Yet another year passed and Maiden met at Steves to write on the new album. When the different ideas came up from various band members there seemed to be a line between them The idea of a concept album, about the life of the seventh son with magical powers, was born. Actually "Somewhere In Time" was a kind of concept album but not in any way intentional. This album was to be their finest hour.
4 top ten singles and headlining the infamous "Donnington Monsters Of Rock" says it all.

Moonchild: A quiet spoken/sung intro with Bruce and some acoustic guitars starts the album. Then come the synth in a very cool riff. But it doesn't ruin the song. Great lyrics. Great vocals and. oh God I will never finish this review.This number is just so damned good!

Infinite Dreams: A quiet number with attitude. Again brilliant lyrics. Starts off a bit slow, but when the boys pick up the pace you just wanna bang your head! Terrific song!!

Can I Play With Madness: Probably the most commercial song Maiden has written. No wonder it was chosen as first single. Charted at No. 3. Great lyrics, and some cool guitars!! Cool with the break in the middle of the song.

The Evil That Men Do: Yet another Maiden anthem. Great vocals on this one. Good lyrics and a ripping-your-guts-out solo by A. Smith! This song is very simple, but it souns like a million dollars!

Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son: This has masterpiece written all over it. The chorus can be discused, but the break into the slow part and the solos that follow, is by far the best Maiden have ever played and recorded. It just doesn't get any bigger than that!

The Prophecy: You have just heard "Seventh Son." and you probably still wondering what the hell hit you. But don't worry. Maiden has thought of it all. This song starts out slow so you can recover from the last song. But not for long. A weird riff, but again a very cathy song. The outro to this song is Murrays idea. He should have his own galaxy named after him because of that. Genious!

The Clairvoyant: Cool bass intro and a cool guitar-intro. Great melody and great drive in this song. One of Harris's finest songs. Cool solo and again: I love the drive in this song!

Only The The Good Die Young: Now that is how you end an album. Classic galloping Maiden style. Awesome lyrics. And a great chorus. The song ends as the album started, with spoken/sung part by Bruce.

Masterpiece! That is how this album will be rated. The guitars are played by Gods. The lyrics are the best they have ever written. It all falls into place with this album. The production, artwork.everything! There are so many layers on this album that you don't hear it all the first time. They don't play a note wrong on this one! So listen to it again.So it shall be written, so it shall be done!

Written by Ulrick
Friday, July 12, 2002
Show all reviews by Ulrick

Ratings

Ulrick: 10/10

Members: 9.33/10 - Average of 3 ratings.



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Comment by Morten Hansen (Anonymous) - Monday, April 7, 2003

Ohhh yes. Also one of my countless favorite Maiden albums. I love this record all the way. Steve Harris and his Clansmen really did it here. I have listened to it so many times and it still dont bore me a minute. If youre not a Maiden fan! then what the fuck is the matter with you, did your mother drop you as a baby or what. Iron Maiden is my favorite band ever. I hope they play more songs from this album on the next tour. up the irons and space truckin'

Comment by ramesh jung thapa (Anonymous) - Friday, April 25, 2003

well all the songs r best though infinite dreams and the evil... r excellent

Comment by Ulrick (Anonymous) - Friday, April 25, 2003

Infinite. and the evil. are among some of the best songs Maiden has ever written. infinite dreams just gets to you.

Comment by E. G. (Anonymous) - Wednesday, September 24, 2003

The first Maiden album I have listened to, five years ago. I still love it. It helped me to discover this great band and its phenomenal music. Probably the best album Iron Maiden have released. Although the songs are not so famous as others, I believe that is a work that never has been passed.

Comment by kris s (Anonymous) - Friday, September 26, 2003

excellent 10

Comment by Brian (Anonymous) - Monday, September 29, 2003

This Ablum is a classic and it stills sounds great in 2003 a testament to it

Comment by Hyena (Anonymous) - Tuesday, November 4, 2003

Maidens best. Need I say more? Unparalleled songwriting on this one. Infinite Dreams is an awesome example. Guitars kick some serious ass. Really enchanting melodies and very cool riffs. Bass... well Harris' a genius. As a composer and as a musician. Drums work well all the time. Bruce naturally shines on the vocals. But hey! It's not the skilled individuals or the cool solos. It's the team work. They play as a BAND. All together, aiming for the same target... This is what comes out. One of the best metal releases ever.

Comment by Raoul (Anonymous) - Thursday, February 19, 2004

Well written Ulrick. Especially the part where you describe 'The Prophecy'... "You have just heard 'Seventh Son.' and you probably still wondering what the hell hit you. But don't worry. Maiden has thought of it all...". My thoughts exactly whenever I listen to the album (which is often enough). I would also like to add the same comment for 'The Clairvoyant'. These three tracks are my favourite part of this classic album. I drool just at the thought of listening to them (over and over again and again...).

Comment by Dhritiman Sarma (Anonymous) - Tuesday, March 9, 2004

one of the finest maiden albums as i listen to extreme heavy metalers ...so this album sounds as a rock album in my ears melodious rock barring can i play with madness 'n moon child i like all the rest 6 #s my contact m4metal@yahoo.com

Comment by Fallopian Tubes (Anonymous) - Thursday, May 13, 2004

When I heard the tracks of this album individually I was unimpressed, and stuck to the 'Powerslave' era, but when I returned to it after reading a very positive review (maybe this one, I end up here a lot) I absolutely loved it. Not my favourite Maiden album, and I think some of the tracks could be a little better (don't murder me), but 'Seventh Son' is a masterpiece, while 'Evil' and 'Clairvoyant' are so damn catchy! I can't decide whether I really love or really loathe the over-polished production here, they certainly put a great deal of effort into this album.

