The Toy Box: Iron Maiden

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Retro Spins: Iron Maiden - Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son

It's noted that the continued change in sound from Iron Maiden's previous album, Somewhere In Time remained prevalent in their final release of the decade, Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son. The problem with this is that I didn't hear said change in the previous album.

At this point, I think I've hammered home that my overall experience with the band has not really paid off. The music's been a bit lackluster, especially in the wake of Bruce Dickinson taking over vocal duties of Paul Di'Anno. They've not become a favorite of mine, and candidly, I haven't seen the appeal to this legacy act of thrash metal.

Regardless of my opinion, Iron Maiden has proved time and time again to be a powerhouse in the industry, producing top charting albums, and sales certifications ranging between gold and multi-platinum. The point being, as much as I consider myself an 80's music aficionado, I fully understand that tastes vary, and opinions are subjective.

The band approached their 1988 album as a concept, basing it on the 1987 novel Seventh Son by Orson Scott Card. It would be their first to include keyboards, played by both Steve Harris and Adrian Smith. Singer Bruce Dickinson would also get reinvigorated, with his ideas being embraced and included in the material. You may recall from yesterday's post that all the ideas he brought to the tale for 1986's Somewhere In Time were all rejected by the remaining members.

Following suit of previous releases, Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son shot up the charts in multiple countries, becoming their next number one in the UK, and peaking at number twelve on the Billboard 200 in the USA. A support tour was inevitable, seeing the band perform one hundred three shows, including the West Germany, Netherland, Italy, Spain, and France portions of Monsters Of Rock. Michael Kenney would be brought in to perform the keyboard portions for the tour.

Having zero expectation, I fired up the album, prepared to spend the next forty-five minutes half listening, and half twiddling my thumbs. "Not so fast," said Iron Maiden. "Check this out!"

Moonchild starts with a strumming acoustic guitar before delivering a synthesizer intro, overlaid by guitars and drums. From there, the beat kicks in, and the song takes off. Wait, what was happening? I was into it, hook, line and sinker.

From there, the album just kept punching me in the face with solid track after solid track. So many, that while I initially began jotting down tunes of note, Infinite Dreams, Can I Play With Madness, it soon became apparent that I was actually enjoying the whole thing. Where the heck has this Iron Maiden been?

I'm sure many metal purists were rolling their eyes at the inclusion of synthesizers, but for me, I think it's the missing piece that previous albums didn't have. Thrash metal meets synthpop rock. Iron Jovi. That's what I'm talking about.

If you haven't reached the conclusion yet, Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son was a great album. It's a definite high note to end it all on, and yet, at the same time, sad that I didn't get this from previous records. Frankly, it makes me want to go back and listen to them again and see what I may have missed out of prejudice. Unfortunately, time won't all for that any time soon.

Upheaval soon reared its head for the band. Thing began unknowingly with guitarist Adrian Smith releasing an album with ASAP in 1989, and singer Bruce Dickinson beginning a solo career with Janick Gers on guitar. While all of this was going on, the band celebrated their tenth anniversary with a compilation release.

Returning to the studio for what would become their next album, 1990's No Prayer For The Dying, during pre-production, Smith would quit. It would later be stated that he disagreed with the stripped-down sound that founding member, and bassist, Steve Harris was leaning towards. Dickinson would suggest he be replaced by Gers, who became the first new member in seven years.

Iron Maiden once again joined Monsters Of Rock and were even joined by Smith who made an appearance to perform with the band. However, as things would have it, issues with Dickinson then began occurring. This began with their 1992 album, Fear Of The Dark, where rather than work with Harris on tracks, which he had done in the past, he instead worked with Gers. Feeling creatively restricted, Dickinson would leave the band in 1993.

After listening to thousands of tapes, the band chose Blaze Bayley, formerly of the band Wolfsbane, to fill the spot of lead vocalist. With his different vocal style from Dickinson, the band received mixed criticism for their next two albums, The X Factor (1995), and Virtual XI (1998). Bayley would be asked to leave in 1999 after a series of poor performances. In hindsight, Gers would say that it was the band's fault for expecting him to perform songs outside of his vocal range.

