SEVENTH SON OF A SEVENTH SON

The English (progressive) heavy metal band Iron Maiden was the first thing I really loved as a person and I have listened to their music since around my eleventh birthday. I still listen to their first ten records or so with great joy. Of these records 'Seventh Son' from 1988 is considered to be one of the most interesting for listeners of progressive rock because of its conceptual approach, synth layers and progressive song-writing and production. The band had already explored using synth-guitars on the sci-fi themed 'Somewhere on Time', but here the band lost its heavy and frontal edge to much in process (in my opinion that is). On 'Seventh Son' the band presents some timeless melodic metal classic like 'The Evil That Man Do' and 'The Clairvoyant' and some more symphonic metal pieces like the doomy ballad 'Infinite Dreams' and the epic title-song - which serves as an Maidenesque elaboration on Rainbow's 'Stargazer'. The opening song 'Moonchild' serves as a good musical introduction to this rather dark album; for it establishes the re-newed Iron Maiden with its fantasy story-line songwriting quite well. The poppy metal song 'Can I Play With Madness' became a minor hit and though its clearly no highlight on the album, it does offer some conceptual song-writing ideas in an accessible format. In conclusion, one of the best prog-infused metal albums of the eighties and a highlight in Iron Maiden's long and fruitful career.