Iron Maiden - Announce Double Album, Cover Art Unveiled
Iron Maiden have big news today! It's all about their new album, which has been revealed will be called The Book Of Souls. The legendary metallers eagerly awaited new studio album will be released globally on the 4th of September through Parlophone Records (Sanctuary Copyrights/BMG in the U.S.A.). The stunning cover art was created by Mark Wilkinson, who has worked with the band previously, and because this 11-track album has a total running time of 92 minutes, it is Iron Maiden's first ever double studio album. You can find out more below!
There's a broader split on the songwriting compared to previous Maiden records, with bassist and founder member Steve Harris contributing to seven of the tracks; 6 of them with Maiden's guitarists and one sole composition. This is also the first time since 1984's Powerslave that an Iron Maiden studio album also features two tracks written solely by Bruce Dickinson, one of which is the longest song Maiden has ever recorded! And also two Dickinson/Smith collaborations.
It was recorded in Paris with their longstanding producer Kevin "Caveman" Shirley in late 2014, with the finishing touches added earlier this year. However, the band decided to delay its release so that vocalist Bruce Dickinson, who was recently given the all-clear from a tumour, would have time to recuperate sufficiently to join in the preparations for the album's launch.
Disc 1:
01. If Eternity Should Fail (Dickinson) 8:28
02. Speed Of Light (Smith/ Dickinson) 5:01
03. The Great Unknown (Smith/ Harris) 6:37
04. The Red And The Black (Harris) 13:33
05. When The River Runs Deep (Smith/ Harris) 5:52
06. The Book Of Souls (Gers/ Harris) 10:27
Disc 2:
07. Death Or Glory (Smith/ Dickinson) 5:13
08. Shadows Of The Valley (Gers/ Harris) 7:32
09. Tears Of A Clown (Smith/ Harris) 4:59
10. The Man Of Sorrows (Murray/ Harris) 6:28
11. Empire Of The Clouds (Dickinson) 18:01
Steve Harris comments: "We approached this album in a different way to how we've recorded previously. A lot of the songs were actually written while we were there in the studio and we rehearsed and recorded them straight away while they were still fresh, and I think that immediacy really shows in the songs, they have almost a live feel to them, I think. I'm very proud of The Book Of Souls, we all are, and we can't wait for our fans to hear it, and especially to take it out on the road next year!"
Bruce Dickinson continues: "We're really excited about The Book Of Souls and had a fantastic time creating it. We started working on the album in late summer 2014 and recorded it at Guillame Tell Studios in Paris, where we'd done the Brave New World album back in 2000 so the studio holds special memories for all of us. We were delighted to discover the same magical vibe is still alive and very much kicking there! So we immediately felt at home and the ideas just started flowing. By the time we'd finished we all agreed that each track was such an integral part of the whole body of work that if it needed to be a double album, then double its going to be!"
There's a broader split on the songwriting compared to previous Maiden records, with bassist and founder member Steve Harris contributing to seven of the tracks; 6 of them with Maiden's guitarists and one sole composition. This is also the first time since 1984's Powerslave that an Iron Maiden studio album also features two tracks written solely by Bruce Dickinson, one of which is the longest song Maiden has ever recorded! And also two Dickinson/Smith collaborations.
It was recorded in Paris with their longstanding producer Kevin "Caveman" Shirley in late 2014, with the finishing touches added earlier this year. However, the band decided to delay its release so that vocalist Bruce Dickinson, who was recently given the all-clear from a tumour, would have time to recuperate sufficiently to join in the preparations for the album's launch.
