I have a buddy. At one point, when I was first getting to know him, he told me he had grown out of Iron Maiden. This was in response to me listening to Number of the Beast on loop June 6th, 2006. Apparently he had moved on to industrial or something. I can understand when people’s tastes change, but I feel like that poor bastard is missing out on some of the most well put together music in the universe because apparently he decided he was too old to listen to metal.

That sad anecdote goes here because Seventh Son is not necessarily an album that people immediately associate with “great” Iron Maiden. As though Iron Maiden can make something that isn’t great (with Bruce on vocals). This album dives into the occult with a skill that turns lead into gold. That’s right. Iron Maiden are musical alchemists.
Bruce Dickinson starting the album singing about the seven deadly sins on the intro to Moonchild and it’s just great framing. Then the guitar intro kicks in and you know this album is going wail. Moonchild starts the album off with a fantastic interplay between bass and guitar, helping reinforce the foreboding feel of the song and album in whole. I am pretty sure I’ve spent more time scoping out the occult on Wikipedia while listening to this album than any other.

In one of their live albums, I think it’s Death on the Road or something, the intro to Can I Play with Madness sounds like Bruce yelling “CAN I PLAY WITH AGNES” which I cannot unhear now. I’m okay with that, because Can I Play with Madness is rife with the greatness you expect from an Iron Maiden track. The drum work between each vocal phrase acts as a fantastic break and smacks of the kind of work you see in their later, proggier work. There’s even some cowbell during the verses!

In terms of general rhythm and feel, The Evil That Men Do is the most “Iron Maiden” track on the album. There’s a slow burn on the intro that drops into a gallop rhythm that Bruce rides like a vocal genie. And during the choruses, you can hear the chord shifts to match his changes in pitch. I think that’s what really helps Iron Maiden stand out among many other metal bands. It’s not just that everyone in the band is a phenomenal musician, but they are great at composing music. Every part fits together in a greater whole that creates an ambiance that many bands struggle to achieve.

Only one song can make me think of Perry Como and Lew Dawson at the same time. I don’t think of Lew Dawson too much though. Seventh Son of a Seventh Son pairs with Moonchild phenomenally as a foreboding song about mystical and mythical occurrences. And it really lets Bruce Dickinson’s vocal abilities shine during the bridges between phrases. The first time I heard this song I kind of wished I was a seventh son, so I could maybe have a seventh son. I bet he’d be magic as shit.

There’s a reason Iron Maiden has been melting faces and selling out stadiums for over thirty years. These guys are some of the most talented musicians touring, and they have fun doing it. Their music pulls from multiple sources, including historical record, poetry, and the occult, and they do it in a way that is readily accessible to those who are interested. CAN I PLAY WITH AGNES?

Key Tracks: Moonchild, Can I Play with Madness, Seventh Son of a Seventh Son