Dance of Death

1. Wildest Dreams. The first single from the album, is a catchy little rocker, taking the listener back somewhere between Somewhere in Time, and relatively recent Bruce solo work on his experimental album Skunkworks. Penned by the flawless and criminally underated Adrian Smith, it is a single which will be likely to make a massive indent into the UK charts come September 1st. I urge you all to buy this now!! Already a live favourite on the Give Me Ed...Til I'm Dead tour, it's the shape of things to come on Dance of Death.

2. Rainmaker is a stunningly melodic penned track by Dave Murray. His songwriting always seems to be discarded for some strange reason (nods in the direction of Deja Vu and Judas be my Guide) but hopefully this melancholic yet beautiful use of the three guitars will find it's way into the live set on the Dance of Death tour. Bruce Dickinson delivers his first, but not last, blistering vocal performance on this track.

3. No More Lies is the first of the mid-range to long songs on this album and the mood turns markedly dark (reflecting perhaps the title of the album). A cracking performance by Nicko McBrain and Steve Harris forming that tightly bound rhythm section of this band. This Harris only penned epic will surely replace a similar track (The Clansman) as another live favourite. A superb, triple guitar assault midway through the album speaks volumes for the more tightly woven triumvirate of Janick Gers, Adrian Smith and Dave Murray. A main theme of this album in fact, and whereas you could argue the three guitars weren't used to their greatest effect on Brave New World, they are certainly on show on Dance of Death which spells good times ahead for the boys.

4. Montsegur. Ah, Montsegur! Quite possibly the most unique sounding track Iron Maiden have written. Janick has really come on as a songwriter in recent times and this odd blend of crushing heavy major riff into minor riff really works to my ears. The chorus is somewhat reminiscent of heavy metal for the new millenium, as seen on The Chemical Wedding by Bruce's solo band. Excellent vocals, excellent vocal harmonies, cleverly stacked guitar layers and a chilling ambience. Superb stuff.

5. Dance of Death - the darkness continues. After the staggeringly heavy Montsegur, it seems difficult to complete the aesthetic. But the theme of the album, to some extent, is played out to its fullest in this track. 8 and a half minutes of some shattering different guitar work. Another Janick penned track, the three pronged guitar assault is in abundance throughout this song, especially during an arrangement which is the centre point of the latter stages here.

6. Gates of Tomorrow. A decidedly more upbeat track ofsets the mood a little bit. A more midpaced rocker is a well earnt break from the previous 20 minutes of darkness.

7. New Frontier. Well well well. Here's a first! Who would have thought that Nicko McBrain, the veteran drummer of 51 years, would finally deliver a brutal selfpenned track worthy of a place on a Iron Maiden studio album! Not I. Really quick, another classic rocker with a superb solo by, once again, Adrian. This song sets up the last chapter of the album perfectly....

8. Paschendale. Adrian's mournful tale of the 3rd Battle of Ypres is harrowing, stunning and blistering all in the space of 8.5 minutes. He's never written an epic of such proportions before and I hope that he will do from now on. This song is destined for instant success. I don't think I could ever describe it's majesty that accurately, so just buy this album and witness it for yourself!

9. Face the Sand. And another track from Adrian, this time evoking some of the progressive aspects of earlier releases, such as 2 Minutes to Midnight. This progressive element is another theme to take in on this fantastic album, running through the last three tracks. It is complex but sounds as though it could become a live track if manipulated correctly.

10. Age of Innocence. A lovely sweeping intro into a strangely heavy track, this one by Dave. The album is peaking in quality at the right time, towards the end. More progression here and changes in rhythm abound. Hints of 70s influences run through this song.

11. Journeyman. Oh wow! This just gets better. After so many themes, progression, uniqueness, variety of writing styles, darkness, bleak tales, upbeat rockers, Iron Maiden surprise us all with a totally acoustic, ambient yet bitter tale. Beautifully sung by Bruce, superbly written by Adrian, this track is just the icing on the cake of what will surely be one of Iron Maiden's most loved studio album.

The elements combined to make this album all work. The topics covered, musicianship, lyrical content and delivery is such a staggering step up from Brave New World it's frightening. Just buy Dance of Death - it's a true return to form.

Excellent song writting (with very few exceptions), unbelievable guitars, Dickinson sings like a maniac and the production is superb.

The album is very diverse. It has everything from the very first completely accoustic Maiden song (Journeyman) to the most aggressive one (Montsegur), from the outstanding absolutely magnificent epic (Paschendale) to the pure rocker (Wildest Dreams), from the classic Harris arrangement of No More Lies to the also classic Maiden uptempo songs like RainMaker and New Frontier.

Inspired bridges, memorable melodic choruses (Gates of Tomorrow, New Frontier), sensitive dreamstate intros (Age of Innocense) and almost theatrical vocal performances that send chills to the bones (Dance of Death). Let's not forget Adrian Smith's song writting at his very best in Face in the Sand.

This album has a lot of guitar! I mean a lot! Harmonies, solos, riffs, it's a triple guitar assault. After Seventh Son, Number of the Beast, Piece of Mind, Powerslave and Somewhere in time, Dance of Death climbed in #6 position of my personal Iron Maiden ranking list. It's a must have. It has a certain quality, this "SOMETHING" that lifts it to another level. It's Metal for the 21st century. Nobody does it better!

Up the IRONS!

First single and opening track 'Wildest Dreams' is arguably one of the weakest tracks on the album.'Rainmaker', with its explosion of triple-guitar harmony histrionics and another devastating chorus, is one of the finest songs Maiden has ever recorded.’No More Lies' is the kind of song that Steve Harris has been attempting to pull off for years: a punchy and progressive seven-minute epic, which sound like the modern day 'Hallowed Be Thy Name'...yes it's that good. Three tracks in and anyone still doubting that Maiden has recaptured the magic of their heyday should be foaming at the mouth by now.

Now the only weak moment 'Montsegur' - although possibly the heaviest thing to appear on a Maiden album since the band's early days; is awful. Bruce sounding like he's auditioning for Spinal Tap on this one. The title-track is another one of Harris' convoluted epics, with strong shades of 70's prog legends Jethro Tull. 'Gates Of Tomorrow' and 'New Frontier' follow; both shamelessly commercial and surging, mid-tempo bursts of muscular melody and percussive bluster. The latter features the first ever writing credit for drummer Nicko McBrain and positively reeks of single potential. Next comes 'Paschendale' another epic and one of the strongest tracks; eight minutes of structural invention, cavalier aggression and lyrical poignancy.

The final three tracks on 'Dance Of Death' are all stunning. First come 'Face In The Sand' - a stately, kick-drum powered waltz with a dash of orchestral elegence.Then 'Age Of Innocence' delivers the album's most gripping affecting melody, allied to a crafty, world-weary lyric.
'Journeyman' brings the album to a close with sweeping strings, understated dynamics and another chorus to die for.

It's all stupendous stuff and concrete proof that Maiden are as electrifying and important as they have been in a long time. Ten years ago, it was unthinkable that they could make more albums of this quality. Metallica must have listened to this album and wept..This is their second out-and-out belter in a row, Long may they reign.