Iron Maiden

Iron Maiden is a British heavy metal band founded in 1975 by bassist Steve Harris. It is considered one of the most important metal bands of all time. He has sold more than 100 million records worldwide, despite having little support from commercial radio and television for most of his career. However, the band based their success on reaching fans directly, recording high-quality albums and putting on outstanding live performances.

The group has received various awards throughout their career, such as the Ivor Novello Award in the category of "International Achievement" in 2002. In 2005 they were included in Hollywood's RockWalk on Sunset Boulevard, Los Angeles. In 2009 she was the winner of the "Best Live Performance" award at the BRIT Awards, the most important music award in the United Kingdom. In 2011 they also won a Grammy, in the category of "Best Metal Performance", for the song "El Dorado". In addition, they have won the award for best British metal band of the year on several occasions, at the Metal Hammer Awards. Golden Gods Awards, among other recognitions.

During its more than 40-year history, Iron Maiden has been graphically identified by its famous mascot "Eddie the Head", an anthropomorphic character that has appeared on the vast majority of their album covers and singles, as well as on their live performances.

After several auditions and changes in its line-up, it was finally consolidated with vocalist Paul Di'Anno, guitarists Dave Murray and Dennis Stratton and drummer Clive Burr, always under the leadership of bassist and main composer Steve Harris. After extensive touring throughout the UK, in 1979 the band released an EP called The Soundhouse Tapes, and in 1980, their self-titled debut album, which reached number four on the UK charts, without mediate some massive promotion. That same year, Stratton was replaced by guitarist Adrian Smith, with whom they released the album Killers (1981). Later, and after Di Anno's departure, that same year, singer Bruce Dickinson joined to fill in as vocalist for 1982's The Number of the Beast album, which reached number one on the UK charts, marking the start of a series of impact releases. In 1983 the band released the album Piece of Mind, which had as a novelty the departure of drummer Clive Burr and the entry of Nicko McBrain in his replacement. From there, the most successful lineup the group has ever had was consolidated, which has made numerous tours and albums. Iron Maiden has recorded 17 studio albums and is considered one of the most influential bands not only for metal and its respective subgenres, but also for various rock groups, and even artists of other styles.

History

Beginnings (1975-1978)

Iron Maiden's history starts in 1971, when Steve Harris, inspired by bands like Wishbone Ash, Thin Lizzy, UFO, Black Sabbath, Jethro Tull, Genesis, King Crimson, Led Zeppelin, The Who and Deep Purple, among others, he bought an imitation Fender Precision Bass for around £40, and after leaving behind the option of drums, for which he did not have enough space. Initially Harris also had the illusion of being a football player for West Ham However, he began to dedicate all his efforts to his other great passion, music. This led to the formation of a musical group that he called Gypsy's Kiss in 1972, whose first concert was at the legendary Cart & # 39; Horses at Maryland Point, Stratford.

The iron maid, an instrument of torture in which they were inspired by the name of the band.

After a few concerts under the name Gypsy's Kiss, Harris decided to create the Smiler project, whose members were a few years older than him, which helped him to accumulate experience. Despite this, Harris wanted to express his concerns as a composer to a greater degree, and the rest of the band was in charge of rejecting his compositions as "too complicated".

Thus, Harris founded Iron Maiden on Christmas Day 1975. The group consisted of Dave Sullivan and Terry Rance on guitars, Ron "Rebel" Matthews on drums, Steve Harris on bass, and Paul Day in the voice. Harris had the idea to emulate the sound of Wishbone Ash in terms of the concept of twin guitars . The band's first recording sessions resulted in compositions that transcended Iron Maiden's career such as "Transylvania", "Wrathchild" or "Innocent Exile".

On May 1, 1976, the band's first concert took place at the Cart & Horses, a very popular pub in London's East End. Word began to spread and the band's following grew with each performance.

Harris decided on the name of the band after seeing a torture device in the movie The Man in the Iron Mask. It was an Iron Maiden, a torture device with dozens of rusty nails inside, where the victims were introduced until they bled to death. However, in the middle of a presentation at the Cart & Horses in Stratford, informed Harris that another band with the same name already existed. By mutual agreement, the musicians decided not to give importance to the matter and went ahead with the name and the band.

Vocalist Paul Day was soon replaced by previous singer (specifically of the Smiler era), Dennis Wilcock, who while he couldn't match Day's range, made up for it with his stage presence. Wilcock in turn he recommended a talented guitarist named Dave Murray, who was a fan like Harris of the bands Wishbone Ash, Fleetwood Mac, Free, Genesis, UFO, Deep Purple, and Jimi Hendrix. In turn, Murray admired what Iron Maiden was doing at their various shows in London. The idea of integrating Dave Murray was to form a band with six members and three guitarists.

The local Cart & Horses in Stratford, where Iron Maiden made his first presentations in 1976.

In 1976, the commercial heyday of punk was quite strong, unlike the rock scene, which was in the doldrums, so the monetary income for the band were very low despite the great success at the underground level and the number of followers they were having. That was precisely the reason for the departure of Dave Sullivan and Terry Rance, since each of them had married and had to support their respective families, so the idea of the three guitars together with Dave Murray, who he had hit it off well with Steve Harris.

Through singer Dennis Wilcock, Bob "Bob Sawyer" Angelo (Bob had already been with Iron Maiden for a very short time) as second guitarist. Dennis Wilcock was characterized by having a very frontal, controversial, manipulative and egocentric personality, which is why he began to impose his personal tastes and decided to fire drummer Ron "Rebel" Matthews, Bob "Bob Sawyer" Angelo and Dave Murray. This fact generated enormous pressure on Steve Harris, who, after reflecting on the difficulty of finding a new singer, finally opted to accede to Wilcock's whims by removing Murray from the band, in what he himself defines in the documentary Early Days as a totally stupid personal attitude on his part.

In 1977 Terry Wapram joined the band on guitar, along with the eccentric Barry Graham Purkis, known as Thunderstick on drums, from the band Samson. Harris decided to bring in a keyboard player named Tony Moore, and eventually in In the spring of 1977, Dennis Wilcock himself decided to quit the band suddenly after a concert. The group's north oscillated between the large number of followers and the changes that followed, since Steve Harris decided to do without Moore and Thunderstick. The musician continued to insist on forming a solid group and contacted again drummer Doug Sampson (who had played with him in the Smiler era) and guitarist Dave Murray, who ended up replacing Terry Wapram. In this way, Murray rejoined Iron Maiden, a group formed until then only by Steve Harris and Doug Sampson. Despite the adversities, the trio of musicians remained firm in their purpose.

