STRANGER IN A STRANGE LAND

Forget the music - this is a pretty decent slice of anthemic metal taken from Maiden's synthesized 1986 album 'Somewhere In Time' - this is all the about the coolest cover art in the annals of rock 'n' roll. Featuring the group's zombified mascot Eddie brought back to life as a seriously tough looking futuristic bounty-hunter striding into some kind of inter-planatery space bar, this surely has to be one of Derek Riggs finest pieces, ranking alongside the gothic, mountain-perched organ-plaer featured on the 'Run To The Hills' single and the cover-art for the album this single is culled from. The track is good, though not a stone-cold Maiden classic; the artwork really is, in my opinion(which is based on 'FACT') the greatest thing since sliced bread.

STEFAN TURNER, STOKE NEWINGTON, 2012