no country for old wainds
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GMD Poll: Iron Maiden Albums Ranked
- Thread starter crimsonfloyd
- Start date
CiG
Approximately Infinite Universe
Random observation: Somewhere in Time didn't make the top 10 of the 1986 list, but Seventh Son made the top ten on the 1988 list; yet, Somewhere in Time finished two spots higher than Seventh Son on this list.
no country for old wainds
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SOMEWHERE IN TIME was only about 10 points away from 5th though, whereas SEVENTH SON... was 23 away from 8th
CiG
Approximately Infinite Universe
EspaDa
Damage Case
CiG
Approximately Infinite Universe
Then per rule 9, I deem you objectively wrong.
The Ozzman
Melted by feels
CiG
Approximately Infinite Universe
The Ozzman
Melted by feels
zabu of nΩd
Free Insultation
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I'm still on a Maiden binge thanks to this thread, so I thought I'd autism it out with some thoughts on (and a re-ranking of) the first six albums:
Iron Maiden
I'll admit my obvious bias: more than any other album, this one speaks to me on a deeply personal level. It's clearly their least polished. It also has a number of mediocre songs: I find "Transylvania", "Charlotte the Harlot" and "Iron Maiden" quite forgettable; and though I enjoy "Remember Tomorrow", it sounds like a clumsy attempt at building the kind of epic song structure they would not master until later.
Then there are the classics - the songs which make up pieces of my very soul. I see in myself the pervert of "Prowler", the rebel of "Running Free", the predator of "Phantom of the Opera". Each song tells a unique story lyrically, and evokes a unique atmosphere instrumentally, but most importantly (for the first two, at least) it's Paul's personality which brings the depicted characters to life. Even "Strange World", albeit a relatively weak track, still offers another side of Paul to fall in love with. As critical as Bruce was to Maiden's career, I've never found him as lovable.
Killers
A big upgrade in production and songwriting finesse, and with it Paul has lost some of the bratty charm that shined on the debut album. There are still tracks where I greatly welcome his voice over a hypothetical Bruce - especially "Another Life", a uniquely compelling suicide anthem despite all its rock 'n' roll flash.
Rock 'n' roll elements are really what defined the Di'Anno era, and arguably what held Maiden back from the groundbreaking signature style heralded by Bruce's arrival. It's easier to pick apart the latter style with only two Di'Anno albums for comparison, but one could be diplomatic and call it a tradeoff between the former's "earthly pleasures" and the latter's "higher pleasures".
The Number of the Beast
I avoided this forever, after burning out on it many years ago. Coming back to it with a much greater familiarity of their discography, I realize how much I miss the consistent onslaught of intelligent riffs, blistering solos and galloping rhythms which made this Maiden's landmark album.
Piece of Mind
A solid album with a few classics, but easy to be disappointed by after TNOTB. Maiden were gradually reinventing themselves with each release early on, and there's an element of that here, but more often it seems that whichever particular muse inspired TNOTB was not whispering so clearly in their ears this time.
The first two songs, for instance, aren't memorable like the hits on TNOTB, and aren't atmospheric like most of, say, Somewhere in Time (although I can imagine "Where Eagles Dare" fitting well there, had it been re-recorded). They're not bad, just simple and unimpressive. "Flight of Icarus" and "The Trooper", on the other hand, are two of my all-time favorites.
Powerslave
This is where I hear the fruits of the evolution that began on POM: a blend of TNOTB's catchy conciseness and POM's more offbeat song structures. It's that extra dimension which makes it so enjoyable, and for me more so than the darling of critics.
Somewhere in Time
A weird, uncanny album for which I really had to acquire a taste. Maiden had tried progressive epics before ("Rime of the Ancient Mariner" the most obvious example), but this feels progressive from beginning to end. Its massive, monolithic structure is a clear departure from the concise, catchy, song-oriented nature of all albums before it, and sets the course for the endless depths of monotonous self-indulgence the band would begin their descent into with Seventh Son.
There's certainly a charm in the structure here - and something magical in the guitar tone. It may be my favorite album to just zone out and daydream to.
That structure comes with a tradeoff: without the conciseness of previous work, there's a kind of sameness to most of Somewhere, an extra-noticeable repetition of patterns. The harsher critic in me would argue that every band's inspiration dries up at some point, and that the drought had clearly begun to set in here. Even if we assume this, they sure found a slick way to package the ugly truth this time: piles and piles of gratifying riffs, guitar solos, harmonies, instrumental odysseys, and sci-fi themes.
