Alex Thomas - 1/19/2009

Although this hails as one of my favourite Iron Maiden albums, it is purely driven by hard rock rather than heavy metal but this is by no means a bad thing and makes this album a good listen.

I say good because the majority of the album is brilliant, but there are one too many fillers that either do not fit in with the album or seemed to have been added to just fill up the album when such big numbers as 'Afraid To Shoot Strangers' and the title track lift this album to be one of the best of their 90s period with it better to ignore 'Virtual IX'.

Bruce Dickinson sounds as good as he has ever done on this album and raises the bar from the rather pleasing but lackluster affair of 'No Prayer For The Dying'.

But the highlights are 'Afraid To Shoot Strangers', title track, 'Chains Of Misery', 'Be Quick Or Be Dead', 'Wasting Love' and 'From Here To Eternity'. If you haven't heard of Maiden then buy 'Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son' and then come back to this album, either way it should be in your collection!