A classmate of Doug Sampson's recommended singer Paul Di'Anno, who by then was in a band called Bird of Prey. Di'Anno was immediately to the liking of Steve Harris, who inducted him into Iron Maiden in 1977. The group operated for a time with a solo guitarist, offsetting the second guitar parts on songs like "Iron Maiden" with bass. ». During that time, almost all of the group's profits were invested in scenery, such as the famous mask behind Doug Sampson's drum kit, an early version of the Eddie the Head mascot.

Times were hard for Harris and his teammates; Those were the years of punk that exploded through the streets of London, with bands like the Sex Pistols enjoying the favoritism of the masses. Some record labels even suggested that Harris change the image of his group, that they cut their hair and that they adapt their music to the times. However, the bassist had a very clear idea of how he wanted his group to be. and the type of music he wanted to play. He referred to this fact as follows: "I couldn't have started a punk band... that would be against my religion." Di'Anno, for his part, commented in those days: «Songwriters who were once at Fairport Convention are now with The Clash, they just live altering their tastes to keep up with the times. I don't see the reason for that. You have to stick to the music you like, be faithful."

Harris saw the need to hire another guitarist to continue evolving, and that is how guitarists Paul Todd, Tony Parsons and Mad Mac sporadically passed through the band accompanying Dave Murray. There were several anecdotes that Steve Harris tells about this time and these three musicians, such as the case of Paul Todd, who, being a great guitarist, was prevented from rehearsing by his girlfriend, or Mad Mac, who always took his dog to rehearsals, and who left very enthusiastic, but he had a strange mental bipolarity that after a few months prevented him from continuing in the band.

Record deal and early releases (1978-1982)

As the UK tours were already quite extensive, the band purchased a truck which they converted to haul equipment and also sleep on tours, naming it "The Green Goddess" because of its dark green colour. in this context in which in 1978 Paul, Doug, Steve and Dave recorded the EP The Soundhouse Tapes at Spaceward studios in Cambridge, even sleeping on the floor of the house of a nurse that Paul had known Di'Anno, since the vehicle did not fully protect them from the cold. After having sold a large number of copies, they wanted to take the original tape home to add more songs to the recording, but when they went to remove it they found out that the master had been erased, leaving only the QIC cartridge, which is what ultimately turned out to be The Soundhouse Tapes.

Around this time, they met Neal Kay, a rock DJ who owned London's first heavy metal venue, the Bandwagon. Neal and Steve Harris was very special, since Kay himself admits that he was not very nice to Steve when he gave him the demo to listen to. However, when he took the time to listen to it, he was truly amazed and shocked by the strength of the group, something that, in his own words, had not happened before with any other band. At the time, compositions like "Iron Maiden" or "Prowler" would lead the Bandwagon song list. The popularity of the band began to grow after the release of the album, and as Neal Kay himself recounts, fans of rock and heavy metal surrendered to their feet. of Iron Maiden throughout England.

Shortly thereafter, he began a partnership with manager Rod Smallwood, who heard the band's songs and was pleasantly surprised and invited them to a couple of concerts at Windsor Castle on Harrow Road and at the Swan in Hammersmith. The quality of the group, the rebellious presence and the response it generated in the audience of the time (which was even already much stronger than that of the fashionable and prevailing punk bands themselves), brought them some problems. in some places where they were forbidden to play because of the hubbub they generated. But the problems would come especially at the hands of Paul Di'Anno, in fact the second time Rod Smallwood set out to see the band live, Paul had been arrested by the police, having to be Steve Harris himself who took over the role of singer (as well as bassist) for the night, with an Iron Maiden lined up as a power trio.

Rod Smallwood, far from being disillusioned, was shocked by Steve and Dave's attitude on stage. From that moment on, Rod decided to assume the role of manager of the band. In this context, the EMI record company offered the group a contract, after having seen a couple of "electrical shows" as John Darnley, Martin Haxby and Brian Sheperd of EMI Records themselves recounted, especially Darnley, in charge of the part rock of the label, and that he even became an admirer of the group. The idea was to sign them for the recording of three albums. Paradoxically, the dizzying pace that the band was carrying took its toll on Doug Sampson, who decided to retire. Parallel to Doug's retirement, the guitarist Dennis Stratton joined, just before the recording of the first album, and it is the same Stratton who brings Clive Burr to replace Doug Sampson on drums, thus preparing the group that would shape the next recording.

Smallwood arranged for Brian Shepherd, president of the EMI record label, to attend the band's historic concert at the Club Marquee in 1979, which he described as "electrifying", and a week later, Iron Maiden were signed to the mentioned record company, after surpassing in the consideration of the executives another representative band of the NWOBHM, Def Leppard.

In December 1979, the band recorded their first full length, Iron Maiden, featuring Paul Di'Anno on vocals, Steve Harris on bass and backing vocals, Dave Murray on guitar, Clive Burr on drums, and Dennis Stratton on vocals. guitar and choirs, also celebrating the release of the first official single Running Free, which quickly climbed the British charts to position itself at number thirty-four.

Paul Di'Anno and Steve Harris acting in Manchester in 1980.

On April 14, 1980 the band officially released their long-awaited first studio album, titled Iron Maiden. Although it received excellent reviews from the specialized media, for Steve Harris it did not reach the level he would have wanted, since he considered that record producer Will Malone did not work enough on the sound. Despite Harris's disagreement, the album reached fourth position in the British charts, and to celebrate it the band returned to the Ruskin Arms, one of the venues where they were born, to do another remembered and historic concert.

After the first album, the group began touring opening shows for Kiss's 1980 European tour; at the end of the tour at the end of the year, guitarist Dennis Stratton, who would join the group's seventh lineup, left the band. formation due to musical differences. Replacing him was Adrian Smith, a personal friend of Dave Murray's who had previously declined to join as he was comfortable with his band Urchin, which was also having some local success.

On February 2, 1981 the band released their second album, entitled Killers. The record producer was Martin Birch, who had worked with groups such as Deep Purple, Black Sabbath and Fleetwood Mac (having to his credit the production of classic records such as Machine Head and Heaven and Hell of those mentioned respectively). Upon listening to the group's material, Birch asked Steve Harris why he hadn't been called on for the first album. The answer was: "We thought you were too famous to say yes". Compared to the first album, although it may not have had the impact of the previous one, Killers is much more finished in terms of sound. In February of that same year, the band embarked on their first major world tour. In Europe they shared stages with the American group Kiss. The band came to the United States for the first time, where they played with Scorpions, Judas Priest, 38 Special and Rainbow.

Their first tour of Japan and, along with it, the recording of the live album Maiden Japan, on May 23, 1981, earned the group their first gold record. However, the rise of the band did not stop the changes that would take place within it. Paul Di' Anno was expelled from the group due to his lifestyle of excesses with alcohol and drugs, which had him physically and psychologically worn out. Di' Anno had been detained by the police on several occasions due to his abuse, leaving the group at key moments. This motivated Steve Harris to make the decision not to have him as a vocalist anymore. After his absence, singers like Terry Slesser auditioned for the band, but it was finally Bruce Dickinson, (another ex-Samson), who arrived the same year to fill the position.