- Iron Maiden
- Powerslave
- The Number of the Beast
- Somewhere in Time
- Killers
- Piece of Mind
Iron Maiden
I'll admit my obvious bias: more than any other album, this one speaks to me on a deeply personal level. It's clearly their least polished. It also has a number of mediocre songs: I find "Transylvania", "Charlotte the Harlot" and "Iron Maiden" quite forgettable; and though I enjoy "Remember Tomorrow", it sounds like a clumsy attempt at building the kind of epic song structure they would not master until later.
Then there are the classics - the songs which make up pieces of my very soul. I see in myself the pervert of "Prowler", the rebel of "Running Free", the predator of "Phantom of the Opera". Each song tells a unique story lyrically, and evokes a unique atmosphere instrumentally, but most importantly (for the first two, at least) it's Paul's personality which brings the depicted characters to life. Even "Strange World", albeit a relatively weak track, still offers another side of Paul to fall in love with. As critical as Bruce was to Maiden's career, I've never found him as lovable.
Killers
A big upgrade in production and songwriting finesse, and with it Paul has lost some of the bratty charm that shined on the debut album. There are still tracks where I greatly welcome his voice over a hypothetical Bruce - especially "Another Life", a uniquely compelling suicide anthem despite all its rock 'n' roll flash.
Rock 'n' roll elements are really what defined the Di'Anno era, and arguably what held Maiden back from the groundbreaking signature style heralded by Bruce's arrival. It's easier to pick apart the latter style with only two Di'Anno albums for comparison, but one could be diplomatic and call it a tradeoff between the former's "earthly pleasures" and the latter's "higher pleasures".
The Number of the Beast
I avoided this forever, after burning out on it many years ago. Coming back to it with a much greater familiarity of their discography, I realize how much I miss the consistent onslaught of intelligent riffs, blistering solos and galloping rhythms which made this Maiden's landmark album.
Piece of Mind
A solid album with a few classics, but easy to be disappointed by after TNOTB. Maiden were gradually reinventing themselves with each release early on, and there's an element of that here, but more often it seems that whichever particular muse inspired TNOTB was not whispering so clearly in their ears this time.
The first two songs, for instance, aren't memorable like the hits on TNOTB, and aren't atmospheric like most of, say, Somewhere in Time (although I can imagine "Where Eagles Dare" fitting well there, had it been re-recorded). They're not bad, just simple and unimpressive. "Flight of Icarus" and "The Trooper", on the other hand, are two of my all-time favorites.
Powerslave
This is where I hear the fruits of the evolution that began on POM: a blend of TNOTB's catchy conciseness and POM's more offbeat song structures. It's that extra dimension which makes it so enjoyable, and for me more so than the darling of critics.
Somewhere in Time
A weird, uncanny album for which I really had to acquire a taste. Maiden had tried progressive epics before ("Rime of the Ancient Mariner" the most obvious example), but this feels progressive from beginning to end. Its massive, monolithic structure is a clear departure from the concise, catchy, song-oriented nature of all albums before it, and sets the course for the endless depths of monotonous self-indulgence the band would begin their descent into with Seventh Son.
There's certainly a charm in the structure here - and something magical in the guitar tone. It may be my favorite album to just zone out and daydream to.
That structure comes with a tradeoff: without the conciseness of previous work, there's a kind of sameness to most of Somewhere, an extra-noticeable repetition of patterns. The harsher critic in me would argue that every band's inspiration dries up at some point, and that the drought had clearly begun to set in here. Even if we assume this, they sure found a slick way to package the ugly truth this time: piles and piles of gratifying riffs, guitar solos, harmonies, instrumental odysseys, and sci-fi themes.
Last edited:
HamburgerBoy
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EspaDa
Damage Case
I don't know what's harder to comprend: that you find half of the debut forgettable, or that you ranked it first despite not caring for half of it.
zabu of nΩd
Free Insultation
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I still like every song on the album, I was just pointing out a few that don't stand out for me compared to some of my all-time favorites.
zabu of nΩd
Free Insultation
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I do think my favorite Maiden album is kind of mediocre, as suggested by the votes tallied in this thread. I'm trying out the novel idea of distinguishing my personal preferences from a critical evaluation of their work.
I'd say you're way off on the later. And the rankings on here don't suggest that the debut is mediocre in the least. The top 7 all got high point averages.
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