Disc 1:
01. If Eternity Should Fail (Dickinson) 8:28
02. Speed Of Light (Smith/ Dickinson) 5:01
03. The Great Unknown (Smith/ Harris) 6:37
04. The Red And The Black (Harris) 13:33
05. When The River Runs Deep (Smith/ Harris) 5:52
06. The Book Of Souls (Gers/ Harris) 10:27
Disc 2:
07. Death Or Glory (Smith/ Dickinson) 5:13
08. Shadows Of The Valley (Gers/ Harris) 7:32
09. Tears Of A Clown (Smith/ Harris) 4:59
10. The Man Of Sorrows (Murray/ Harris) 6:28
11. Empire Of The Clouds (Dickinson) 18:01
Steve Harris comments: "We approached this album in a different way to how we've recorded previously. A lot of the songs were actually written while we were there in the studio and we rehearsed and recorded them straight away while they were still fresh, and I think that immediacy really shows in the songs, they have almost a live feel to them, I think. I'm very proud of The Book Of Souls, we all are, and we can't wait for our fans to hear it, and especially to take it out on the road next year!"
Bruce Dickinson continues: "We're really excited about The Book Of Souls and had a fantastic time creating it. We started working on the album in late summer 2014 and recorded it at Guillame Tell Studios in Paris, where we'd done the Brave New World album back in 2000 so the studio holds special memories for all of us. We were delighted to discover the same magical vibe is still alive and very much kicking there! So we immediately felt at home and the ideas just started flowing. By the time we'd finished we all agreed that each track was such an integral part of the whole body of work that if it needed to be a double album, then double its going to be!"
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| Lord_Regnier Posts: 1469 From: Canada  |
Written by deadone on 19.06.2015 at 04:38 I don't like any of their albums since Bruce's comeback but "The Final Frontier" is by far the worst.
---- "Why would we fear death, when life is so much more frightening?"
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| Opethian Posts: 1728 From: USA  |
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| mikeprado30 Posts: 1273 From: Costa Rica  |
Written by deadone on 19.06.2015 at 02:37 Well, I love most the longer songs in any band  Surely the artwork is very simple, but I hope the music will be nice. At the end of the day I got the charms from The Final Frontier. Nice album IMHO.
---- BARDS WE ARE, BARDS WE WILL BE!
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| Angelic Storm Melodious Posts: 6675 From: UK  |
Written by deadone on 19.06.2015 at 02:28 Neither of those artworks were great, no. But I prefer them over the artwork for the new album. It's just incredibly dull, and seems unfinished to me. The only thing I like is the return of the classic "pointy" logo, although the colour of it on that background looks awful. The last Maiden cover I really loved, was the one for "Fear Of The Dark", which is the only non-Derek Riggs Maiden artwork I've loved. The AMOLAD artwork flawed as it may be, is still way better the artwork for TFF, or the new album, IMO.
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| Daniell _爱情_ Posts: 6060 From: Poland  |
So many art connoisseurs here  The cover is just another IM cover. None of their covers are works of art, and neither is this one. Who cares anyway, as long as the music is good. The Final Frontier was not very good, and it had TERRIBLE production. Here's hoping the new album will be a step up.
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| Angelic Storm Melodious Posts: 6675 From: UK |
Written by Daniell on 19.06.2015 at 09:53 So you're saying that this isn't a work of art?   Of course, the music is the most important thing, but that doesn't mean people can't have opinions about album covers. 
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| Daniell _爱情_ Posts: 6060 From: Poland |
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| Angelic Storm Melodious Posts: 6675 From: UK |
Written by Daniell on 19.06.2015 at 13:09 By what criteria is it not a work of art? Because it's on an album cover? First time I've heard that a beautiful painting can't be described as a work of art...
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| BlackMetalDay Posts: 95 From: France |
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| Lord_Regnier Posts: 1469 From: Canada |
Written by Angelic Storm on 19.06.2015 at 12:07 This cover is great. My favorite from Iron Maiden along with "Somewhere In Time". And I definitely see it as a form of art.
---- "Why would we fear death, when life is so much more frightening?"
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| metalody Posts: 9 From: Greece |
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| musclassia Posts: 7035 From: UK  |
The Powerslave cover is certainly art - pretty much all album covers can be considered to be art of some kind, particularly if someone like Damien Hirst gets to put a cow or a shark in some formaldehyde inside a glass case and call it art. At the very least, the 80s Derek Riggs works look great, Powerslave most of all, and I happily class them as pieces of art. Whether you constitute them as works of art in the "oh my, that is a work of art" sense of praise is up to personal opinion, but whilst it hardly rivals Van Gogh or Dali, the Powerslave cover is certainly highly appealling and has an impressive level of depth to it. I don't think it's at all unfair to say it's drastically better than the new album artwork.