When the idea of including Dickinson was pitched by Steve to manager Rod Smallwood, he was initially reticent, due to a problem he had had in the past with the band Samson. However, Harris convinced Rod to go see Bruce at a Samson show, at the legendary Reading Festival in England. After seeing Dickinson's quality live, as a vocalist and as a frontman, both were convinced and decided to offer him the position of singer in Iron Maiden. In this way, they contacted him to appear for an audition, and just when he performed the song "Remember Tomorrow" they announced their hiring. Although the singer initially had some doubts, Iron Maiden's proposal was quite tempting, being a band already signed by the giant EMI Music and touring throughout Europe, the United States and Asia. After meditating on it for several days, he accepted. Dickinson's first concert with Iron Maiden was on October 26, 1981 in Bologna, Italy.

Golden Years (1982-1985)

Bruce Dickinson and Steve Harris with Iron Maiden in 1982.

Iron Maiden's definitive consecration around the world came with their third studio album, The Number of the Beast, released on March 29, 1982. The promotional tour for the album was titled The Beast On The Road, beginning in England to culminate ten months later in Japan, being his second visit to this country. With the single "Run to the Hills", Iron Maiden reached number 7 in the British Top 40. But it was in the middle of the tour, and while their bus was stranded on the road, that the band learned that the album had gone on to top the UK charts.

However, the theme of the album and its cover, which showed Eddie handling the devil like a puppet, generated controversy in some religious sectors in the United States. It was precisely the latter who demonstrated outside the doors of one of the their concerts accusing them of apology for Satanism, basically for the song "The Number of the Beast", which was the one that triggered all the accusations. The official or mass media turned their backs on the band, in a kind of censorship evening, however, this did not prevent them from becoming a word of mouth phenomenon, and even breaking audience records in the United States, despite the fact that the media never echoed this phenomenon. with bands like Quiet Riot, Judas Priest, Twisted Sister, or Mötley Crüe, who did have significant media and commercial support in La Unión.

Dave Murray and Adrian Smith on The Beast on the Road.

At that time there was one more change in the formation of the group. Clive Burr left the band due to personal problems and a certain inability to keep up with the rising pace and success of the band, and was replaced in his place by ex-drummer of the French band Trust, Nicko McBrain, proving his qualities as an instrumentalist, while adding a new dimension to the band's sound.

On May 16, 1983, a new studio album was released, entitled Piece of Mind. With this album they achieved platinum and gold records in several countries. In June of that same year they launched the World Piece Tour, which led them to appear as the headliner at the Rock Pop Festival in Westfalenhalle in Dortmund (Germany), sharing the stage with Scorpions, Judas Priest, Def Leppard, Ozzy Osbourne, Quiet Riot and the Michael Schenker Group in December 1983.

On September 3, 1984, the band's fifth album was released, entitled Powerslave. The record begins with the song "Aces High," followed by "2 Minutes to Midnight," based on the University of Chicago's Doomsday Clock which symbolically accounts for the remaining time for nuclear war and the end of civilization, whose "Record" time for closeness was two minutes to midnight in 1953. Powerslave ends with the song "Rime of the Ancient Mariner", based on the poem of the same name by Samuel Taylor Coleridge.

Dickinson with the unique feature used on the World Slavery Tour.

The World Slavery Tour, a tour that spanned 23 countries and consisted of 191 concerts in 331 days, was carried out in support of Powerslave. The tour concluded in the United States with audience records despite the practically zero coverage in the mass media, which is even mentioned by Bruce Dickinson himself at the Live After Death concert recorded at the Long Beach Arena in California.

With the release of Powerslave in 1984, South America received them with notable success during the Rock in Rio festival that was held in Brazil in Jacarepaguá, in the west zone of Rio de Janeiro in 1985, in a historic concert that also included the participation of bands such as Queen, Scorpions, Ozzy Osbourne, George Benson, Yes and AC/DC.

During the course of The World Slavery Tour the live album Live After Death was recorded at the Long Beach Arena in California. The album cover included a quote from Howard Phillips Lovecraft, a writer of horror stories with a metafictional style and form. London by the Nazi German army during World War II, as an introduction to the song "Aces High".

Experimentation (1986-1989)

On June 29, 1986, Iron Maiden's sixth studio album, Somewhere in Time, was released, in which the band implemented the use of synthesizers as a complement, with a sound that clearly pointed to the progressive. The album was a success worldwide, boosted especially by the single "Wasted Years". However, it did not include writing credits for Dickinson, whose material was rejected by the rest of the band. Guitarist Adrian Smith displayed compositional creativity at this stage, contributing lyrics to the songs "Wasted Years", "Sea of Madness" and "Stranger in a Strange Land", the latter being chosen as the second single from the album.

The concept of Eddie Cyborg was used in the cover art of the album and the live shows of the corresponding tour.

In March 1988 the band released the promotional single "Can I Play With Madness", which reached number three in the UK. The single was accompanied by a video clip, directed by British filmmaker Julian Doyle and starring actor and comedian Graham Chapman, who died shortly after the clip's release.

The band's seventh album, a concept album based on the work The Seventh Son by Orson Scott Card, was released on April 11, 1988. Seventh Son of a Seventh Son became the first Iron Maiden album to feature keyboards, played by Harris and Smith, as opposed to the synthesized guitars used on the previous record. On this occasion, Dickinson's ideas were accepted and the singer had songwriting credits on the songs "Moonchild", "Can I Play with Madness", "The Evil That Men Do" and "Only the Good Die Young".

Seventh Son became the second Iron Maiden album to reach the top position in the UK charts, although it only went gold in the US, in contrast with the four previous albums. The album was accompanied by a large promotional tour as well as stage design and light shows. The tour included much of Europe and the United States. One of the most remembered presentations of this tour occurred at the Monsters of Rock festival, held on August 20, 1988, in which the band was the headliner for the first time and in which they shared the stage with Kiss, Guns N'39.; Roses, Megadeth, David Lee Roth and Helloween. The festival summoned more than one hundred thousand spectators, but was marred by the death of two fans during the performance of Guns N' Roses, so the following year's edition was cancelled.

The tour concluded with several UK shows in November and December 1988, with the shows at the NEC Arena in Birmingham recorded for a live video, titled Maiden England. tour, Harris' technician, Michael Kenney, was in charge of playing the keyboards live. Kenney has served as the band's live keyboardist ever since, also playing on the next four albums before Harris became the group's sole studio keyboardist since 2000's Brave New World.