The band met with Dickinson, and negotiated his return, and following this, phoned up Smith, who also rejoined. Rather than ask Gers to leave, Iron Maiden now encompassed three guitarists, who they nicknamed the Three Amigos. Though there have been ups and downs, success has continued for the band with the lineup of Bruce Dickinson, Dave Murray, Adiran Smith, Janick Gers, Steve Harris, and Nicko McBrain. They're continued the legacy of Maiden and released six more albums between 2000 and 2021. While rumors suggest a new album is in the works, nothing has been concretely confirmed.

As for Eddie, the mascot which has appeared on every Maiden album to date, well, he's still around too. He not only remains the face of the band, but as of 2024 has even made the transition to toys from Funko.

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Retro Spins: Iron Maiden - Somewhere In Time

Preparing for today's Retro Spin, and through crossed my mind. That being that I really want to be done with Iron Maiden and move on to other things. The music's been okay, good even, but seven albums from the decade is a bit excessive to play through back-to-back.

Returning to the studio after their demanded time off, Maiden brought with them a renewed focus, and a change in sound that would incorporate synthesized bass and guitars. Where in previous albums focus was on guitars, bass, and drums, delivering straight up thrash metal, this inclusion would add textures and layers to the sound.

Somewhere In Time would be their first album since his joining that Bruce Dickenson would receive no writing credits. This was simply because all the ideas he brought to the table were rejected by the band.

It would go on to become their highest charting to date on the Billboard 200, peaking at number eleven, as well as charting across several other countries. Once again, it would fair the best in the UK, where it mirrored the success of the previously released Powerslave, peaking at number two. To support its release, Iron Maiden once again hit the road, performing one hundred fifty-seven shows across the world.

If there was a change in sound for the band, I didn't hear it. For me, it was relatively more of the same that I'd already gone through multiple times leading up to this point. Frankly, writing this post twenty-four hours after that listening session has actually hurt it more than helped because at this point, I don't even really remember any of it.

I did note that opening track, Caught Somewhere In Time had a solid intro that grabbed my attention immediately. I even went as far as to jot down tune, Sea Of Madness, and Stranger In A Strange Land as standout tracks. However, and truthfully, at this point, I couldn't tell you how any of them went.

With that in mind, I suppose the best way to sum up Somewhere In Time would be to state it's nothing better or worse than what they did before, but ultimately, unless you're a diehard fan, it's also forgettable. Frankly, it's a bit disappointing. Iron Maiden is a legacy act, and I was really expecting better than this.

As I head into tomorrow, I close out their decade with 1988's Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son. Am I expecting it to be the silver lining and standout that's going to change my mind? No. Do I hope it will? Absolutely. If nothing else, to make it worthwhile to have spent so much money on all of their 80's albums.

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Retro Spins: Iron Maiden - Powerslave

Following their successful tour in support of 1983's Piece Of Mind, Iron Maiden returned to Compass Point Studios, the location they recorded their previous album, to complete 1984's Powerslave. This is the album I initially talked about when playing through their debut. Mainly because of the 80's albums from the group, this one was the rarest, and most expensive to track down.

At this point, the band was churning out hit record after hit record, to the point that it was expected. Powerslave didn't disappoint. It charted across the world again and became another certified album. The tour which followed would be their largest to date, with the guys playing one hundred ninety-three shows across thirteen countries. One such show was the Rock In Rio festival, where they followed Queen onstage. That however, would just be the tip of the iceberg of the event, which also featured such notable acts over the ten-day event as Whitesnake, James Taylor, George Benson, The Go-Go's, AC/DC, Scorpions, Ozzy Osbourne, Yes, and The B-52's, to name just a very few.

Side note: Even McDonalds got in on the event, obtaining a Guiness World Record for selling 58,000 hamburgers that day. This was usurped in 2011 by Bob's, who sold 79,000 at the event. The sad part about this is that in 1985, an estimated 1.4 million people attended the festival. Whereas in 2011, it's estimated only 700,000 did. So, between a smaller crowd, they ate more burgers, and we wonder why everyone is so unhealthy.

Iron Maiden would be credited as the first Western band to bring a full production live show behind the Iron Curtain. This would be documented in the band's third official live video, aptly titled, Behind The Iron Curtain, released in October 1984. It would also become a milestone unto itself, being the first documentary released by a Western band touring Eastern Bloc. MTV would also license the rights, and air the show on their channel that year.

