Iron Maiden - "Flight 666"

Iron Maiden
"Flight 666"
Sony
Released June 9, 2009

Amazing the difference four years makes. After the pleasant live experience with Iron Maiden's 2005 offering "Death on the Road" comes this document from the band's 2008 "Somewhere Back in Time" tour, which aimed to introduce songs from the band's mid-eighties musical peak to a new generation of fans.

Unfortunately an album documenting the tour is completely inessential.

Focusing on tracks originally recorded between 1982 and 1987 (with the exception of the ever-present "Iron Maiden" from 1980 and "Fear of the Dark" from 1989), much of the album is a carbon copy of the Maiden's landmark live album, 1985's "Live After Death." The first four songs are the same, ten tracks appear on both albums and both use the same intro speech from Winston Churchill.

Well, almost a carbon copy - third guitarist Janick Gers, who joined the band after those classic sides, adds an additional dimension to Maiden's axe attack. Unfortunately, singer Bruce Dickinson has trouble with some of the higher notes on the opening "Aces High," the other side of revisiting songs you haven't performed in 25 years is that you may not physically be able to perform them.

Ultimately, "Flight 666" is more of an event that would have been fun to see in person, but doesn't work on disc. If you never saw Maiden perform "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" or "Powerslave," or wanted to relive your memories from the band's mid-eighties tours, the concert would have been exciting.

But if you want to hear great live versions of these tunes, stick with "Live After Death."

Note: This is now the seventh live Maiden album to feature "Run to the Hills", "Iron Maiden," "Hallowed Be Thy Name," "Number of the Beast, and "The Trooper." It is the sixth to feature "Fear of the Dark." Perhaps it is time to make the live albums a little shorter and leave some of the warhorses in the pasture.

Iron Maiden - "Death on the Road"

Iron Maiden
"Death on the Road"
Sony
Released 2005

For 30 years Iron Maiden has been churning out literate, high-energy metal for massive crowds around the globe. Apart from a couple lineup changes, the formula has stayed the same, the musicianship hasn't lost a step and the result is a remarkably long string of quality, if not great, studio albums. They may not sell in the same numbers they did during the eighties, but Maiden still fills arenas and they still put on a mean live show.

"Death on the Road" captures the band live in Germany during its 2003 tour, an is a fitting document to the group's longevity, creativity and rabid fan base. Half the songs are familar, in fact they are overplayed - "Fear of the Dark", "Hallowed Be Thy Name," "Wrathchild," "Run to the Hills", "The Number of the Beast." All have appeared on several live Maiden albums previously.

But the other half of the disc is devoted to more recent, and unexposed, work. Songs like the war chronicle "Paschendale" and the sprawling "No More Lies" fit nicely next to Maiden's classics. And more impressive, the audience knows every word to the new songs.

But the most exciting feature of live Maiden in the 21st Century is that singer Bruce Dickinson, who left the band in the early 90s, but returned in 2000, is willing to sing songs originally performed by his replacement. "Lord of the Flies," from the album "X Factor" which featured singer Blayze Bayley, is perfectly suited for Dickinson's air-raid siren howl and it is a credit to his ego that he performs the song he did not make famous.

Heaven & Hell - "The Devil You Know"

Heaven & Hell
"The Devil You Know"
Rhino Records
Released April 28, 2009
***

I'm a sucker for Dio-era Black Sabbath - I freely admit it. When I was in high school, er, junior high, we didn't have annual Ozzfest reunions, we had that little elf with the big voice singing about dragons and kings and neon knights. Sabbath's songs were tailor-made for young sci-fi/fantasy geeks.

Plus there was that really cool album cover with the angels smoking which was guaranteed to piss off parents and teachers.

So I was thrilled when Dio and his Sabbath bandmates reunited as Heaven & Hell a few years ago. Geezer and Tony hadn't done anything other than play Ozzy's backup band for about 10 years - and Geezer admitted that he was sick of it in an interview with me back in 2007. Here was a chance for me to see the Sabbath of my youth without Ozzy, or more importantly Sharon, Osbourne's presence.

And I'm excited that after two years of touring the four are still getting along well enough to record an album of new material. So in honor of tonight's concert in Phoenix (which I'm sadly missing), here's a look at Heaven & Hell's new studio album.

Geezer and Tony sound completely rejuvenated, from the doom-metal opening of "Atom & Evil" through the chugging riffs of "Follow the Tears" - there is no doubt that this is Black Sabbath. But while it's obvious that they have learned a few new tricks there are places that sound like they are simply recycling "War Pigs" and "Supernaut," especially on "Turn of the Screw."

The problem is that the lyrics that appeal to a 12-year-old boy don't really register with a 38-year-old man and Dio hasn't really found anything new to write about in 30 years. Thankfully nothing quite equals "The Devil Cried," a new track included on a 2006 Sabbath compilation which opened with the ludicrous line, "One fine day... in HELL." That doesn't make Dio's lyrics about demons battling angels and knights slaying dragons any less silly. But I honestly can't hear him singing about anything else.

Ultimately, it fits comfortably next to the three previous Dio-era Sabbath offerings, and shows the band isn't content to tour on past glories - I respect that, although I can't guarantee that I wouldn't take a bathroom break during any of these songs.

An aside - Demons, magic, dragons, angels - hmmm, maybe I could make a refrigerator poetry set for Dio lyrics?

Buy "The Devil You Know"