03. Iron Maiden – Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (1988)Even though it was already predicted in the thread that there will probably be another Maiden album in my Top 5, I doubt that anyone would have presumed it to be this album. While not quite at the level of the Blaze-era album or No Prayer and Fear of the Dark, this album has, from what I have observed, been on the receiving end of quite some criticism – that the whole concept is totally pretentious, or that the shift from the strictly guitar-dominated sounds of earlier album, which had already been started with Somewhere in Time, was a bad direction in general.
I’m sure that my placement of this album on my list is indicator enough of the fact that I respectfully disagree with these criticisms. This album is Iron Maiden at their best, and above all, at their most consistent – while the highs on quite a few other Maiden albums are higher (the title track and Rime of the Ancient Mariner on Powerslave, or Alexander the Great on Somewhere in Time), there is no other Maiden album that is quite as consistently enjoyable for me as Seventh Son of a Seventh Son is.
Yes, the concept won’t win any prizes, that’s true, but at the end of the day, it’s about the music here and that aspect of this album flawless. All eight songs are masterfully crafted and perfectly paced in the context of the album, which makes every listen of this album seem to fly by and leaves me wanting to hear the album again. Of course, every member of the band plays impeccably on this record, but that’s nothing new.
There’s not really much else to say, I guess for this album – I’m sure that everyone has heard (of) this album one way or another. I can certainly see many people rating many other albums higher, but for me, this is the creative pinnacle of Iron Maiden, and an album that they are unlikely to ever top.
Recommended tracks: Moonchild, Infinite Dreams, The Evil That Me Do, Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, Only the Good Die Young