2 Minutes To Midnight was the first to grab my attention, but was quickly overshadowed by the amazing instrument, Losfer Words (Big 'Orra). Let's just take Bruce Dickinson out of the mix and focus on this style of music. I'd be down.

Things tapered off drastically and didn't pick up until the album title track. Looking at the cover of the album, things started to click in my mind. The riff which the song revolves around has almost an Egyptian ethos to it. The album would then close with Rime Of The Ancient Mariner, a decent, but definitely long song, at almost fourteen minutes.

Despite the gap between the songs that I liked from it, as a whole, it's not a bad album. Once again, Dickinson serves as the weakest link in the chain. Though I am, admittedly, getting a bit used to his voice at this point.

All the touring would prove to be grueling on the members, and upon its completion, they demanded six months off. They were granted four, and only after Dickinson threatened to quit. This resulted in the cancellation of a proposed tour to support their 1985 live album, Live After Death, which would also be another critical and commercial success for them.

When they finally returned to the studio to produce 1986's Somewhere In Time, the boys would change up their musical styling a bit. We'll dive into all of that tomorrow.

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Retro Spins: Iron Maiden - Piece Of Mind

Ah, Guitar Hero II. Such great memories. I remember playing that game incessantly when it hit the Xbox 360. I would also subsequently introduce my brother and sister to it, and when Rock Band became a thing, that became our thing across Xbox Live. As for GHII, it's what introduced me to the song, The Trooper from Iron Maiden. So many times, I played that song, working my way to completion of the entire game on Expert, one of the few I got one hundred percent of the achievements on.

But I digress. This is not a post about Guitar Hero II.

By 1983, the lineup of Iron Maiden had changed considerably since the band's debut. Original bassist, Steve Harris, and guitarist, Dave Murray, remained the only two consistent members. The group now also featured Adrian Smith as an additional guitarist, Nicko McBrain on drums, and Bruce Dickinson on vocals.

Maiden would head to Compass Point Studios in the Bahamas, to record the tracks for what would become 1983's Piece Of Mind. The experience would leave an impression, so much to the point that they'd return to record their two follow-ups.

Upon its release, the band would once again chart across the globe becoming their fourth consecutive successful record. Though it featured the popular tracks, The Trooper, and Flight Of Icarus, the latter would become mainstays on radios in the USA. Maiden would once again set out on a world tour to support the album, performing one hundred forty-seven shows.

As I went to play the album, I accidently put on 1984's Powerslave. Rather than turn it off, I listened to it, so hold please.

Okay, I'm back, and I've now listened to not only that one, but the correct album for today.

Where Eagles Dare is a solid starting off point for the album, and things pick up nicely with Flight Of Icarus. Then there was The Trooper, a song I was familiar with from my Xbox 360 Rock Band days.

I really dug the guitar work on the track, Quest For Fire, but then, that's really where I keep getting hung up with Iron Maiden. The instrumentation is always top notch. It's when the vocals kick in that I start to lose interest. Still, Piece Of Mind is another solid entry from the band.

Returning from their world tour, Iron Maiden went back to Compass Point Studios and laid down the tracks that would become 1984's Powerslave. As noted in my very first post, this album proved to not only be the rarest to find on CD, but among the more expensive. Will it have been worth the price? Well, I guess we'll find out tomorrow.

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Retro Spins: Iron Maiden - The Number Of The Beast

After hearing their debut, I told my heavy metal co-worker that I was concerned to read that Bruce Dickinson was going to be replacing Paul Di'Anno on vocals. I told him how much I was digging the latter's vocals, to which he assured, "You're going to enjoy Dickinson even more." Is that true? Well, I guess we'll find out today.

Di'Anno was let go in 1981 due to his erratic behavior from drug abuse. Following a September audition, Dickenson would be immediately hired to replace him, and the band embarked on a series of road shows prior to recording and releasing 1982's The Number Of The Beast. It would become their first number one record in the UK, crack the top ten in multiple countries, and reach the twenties in others. It would only be the USA where it would falter a bit, peaking at thirty-three on the Billboard 200.