Departure of Smith and Dickinson (1990-1993)

In the middle of 1989 the news spread that Adrian Smith would launch the creation of a musical group, something that had been maturing for a long time and that several times had to be postponed due to the obligations of being a member of Iron Maiden. Thus, Smith released the album Silver and Gold with the band ASAP, which he joined with some old friends and where he himself took over the vocals. Bruce Dickinson also launched his personal project and released the album Tattooed Millionaire, a project that departed from the traditional Iron Maiden sound. After a solid group career of many years, the group was beginning to show signs of individual desires.

At the beginning of 1990, a year marked by Maiden's announced absence from the stage and in which he celebrated his first ten years as a star for the EMI record company, Adrian Smith left the band while planning the next album, which even it would have a theme of his authorship. According to Harris himself, if this decision by Smith had been presented at another time, it probably would not have been carried out on good terms, however, the separation was carried out on completely amicable terms and the band released their guitarist. In this way, the classic line-up had come to an end. However, within seven days Janick Gers was announced as Smith's replacement. Gers had worked with Dickinson as a guitarist on the album Tattooed Millionaire and with bands such as White Spirit and Gillan.

Janick Gers replaced guitarist Adrian Smith after his departure from Iron Maiden in 1990.

The album No Prayer for the Dying debuted on October 1, 1990 on the UK charts at number two. Included on the album was "Bring Your Daughter... to the Slaughter", the only Iron Maiden song to date to top the UK Singles Chart. It was originally recorded by Dickinson's band for the soundtrack of the horror movie A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child. The song was banned by the BBC due to its provocative lyrics and only played a 90-second live clip on Top of the Pops.

After two years, the band embarked on a new tour titled No Prayer On The Road. However, the tour had to end earlier than planned, with visits to Japan and Australia being canceled due to the outbreak of the Gulf War. The tour finally ended in Salt Lake City, Utah in March 1991.

In May 1992 a new Iron Maiden album was released, Fear of the Dark. It became the first studio album whose cover art was not drawn by Derek Riggs, as his ideas were not they coincided with what the band wanted on this record. The cover art was designed by Melvyn Grant. Fear of the Dark gave the band another number one hit on the UK charts.

A massive world tour, called the Fear of the Dark Tour, began on June 5, 1992 and the official opening was in Reykjavík. Later the band moved to the United States and Canada, continuing their itinerary through America Latina, highlighting a great scandal at the governmental and ecclesiastical level in Chile, where they were censored by the authorities in a covert way, generating a scandal in that country and the discomfort of thousands of admirers, many of whom even marched through the center of Santiago as a sign of protest. The date that could not be held in Chile was replaced by Uruguay at the General Artigas Station, an abandoned train station. In that place, the band was fascinated by its architecture (typical English of the XIX century), and between machines and wagons of this origin and age, a photographic session was carried out, which has not seen the light of day, Salt I have a photo at the airport (arriving in Uruguayan territory) in the booklet that accompanies the double live album A Real Live/Dead One.

After the South American leg, Iron Maiden headed to Europe, where they performed in many countries and again headlined the Monsters of Rock Festival, which took place at the Donington Park circuit on Saturday, August 22, 1992. before thousands of spectators. The performance at this festival, in which Adrian Smith briefly returned to the band's line-up during the song "Running Free", was recorded and compiled on the live album Live at Donington. The next leg of the tour took them to Australia, New Zealand, Korea, Taiwan, Indonesia, India and Japan with seven shows in Nagoya, Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Osaka (with two shows), Yokohama and Tokyo.

In 1993, Dickinson left the band to pursue a solo career, but agreed to stay for a farewell tour and two live albums. The first, A Real Live One, contained songs from 1986 to 1992, and was released in March 1993. The second, A Real Dead One, contained songs from 1980 to 1984, and was released after Dickinson left the band. The tour was not a good experience for the group, and Steve Harris claimed that Dickinson only put his best effort into high-profile shows, and that at several concerts he seemed to just mutter into the microphone. Dickinson took it upon himself to deny these statements, stating that it was impossible for him to be one hundred percent if the atmosphere was not right, further arguing that the news of his departure had prevented any possibility of a good atmosphere during the tour. On August 28, 1993, a small farewell concert was held by Dickinson, which was filmed by the BBC under the name Raising Hell. The illusionist Simon Drake was in charge of presenting the show.

The farewell between the band and the vocalist was chivalrous at first. Hardly any later comment from Steve Harris reveals the discomfort: & # 34; Supposedly, he had not felt good with us for a long time, he was tired and creatively demoralized, which is very strange because he never told us anything. If he felt that way, then he should have left earlier and I myself would have advised him to leave."

However, Dickinson later began to argue his differences with his former colleagues in some media, especially in relation to Steve Harris, whom he described as too "traditional".

Stage with Blaze Bayley (1994-1999)

British singer Blaze Bayley replaced Bruce Dickinson after his departure from Iron Maiden.

Prior to Dickinson's sacking, Iron Maiden considered a few singers for his replacement, including Andre Matos and Doogie White. Steve Harris argued that Dickinson's successor should preferably live in England for logistics, rehearsals, work off tours etc. Finally, the balance tipped for Blaze Bayley, singer of the group Wolfsbane, who had already accompanied Iron Maiden on a tour in 1990. As had happened in the past, when the lineup changed, Harris considered friendship and empathy with the band to make a decision.

For the new album, the band not only introduced a new singer, but also a new producer. Since 1981, every Iron Maiden studio album had been produced or co-produced by Martin Birch. But now retired, Steve decided to take over production with Nigel Green, who had engineered the Killers and The Number of the Beast, and currently the producer of his own record label. Finally, after a year of work, in October 1995 the album The X Factor prior to the start of The X Factor tour that took them for the first time to South Africa and Israel. The tour also covered Eastern Europe (Romania, Bulgaria, Slovenia, Hungary, Poland and the Czech Republic).; Western Europe, United States, Mexico, Canada, Japan and South America.

The departure of Bruce Dickinson affected the reception of the new album, however, the work reached the Top 8 of the UK charts. On this album, the songs are longer and darker, largely abandoning the sound that characterized the band in the 1980s. The album's sinister and dark approach was most likely a reflection of Steve Harris' difficult emotional and personal time in those years, as he was going through a divorce from his wife and the death of his father..

The cover art also represented a change. In it you can see Eddie in 3D, while he is being dissected. The work on the cover and the internal booklet were the work of Hugh Syme, who had previously worked on albums such as Moving Pictures, Roll the Bones or Counterparts by Rush and Countdown to Extinction and Youthanasia by Megadeth.

In 1996 Best of the Beast was released, the first official compilation album presented by the band, in two versions: a 16-song single disc and a 27-song double disc. The previously unreleased song "Virus" was also included, recorded during the sessions for the latest studio album.

