Iron Maiden [Enhanced CD]

In the late 90s, many studios and bands started to remaster their back catalog in what became known as the "Loudness War" where the wave forms of the songs were cleaned up and increased. But what that did was that it all but eliminated any sense of scope between nuances in sounds levels of the instruments and vocals. And what that often did was when certain points of the song would occur, the volume level would inexplicably drop and you'd lose that punch that that part should have had. If you're familiar with the original recordings and the 1998 remasters of the Maiden Catalog, you know what I mean. I should also add that brand new recordings of music also suffered from the Loudness War. In fact, I think know what happened. The low volume areas were brought forward, and the louder parts were stuck at their original level or at least limited to the max level set by the sound engineer.Fast forward to 2015 and Steve Harris was so disillusioned by the quality of the current masters of the Maiden catalog and most notably the lack of punch that his signature bass playing had in the mix, that he had the entire Maiden catalog from the debut to their latest release, Book of Souls, remastered from the original analog tapes (where applicable) with modern techniques. The first step was to prepare all the old analog tapes (which were stored in the Abbey Road Archives in London) for digital transfer. That was a feat in of itself. And then once in the computer, to apply brand new remastering techniques to maintain all those subtle nuances that the original recordings had. What this does is that it eliminates the max level of loudness that the loud parts originally had and it has brought forward Steve's bass riffing like never before. Which has always been a staple of Iron Maiden's sound. So what you get is possibly the best sounding Maiden recordings ever. So the question is how many times should we have to buy this catalog? Well, I would say, one more and hopefully the last time. This should be the definitive version of the Maiden collection going forward. I have purchased these albums at least 4 times now through the last 35 years. Once in their original recording on cassette, a second time with added B-sides on all albums up thru Fear of the Dark on cassette, the 1998 remasters on CD up thru Virtual XI, and now the 2015 remasters on CD.With the debut here, like I mentioned above, Steve's bass comes thru loud and clear and has that nice rapid strumming picking that Steve is known for. The guitars are a bit more muted but not too much. And Paul's vocals come thru pretty good as well. I would highly recommend that you play these on a stereo system with multiple speaker set up like a car stereo with subwoofer support if possible so that you get the full effect of that clear bass. I play it thru my Sub supported Premium Sony stereo in my F150.

Iron Maiden's self-titled first album, which also proved to be their breakthrough, is doubtlessly one of heavy metal's all-time most influential albums (with this release, Iron Maiden helped Judas Priest to plant the seeds for speed, thrash, and progressive metal.) It's also one of the finest debuts ever recorded by any band in the history of heavy metal. The band's vocals would become more memorable and expansive on later releases (especially after Bruce Dickinson replaced Paul Di'anno as singer in 1982), but musically, Iron Maiden were in top form on this 1980 album. There's just so much to enjoy on every one of these songs, and man, do they rock! They're fast, exciting, catchy, and super infectious. From front to back, this disc has palpable energy, irresistible hooks, impressive guitar work (including wailing solos) from Dave Murray and Dennis Stratton, prominent bass notes, and bouncy, toe-tapping drum beats galore!The album begins with "Prowler," which ties wah-wah guitar licks with bouncy riffs, strong bass work, and a great solo. After that, "Sanctuary" boasts a propulsive bass line (which is the main focal point of the song) and two wailing solos. "Remember Tomorrow" begins as a ballad (with restrained verses, a grumbling bass, and all kinds of guitar melodies and harmonies), but gains a great deal of momentum and speed and climaxes in a wide-open, majestically soaring and instantly memorable chorus. Next, "Running Three" is a faster number that's backed by a hooky, galloping rhythm and rhythmic, thumping drums. The record's crown jewel and fan favorite, "Phantom of the Opera" (which is an epic, multi-faceted and mostly instrumental piece that clocks in at over seven minutes long), and track seven, "Strange World," both sport a wealth of great harmonies, a catchy rhythm, and numerous fantastic, ultra-clean and melodic guitar solos. "Transylvania," a propulsive instrumental which features soaring guitar leads anchored by a beeping bass line, is another instant classic. "Strange World" is a calm, superbly atmospheric power ballad which finds Paul Di'anno showing off his impressive singing voice over twinkling guitar noise and gently tapping drums. And finally, the album wraps up with two of the fastest and catchiest tunes: "Charlotte the Harlot" and "Iron Maiden."Almost no other band has ever come close to duplicating the originality, excitement, energy, timless songwriting, power, infectious hooks, gorgeous melody, virtuosic musicianship, and all-around greatness heard on this album. Thus, "Iron Maiden" is a definite milestone on heavy metal's timeline, and a true five-star album if there ever were one. It is an absolutely essential inclusion for all heavy metal collections (and music collections in general) worldwide -- it's just one of those C.D.'s that you need to own or you will forever be un-metal!

Powerslave is Iron Maiden fifth studio album, and the second with Nicko McBrain as drummer. I’ve been a Maiden fan since 1982, and this was my 5th Iron Maiden album. The album was ranked number 38 on Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time" in 2017. It is a solid one starting with “Aces High,” “Two Minutes to Midnight,” “Losfer Words,” “Flash of the Blade” and “The Duellist” on side A. Side B you have “Back in the Village,” “Powerslave,” in finally the epic “Rime of the Ancient Mariner.” I own the 1984 (and still have) and a couple of CD’s of Powerslave. This review is about the 2014, 180-gram vinyl LP. I played the record on my Fluance RT82 with a Concorde Mix cartridge (the green one). The sound? Amazing! These 180-gram records sound incredible on my turntables; the vocals, bass, guitars and drums clear and loud. I highly recommend this version of the album. For me is hard to rank my fav Maiden album (TNOTB was my first album, and it was the one that really got me into Maiden), but I play them frequently.