 1999 led to an incredibly successful world tour that saw the New Wave of British Heavy Metal legends commanding stages with the same unmitigated power and authority as they had during their mid-'80s heyday. But the question remained as to whether the reconstituted group would be able to carry this momentum into a studio setting and recapture the songwriting chops of its glory years. This question made Brave New World one of the most highly anticipated metal releases of 2000, and thankfully, the eventual answer to that question was a resounding "YES!" In fact, the album pretty much picked up right where the "classic" lineup had left off on 1988's Seventh Son of a Seventh Son: with a faithful rediscovery of Iron Maiden's best-loved sonic aesthetic and compositional quirks, updated only insofar as was necessary to measure up to new-millennium recording standards. In every other respect (and much like Seventh Son of a Seventh Son), Brave New World's meticulously orchestrated three-guitar attack still allowed for a greater sense of space than early Maiden albums (as well as the use of subtle keyboard textures in a supporting role), while boasting a beefier, in-your-face mix à la Piece of Mind or Powerslave. The remarkable pipes of singer Bruce Dickinson actually seemed to have benefited from a less grueling touring schedule over the previous decade, and his renewed songwriting partnership with bassist Steve Harris (and other assorted bandmembers) yielded several new Maiden live standards such as punchy first single, "The Wicker Man," and the positively anthemic title track. Also worthy of special mention were Harris' emotional solo copyright, "Blood Brothers," Adrian Smith's distinctive solo licks throughout "The Fallen Angel," and six-string stalwart Dave Murray's Arabian-flavored contributions to "The Nomad." These highlights notwithstanding, a more lucid appraisal revealed that Brave New World was no Number of the Beast, once the initial euphoria died down. But as comeback albums go, its excellence was undeniable, and announced not only Iron Maiden's triumphant return, but an important turning point in heavy metal's long, arduous climb back to respectability after years of critical abuse. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
When the time came to conclude the Bruce Dickinson era with their second official live album, heavy metal legend Iron Maiden was faced with the common dilemma of how to adequately balance both old and new material into one package. So instead of releasing a continuous double-disc set combining the two, the band chose the novel approach of issuing two separate albums: A Real Live One, containing songs released after 1985's milestone Live After Death set; and A Real Dead One, containing updated versions of their early classics. Unfortunately, the latter's almost complete lack of surprises makes for a pretty lackluster experience, especially since the band's live performances add little to the original studio versions. Still, the resurrection of a few more obscure offerings from their early days like "Prowler," "Transylvania," and "Where Eagles Dare" will certainly satisfy fanatics. ~ Eduardo Rivadavia, All Music Guide
'The X Factor'
Release Date 1/1/1995
Tracks 11
Label CMC International
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