During 1997, during the heyday of 32-bit console and PC video games, Iron Maiden commissioned the English company Virtual Studio to make a game based on their mascot, Eddie, and with songs by the group as a soundtrack. Initially its name would be Melt and it would have versions for PC and PlayStation. After several delays, and although a reservation was made through the group's official fan club, the game was canceled due to poor quality.

In 1998 the studio album Virtual XI was released, under a much more classical concept, unlike the darkness embodied in the previous album. The album had a good reception among the most loyal fans of the band, but lower in comparison to the previous album, reaching position number 16 in the British charts, the lowest position for an album by the band in their entire career on the charts. British charts.

Blaze Bayley with Iron Maiden live in 1998.

While the band was preparing this album, the idea of releasing a video game was taken up again. They commissioned the multimedia development company Synthetic Dimensions to create a video game based on the graphic art that has accompanied the group throughout their career and that featured Eddie as the main character. The video game was titled Ed Hunter, and was released in 1999 accompanied by a compilation disc of 20 songs chosen by fans on the official Iron Maiden website.

Due to the lesser commercial success obtained with Virtual XI, Iron Maiden began to suffer a decrease in the number of audiences at their concerts, and for some, Blaze's live performance was not adequate when he had to interpret older songs of the band, which caused discontent among many followers of the band.

After Maiden's concert in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on December 12, 1998, which concluded the Virtual XI World Tour, Blaze's participation in the band was terminated and he was notified of his dismissal. However, the news was not made public at the time.

Return of Bruce Dickinson and Adrian Smith, Brave New World (1999-2002)

The Ed Hunter Tour Concert (1999).

The year 1999 began with many speculations and rumors that spoke of a supposed departure of Blaze and possible replacements were discussed, among which there was speculation with Michael Kiske, former Helloween singer, who had already sounded like Dickinson's replacement before to recruit Blaze Bailey. However, it was Kiske himself who years later would be in charge of denying that rumor since Harris needed someone who was a friend of the band and who lived in England to begin with. In the month of February the return of Bruce Dickinson was announced, generated by the reciprocal desire of both parties and after a conversation between Dickinson and Rod Smallwood. Smallwood saw it as a great possibility for Iron Maiden, but he thought that Steve Harris would not be very convinced, since after Bruce's departure Steve's relationship with the vocalist had not been the best.

Bruce also proposed the return of Adrian Smith, who at the time was one of the guitarists in his solo band and with whom he recorded the successful albums Accident of Birth (1997) and Chemical Wedding (1998). The band also decided to keep Janick Gers in their line-up, thus creating a trio on guitars.

That same year the band released their video game Ed Hunter, and as a promotion, an impact tour was held celebrating the return of Bruce and Adrian entitled The Ed Hunter Tour, with around 30 dates in North America and Europe. Once the tour was over, the group threw themselves into preparing what would be their twelfth album, entitled Brave New World. The work, published on May 29, 2000, reached the seventh position in the British charts and the first in several countries around the world, also resuming the characteristic sound of the group.

The long-awaited world tour to present the album included some South American countries such as Chile, Brazil and Argentina. To end the tour, a new live album entitled Rock in Rio (2002) was recorded, recorded during the Rock in Rio festival in its third edition, in front of 250,000 people. On this tour, Iron Maiden performed after many years the song "Run to the Hills" at concerts in Rio de Janeiro and Santiago de Chile. The same year also released Eddie's Archive, a six-CD box set containing the Beast Over Hammersmith concerts and The BBC Archives and a B-Side compilation titled Best of the B'Sides.

Dance of Death and A Matter of Life and Death (2003–2007)

Steve Harris live with the band in 2003.

In 2003, Iron Maiden released a new studio album, Dance of Death. tour of Europe and the United States called Give Me Ed... Til I'm Dead, which began in the Spanish city of La Coruña., which includes an orchestral version of the album's title track, "Dance of Death".

The band once again embarked on a world tour that culminated in Japan and produced a new live album, titled Death on the Road. Melvyn Grant, author of the cover of the album Fear of the Dark, was the artist chosen to make the cover of the live show, after Derek Riggs rejected it due to the pressure he was put under. As With this decision, the artist did not want to make any more Eddie covers for Iron Maiden, although he did create a female version of the mascot for the all-female tribute group's album, The Iron Maidens.

After the tour, an EP called No More Lies was released, with four songs and a free wristband.

In November 2004 a double DVD titled The Early Days was released, featuring previously unreleased recordings from the early years, from Iron Maiden to Piece of Mind . A documentary was also included on the DVD with the participation of several musicians who were part of the band between 1972 and 1983. In 2005 a tour was carried out that covered Europe and part of America as a promotion, in which only songs from the band were performed. first four albums.

In August 2006, Iron Maiden released their fourteenth studio album, entitled A Matter of Life and Death, with war and religion being the main themes addressed. The album was a commercial success. and critics, giving the band their first top 10 hit on the US Billboard 200 chart and receiving the Best Album of the Year award from Classic Rock magazine. A supporting tour followed, during which they played the album in its entirety, something the band had never done before, garnering a mixed response.

Bruce Dickinson during the A Matter of Life and Death World Tour tour.

In November 2006, Iron Maiden and Rod Smallwood announced the end of a 27-year relationship with Sanctuary Music and the start of a new company called Phantom Music Management. However, no significant changes were made. A month later, the band recorded a live session at Abbey Road Studios. Her performance was featured on an episode of Live from Abbey Road, along with sessions by Natasha Bedingfield and the Gipsy Kings in March 2007 on Channel 4 and in June of the same year on the Sundance Channel.

The second leg of the A Matter of Life and Death tour, which took place in 2007, was dubbed A Matter of the Beast to celebrate the 25th anniversary of the album The Number of the Beast and included appearances at various major festivals around the world. The tour began in the Middle East with the band's first performance in Dubai, after which they played to over 30,000 people at the Bangalore Palace Grounds, marking the band's first concert. any major heavy metal band on the Indian subcontinent. The band played a number of European dates, including an appearance at Download Festival, their fourth performance at Donington Park, to approximately 80,000 people. On June 24 they finished the tour with a performance at the Brixton Academy in London to benefit The Clive Burr MS charity fund, with the aim of raising funds for the treatment of multiple sclerosis, a disease that had afflicted the previous drummer for several years. by Iron Maiden.

Tour Somewhere Back in Time and Flight 666 (2007-2009)

On September 5, 2007, the band announced a new tour called the Somewhere Back in Time World Tour, in which they presented a setlist made up of classic songs from the group, emphasizing the time of Powerslave. The first leg of the tour, which kicked off in Mumbai on February 1, 2008, consisted of 24 concerts in 21 cities. The group was transported in a Boeing 747-400 plane, piloted by Bruce Dickinson himself and named Ed Force One. They played for the first time in Costa Rica and Colombia.

