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Iron Maiden - A Matter of Life and Death

It has been a good couple of months for new album releases in the world of rock and metal, but Iron Maiden have taken it to a whole new level. "A Matter of Life and Death" is something pretty special.

It’s far too easy to take the latest release of any pillar band like Maiden and just brand the newest material as a classic without really batting an eyelid (or an earflap), but this the 14th studio album just gets better the more you listen to it. When I first played through the album, I very foolishly penned it as good, but nothing really stood out of the croud. When I played it over the next few days I realised my mistake. Every single song was of such a high calibre, that they were already standing out as spectacular (as opposed to just 1 song standing out of the whole album).

The 72 minutes of ear candy was recorded at Sam West Studios in London. The band tried to recreate the live stage feel, so none of the usual studio tricks of click tracks were used. The whole recording and post production took a fairly speedy 2 months to complete - strange concidering that this is one of the longest studio albums by the band, and infact one of the longest metal albums with a global release. So, lets look into the songs.

The band have picked out tales of war, soldiers and distruction. For the ones that didn’t read the pre release article, Iron Maiden had release 3 of the tracks early via their website. The quality was low streamed media, but gave people enough taste to ensure that they snapped up the album after it was release. "Different World", "Brighter Than A Thousand Suns" and "The Reincarnation Of Benjamin Breeg" were all released around the 14th August.

"Different World" is the shortest track on the album at just over 4 minutes. It is the opening track on the CD and it’s a great upbeat track with some cracking lyrics from Dickinson. The guitar lines and solo are not over complex, yet still work perfectly and provide a solid opening to the rest of the album.

The second track on the album, "These Colours Don’t Run", is about being a soldier in the war zone. In an interview with Kerrang! magazine Dickinson said "the song was an effort to put a human face on people who go out and fight wars. They call it ‘peacekeeping’, but these people put themselves in harm’s way, and whether or not you agree with the reasons why they’re doing it, they’re just doing their job".

"Brighter Than a Thousand Suns" is about the atomic bomb as Dickinson said in an interview with Kerrang! "The scientist that saw the first bomb go off said it was brighter than a thousand suns. The idea that human beings could bring about their own total destruction totally changed the way people thought". The track is simple amazing. The bass is prominent and the guitar riffs are bold and powerful. The track is allegedly one of the heaviest Iron Maiden have produced. At just under 9 minutes, it features great vocals, hammering riffs, two cracking solo and a brilliant mid song breakdown. I repeat, this is an amazing track.

"The Pilgrim" has more of a classic Maiden feel to it, with a great opening guitar line, and then a rock solid guitar chord progression. "The Longest Day" is a vocal workout for Dickinson, and another powerful song.

"The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg" was a pre released track. 7:22 of epicness. The song opens up with an eery guitar melody followed with the hushed lyrics and creeping bass line from founding member Steve Harris. A couple of minutes in, the song opens up with a dirty guitar riff and yet more full stretched vocals from Dickinson. The solo is awesome!

"Lord of Light" is a really progressive track, fluttering between tempos and really showing off what the band can achieve. Melodies galore and oh yes - the galloping riffs are back! This is another unmissable track with some very Zakk Wylde style squeals in the solo.

The final track of the album "The Legacy" finishes off in truly epic style. Another bass / vocal intro where Dickinson’s swaying lyrics sound almost like a nursery rhyme. The song then opens up with an almost operatic sound and leads you into something of a gem with yet another killer solo.

Finally, the limited edition pack comes with a DVD featuring "The Making Of A Matter Of Life And Death" which is shot by the producer Kevin Shirley very much like a video diary. The DVD also has a video of "The Reincarnation Of Benjamin Breeg", "Different Word" and a photo gallery.

If you haven’t already clicked the links below and bought the album - boy are you missing out. This is a ballistic album that should be (without a shadow of a doubt) in your CD collection. There is no reason why this can’t be held up with the other classic Maiden albums. Incredible.

Buy this now from: amazon.co.uk