The Book of Souls

At last the 5 year wait for a new Iron Maiden record is over. Following on from 2010's "The Final Frontier", we arrive at a very experimental and RICH album in "Book Of Souls".

Opening with a great opener for the album in "If Eternity Should Fail", we are taken back to their Powerslave period, but soon after, we move to some forced and stale moments ("When The River Runs Deep" - co-written by Harris), and then re-hashed ideas in "Shadows of the Valley" (again co-written by Harris, the opening riff is almost identical to 1986's “Wasted Years”).

Over several albums now I've noticed: Steve Harris, re-hashed ideas... Why does he continue to write these "woah-woah" chant-along arena songs like "The Red And The Black"? Sure 1986's "Heaven Can Wait" was brilliant, but there's no need to keep re-writing the same song. Gladly though, these are really the most negative aspects of the album.

The album has VERY bluesy LENGTHY periods to carry rhythm sections (in “Death or Glory” you could use a bottle slide in that solo too). The opening of and rhythm sections of "Speed Of Light” are more examples - although the song really takes off in the chorus. These kinds of things repeat in a LOT places, there’s a lot of mid-tempo 4/4 playing on the album, and not lot of deviation outside of that. This lends to some songs sounding unfinished.

The progressive parts of this album are REALLY something, it's just a shame that this more dynamic feel doesn't carry into the rhythm sections of the songwriting. The bridges and solos in "Shadows of The Valley", are an absolutely BEAUTIFUL throwback to 1981's “Killers” album. Halfway through "The Man of Sorrows" we are treated to movements and vocal lines not heard since 1986’s “Sea Of Madness”, with soaring solos and spacious drum fills which actually USE the pace of the underlying rhythm structures. It's an absolutely stunning moment, reminiscent of Pink Floyd and in my opinion is a greater highlight than even Dickinson’s closer "Empire Of The Clouds”.

While such luscious details weave their way in and out of the record, and despite appearing to be sparse, they lend the album an overall complexity that takes some time to explore. However, with the weakness outside of that progression, I'm kept yearning for more creativity to carry the songs. Even more so too, that for the first time, I've noticed I cannot tell the solos of Dave Murray, Adrian Smith and Jannick Gurs apart. This is has been a staple of Iron Maiden for years, but for some reason on this record, it's hard to discern those personalities.

Nevertheless, Iron Maiden continue to show that they are growing and experimenting, even four decades in: the opening riff to "Tears Of A Clown" feels like classic 70s doom. Yes, you read right - doom riffs on an Iron Maiden record! And somehow they blend it with yes, blues. But it works! I would argue Tears Of A Clown should've been the single, not "Speed Of Light". It's a very emotional, but fun and groovy 70s song. Sometimes I feel that Maiden are in their belated version of Enslaved's "Mardraum" and "Monumension" periods - is this record the final step to a new sound? Is it a transition to a real expansion in their style? After all, in the mature parts of the album, there IS definitely a very noticeable level of highly creative moments which are somewhat more "unorthodox" for Iron Maiden.

Production-wise is where I arrive at my other negative point: I've always had a dislike for Kevin Shirley. Martin Birch’s and Nigel Green's (X Factor, Virtual XI) shoes were big ones to fill, let’s be honest. The band should have stuck with Green for the post-Birch era.

I feel everything Shirley produced with Iron Maiden has sounded soft and muddy in some way, and lacks power and detail. This time the guitars have an overdriven rounded crunch to them (and for someone like Dave Murray in his solos, that sound just doesn't work, you need more sharpness for the soaring heights of his solos, and for Adrian Smith's solos and arpeggios it provides a crystalline finish to his stringwork). Shirley's use of texture removes the dynamic range between the three guitarists from the songs and traps their sound. Nicko's drums sound weak and are too low in the mix. Oddly, Steve's bass sounds too low in the mix as well, so much so, that the lumbering texture of the three Amigos overpowers his him and removes any warmth his bass playing has provided over Iron Maiden's discography up to 2000's "Brave New World".

The overall bands' sound is too "closed", the songs don’t open up to their full potential. Even if you blast this album, there's no power coming out of the production. Go back and blast "Fear Of The Dark", Green's last work with Maiden, and then Brave New World, Shirley's first work with the band, and you can hear a real softening of the sound which pulls the power OUT of the sound. Production with Shirley since has been progressively far too organic for Maiden's style and the music suffers. I'm #sorrynotsorry, but Shirley really needs to go. In my opinion, Iron Maiden requires a thinner production to really explode and show the individual skills of all musicians.

Finally, closing the album off we arrive at Bruce Dickinson’s 18 minute closer “Empire Of The Clouds”. The first 3 minutes of the song is unlike anywhere Iron Maiden have gone before. We have Bruce on his new piano (he won it 3 years earlier in a raffle, which led to the writing of this song), cellos (yes, really), Steve on his bass, and subtle notes on guitar. The piano melody carries the whole song, Nicko’s soft drums begin to roll, and then the song begins to build. Bruce continues to pull us in with his poetic story. You can tell this song will be a moment of romanticism live and will suck the entire stadium into its own bubble much like “Dance Of Death's” title track did in years past. And it makes you wonder - could this be in fact, an X-Japan styled ROCK BALLAD - by Iron Maiden? Certainly feels like it to me, and that’s by no means a negative criticism. “Empire Of the Clouds” could be Iron Maiden’s “Art Of Life”. Are we going to see more of this direction from them in future?

I think it's safe to say that this is Iron Maiden's most ambitious moment since 2000's "Brave New World”. That's no cliché. “Book of Souls” sees Iron Maiden having REALLY evolved, but yet remaining VERY much Iron Maiden. Is it successful? For the most part, yes. This is a complex, deep and surprisingly experimental band in this late part of their careers – as long as Steve Harris doesn’t write too many of the songs. The days of us expecting purely metal records like Seventh Son of a Seventh Son are long gone though. Far from what we once thought was a twilight in their careers, Maiden are now embracing their initial roots, bands like Rush, Thin Lizzy, Pink Floyd and others, but at the same time sounding expanded and creative.

"Book Of Souls" is a MATURE and complex work, one which will take time to absorb, but it will also educate many listeners out in the world due to sheer amount of rock history it covers. Don’t look for a classic sounding Maiden record, we’re not getting that anymore.

This is a different band and time now. Bravo, lads. Easily their best record since 2000.