Iron Maiden lives in 2008.

The tour led to the release of a new compilation album, titled Somewhere Back in Time, which included a selection of tracks from the 1980 debut album to Seventh Son of a Seventh Son from 1988, as well as several live versions of Live After Death. The Somewhere Back in Time world tour continued with two more legs in the United States and Europe in the summer of 2008, during which the band used a larger stage, including other elements from the original Live After Death show.

The last leg of the tour took place between February and March 2009, again using Ed Force One as transportation. The final leg led the band to perform for the first time in Peru and Ecuador, and to return to Venezuela and New Zealand after 17 years, as well as Costa Rica in front of 17,000 people. The group also played another concert in India (their third in the country in a span of 2 years) at the Rock in India festival before a crowd of 20,000. The tour ended in Florida on April 2. Overall, the tour had an attendance of over two million people worldwide.

At the 2009 BRIT Awards, Iron Maiden won Best British Live Band. Voted for by the public, the band won by a landslide.

On January 20, 2009, the band announced that a feature-length documentary would be released in select theaters on April 21, 2009. Iron Maiden: Flight 666 was filmed during the first leg of the Somewhere Back in Time world tour between February and March 2008. It was co-produced by Banger Productions and distributed theatrically by Arts Alliance Media and EMI. The film was released on Blu-ray, DVD, and CD formats in May and June, topping the charts in 22 countries.

The Final Frontier and Maiden England World Tour (2010-2014)

Iron Maiden live in 2010.

The Final Frontier, Iron Maiden's fifteenth studio album, was released on August 16, 2010, reaching number one on the charts in 28 countries. Although Steve Harris had claimed Previously that the band would only release fifteen studio albums, the same band members took it upon themselves to deny that claim after the album's release.

The tour supporting the album saw the band play 98 shows worldwide to some two million people, including first visits to Singapore, Indonesia and South Korea. The single "El Dorado" won an award in the Best Metal Performance category at the Grammy Awards, held on February 13, 2011. The band had already been nominated twice in this category, with "Fear of the Dark" in 1994 and "The Wicker Man" in 2001.

A new compilation, titled From Fear to Eternity, was announced on March 15th. The original release date was set for May 23, but was later pushed back to June 6. The double disc covers the period 1990-2010 (the band's eight most recent studio albums), and, as on Somewhere Back in Time, live versions with Bruce Dickinson were included instead of recordings. originals that included other vocalists, in this case Blaze Bayley.

In a press release, Rod Smallwood revealed that Iron Maiden would release a new concert on DVD in 2011, filmed in Santiago de Chile and Buenos Aires, during The Final Frontier world tour. On January 17, 2012, the band announced that the new version, titled En Vivo! and based on footage from the concert in Chile, would be available worldwide on CD, LP, DVD and Blu-ray. ray on March 26, except in the United States and Canada (where it launched on March 27). In addition to the concert footage, the video includes an 88-minute documentary, titled Behind The Beast, containing interviews with the band and their crew. In December 2012, the version of "Blood Brothers" from Live! was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance.

Iron Maiden lives in Denver, 2012.

On February 15, 2012, the band announced the Maiden England World Tour 2012-14, commemorating the reissue of the 1988 Maiden England video. The tour began in North America in the summer of 2012. and was followed by other dates in 2013 and 2014, which included the band's fifth performance at Donington Park, their first concert at the newly built national stadium in Stockholm, their return to the Rock in Rio festival in Brazil, and their debut in Paraguay. In August 2012, Steve Harris stated that the video for Maiden England would be re-released in 2013, with a later release date set for March 25, 2013 on DVD, CD and DVD formats. LP under the title Maiden England '88.

On March 13, 2013, the death of former drummer Clive Burr was announced at the age of 56. In 2001 Clive was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, a disease that left him confined to a wheelchair. Bassist Steve Harris stated about it: "He was a wonderful person and an incredible drummer who made a valuable contribution to the group in its early days, when we started playing." The news was announced on the band's official website.. Dickinson claimed that he met Burr when he was leaving Samson in December 1982. When he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis in 2001, his former Iron Maiden bandmates set up the Clive Burr MS Trust to help him raise money to support himself. life. The group also gave several concerts in Burr's honor when he was having trouble financing his house, according to the BBC.

The Book of Souls and Legacy of the Beast (2015-2020)

Five years after the release of The Final Frontier, Iron Maiden released a new studio album called The Book of Souls, on September 4, 2015. Along with the album the single "Speed of Light" was released. The Book of Souls is the longest-running album in the band's history, surpassing The Final Frontier, and also contains Iron Maiden's longest-running song to date, titled "Empire of the Clouds", composed by Bruce Dickinson and based on the British airship disaster R.101. release due to vocalist Bruce Dickinson's throat cancer. The album was well received by critics and fans alike, reaching number 1 in 24 countries within weeks of its release, earning it a gold record certification. in the UK with 110,000 copies sold and debuting at number 4 on the Billboard 200.

Smith, Harris, Murray and Gers live in 2017.

In February 2016, the band embarked on The Book of Souls World Tour, playing in 35 countries across North and South America, Asia, Australasia, Africa and Europe, including their first performances in China, The Salvador and Lithuania and their long-awaited return to Costa Rica at the Ricardo Saprissa Stadium. As on the 2008-09 Somewhere Back in Time and 2010-11 The Final Frontier tours, the group traveled on a custom-built plane, flown by by Dickinson and nicknamed Ed Force One, although they used a Boeing 747-400 jumbo jet. The band completed the tour in 2017 with other European and North American shows.

On Friday, March 11, 2016, the band performed their eighth performance in Chile, being supported by The Raven Age and Anthrax. The next day, on the morning of March 12, after giving their concert, the band was about to travel on their Ed Force One plane to give their concerts in Argentina. However, they experienced an unfortunate accident with their Ed Force One plane at the Santiago International Airport. The unforeseen results were two of the aircraft's engines completely damaged, two workers injured and hospitalized, and the band's tour of South America was put in doubt. It was the band members themselves who confirmed that, despite the accident, they would continue with their concerts in Argentina. The plane was repaired nine days after what happened and they flew again to continue with their concerts around the world.

Iron Maiden live in Madrid, 2018.

On September 20, 2017, the release of a new live album, The Book of Souls: Live Chapter, was announced. Recorded throughout the aforementioned tour, it was released on November 17, 2017.