While the band embarked on yet another successful world tour, The Beast on the Road's US leg proved controversial when political activists claimed the band to be satanic and destroyed their albums in protest. Dickenson would call the whole thing silly, and state that their protest actually made them more popular. The Number of the Beast sold 2.5 million copies in its first year.

I found myself immediately frowning when opening track, Invaders, kicked things off. Specifically, when first hearing Dickenson's vocals. Though my ears didn't want it, I tried to push aside my own prejudices, and act as though this was essentially Iron Maiden's debut. It didn't work.

You can't give someone Cocoa Puffs for two years, and then suddenly switch up to Count Chocula. Sure, this is still a chocolate cereal, but it's not the same chocolate cereal, and this one also has marshmallows. If you like marshmallows, then sure, this could be considered better, but if you don't, then this perhaps isn't the cereal you're looking for. As for me, I like Cocoa Puffs and Count Chocula, for two different reasons, but if given the choice, I'd take Puffs over Chocula. Same comparison for Iron Maiden.

I will admit that things did pick up for me with the song, The Prisoner, specifically the guitar solo which kicks in around the three minute forty second mark. Things quickly tapered off though, and I found myself just going through the motions of listening. That is until the title track came on and was followed by Run To The Hills. Now we were talking. Yes, I will take more Bruce Dickinson Iron Maiden like this. Sadly, this didn't turn out to be the case, and I was soon back to subpar tunes until the album closer, Hallowed Be Thy Name.

My biggest problem with Dickinson is his need to continuously screech like he stubbed his toes. Whereas Di'Anno brought a singing voice with character, Dickinson is just a bellowing harpy. It's actually a bit annoying when I think about it. Though he retained a good relationship with his prior bandmates, Di'Anno never rejoined, mainly because Dickinson never stepped down, and sadly he passed away in 2024. In a sadistic way, I keep seeing the father from Dewey Cox popping into my head and saying, "Wrong kid died."

By December of 1982, drummer Clive Burr was fired from the band for a combination of reasons, which included personal issues, intense touring fatigue, and, according to band members, lifestyle choices that affected his performance. He would be replaced by Nicko McBrain. Burr would later claim to have been unfairly ousted.

For their next three albums, the band would find a home at Compass Point Studios in the Bahamas to record them all. The first being 1983's Piece Of Mind, an album which I do actually know a song from because of my Xbox 360 Guitar Hero II days. But before I get too far ahead of myself, I suppose that's a decent stopping point. I'll pick up tomorrow, crossing over the halfway point of my journey through Iron Maiden.

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Retro Spins: Iron Maiden - Killers

I was a bit surprised by how well my introduction to Mr. I. Ron Maiden went yesterday with their self-titled debut. My initial exposure to the band was previously very limited, pretty much to what was included on the various Guitar Hero or Rock Band games.

Bassist Steve Harris formed them in 1975, originally as Ash Mountain. However, the members preferred the other name he'd come up with, Iron Maiden, which Harris took inspiration from the film adaptation of The Man in the Iron Mask to come up with.

The original lineup consisted of Harris on bass, Terry Rance and Dave Sullivan on guitars, Ron Matthews on drums, and Paul Mario Day on vocals. Day would be the first to depart, lacking the energy and charisma needed. He'd be replaced by Dennis Wilcock, a fan of Kiss who would often incorporate fake blood and makeup into the shows.

Wilcock asked Dave Murray to join, also on guitar, causing grief with both Sullivan and Rance. Though these frustrations would end in a very temporary disbandment of the group, it was quickly reformed in 1976 with Murray as the sole guitarist, alongside Wilcock on vocals, Harris on bass, and Matthews on drums. Harris and Murray remain the band's longest-serving members and have performed on all of their albums.

Bob Sawyer was recruited to the band as a second guitarist, but fired in 1977 after embarrassing the band onstage, while pretending to play guitar with his teeth. Tensions also began to cause a rift between Murray and Wilcock. Both Murray and Matthews were let go. A new lineup consisting of Harris, Wilcock, new guitarist Terry Wapram, Barry Purkis on drums, and keyboardist, Tony Moore. However, the latter would be let go after a single gig in 1978, when Harris decided he didn't want keyboards as part of the band's sound.

Murray rejoined in early 1978, and when Wapram disapproved, he was fired. Weeks later, Wilcock would leave to form a new band with Wapram, and though he wouldn't join them, Pukis would also depart. Doug Sampson, who attended the last gig with Wilcock and Pukis would join the band.

