The Book Of Souls

It had been five long years since we'd seen a new Iron Maiden album, so the release date for The Book Of Souls was a goddamn event. I was so looking forward to the new album, I took the day off from work so that I could pick up a copy, and then devote some time to just sitting and giving it a spin. Okay...so I told my wife that I was taking the day off of work so that I could fix our leaking refrigerator, but we all know the real motive behind this day at home.

So, on release day, I was only out looking for the CD version of Book Of Souls. Maiden are one of the few bands that I have no problem buying both the CD and vinyl copies, and thanks to great tip from Doug, I'd already pre-ordered the triple vinyl version of the release when Amazon had them available for only $13. Deal of the century...and so good to see Maiden give up on the picture disc as the only option for vinyl.

Needless to say, I was pretty excited for this new album. I love the reunion-era Maiden stuff...although, Dickinson has been back in the band for 15 years now, so I suppose there should be a better term than "reunion-era" to describe this period of the band. Either way, after the Speed Of Light single was released, my anticipation was running high for this new 90 minute Metal opus from Maiden.

An hour and a half is a long ass running time for any album, and while I do enjoy The Book Of Souls, Maiden should have trimmed some of the fat on this one. We can start with the 18 minute Empire Of The Clouds. It's an okay song, but this piano epic might be my least favorite of the post-2000 Maiden era. Solid album overall, even if it is a bit bloated.