In the summer of 2016, the group released a mobile game called Iron Maiden: Legacy of the Beast and a pinball game of the same name in 2018. In support of the game, the band embarked on a new world tour, titled Legacy of the Beast World Tour, starting in Europe in 2018, reaching America in 2019. In Chile, the band played two consecutive dates, something they never had done in that country. On September 23, 2019, the band announced a presentation at the Belsonic Festival in Belfast and at Donington Park in England, both in 2020, however, said presentations were suspended due to the COVID Pandemic. -19.

In October 2020, the band announced that they would be releasing a live album from the Legacy of the Beast world tour, titled Nights of the Dead. The live double album was recorded over three sold-out concerts at the Palacio de los Deportes in Mexico City for a combined audience of more than 70,000 people. It was released worldwide on November 20, 2020. That same month, Dickinson announced that the group was "doing a little bit of work in the studio" for the release of a new record.

Senjutsu (2021)

In February 2021, the band was nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, but failed to make the final list. In April of the same year, Paul Di'Anno, Blaze Bayley and the illustrator Derek Riggs were inducted into the Metal Hall of Fame. On July 15, the group released the video for "The Writing on the Wall," their first original song in six years. The video was directed by Nicos Livesey and premiered on the YouTube platform.

On July 19, 2021, the group announced through their social networks that their new album would be titled Senjutsu and that it would be on sale on September 3 of the same year.

Image and legacy

Iron Maiden was ranked twenty-fourth in the list of the "100 Greatest Hard Rock Artists of All Time" VH1's fourth position on the list of the "10 Greatest Heavy Metal Bands of All Time" on MTV and number three on the "Top 20 Best Metal Bands" from VH1 Classic. The band also won the Ivor Novello Award for International Achievement in 2002 and joined the Hollywood RockWalk during a 2005 US tour.

Representation of Eddie during an Iron Maiden tour in 2013.

Iron Maiden frequently use the catchphrase "Up the Irons" in the liner notes to their records, and the phrase can also be seen on a number of the band's officially licensed t-shirts. It is a paraphrase of "Up the Hammers", the phrase that refers to the London football club West Ham United, of which its founder Steve Harris is a fan.

Iron Maiden's mascot, Eddie the Head, accompanies the vast majority of album covers and their live shows. It was originally a papier-mâché mask incorporated into a recital backdrop, spraying fake blood during its performances. Over time he was modified by cartoonist Derek Riggs, who brought him to life until 1992, when the band began using works by many other artists, including Melvyn Grant. Eddie also appears in video games Ed Hunter and Legacy of the Beast, and other articles related to the band. In 2008 he was awarded the & # 34;Icon Award & # 34; on the Metal Hammer Golden Gods, while Gibson.com describes him as "the world's most recognizable metal icon and one of its most versatile".

The Iron Maiden logo has graced all of the band's releases since their debut, 1979's The Soundhouse Tapes EP. The typeface originates from Vic Fair's poster design for the 1976 science fiction film The Man Who Fell to Earth, also used by musician Gordon Giltrap, although Steve Harris claims he designed it himself, using his skills as an architectural draftsman. The song "Always Look on the Bright Side of Life" (from the movie Monty Python's Life of Brian) is a staple of his concerts and is played at the end of his concerts.

Iron Maiden Logo.

In May 2019, the band filed a $2 million lawsuit against video game company 3D Realms for infringing their trademark through the planned release of a game called Ion Maiden, which, according to the band, "it is almost identical to the Iron Maiden brand in appearance, sound and general commercial impression". They further accused 3D Realms of causing "confusion among consumers" by depicting a skull icon similar to the band's mascot, Eddie, in addition to the similarities to the band's own Legacy of the Beast game.

Influence on other bands

According to Guitar World magazine, Iron Maiden's music has influenced generations of new metal groups, from legends like Metallica to rising stars like Avenged Sevenfold". Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich stated that he "has always had an incredible amount of respect and admiration for Iron Maiden". Kerry King, guitarist for Slayer, stated that " 34;they meant a lot to him in his early days" and Anthrax's Scott Ian confirmed that they "had a huge impact on his life."

M. Avenged Sevenfold's Shadows said Iron Maiden "are by far the best live band in the world and their music is timeless," while Trivium singer Matt Heafy said "without Iron Maiden, Trivium surely wouldn't exist'. Slipknot and Stone Sour frontman Corey Taylor stated, 'Steve Harris does more with four fingers than I've ever seen anyone do. And Bruce Dickinson? To me, he is the quintessential old school heavy metal singer. He could hit sick notes and was a great showman . All of this made me a fan. And there wasn't a guy I dated who wasn't trying to draw Eddie in his notebooks". Iron Maiden's music helped In Flames' Jesper Strömblad pioneer the melodic death metal genre, stating that he initially he wanted to combine death metal with the melodic sounds of Iron Maiden's guitar.

Other artists in the heavy metal scene who cite the band as an influence include Chris Jericho, singer of Fozzy, Cam Pipes, vocalist of 3 Inches of Blood, Vitaly Dubinin, bassist of Aria, Mikael Åkerfeldt, guitarist and vocalist for Opeth, and musicians Yoshiki and Hide of the Japanese band X Japan. John Petrucci, John Myung and Mike Portnoy, current and former members of Dream Theater, have stated that Iron Maiden was one of his biggest influences when his band was first formed. The band even gave a concert where they played the album The Number of the Beast in its entirety, released months later as bootleg.

Media appearances

The band's name has been mentioned prominently in several songs, such as the singles "Teenage Dirtbag" by Wheatus, "Back to the 80's" by Danish dance-pop band Aqua, "Fat Lip" by Sum 41, "Heart Songs" by Weezer, "Psycho Joe" by Blues Traveler and "Eddie, Bruce and Paul" of NOFX. The latter song is described by Sputnikmusic as "a humorous account of the departure of Paul Di'Anno".

In 2008, Kerrang! released Maiden Heaven: A Tribute to Iron Maiden, an album made up of Iron Maiden songs performed by bands like Metallica, Machine Head, Dream Theater, Trivium, Coheed and Cambria, and Avenged Sevenfold. In 2010, Maiden uniteD, an acoustic tribute band made up of members of Ayreon, Threshold, and Within Temptation, released Mind the Acoustic Pieces, a reinterpretation of the entire album Piece of Mind. There are other Iron Maiden tribute albums performed in a wide variety of genres and on various instruments.

Iron Maiden songs have appeared on the soundtracks of various video games, including Carmageddon 2, Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, Grand Theft Auto: Episodes from Liberty City, Grand Theft Auto IV: The Lost and Damned, Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4, SSX on Tour and Madden NFL 10. His music is also featured in the video game series Guitar Hero and Rock Band. In films such as Dario Argento's Phenomena and Murder by Numbers by Barbet Schroeder you can also listen to songs by the band. The animated characters of the series Beavis and Butt-Head have made favorable comments about the band on several occasions.

