Dance of Death
Iron Maiden
(EMI)

Iron Maiden, the 6 piece power metal/prog band are back with another collection of 11 tunes. You need not fear any trend-jumping bollocks from this lot. They are the kings of their own genre of metal, and they ain't going to stop doing what they do best. This will not win Maiden any new fans, but it will certainly keep their current ones rather pleased. It's hard to tell whether it is better than Brave New World or not. I suspect in the long run it will prove to be just a tiny bit better. The single 'Wildest Dreams' points to what is contained in the rest of the album, and while not all as catchy as the first single, the rest is as good. There are those who have accused Maiden of "treading water," which is rather unfair. Its more of a case of if it ain't broke, don't fix it. This album is a perfect set-up for their world-tour, which will in fact be their last. Maybe they can play a few more from this lot and ditch some of the Blaze-era pap. As with the last album there are quite a few prog elements on here, none less than the last track, the acoustic heavy "Journeyman" and ever-soaring 'Face in the Sand'. This is an Iron Maiden album: it's clever, epic, and soaring. While it might not be their best ever, it sure isn't their worst. I suspect that the 4 below will soon turn to a 4.5. If this is indeed the band's swansong, they have certainly provided us all with a fitting final album.

Rating: 4