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Two CDs for £9 or MP3 for £3.99
*Buy this CD with another eligible title and pay no more than £9 for both (terms and conditions apply). Just look for any album with this message, put it in your basket with a second eligible title and the discount will be applied at checkout. Offer ends June 30, 2013. |
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Review As the title not-so-cunningly implies, there’s the prerequisite dollop of occult-orientated subject matter that you’d expect. What is surprising however is the extent to which their combination of sophisticated arrangements and varied tonal palette lifts what might otherwise be a rather earthbound (i.e. bog-standard) set. The frantic opener, “Invader” flirts intriguingly with jazz-rock fusion whilst other tracks have an overtly prog-rock agenda.
Certainly, a key weapon of bassist Steve Harris, the album’s main writer, is the convincing use of multi-movement compositions. Whereas even some of the venerable HM institutions (think Black Sabbath) would struggle to make material that was something more than a collection of minor-key riffs, Iron Maiden pull this feat off with considerable élan. “The Prisoner”, (complete with dialogue lifted from the TV series of the same name) could almost pass for a heavy-metal Genesis and even the innuendo-laden “22 Acacia Avenue” has some complex riffing that wouldn’t be out of place in Gentle Giant.
The greater emphasis on dramatic narrative (the title track, “Hallowed Be Thy Name” and the top ten single, “Run To The Hills”) provide Dickinson a platform to showcase some subtle phrasing that marks him out as a cut above the rest of the balls-to-the-wall competition. Maiden newbies are advised to start their journey to metal hell and back right here. --Sid Smith
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