By the summer of 1978, Harris, Murray, and Sampson spent their time rehearsing, and looking for a new singer. The band called it a chance meeting at a pub where they met Paul Di'Anno, and ultimately recruited him as their new vocalist. Additionally, they wanted to bring in a second guitarist, but Harris would say of this, "Davey was so good he could do a lot of it on his own. The plan was always to get a second guitarist in, but finding one that could match Davey was really difficult".

Hoping to secure more gigs, Maiden recorded a four-track demo on New Years Eve, 1978. Neal Kay, the manager of the club, Bandwagon Heavy Metal Soundhouse, was given a copy, and liking it so much, he frequently played it at the club. This led to the band reaching number one on the Soundhouse charts, for Sound magazine.

Rod Smallwood also received a copy of the tape, and so impressed, he signed as their manager. With their popularity continuing to grow, they recorded a second demo, The Soundhouse Tapes. All 5,000 copies sold out within weeks. Their overall popularity soon attracted the attention of EMI, who signed them in December 1979.

Prior to beginning work on their debut, Murray's childhood friend, Adrian Smith to join as the band's second guitarist. However, when he declined, Dennis Stratton was instead hired. Unfortunately, health issues soon resulted in Doug Sampson departing. Stratton suggested new drummer, Clive Burr, who was hired. The band would make their first appearance on EMI's compilation album, Metal for Muthas, released in February 1980. This was followed by their self-titled debut in April.

Iron Maiden, the album, would debut at number four on the UK charts. In addition to the title track, it would feature early fan favorites, Running Free, Transylvania, Phantom of the Opera and "Sanctuary, the latter only appearing on US pressings initially. The band departed on a support tour, headlining for Kiss's Unmasked tour. Though upon completion, Dennis Stratton, was let go for creative and personal differences. Adrian Smith was once again asked to join and did.

December of 1980 brought them to the Rainbow, where they performed and recorded the video, Live at the Rainbow. Excerpts, Iron Maiden, the song, and Wrathchild would be put into heavy rotation on MTV during its first hours, making them the first heavy metal videos on the channel.

Having a lot of material already written prior to their debut album, it was relatively easy for Maiden to couple together their second album, 1981's Killers. Unhappy with the production of their first record, the band brought in producer, Martin Birch, who would continue to work with them until his retirement in 1992.

The boys embarked on a world tour, opening for Judas Priest. In total, they booked one hundred thirty-two shows, performing across the globe. In addition to this, they also appeared at several festivals, playing before as many as 100,000 people. The album as a whole would peak at number twelve in the UK, and seventy-eight on the Billboard 200, among charting in several other countries.

While I'd love to say the album was another solid banger, my initial listening session was frequently interrupted by a fire alarm at the office, which kept going off. This resulted in me having to restart the album.

Restarting it, I was once again greeted by the amazing instrumentation and vocals that impressed during their first record's listening session. Standout tracks from Killers, for me, were Genghis Khan, Purgatory, and Drifter. Though as a whole, it was a solid album. I can definitely hear the upped production values. Overall, things just sound crisper and clearer.

With that said, what I didn't necessarily hear were as many catchy hooks or riffs, in particular from the guitars. Yeah, sure, Murray and Smith are wailing, but they're just not developing sounds that are necessary catching my attention. Still, not a bad album. Just maybe not as good as their first.

Drug abuse contributed to a lot of erratic behavior from Paul Di'Anno, resulting in his dismissal in '81. He'd say in a later interview, "It wasn't just that I was snorting a bit of coke, though; I was just going for it non-stop, 24 hours a day, every day ... the band had commitments piling up that went on for months, years, and I just couldn't see my way to the end of it. I knew I'd never last the whole tour. It was too much". In September, Bruce Dickinson would audition for the job and be immediately hired. Dickenson would head out on a series of shows with the band prior to recording their third album, 1982's The Number Of The Beast. That's where I pick up tomorrow.

