Matter Of Life & Death

Being a big, devoted fan of Iron Maiden that I am today and have been since I first listened to both "Powerslave" and "The Number of the Beast" back in 2002 when I was 18, I really wish I would've bought and listened to this album a long, long time ago when it came out back in 2006. However, when I finally got this CD last year for Christmas, and listened to it for the first time, needless to say I was absolutely amazed and blown away, and I instantly fell in love with the album known as "A Matter of Life and Death".Well anyways, along with "Brave New World" and "Dance of Death", Iron Maiden's fourteenth full length release from 2006, "A Matter of Life and Death" is a showcase of the band's shift towards a more progressive metal sound in contrast to the New Wave of British Heavy Metal sound that Iron Maiden became so well known for in the 80's. This album is just an absolute masterpiece and it's definitely one of Iron Maiden's best albums as well. Every song here is just absolutely mind-blowing and amazingly epic in every sense of the word, and is just chock full of amazingly heavy riffs and incredible solos, awesomely epic melodies, crushing bass lines, powerful drumming, meaningful and intelligent lyricism, anthemic choruses, and mind-blowingly soaring, melodic vocals, I mean seriously, what more could a true metalhead want in an epic work of art like this right here? The production here which was handled by Kevin Shirley (who also produced "Brave New World" and "Dance of Death") is also very good as well. While AMOLAD is not really a concept album, however war and religion are both recurring themes throughout the album, as well as in the cover artwork which I also dig too. With the majority of the songs here clocking in at over seven minutes or even longer, this album truly demonstrates the sheer power and passion, emotion, complexity and technicality for which you can always expect from an amazing band like Maiden. The triple guitar attack of Adrian Smith, Dave Murray and Janick Gers just fires on all cylinders here as the trio just bring forth an amazing abundance of amazingly heavy and powerful riffs, and incredibly mind-blowing and inspiring solos and harmonies, meanwhile bassist Steve Harris just crushes your eardrums with his always incredibly heavy and powerful bass lines, and drummer Nicko McBrain just shines and powers his way through each song with his always impressive and flawlessly powerhouse drumming, but however, it's Bruce Dickinson who tops things off here with his always mind-blowingly soaring and high flying vocal acrobatics. Honestly, what can you really say about Bruce? He is truly one of the greatest metal singers of all time, and he truly does sound just as great on this album here as he did on any 80's-era Maiden release, no questions asked. He can just blast your eardrums with those high notes of his one minute, and then soothe them into dreamland the next minute just like that.The opening track "Different World" is an awesome energetic, straight-ahead rocker that kicks the album off with a bang and is highlighted by deliciously fantastic riffing throughout including an even more deliciously addicting and inescapable main riff, along with tasty, melodic, soaring soloing, and hefty, solid upbeat, mid-tempo drumming, plus an excellent, catchy chorus, and soaring vocals from Bruce to top it off. Track two, "These Colours Don't Run" is one of my favorites here that starts with a nice, slow opening before transitioning into an amped up, fist-pumping, and powerful pure metal anthem that is highlighted by more of Bruce's amazingly high flying vocal deliveries as well as an amazingly memorable chorus, plus more incredible riffing and soloing, and awesome drumming throughout as well. Next up, we have "Brighter Than a Thousand Suns" which is another one of my favorites here, and an incredibly epic prog number that lyrically tells about the Manhattan Project. This song manages to be very melodic yet very heavy at the same time as it boasts yet more high flying, soaring vocal melodies from Bruce, and the guitar work from Adrian, Dave, and Janick are also a huge highlight on this song here as the trio churn out heavily powerful, bone crushing riffs throughout along with more amazingly jaw-dropping solos, and the song also features heavy ear ringing bass lines, plus more powerhouse drum work, and wonderfully rousing choruses as well. Then afterwards, we have track four, "The Pilgrim" which is yet another amazing track that features more outstanding guitar work throughout which includes an awesome opening melodic riff, as well as some deliciously catchy Middle-Eastern flavoured riffs, plus more of Steve's powerful rib-pounding bass work, and energetic, pounding, upbeat drumming from Nicko, and Bruce's powerfully soaring, melodic vocal deliveries as well, and the song also includes a really awesome sounding Egyptian sounding guitar solo too. Track five, "The Longest Day" is yet another epic and powerful, mid-paced progressive number (as well as another one of my favorite songs) that lyrically deals about the D-Day landings during World War II. This song is highlighted by a great galloping bass intro from Harris, plus more of Smith, Murray, and Gers' intensely powerful, yet melodic riffing as well as some of their finest soloing on the entire album, and also features great pounding, mid-paced drumming, and emotionally charged, soaring, melodic singing from Bruce, and a captivating chorus as well. Such a brilliantly epic tune, I love it.Moving on, we have the sixth track, "Out of the Shadows" which is a beautifully written ballad-style number that features all-around beautifully melodic guitar work throughout that includes some wonderful electro acoustic sections, and there's also