The album I thought Id never see is here! When I heard Dickinson was back with maiden I practically had a heart attack! Blaze Baley was good, but he just didn’t go with maiden. Especially when you’ve been spoiled by Dickinson’s vocal talents. Also Adrian Smith has returned to the lineup so now there's 3 guitarist battling out! Ill admit though at first I was expecting another album with the same energy as “piece of mind” or “number of the beast” but instead I got progressive metal. What was once a disappointment soon became one of my all time favorite maiden CDs (or any CDs for that matter)!! This CD definitely has to be listened to closely the first couple times around and soon every single song is stuck in your head and you cant get enough of this! Ill give a description of each track:

1) The Wicker Man: The hit single. Also the most aggressive piece on here. From the opening riff this thing grabs your balls and wont let go for 4 minutes and 38 seconds!
2) Ghost of the Navigator: The best progressive song on here. Starts off with the acoustics then gets into a riff that rages through your speakers.
3) Brave New World: Another progressive song but this one stays pretty emotional the whole time.
4) Blood Brothers: I hated this at first. It starts off with synth and stays very mellow throughout the whole 7 minutes but, like the rest of the CD, it grew on me. Also has great guitar solos as usual.
5) The Mercenary: This starts off aggressive but eventually becomes a very epic, emotional piece with touched here and there of synth.
6) Dream of Mirrors: I thought I was listening to Queensryche with this one. The most use of acoustics and probably the 2nd most emotional song on here.
7) The Fallen Angel: Proof they haven’t completely left the darkness of earlier releases. This is the 2nd most aggressive piece on here but more technical than wicker man.
8) The Nomad: This is probably my favorite track on here (well that and wicker man). Starts off with this Arab like guitar riff but turns into a VERY epic song with some synth. Pure brilliance...
9) Out of the silent planet: One of least favorite songs on here. Pretty emotional song with an almost “hopeful” feel to it. Still a great song though.
10) The thin line between love and hate: The closer. Very, VERY, emotional song. Maybe a little too emotional at times, but perfect for closing out this amazing CD.

Well there you have it. Basically you wouldn’t have half the bands you have playing metal today if it weren’t for these guys. Their most technical album yet with an amazing display of musicianship and song writing. Keep in mind that they haven’t pulled a Metallica (kill those fags!) and completely turned their backs on their fans by completely selling out and keeping none of their old sound. This is definitely a maiden CD and very metal! This definitely wont appeal to you if your into jogging suit Adidas mosh core! 3 words: MAIDEN IS MANDATORY!!!!!

© 2000 the ancient one