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Retro Spins: Iron Maiden - Iron Maiden

My journey through unknown territory continues with today's entry, Iron Maiden. One thing I've been reluctantly finding out in this process is just how expensive a lot of 80's metal is on CD. It's kind of up there with rap, being not only costly, but sometimes a bit rare. What's most odd about this, is that there's no relative rhyme or reason I can figure out as to what's driving some of the prices. For example, among the seven Iron Maiden CD's from the 80's, which range between 1980 and 1988, 1984's Powerslave seems to be the rarest to obtain an original pressing of.

As of this writing, Iron Maiden has been together for fifty-one years, and over that course of time have released seventeen studio albums, thirteen live albums, seven compilation albums, four extended plays, five box sets, twenty video albums, and a slew of singles. That's not to mention the lineup of music videos they've had over the decades which have run in steady rotation on MTV. Basically, there's no shortage of material for one to seek out.

The band popularized their mascot, Eddie, by featuring the zombie like character on pretty much everything they ever released. In a way, the character became just as popular as a band, and since its inception has been memorialized on merchandise that's included shirts, buttons, and even in action figure form.

Of course, with all of this, there is a tome of history behind the band. I'll skip over that at present, as I'm still in the process of reading and learning about it myself. Out of respect for their legion of fans, I'll try not to butcher it when I swing back around to it tomorrow.

Honestly, I didn't know what to expect when I fired up their 1980 self-titled debut. Was this going to be speed metal, similar to my recent listening sessions of Megadeth? Or would we lean into a more circus act approach, such as where we landed with Grim Reaper? The short answer, Megadeth, but sometimes with length.

The long answer, Iron Maiden focuses on playing fast, playing loud, but unlike Megadeth who kept songs confined to a three-to-four-minute mark, Maiden occasionally steps out of this confinement, giving songs room to breathe between the five- and seven-minute mark.

Candidly, this is where I felt their music shined. Songs such as Remember Tomorrow, and Phantom Of The Opera, stood out because of the great guitar work which was able to flourish in the extended runtime. Further, where they also came in far superior to both bands noted already, was in the vocals of Paul Di'Anno, who bothers to sing over the music, versus screaming. Sadly, I would learn that he would later be fired from the band after their sophomore album, Killers. While I'm glad that there will be at least one more with him, I'm not going to lie, that's a bit disappointing.

I suppose that's a fairly good segue into tomorrow's post, where I'll pick up with 1981's Killers. I did also see that the band released quite a few EP's between 80 and 81, and I may check some of those out too.

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"N" The Box (Art Asylum)

"N" The Box
Art Asylum
2001

Welcome to the 21st century Jack in the Box. Art Asylum's 2001 series based on some of the most iconic rockers, or in the case of Iron Maiden, their mascot, Eddie. They're unique, I'll give them that. I would have never thought adults would have an interest in Jack in the Box toys, but I suppose it makes sense. I mean, we collect everything, don't we?

Considered the Godfather of shock rock, Alice Cooper's career has spanned over fifty years. What most people don't know is that Alice Cooper used to be the name of the band. Under the name, the group released seven studio albums which included some of the singer's biggest hits. However, when the band broke up in 1975, singer Vincent Furnier assumed the persona of Alice Cooper, going on to a much larger career.

Eddie has been the mascot of British band, Iron Maiden, ever since their debut in February of 1980. Since then, the iconic character has gone on to perhaps be more recognizable than the actual band members themselves. Eddie has been incorporated into practically every piece of Iron Maiden merchandise to date.

The self professed prince of darkness, Ozzy Osbourne. Original lead singer of Black Sabbath turned solo act, he went from one of the top artists targeted by parent and activist groups to household novelty act reality TV host. Ozzy is definitely not the artist he used to be.

Rob Zombie took perhaps one of the greatest up and coming metal bands, White Zombie, and threw them away to pursue a highly successful solo career, and an equally successful movie career. Though he definitely leans more so towards the macabre style in his acts, it's one that has drawn in millions of fans of both heavy metal music and horror films.

I feel like Kiss is a go to far too often for companies looking to produce music based toys. It's ground which has been covered very abundantly, and really only serves to drive home the point that the band has become, or perhaps always was, nothing more than a novelty.

While Art Asylum produced quality work in their "toys", I think what contributed greatly to their decline was their consistent focus on statue based items. Their products serve little purpose beyond display pieces. That's not necessarily a bad thing, but it's definitely less appealing to action figure collectors.

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