plenty of fantastic melodic lead work, and the song also features yet more amazingly melodic vocal work from Bruce, as well as an awesomely heavy and soaring, melodic sung chorus which tops things off. Next, we have my second favorite song in track seven, "The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg" which is another incredibly epic and powerful song, and it also has risen to be one of my favorite Iron Maiden songs as well. The song begins with a nicely soft 2 minute melodious intro that features some slow, haunting melodious guitars and bass, and soft sung vocals before transitioning into heavy territory with addictingly heavy, crushing, and blood pumping riffs, pounding bass and drums, and amazingly majestic, soaring melodic vocals, and the song is also highlighted by more excellent harmonies and solos as well. Then following that is the 9 minute plus epic and my absolute favorite song here, "For the Greater Good of God", and like the majority of the songs on here, it again starts off slow with a fantastic, full-on, and emotive bass intro from Harris, and then slowly builds into an epic metal tour de force. Bruce's vocals on this song are just absolutely downright incredible and breathtaking throughout this epic monster of a song. The way he just belts and blasts out those high notes will just leave you absolutely speechless. The song also features some incredibly addicting sing-a-long bridges and choruses that will definitely stay stuck inside your brain for days. The guitar work on this song is also spectacular as well as Smith, Murray, and Gers all compliment each other so perfectly. The song is just filled with amazing riffs, epic, breathtaking harmonies, and spectacular solos. Sure doesn't get any better than that, let me tell ya. Next, we move on to track nine, "Lord of Light" which is yet another spectacular and all-around great song that again features another slow and dark, melodious intro that features soft sung vocals from Bruce, and then it suddenly transitions into an awesome riff heavy rocker anchored by heavy, aggressive, energetic riffing and catchy galloping sections as well, along with heavy, pounding bass and adrenaline pumping drum beats, and more flawlessly amazing solos to boot. The album then finally closes things out in grand fashion with "The Legacy", another epic 9 minute plus gem, and another one of my favorites that starts off slow with a lengthy and hauntingly beautiful and melodic acoustic opening which also features again some soft sung vocals, and then a steady yet mid-paced military march-like drum beat kicks in later around the 3:10 mark, and is immediately joined by more powerful and monumental riffing, and Bruce's mighty, aggressive, soaring vocals soon join in the fray as well. The song is also further highlighted by yet more amazingly soaring, ripping solo flights and deliciously addicting harmonies and melodies, and more aggressive yet soaring vocals from Bruce, and the song also ends with some nice closing acoustics as well.Well there you have it. All in all, "A Matter of Life and Death" is just an absolutely epic, and incredibly mind-blowing metal masterpiece that is like a pure musical journey of epic proportions and it never loses one single ounce of spark at all. This album is truly one of the absolute best albums in Iron Maiden's legendary discography, and is also a true classic in it's own right as well. As a true music fan, I have always admired the fact that a band like Iron Maiden have proven time after time and continue to do so today is that they care so much about making pure quality music, and they also show that talent, skill, heart and soul are all what really matter most when it comes to making great quality music, and this album here shows that exactly. I was also very fortunate enough to see Maiden live back in 2012 at Rock Fest down in Cadott, and it was an incredible experience that I will always cherish and treasure for the rest of my life. Well anyways, if you're a fan of Iron Maiden, or if you just enjoy great quality music in general, then by all means, you must definitely buy this album without any further delay. This is a classic album that is truly worth every single penny...UP THE IRONS!!! \m/ \m/Jeremy

When Brave New World was released I was impressed at how well the album was done. Even though I bought the CD when it came out I doubted Maiden had it in them anymore. I thought, "Here is a band past their prime looking for a cash grab". I decided to buy the CD anyhow and Oh how wrong I was! Brave new World was an attention getter. Iron Maiden was serving notice to the world that they were back and meant buisness!On Maidens next CD I heard so many bad things ranging from the CD cover to the music itself that I figured it was a bad CD. (I for one love the CD cover. It remindes me of the Stanley Kubrick film Eyes Wide Shut) I didnt buy the CD when it came out. I waited almost two years after it was released before I bought it. I saw it at a record store for $4.99. I thought, "What the heck?" Even if its bad I really havent lost much. I put the CD in on the way home and immediatly fell in love! From the opening track Wildest Dreams I was hooked! Rainmaker, Montsegur, Dance of Death, New Frontier, Journeyman, and one of my all time favorite Maiden songs, Pashendale! I had heard about how weak this album was. How there were "weak" tracks on it. I listened to the hype and almost missed out on one of Maidens strongest releases. After this I remember thinking "I wont doubt them again"It wasnt until 2011, just before the release of Final Frontier, that I bought A Matter of Life and Death. Yeah, I know, I doubted them again. I dont know why I did either? AMOLAD had won album of the year in 2006 when it came out. (by Metal Storm and Metal