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| Azarath Free as a.. Fish Posts: 959 From: Finland  |
I am excited. Very excited.  Maiden releasing a new album - and a double one at that (which means there's more to love  ). Of course, I'm a total Maiden fanboy and I like the more proggy direction of recent albums.But yeah, the artwork is weak.
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| Warman Erotic Stains Posts: 7695 From: Sweden  |
Psyched like no one else. Why? Huge Maiden fanboy. Last couple of albums were great (which Maiden album isn't?). Long fucking songs on this one.
---- 
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| Angelic Storm Melodious Posts: 6675 From: UK |
Written by Lord_Regnier on 19.06.2015 at 18:59 Yep, it's also my favourite. "Somewhere In Time" is another awesome piece of artwork. It's ridiculous the amount of detail resides in that one. When nonsense like Tracey Emin's "Unmade bed", and a light going on and off in an empty room can be classed as "art", I fail to see how detailed, beautiful paintings on album covers can't be called art.
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| Chriwalker Posts: 16 From: Norway  |
One 13 minute and one 18... me stoked.. no not at all..     okay just a little bit
---- Chris D.
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| Lord_Regnier Posts: 1469 From: Canada |
Written by Angelic Storm on 20.06.2015 at 00:42 With Metal, just looking at the cover art is usually enough to give me feelings, capture my imagination and conjure some kind of atmosphere. Of course, it will never replace the music but it can complete it, add to it and enhance the package. If this is not art, then I don't know what it is.
---- "Why would we fear death, when life is so much more frightening?"
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| Lord_Regnier Posts: 1469 From: Canada |
Written by deadone on 19.06.2015 at 02:37 I couldn't disagree more with this opinion. I'm a huge fan of long songs and long songs are usually the ones I like the most on an album. I think long songs have more space for variety, tempo changes, building an atmosphere, etc. In Iron Maiden's case, I'm just not sure it is a good idea because their long songs are often repetitive, pedestrian and stretched over the limit (and, in the end, a total snoozefest). I don't want to be too negative. Perhaps they will succeed at it. What I think is it is really a double-edged sword. If they succeed, it could end up as one of their best albums in history but if they fail it could be a total disaster. I believe there will be no middle ground. Either it will be great or it will suck. I don't think anyone wants an album full of songs like "The Angel And The Gambler".
---- "Why would we fear death, when life is so much more frightening?"
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| Angelic Storm Melodious Posts: 6675 From: UK |
Written by Lord_Regnier on 20.06.2015 at 01:55 Yep, that's exactly how it is for me too. A good album cover always does that. I remember in the days before I got the net when I had to sometimes take chances on new bands, buying "Alive In Athens" purely on the strength of it's artwork alone. Fortunately, I loved the music and didn't waste my money, but that's a classic case of an album where the artwork reflected the music within. Written by Lord_Regnier on 20.06.2015 at 03:45 Agreed. If the long songs are of the quality of say, "Rime Of The Ancient Mariner", then the album will be awesome and one of their best. But snoozefests like "When The Wild Wind Blows" from their last album, I could well do without. I hope Maiden can pull it off, because they can make amazing epic songs. And interestingly, the album is bookended by two long songs penned solely by Bruce, and it's been a long time since he wrote Maiden songs all on his own. I'm certainly intrigued to hear it anyway, even though their last album was mostly weak.
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| Lord_Regnier Posts: 1469 From: Canada |
Written by Angelic Storm on 20.06.2015 at 04:34 That's something I noticed right away. Bruce and Adrian seem to be involved more in the songwriting. I can't tell in advance, of course, but it might bode well. I think Steve Harris lost the touch long ago, as far as songwriting goes.
---- "Why would we fear death, when life is so much more frightening?"
