Iron Maiden - "Powerslave"

Iron Maiden - Powerslave
1984/2002, Sanctuary

1. Aces High
2. 2 Minutes to Midnight
3. Losfer Words (Big 'Orra)
4. Flash of the Blade
5. The Duelists
6. Back in the Village
7. Powerslave
8. Rime of the Ancient Mariner

Back in the day, when I was just a lad, there were certain people whose job it was to protect all of us Christian youth from the dangers of entertainment. They would sit safely ensconced in their Holy Batcaves monitoring movies, music, and television for anything that even looked remotely evil. These people would then write books on their findings. I still have Bob Larson's book on satanism. Most of these people, Bob Larson included, had indexes in the back of their books which listed bands you and your child should stay away from. Near the top of every list sat Iron Maiden. Why? Well, they have a song called "Number of the Beast!" Isn't that enough?! As a result I never listened to Iron Maiden or even knew what they were really about until just recently.

All I can say is... Bob Larson - you are a total jackass.

Seriously.

Iron Maiden's Powerslave is essentially a history lesson set to music. Instead of songs about Satan you get songs about the Royal Air Force during World War II ("Aces High") or a song about Egyptian myth ("Powerslave"). The, as if that weren't cool enough you get a 13-minute epic track, "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" which, near the end, tells us we should be thankful for everything God made. Granted, it's based off an 18th century poem, but still. Hardly the subversive satanism the band was often accused of. I'm a little sad that I didn't get into this stuff when it originally came out. After all, these guys are the ORIGINATORS of power metal. Heck, Christian bands like Barren Cross (which I also love) are a direct carbon copy of Iron Maiden. Everything here is top shelf metal. Galloping riffs, soaring vocals, fantastic bass lines all prove just how talented these guys are. Now if you'll excuse me I have to track down some more Iron Maiden.

Useless Fact: Sorry. While I am sure there are lots of obscure facts about Iron Maiden, I'm too new to the band to know any. Oh wait! Here's something, pulled from No Life Til Metal - apparently the stage show for this album was an enormous spectacle to behold. Head on over there to read a little more about it.