(cont'd from part 1)

The Powerslave album produced two very memorable things: a massive tour, and a quote that would come back to haunt the band.

During the tour, 'Maiden taped one of defining live albums of all time:

Live After Death: Ordinarily, I'd give my little "this is a live album, so not as good as the real thing" speech here, hand out a 3 or 3 ½ rating and move on. This album defies many of the rules, though.

For one, it manages to capture most of the live experience. The power, the presence of Dickinson, even the odd mistake ("Aces High" is a bit faster than the album version, for example) are all captured perfectly. Even better, several di'Anno-era songs appear, performed by Dickinson, making the listener wonder what they would have sounded had he been with the band from the start.

Rating: * * * * ("SCREAM FOR ME, LONG BEACH!!!")

Caught on film in Poland during the Eastern European leg of the World Slavery tour:

Polish fan: "I play your music all the time on my keyboard!"

Bruce Dickinson: "You can't play metal on a keyboard!"

Somewhere In Time:

Okay... that might be a bit harsh. :lol:

Apparently, 'Maiden didn't listen to Judas Priest's abysmal "Turbo" when they began recording "Somewhere In Time." This is both a bad thing, and a good thing.

The backlash from using guitar synthesizers was almost immediate, and "Time" didn't do as well in the US as previous albums. One of the drawbacks of using synthesized sounds is an overall lack of "warmth" to the sound, which some artists (such as Gary Numan and Fear Factory) have capitalized on to give their songs a mechanical feel and evoke the coldness of an industrial world... something that 'Maiden isn't known for.

However, I thought the album was very good despite the change in sound. The synth-guitars and bass allowed the band to experiment with their sound in ways that influenced later albums in astonishing ways.

"Caught Somewhere In Time" introduces the new sound immediately, weaving the old 'Maiden with the new almost seamlessly, although the mix was a tiny bit uneven (the opening melody almost overpowers the backing rhythm guitars). "Wasted Years" abandons much of the synthesized guitars in favor of a more old-school approach, though the standard "life on the road" lyrics mar it slightly. "Sea of Madness" sounds slightly out of sync in places, but is overall a solid offering. "Heaven Can Wait" finally starts to realize the promise of the new technology, weaving the new sound seamlessly with the trademark 'Maiden sound, and makes it a stand-out track.

"The Loneliness of the Long-Distance Runner" kicks off the second half of the CD strong, with the galloping riffs perfectly complimenting the lyrics of the song, making this another stand-out song. "Stranger in a Strange Land" uses the synth-sounds to evoke a dreamy, contemplative feel. "Deja Vu," however, is something of a momentum-killer, coming across as a bit flat. The album wraps up with "Alexander The Great," an epic song with epic lyrics and sound that, nevertheless, feels force-fit in places (think "To Tame A Land" from "Piece of Mind").

Rating: * * ½ (experimental, with some serious growing pains)

Seventh Son of a Seventh Son: This is one of my personal favorite albums of all time. The only flaw with it was its release: it coincided with the brilliant Operation: Mindcrime from Queensryche, so it tends to suffer a bit in comparison. Taken on its own terms, however, "Seventh Son" is a masterpiece.

It's a concept album about a man (the title character) born with the ability to see the future. Throughout the album, his soul is fought over by God and Satan, and his experiences (seeing the future, but unable to change it or make people believe him) wear on him. It's hard to seperate any one song from the album and analyze it: each is important to the overall storyline. The experimentation on "Somewhere in Time" also paid off: the new technology is fully integrated into the band's repertoire and compliments 'Maiden's sound.

"Moonchild" introduces the album and its concept, foreshadowing the seer's struggle from the Devil's viewpoint. "Infinite Dreams" is nicely contemplative and moody by turns. "Can I Play With Madness" is really the weakest track on the disc, though, since it seems solely to have been written as a single, but it still manages to advance the story and satisfy the listener. "The Evil That Men Do" caps the first half confidently.

The title track starts the second half where the first left off, though at the beginning of the story (sort of a flashback). "The Prophecy" spells out the protagonist's struggle with some very clever vocal mixing, and "The Clairvoyant" comes across as contemplative and energetic (a rare feat). The album closes strong with "Only The Good Die Young," leaving you wondering, "How can they top this?"

Rating: * * * ½ (a strong album only marred by the "made-for-single" "Madness")

After the "Seventh Son" tour wrapped up, the band was left in flux by the departure of Adrian Smith and the beginning of Bruce Dickinson's solo career. To replace Smith, the band took on session guitarist Jannick Gers, who worked with Dickinson on his "Tattooed Millionaire" album (and, in a twist of fate, Fish's first solo album after his departure from Marillion). The resulting album...

No Prayer For The Dying: I could sit here for hours explaining what's wrong with this album. Hell, I could spend DAYS on what's wrong with it. All you need to see, however, is the non-Derek Riggs cover and realize that the band essentially ditched everything they'd done right in the previous decade-plus, and put out what can only be described as a pop-heavy rock album.

There are some redeeming tracks here: "No Prayer" is a nicely contemplative song, "Fates Warning" is as old-school 'Maiden as the album gets, and "Mother Russia" is a very timely piece with haunting lyrics and melody.

The majority of the album, though, is bogged down in overly clever lyrics and titles ("Hooks In You?" "PUBLIC ENEMA NUMBER ONE?" "BRING YOUR DAUGHTER... TO THE SLAUGHTER?!?" Are you *bleep*ing KIDDING me?!?!) and recycled songwriting ("Tailgunner" is almost totally reworked from "Aces High").

Rating: * (avoid it... think of the children you'll save!)

Fear of the Dark:...or, "How we redeem ourselves after 'Prayer' disappointed you." :D

This is a long album compared to earlier offerings. It was the first one specifically recorded for the CD format (which expanded times from 25 minutes per LP side, for 50 minutes safely pressed to vinyl, to almost 80 minutes). Consequently, there are several songs that exceeed the radio-friendly 4 minutes, and a few filler songs (to "fill out" the overall length). Despite the filler, however, the overall album is a vast improvement over "Prayer."

"Be Quick or Be Dead" opens with cIassic 'Maiden energy, but "From Here to Eternity" (the last appearance of Charlotte the Harlot to date) kind of kills the momentum with pop-styIe vocal arrangements in the chorus. The haunting "Afraid to Shoot Strangers" starts well, but about half-way through becomes extremely repetitive (repeating the title over, and over, and over...). The Zepplin-influenced "Fear Is The Key" finally kicks off a string of well-written and -performed tracks, with the avant-garde metal "Childhood's End," the rock ballad "Wasting Love," and the Harris-penned "The Fugitive."

Unfortunately, "Chains of Misery" kills the momentum with AC/DC-styIe gang lyrics which jar in contrast to 'Maiden's sound. "The Apparition" (another Zeeplin-influenced track) is well-written, with excellent lyrics that hint at what some of "Prayer" was aiming for (and missing). "Judas Be My Guide" (thought by some to reflect Dickinson's desire to branch off and pursue his solo career) evokes earlier 'Maiden, but "Weekend Warrior" regresses back to "Prayer" and it's overly-clever pop influence.

The title track, though, wraps up the album on a truly inspired note, rivalling "Hallowed Be Thy Name" as a 'Maiden stand-out. The only thing that holds it back is the repetitive bit near the end (if they shaved about 15 seconds from the length, it would be perfect).

Rating: * * * (too bad it followed "Prayer," and that its promise wouldn't be realized for several years)

Up next: "The X Factor" to "A Matter of Life and Death," and... who the **** is Blaze Bayley?!?