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| mikeprado30 Posts: 1273 From: Costa Rica |
Written by Angelic Storm on 20.06.2015 at 04:34 You left me sad with this comment, Angelic_storm. Cause I have in high-esteem this song, but well, it is a matter of tastes (my favorite song from TFF is "Isle of Avalon")
---- BARDS WE ARE, BARDS WE WILL BE!
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| Angelic Storm Melodious Posts: 6675 From: UK |
Written by Lord_Regnier on 20.06.2015 at 04:43 Yep, Bruce and Adrian are heavily involved in the songwriting of the new album, which hopefully will bode well. Most of the songs I've liked on the more recent albums have had Adrian and/or Bruce involved in the songwriting. Written by mikeprado30 on 20.06.2015 at 04:44 Funnily enough, "Isle Of Avalon" was the only long song from the last album which I really loved. lol "When The Wild Wind Blows" just never clicked with me. I've heard a few people saying that they love it, but I've never been able to engage with it. Like you said, it is all just a matter of taste.
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| mikeprado30 Posts: 1273 From: Costa Rica |
Written by Angelic Storm on 20.06.2015 at 04:59 Surely And BTW, we have missed your opinion about last Blind Guardian's album 
---- BARDS WE ARE, BARDS WE WILL BE!
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| Angelic Storm Melodious Posts: 6675 From: UK |
Written by mikeprado30 on 20.06.2015 at 08:46 I will get around to sharing my opinion on that album on the forums soon. It's been a while since I posted here. lol Didn't realise my opinion on the matter was valued so much, thank you.
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| Rot Teufel Posts: 123 From: Italy  |
So, ugly anonimous flat cover, three overstreched loooong song, following the last three albums scheme... seems that all mine fears comes true again after "The Final Frontier".... my only few hopes are on the 4/5/6 min tracks, but neither the name tracks give me a big sense of uncertainty (not all, but most of them)... We'll see, but i have truly fear that this album will be like TFF...
---- Destroy all dreams, illusion damned in fire... A hellish need for power, it's my dark desire...
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| Azarath Free as a.. Fish Posts: 959 From: Finland |
Looking at the tracklist again, it's interesting to note to absence of any Smith/Dickinson/Harris collaborations. So, Bruce writes alone (because he hasn't done a solo album in 10 years and has a lot of ideas? - still doesn't explain where the hell an 18-minute song came from) or with his old partner in crime, Adrian. The beginning of a rift between Bruce and 'Arry? Let's speculate wildly! Of course, it may be because "a lot of the songs were written while in the studio" so maybe the ones who came up with the original idea(s) to a song were credited and Harris' role as more of a contributor and arranger (when it comes to other people's songs) was reduced? Of the rest, I'm looking forward to some acoustics from the two Gers/Harris songs. Smith/Harris usually turns out great. And then there's the obligatory Harris epic and the token Murray co-credit (which will probably turn out to be a melodic intro). Yeah, I've given this far too much thought. New Maiden album, damn it!
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| LeChron James Helvetesfossen Posts: 3561 From: USA  |
A double album just for 11 songs? Sounds like they're gonna have the same length as almost everything on A Matter of Life and Death.
---- Kick Ass, Die Young Less is More Stay Pure Stay Poor Music was my life, music brought me to life and music is how I will be remembered long after I leave this life. When I die there will be a final waltz in my head that only I can hear.
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| Guib Thrash Talker Posts: 3056 From: Canada  |
Not sure if I'm excited by this... we shall see. oh and you guys arguing art #priceless.
---- - Headbanging with mostly clogged arteries to that stuff - Guib's List Of Essential Albums - Also Thrash Paradise Thrash Here
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| Dr. Strawberry Posts: 698  |
Zulu-Eddie this time ? Bad idea again...I am sitting quietly waiting for the metal doomday. I hope Eddie collectible toys is available at Mcdonald's (just like Hello-Kitty) on the date of release.
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| Dr. Strawberry Posts: 698 |
As usual..., I am expecting Harris playing boring repeating progressive riffs again again and again....and again.
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