Comment by i.Ron S. (Anonymous) - Wednesday, May 19, 2004

The songs are enormously good, but I don't like it how they sound on this album. It sounds so 'studio-made', not enough intensity. Maiden England(the live album and video)is better but you don't got Only the Good Die Yound and the Prophecy on it wich are great songs too but it seems that Iron Maiden never played them live. a 10/10 for the songs, a 7/10 for the album-recordings.

Comment by I Maiden (Anonymous) - Saturday, May 22, 2004

Wow this album has it all, power precision, and it really makes me think! as to how in the world could anyone one not like maiden, and turn thier backs on such a great masterpiece, and run off and listen to some rap crap, grunge and and any other crappy piece of shit out there that is not synonomous to heavy metal ie Maiden, Sabbath, ozzy, Overkill, megadeth, Pink floyd, Priest, Alice cooper, Slayer,rush, Zeppelin, Kiss, old Metallica S.T and many other great metal bands that i did fail to mention. when you got music as good as this who needs other crap? why settle for mcdonals when you can have steak!

Comment by Nomad (Anonymous) - Sunday, May 23, 2004

I love this album~ i liked it more than NOB, POM, and powerslave... 9/10 there is just something special about this album

Comment by Steve Bennett (Anonymous) - Friday, June 25, 2004

Just listened to the album for the first time. This is defenitly a grower. The more I listen to it the better it gets! I agree with your review, Seventh Son is a master piece

Comment by Noah (Anonymous) - Sunday, December 26, 2004

Not only is this the best "Maiden" album this is one of the best albums of all time out of any group in existence!....rating 11/10

Comment by Jumblee (Anonymous) - Thursday, July 28, 2005

Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son Pros-Moonchild, Infinite Dreams, Can I Play With Madness, The Evil That Men Do, The Clairvoyant, Only The Good Die Young Cons-Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son, The Prophecy 9.5/10

Comment by HAGEN OF VALHALLA (Anonymous) - Wednesday, June 14, 2006

MUSICALLY THIS ALBUM IS PERHAPS MAIDEN AT THEIR BEST ALONG WITH S.I.T. AND DANCE OF DEATH. THIS ALBUM CONTAINS ONE OF THE BEST SONG EVER COMPOSED BY MISTER HARRIS "INFINITE DREAMS" THAT SONG ONLY MAKE THIS RECORD A HIT SO PLUS THAT HERE WE FIND "THE EVIL THAT MEN DO", "THE CLAIRVOYANT", MOONCHILD" SO WATH ELSE CAN BE SAY IT. GREAT STORYLINE AND FINESTS PERFORMANCES MAKE THIS ALBUM FOR TO MANY PEOPLE THEIR BEST EFFORT AND I AGREE WITH THEM BUT I LIKE SOMEWHERE IN TIME A LITTLE BIT MORE FOR BEING THE PRELUDE OF THIS MASTERPIECE. I REALLY THINK THAT WAS A SHAME THE DIRECTION THE BAND TOOK AFTER SSOSS, NO MATTER HOW MANY GREAT SONG THEY DID IN THAT PERIOD BUT NO SONGS OF N.P.F.D AND F.O.T.D. CAN MATCH SSOSS AND S.I.T. (THE BLAZE BAYLE ERA IS ANOTHER THING) FOR DIEHARD MAIDEN FAN LIKE ME ITS A PLEASURE TO HEAR THIS RECORD AND THAT GOES FOR ANY MAIDEN ALBUM, BUT SSOSS HAS THAT SPECIAL FEELING THAT IS MISSED IN THEIR OTHER EFFORTS. 10/10 UP THE IRONS.

Comment by buzzment (Anonymous) - Friday, September 8, 2006

Meh...somewhere in time is their best..

Comment by notrap (Member) - Tuesday, February 3, 2009

View Profile Comments: 55 Ratings: 66 I still remember buying this album and coming home wondering what Steve&Co prepared for 88. I already was a Maiden maniac at the time. Somewhere in Time, Live After Death and Powerslave were my favourite albums those days. When I first heard Moonchild and Evil that Men Do I was completely surprised with Maiden's new sound. This band explored a more progressive approach due mainly to Adrian's song writing (already started in SIT) and the keyboards background environment. In my opinion 88 was the best year ever and this album is probably the last "really classic" Maiden release. Seventh Son was the natural evolution of Powerslave and Somewhere in Time and I still wonder why Steve released No Prayer for the Dying after this absolute masterpiece... 10/10 Up the Irons! Posted by notrap Tuesday, February 3, 2009

Comment by gizmo (Member) - Wednesday, February 4, 2009

View Profile Comments: 140 Ratings: 4 Somewhere in time is their best but Seventh son is a close second and i agree it was the last Maiden classic. Theres has been great tracks on the later albums but not all great as on Seventh son and before that album Posted by gizmo Wednesday, February 4, 2009