Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden

THE REVIEW

The iron maiden was a famous and feared torture device that consisted of a coffin completely filled with blades that pierced the body in multiple vital points, without causing death, but a terrible agony. "If a 20th-century rock band decided to call themselves Iron Maiden, they decided not to go unnoticed," says Maurizio De Paola in his book about Iron Maiden. And this is very much true.

The music world is still shaken by the punk typhoon, an unprecedented hurricane that disrupted rock, but quickly crumbled. But it will not be without heirs. In fact, this group of poor boys from East London, whom history will crown as one of the best rock bands of all time, was immediately influenced by it; but where does the punk vibe come from? Punk is the result of uncontrollable anger, but precisely because of this, it is destructive, especially to oneself. Iron Maiden was the first rock band to translate that anger into music without falling apart along the way, achieving unimaginable goals. Their anger derives from their social condition, from the fact that if not for music they would become hooligans, from the new reforms of Margaret Thatcher that penalize the social class they live in, but the genius was in their ability to generate a new musical (sub)genre, the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal, a metal with strong punk influences, but which in their case turned into a transgressive, overwhelming metal, yet not devoid of literary inflections and undisputed artistic abilities.

The band is composed of Paul Di'Anno (vocals), Steve Harris (bassist and mastermind of the group), guitarists Dennis Stratton and Dave Murray (invalid father and mother working as a part-time cleaner, just to give you an idea of his circumstances), and drummer Clive Burr, a wasted, furious, and uncontrollable talent who left the music world too early for his potential. On the cover stands an image of a monster: it is Eddie, the band's symbol, now a sign of recognition among metalheads, given its presence on all their covers (even bootlegs). Eddie has a surprised expression, much like the band's state of mind, still young and inexperienced. A magnificent image of Eddie is that of the single "Sanctuary" which would later be changed: indeed, lying on the ground is none other than their fierce enemy Margaret Thatcher, who has been slaughtered, and Eddie is ready to flee, with a bloody knife in hand. And now, the songs.
It starts with "Prowler" (translation: maniac), which with an immediate and cutting riff writes the first four minutes of the greatest heavy metal band of all time. The lyrics leave no room for misunderstanding: the maniac is a very common figure in the suburbs of London, has no mercy, and populates the streets especially at night. The music itself is perfect; after the first chorus, it stops for almost a second before resuming with a formidable guitar riff and an amazing solo before flowing into the concluding chorus. "Sanctuary" is the song that most bears punk influences. Originally it wasn't on the setlist, it was integrated into the album only in subsequent re-releases when it was already a super-classic. The studio version is the rawest and fastest, but perhaps not as good as the live versions, it always comes across much wilder and fiercer live; the lyrics speak of murder and a police chase seeking refuge (sanctuary, indeed). "Remember Tomorrow" is an intense and poignant semi-ballad, with sudden guitar bursts on the soft and subdued initial melody. Di'Anno's voice is perfect, his scream comes from the deepest part of his heart, a scream of anger, rancor, and suffering towards the whole world.

"Running Free" is a divine anthem to freedom, again with "street" themes, rebellion. Perfect dual guitar solos, often becoming a closing song in live shows, with the audience endlessly chanting the liberating and rebellious shout "I'm running free yeah, I'm running free!". "Phantom Of The Opera" is a prog digression composed by Harris, showcasing the type of composition that would characterize the Irons' albums over the next ten years. A highly popular song, it remained on the setlist until "Somewhere on Tour" (1986-1987) and is considered one of the highest artistic points reached by the band. "Transylvania" is one of the most beautiful instrumental tracks in rock history, simply stunning in its geometry, its accelerations, with a fantastic solo and the ability to stand out well as either an intro at concerts or as a conclusion. "Strange World" is the oddest track on the album, with a vaguely Pink Floyd-like atmosphere, where Di'Anno speaks to us from a world of heroin and confusion (strange world, indeed). "Charlotte The Harlot", sometimes unfairly deemed a filler, is a splendid punk-flavored track that tells the story of a street woman (Charlotte the harlot), with a formidable chorus. It was mainly Dave Murray's song, as Harris often admitted, and is one of the band's very few love songs.

The closing "Iron Maiden" encapsulates the entire album in over three minutes of violence, anger, and a bit of bitterness. The historical riff of this masterpiece is said to be credited to a little-known member of the band, Dave Sullivan, from the days of the venue they played at before signing with EMI.
The tour the boys did with Kiss was simply terrific: the much more illustrious masked rockers were often booed for their newly proposed songs (from the album "Unmasked") which were much more pop and less engaging than the overwhelming fury of Di'Anno and company.

The album is undoubtedly a masterpiece, one of those to have anyway, one that can change your life. In my case, it fully succeeded. Long live the masters. UP THE IRONS!!!