Killers

Ok there will always be arguments about Paul Di'Anno vs Bruce Dickinson vs Blaze Bayley vs Bruce Dickinson again [well perhaps not Blaze Bayley] but the popular vote is always going to be for Dickinson with Di'Anno's input best forgotten [Maiden went as far as cynically and disingenuously omitting Di'Anno's studio recordings from their "Somewhere Back In Time" compilation in favour of Dickinson's live recordings]. And as for Blaze Bayley, who? Like Di'Anno his work was omitted from the "From Fear To Eternity" compilation in favour of Dickinson live recordings.But I'm not a die-hard Maiden fan, I'm not even really a metal fan, but I do like a bit of NWOBHM especially when it takes a walk on the punkier side and that's why I haven't forgotten Di'Anno and the two albums he made with Iron Maiden work better for me than many of the later albums (with the exception of "Number of the Beast ") when prog'y excesses became the norm and not the exception."Killers" opens with the first of two instrumentals, the short atmospheric "The Ides of March" presumably a musical interpretation of a bad day at the forum for Julius Caesar before crashing into the storming heads-down metal of "Wrathchild". Third track, the wonderful Edgar Allan Poe inspired "Murders in the Rue Morgue" is my favourite, it's cleverer, it has a punky edge and brings a smile to my face with the magnificent Franglais couplet "Murders in the Rue Morgue, Someone call the gendarmes, Murders in the Rue Morgue, Vite before the killers go free". "Another Life" is pure NWOBHM with its basic let's go, crash, bang, screaming guitar solo, repeat formula while fifth track "Genghis Khan" is the second instrumental, clocking in at three minutes it's more developed perhaps than opener "The Ides of March" and gives the Maidens a chance to really show-off their twin guitar attack from Dave Murray and Adrian Smith, while Steve Harris gives a masterclass in bass alongside Clive Burr's drum work-out, it's so good that perhaps Maiden should have/should still think about releasing an instrumental album [that would save any arguments over who's the best vocalists]. The original side one closed-out with the hard-rocking "Innocent Exile" giving Paul Di'Anno this time a chance to shine with his visceral vocals.Where the first side was raw the second gives hints of the more proggy direction that their late work would take.; While the powerful opener title track "Killers" rocks it leans towards progginess, the slower complex ballad "Prodigal Son" that follows jumps right-in and plants both feet firmly in the prog-camp, and at over six minutes it's the longest track here; it's good but frankly it's a bit out of place in this company and should have been saved for later! The speed picks-up again with the hard rocking "Purgatory" but where the tracks on the first side were raw this is varnished presumably for its release as a single. The short penultimate track "Twilight Zone", a Harris/Murray co-write, is sadly unexciting and lacking the sharp edge of the band's NWOBHM sound it's a throwback to the early seventies drum driven heavy rock which may explain why it was omitted from the original UK release but has been included on my 1998 remastered CD edition. Closer "Drifter" is better, less driven than most of the earlier tracks it too leans towards the proggy side but there's some great work from the guitarists.And that's it. In many ways it's very similar to the eponymous debut album with its mix of clever instrumentals, punky NWOBHM, prog leanings, and seventies drum-driven heavy rock, and on both there's one wonderful-but-so-out-of-place song, here its "Prodigal Son" last time it was "Strange World". This time the twin guitar attack works better and Harris's bass is superb throughout, so then it's perhaps sacrilegious for me to suggest that I prefer the rawer five star eponymous debut album, it's a close thing but the first album just edges "Killers" for me, and that's why this is a four and a half star album that I've rounded up to five for Amazon. Their best though was yet to come.

One of the best albumns ever

This version destroys the 2014 releases. Treble and dynamics are back. A full sound that stands up to the 80s originals. Up the Irons🤘

More of the same from these hip young upstarts. Hot on the heels of their searing debut, the Maiden boys are creating quite a stir in the new wave punk scene. Just wrap your ears around the title track - it's insane!I jest, however a listen to this is like a trip back to the '80s (if you're too young, it wasn't as bad as everyone who lived through it says - it was a lot of fun and there was some great music. No, honest) and what a trip it is. In tone it is similar to their debut and is all the better for it, but the tracks are more thoughful and there's evidence of more emphasis on composition this time.'The Ides of March' opens it well, an instrumental that doesn't overwhelm but sets the scene well for the overly groovy and completely un-Maideny 'Wrathchild'. A great slice of early Maiden that is unsurpassed. 'Murders in the Rue Morgue' follows as something of a minor classic, never played too many times anymore but such a catchy song and one of the first views into the future of the band, as 'Phantom...' was on the previous album. 'Another Life', Genghis Khan' and 'Innocent Exile' are all very good, mid-paced rockers but fall slightly short of classic status. Then 'Killers' kicks in. It is still a live favourite but Paul's voice is more suited to it than Bruce's. Say no more - stone cold classic. 'Prodigal Son' is a personal favourite as it is the least Iron Maiden sounding song ever. It is a beautiful ballad that only now are we hearing more of in their repertoire (Journeyman, etc). 'Purgatory' is much the same as the middle of the album - good, but no cigar. Then 'Twilight Zone', which isn't on my original vinyl, plays as a rather ghostly presence and it just about fits in with the rest of the album. 'Drifter' finishes it off nicely.Despite a lot of the tracks being kinda filler, Killers is still a classic. It has many tracks still played live today and the cover art is still awesome and one of the all time great covers ever!!Part of the flawless first 7 Maiden albums.If you don't have it - why not? I am bursting with envy.

Up the Irons!