IRON MAIDEN — Killers (review)

IRON MAIDEN — Killers album cover Album · 1981 · NWoBHM Buy this album from MMA partners
3.5/5 ·
Pekka
If Iron Maiden's debut was their Best of the Early Years collection, Killers is the Rest of the Early Years. Most of these songs were written and played live before their recording career began, and hot on the heels of their first album tour they entered the studio again to record them and a couple of newer tracks. Gone from the group that recorded the debut was guitarist Dennis Stratton and replacing him was Dave Murray's childhood guitar buddy Adrian Smith who would turn out to be an enormous character in the Maiden Saga.

While their debut is chock full of tracks considered Maiden classics, only a couple of tracks from this album are seen as such. The bass driven (a phrase which of course describes most of the Maiden discography) brief rocker Wrathchild with its short solo bursts and the galloping title track which features one of the coolest Maiden intros ever and, ahem, a killer solo section are probably the most well known songs of the album, but there's no reason why Murders in the Rue Morgue couldn't be counted in the same bunch, another song with a brilliant intro build up. This is a unique Maiden album in that it features two instrumental tracks, the intro Ides of March and Genghis Khan are both great works, some melodies of the latter even popping up 20 years later in Papa Roach's breakthrough hit Last Resort.

Purgatory is a really good, fast metal piece, but Another Life and Innocent Exile are some of the most insignificant music Maiden ever recorded. It's really hard to think of anything to say about them, they just feel useless and even unfinished, Another Life repeating the same simple verses three times. Prodigal Son is among their balladest material ever and quite a nice piece as such, but Drifter is a disappointing closing number, perhaps my least favourite closer of their career. The idea behind the descending riff is good, but I'm not fond of how it actually sounds. I'm equally unfond of songs about singing songs.

An album recorded to empty the bucket of the early years material and as a result a very uneven affair. Paul Di'Anno's raspy punk voice would not be heard again as they replaced him with the air raid siren of Bruce Dickinson and went for bigger things with their next works.
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