Maniacs) There was alot of good reviews about it. However, there were alot of bad ones also.I guess I thought "Can Maiden really keep it up?" How can these guys keep getting better? There has to be a day they will slack off and make a bad CD. HA! Fat chance! No, instead they made the second best CD to 7th Son. 7th son was their masterpiece. Most bands, no matter how long they are together, usually only get one masterpiece, if they are lucky. How can you expect a band to have two? Well as hard as it may seem to be to believe, Iron Maiden has done it again.I've been listening to Iron maiden since 1983 so I could say I'm a connoisseur of sorts. No expert, but very familiar with them. I grew up listening to such albums like Killers, Number of the Beast, Powerslave, Somewhere in Time, and 7th Son. Just those five albums alone are some of the best albums/songs released in the 80s. You cant go wrong with any of them. This is the standard I hold Maiden to, these five albums. (Apparently they hold themselves to that same standard also)So for about five years I was unaware that Maiden had released another masterpiece. That was until Amazon had a sale and I got AMOLAD for $5.99! What a deal!(Thanks Amazon!)From the first listen the whole thing really didnt jive with me. But there was something about it that kept me listening.The biggest thing that jumped out at me at first was the thick bass in this one. Im a huge bass guy so this kept me interested. Steve Harris really laid it down in this one. (He really tears it up in Lord of Light!) A bold move on Maidens part. But It really sets the tone for the whole album.There were people who bashed the production of this CD. I'm not sure if they think the production was "bad" because of the heavy bass on this album, or what? But I really dont know how much better of a production you can get? Everything is at an even keel. Not too much of one thing or not enough of another. Maiden was on their A game here and knew exactly what they wanted. And they got it.I remember reading a review about AMOLAD. In it a man claimed that Mr. Dickinson spent way too much time in the high range. If you say this Sir then you couldnt have listened to the CD. Dickison's voice ranges from some highs too alot of lows. Done perfectly. He does some things I havent heard him do before. His vocals on For the Greater Good of God kept me listening from the beginning. The way he does the chorus for that song really caught my attention. Some have said that Mr. Dickinson's vocals weren't as strong as they once were. I say nonsense! What he does on The Longest Day shows proof that his range is intact.I'm sure most people who have bashed this record arent "true" fans of the band. By true I mean the ones that know Maiden for what they are. A band that makes Epic songs. Some call it progressive. Regardless of what you call it the fact remains that Maiden has the ability to make a 9 minute song seem like four. The songs dont "drag" on as one might think because of their length. This is what the true Maiden fans look for. Not saying we dont like the radio friendly tunes but "epic" ones are the real gems here. And AMOLAD has plenty of them!The other fans are the ones that as soon as they dont hear Run to the Hills, 2 Minutes to Midnight, Wasted Years, or Can I Play with Madness they dismiss it as a failure. They dont want to take the time to understand what Maiden is doing on this album. And what are they doing? Setting a somber mood. I remember thinking when I first started to listen to this CD was that all the songs sounded alike. It would be easy to quickly write off this album because of this.But this is not an album that your going to "get" the first or second listen. Ive listened to it at least two dozen times and things are still setting in me. It's alot to take in. Theres so much that there is no way possible to absorb everything in a few listens. This is definatly a grower and lengthens the life of the CD. Your more likely to listen to it more often just so you can wrap your head around everything. I started by listening to it every other day then it grew to a couple times a day. Then it was three or four times a day. I'm still picking up on things I haven't picked up before. It will be at the top of my rotation for a long time (like 7th Son did for three years after it came out)If your looking for killer solos then you need to look no further. AMOLAD is chock full of them. Inspiring solos! I'm not quite sure where the inspiration came from on this CD. There are some real eye opening solos here. I havent heard so much inspiration since 7th Son! These solos that can be missed though, due to everything else going on. Especially the whole mood that Maiden had set on this record. It sucks you in and almost puts you in a trance. Your so enthralled with the mood you miss some things like the solos. Another distracter is the songs. You get so involved with what Mr. Dickinson is singing about that you could miss a solo. Not to mention other things like the well placed synths. (Just like they were in Pashendale and Dance of Death)Drums? I seriously thought Niko McBrain had been replaced with someone else. He is stellar! He also is inspired! I never knew how talented this guy was. Bravo! Mr. McBrain.All in all this CD proves Iron Maiden hasent given up on crafting excellent songs. After all these years they still have "it". Since their "reunion" they have progressivly gotten better with every release. Now with everything positive I've heard about Final Frontier I look forward to buying that CD. By that time Iron Maiden will probably have released another CD. If thats how it is, so be it! I know I'll have alot of enjoyment in the time I'm using to catch up!And let it be known from this day forth I will never doubt Iron Maiden again.