Author of the Transformers franchise, Bill Forster, is an avowed Iron Maiden fan and made several references to the band, including song lyrics and the phrase "Up the Irons& #3. 4; in his books, more precisely in the series The Ark and The AllSpark Almanac .

Controversy

Accusations of Satanism

In 1982, the band released one of their most popular, controversial and acclaimed albums, The Number of the Beast. The cover art and title track led Christian groups in the United States to brand the band Satanists, encouraging people to destroy copies of the record. Manager Rod Smallwood claimed that these groups initially burned the records, but later they decided to destroy them with hammers for fear of breathing the fumes from the melted vinyl. The protests were not restricted to the United States, since Christian organizations prevented Iron Maiden from performing in Chile in 1992, assuring that the lyrics of their songs were harmful to youth.

Contrary to the accusations, the band have always denied the idea of their supposed Satanism. Bruce Dickinson denied these accusations on the stage of his World Slavery Tour, proof of this was recorded on the DVD version of the album Live After Death. Steve Harris has also weighed in on these accusations: "It's crazy. They are totally wrong. They obviously haven't read the lyrics to the song". Harris has also claimed that the song "The Number of the Beast" was inspired by a nightmare he had after seeing Damien: Omen II and by the literary work Tam o & # 39; Shanter by Scottish writer Robert Burns. Additionally, the band's drummer, Nicko McBrain, became a Christian in 1999.

Ozzfest incident

In 2005 the band performed at the Ozzfest Festival, organized by Ozzy Osbourne and his wife and manager, Sharon. The businesswoman incited some of her family friends and members of other bands to sabotage Iron Maiden's last performance at the San Manuel Amphitheater in San Bernardino, California, on August 20. Sharon ordered the band's sound cut, delayed Eddie's entrance, and encouraged his family's supporters to throw eggs, bottle caps, and lighters from the audience. According to Bruce Dickinson, this attack was in response to statements his criticizing reality shows, something he says Sharon Osbourne took personally.

Sharon later claimed that Steve Harris had apologized to her husband Ozzy in San Bernardino for Dickinson's comments, something Harris later denied, claiming his words were misrepresented. Years later, Dickinson referred to this altercation as a "storm in a teacup" and she referred to Ozzy Osbourne as a musical icon.

Musical style and influences

Steve Harris, bassist and principal songwriter for Iron Maiden, has stated that his influences include Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Uriah Heep, Pink Floyd, Genesis, Yes, Jethro Tull, Thin Lizzy, UFO, Queen, Kiss and Wishbone Ash. In 2010 he stated: "I think if anyone wants to understand the essence of Maiden, particularly the harmonic guitars, all they have to do is listen to the album Argus by Wishbone Ash. Also Thin Lizzy, but not that much. Then we wanted to have some prog too, because I really liked bands like Genesis and Jethro Tull. So, you combine all of that with heavy riffing and speed and you've got it". In 2004, Harris explained that the more "metal" of the band was inspired by "Black Sabbath and Deep Purple, with a little bit of Zeppelin". In addition, Harris developed his own style of playing, described by guitarist Janick Gers as "akin to playing a rhythm guitar", and cited as responsible for the band's galloping style, evidenced in songs like "The Trooper" and "Run to the Hills".

The band's guitarists Dave Murray, Adrian Smith and Janick Gers each have their own individual influences and playing style. Dave Murray is known for his legato technique which, according to him, "evolved naturally. When he was little, I had heard Jimi Hendrix use legato and I liked that style." Adrian Smith stated that he "was inspired by blues rock rather than metal." and his influences were Johnny Winter and Pat Travers, which led him to become a "melodic guitarist". Janick Gers, by contrast, prefers a more improvised style, largely inspired by Ritchie Blackmore, which, he claims, contrasts with the "rhythmic" of Smith.

Singer Bruce Dickinson, who often works in collaboration with guitarist Adrian Smith, has an operatic vocal style, inspired by Arthur Brown, Peter Hammill, Ian Anderson and Ian Gillan, and is frequently considered one of the world's greatest singers. of heavy metal of all time. Although Nicko McBrain only appears as an author once, on the album Dance of Death, Harris often works with him during the development of the albums. songs. Adrian Smith commented: 'Steve loves playing with him. They would often work for hours going over the bass and drum parts".

Throughout their career, the band's style has undergone changes ranging from a raw sound in the first albums, to a more progressive style, and even under the use of synthesizers as in Somewhere in Time (1986) and in Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (1988), and since 1990 with No Prayer for the Dying, in an attempt to return to the band's sonic roots, mixing them with these more progressive elements, described by Steve Harris as "not progressive in the modern sense like Dream Theater, but more in the style of the 1970s". According to Harris himself, Seventh Son of a Seventh Son was the first Iron Maiden album to integrate progressive elements, taken up again on 1995's The X Factor, an album that is & #34;like an extension of Seventh Son in the sense of the progressive elements it contains". The evolution in the band's sound contrasts with their first record productions, which according to AllMusic, "is clearly nourished by elements of punk rock", although Harris strongly denies this. Bruce Dickinson has a similar opinion on the matter, assuring that the band's debut album has a punk-like sound due to its lousy production.

Members

Current Formation

• Bruce Dickinson – voice, piano (1981-1993, 1999-current)

• Adrian Smith – Guitar Leader, choirs (1980-1990, 1999-current), keyboards (1988)

• Dave Murray – Rhythmic Guitar (1977-current)

• Janick Gers – Guitar Leader (1990-current)

• Steve Harris – Bajo (1975-current), choirs (1975-current), keyboards (1988, 1998-present), voices (1978)

• Nicko McBrain – Battery, percussion (1982-current)

Steve Harris Dave Murray Nicko McBrain Janick Gers Adrian Smith Bruce Dickinson

Previous Members

• Paul Di'Anno - Voice (1978-1981)

• Blaze Bayley - Voice (1994–1999)

• Clive Burr - Battery (1979-1982)

• Dennis Stratton - Guitar Leader (1979–1980)

• Doug Sampson - Battery (1978-1979)

• 

  Blaze Bayley
• 

  Paul Di'Anno
• 

  Dennis Stratton

Discography

Studio albums

• 1980: Iron Maiden
• 1981: Killers
• 1982: The Number of the Beast
• 1983: Piece of Mind
• 1984: Powerslave
• 1986: Somewhere in Time
• 1988: Seventh Son of a Seventh Son
• 1990: No Prayer for the Dying
• 1992: Fear of the Dark
• 1995: The X Factor
• 1998: Virtual XI
• 2000: Brave New World
• 2003: Dance of Death
• 2006: A Matter of Life and Death
• 2010: The Final Frontier
• 2015: The Book of Souls
• 2021: Senjutsu

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1979: The Soundhouse Tapes

Tours