Album Rating: 3.5 | Sound Off

dude 5d black veil brides ffs

Album Rating: 4.0

Shadows of the Valley is sooo good...



enedwaith: yeah you should

Album Rating: 4.5

"Good day my name is Necropolis"



Ello Necropolis

Album Rating: 3.5

"safe? i dont know about that, it is 90 mins long"



I think he meant the overall sound, not the length.

Album Rating: 4.5

I say this as somebody who thought Maiden were shite. The fact is they have made some of the greatest albums of all time in a career that has spanned 40yrs and taken in the highs and lows that 10000s of other bands don't even glimpse.

Throughout they've always remained rooted, creative and a joy.

This album is nothing but testament to the bands greatness, to have delivered something like this so far down the road is a fucking miracle.

Album Rating: 3.5

i agree with you zak, but await that rating drop of yours as time goes by

Album Rating: 4.5

It'll never happen dude, I'm stubborn as fuck.

zakalwe have you listened to the debut?

Album Rating: 4.5

Yes mate it rules. Me fave is beast though.

word on that. dickinson is great but the vocals on the first 2 really are what established iron maiden as kings of trad heavy metal for me. number of the beast is awesome though for sure

Album Rating: 2.0

I didn't have high hopes for this album after hearing the three previous releases. I have to say... I got exactly what I expected. The band is more focused on being progressive than writing good metal songs. 'The Book of Souls' is an embarrassing record to say the least. A double album with over 1 hour and a half of music? Wow, so ambitious Maiden. Every record since Bruce's return has been 1 hour + in length. If a record is going to be this long it better be classic track after classic. This record is not a classic... period. 1988's 'Seventh Son' is a progressive-influenced metal masterpiece, clocking in at 44 minutes long with no track over 10 minutes. 'The Book of Souls' on the other hand, is some self-indulgent shit that is unnecessarily long.



Before I get to the track listing, I have to say the production really blows on this album. The sound is flat and lifeless, with the bass super low in the mix. This may be Steve Harris' least prominent bass sound ever and for having 3 separate guitarists, you can't really distinguish them. If Maiden plans another album - fire Kevin Shirley, keep Steve Harris out of the studio and call up Martin Birch. Also think about cranking the distortion, because I want to hear a metal album not a lame rocker.



The album's opener, 'If Eternity Should Fail', is Maiden's worst opener post-2000. 8 minutes with no memorable riffs, an average verse, average chorus, and a stupid intro/outro. Grandpa Dickinson's strained vocals are hard on the ears when he tries for the high notes. I have a feeling this is going to their opening tour song for quite a while...



The second track 'Speed of Light' is barely better. 1 decent riff, forgettable solos, and again Bruce's vocals are painfully bad and bring the song down... 'STARRRRSSS!' The cheesy lyrics don't help the situation - 'Shooting Plasma from my grave' - really..?



Third song not even going to go into it... Bruce is again fighting with the high notes and the whole song sounds like a rehash.



The Red and the Black at 13 minutes long just drags and drags... The riff under the vocals is extremely annoying and the chorus is the WORST. The 'whoa-oh's are a ripoff of 'The Wicker Man' which was derived from 'Heaven Can Wait.' The three back-to-back guitar solos are forgettable, especially the first one which is all wah pedal. There is not enough going on to justify the 13 minute running time.



Things pick up with 'When the River Runs Deep.' Finally we have a passable chorus, great leads, good riffs, and a better vocal performance by Bruce. One of the highlights for sure.

Album Rating: 2.0

Title track isn't their worst, but it's not even close to being in the same league as Seventh Son.



Disc 2 opens with 'Death or Glory' which is solid tune. This is the closest we are going to get to classic Maiden.



'Shadows of the Valley' has some nice self-plagiarism on the intro - stolen from Wasted Years. The verse sounds exactly like 'Fallen Angel' off of Brave New World. Weak.



The lyrics of 'Tears of a Clown' are a bit different for Maiden, which speak of depression and reference the death of comedian Robin Williams. The riffs hold up, as do the leads, and Bruce does a fine job on vocals. Overall a solid mid-tempo number with a great melody that flows well.



'The Man of Sorrows' is 100% filler. Rubbish.



The 18 minute 'epic' 'Empire of the Clouds' is not. For all the hype this song has gotten, it is one of Maiden's most uninteresting songs. For the first 7 minutes it's Bruce, the piano, and the orchestra in the forefront. I was really hoping the song would get interesting when the riff picked up at 8:35 but all I got was a blend of mediocre instrumental pieces. The song drags on and eventually, the piano piece that started it all, closes out the album.



So really what 'The Book of Souls' comes down to is lacking in the songwriting department. The majority of songs are unimaginative and predictable. Just because a song is long and has an endlessly meandering intro, it doesn't make it "progressive. In the vocal department, Bruce is fighting with the high notes and he loses. He can't sing anymore, so he wails instead.



Like 'The Final Frontier' this album is boring, uninventive, and repetitive. A lot of the songs are held together by bad choruses and generic riffs + the album sounds more rock than metal.



The fanatical Iron Maiden fans will no doubt hail this as a 'classic' of modern Maiden, while others, desperate for an 'album of the year', will put 'The Book of Souls' on the pedestal.



Highlights:

When the River Runs Deep

Death or Glory - except the refrain

Tears of a Clown - refreshingly simple change of pace

Album Rating: 3.0

thx for the review

Album Rating: 4.5 | Sound Off

WTF, 3.9?!?! WTF SPUTNIK?!?!

Album Rating: 3.5

you know...I'm not really surprised by that

Album Rating: 3.5

5 is even crazier bro

Album Rating: 4.5 | Sound Off

This is my third favorite Maiden, tbh.

Album Rating: 3.5

you dig this shit more than powerslave? i mean i cant even begin to understand how

Album Rating: 4.0

yeah, no way this is top three Maiden.



Still surprisingly good tho

Album Rating: 3.5

Everyone saw the 3.9 coming. Endgame had it and now this. It's fair tbh because the classic Maiden albums are untoppable.