Toppa 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.

Fantastic 2nd album, plays fine, no problems at all.

Where it all began. Great album

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.

All good

This was the first album I ever bought (technically I bought Number of the Beast at the same time but I'll split the difference as this was released first). It strange listening to this album now after hearing Iron Maidens whole repertoire of albums, Killers is a very edgy and raw album that feels almost like it could fall apart in places but it never misses a beat. All of the later albums have heaps more polish thrown onto them whereas this you could almost imagine being recorded as a series of full band live takes in the studio. Although Number of the Beast trumps it with sound production I think Killers is the better album as everything seems to fit on it. Despite the fact vocalist Paul Di'anno was sacked for his unpredictable behaviour post-release he performs admirably on this album, his rough and ready howling and screeching and at ease with all the other instruments. This album also lays the foundation for Maidens galloping lines more so that the self titled debut (which is also a great album). The albums opener is the instrumental The Ides Of March which is presumably a reference to the assassination of Julius Caesar (although being an instrumental it could have had any old title). The track has some nice guitar work and the drumming has a pretty nifty crash beat followed by rapid tom-roll fills to start things off. It moves smoothly into the next track Wrathchild which gives us a great sounding Harris bass line that serves as a launch pad for some nice guitar licks from Smith and Murray. Even this early in their career these two guitarists are already top of their game and it's no wonder the pair of them regularly make just about every guitar magazines top 100 guitarists polls. Weather their soloing alone or playing in harmony they always deliver the goods be it on stage or in the studio. Speaking of guitar harmonies, they are not as apparent on this album as the later stuff where they really lock it down and they could probably have done a fair chunk of this album with one guitarist. But when they do double up it really punches through the mix. Next up we're given a slow and soft introduction that picks up the pace into another fast and heavy track titled Murders in the Rue Morgue. This is based very loosely on the story of the same name by Edgar Allan Poe. This time the story is told from the perspective of someone who finds the grisly scene, calls for help and then runs away when the people who answer his call think he did it. Whilst not the easiest of titles to sing they actually make it sound like a catchy chorus line. The next track, Another Life, has quite possibly the worst lyric Iron Maiden have ever written: "As I lay here lying in my bed"; aside from that, this is another great rocky Maiden number. The title track kicks of with a thumping bass line and bass drum beat intercut with loud guitar stabs and Di'anno wails. Killers is one of Maidens darkest tracks lyrically, told from the point of view of the actual murderers thoughts. Special mention has to be made for Clive Burr. Not only on this track but also on the album as a whole his drumming is superb. Whilst Nicko McBrain is one of the best drummers on the planet; Clive Burr is almost as good, both of them have the kind of drumming skills that that fit perfectly in with the other guitarists and Harriss' galloping bass lines. Prodigal Son is the albums slowest number and shows a softer side to Di'anno's voice (although he does ramp it up a couple of times) and the band also tone it down a bit, even switching the rhythm to an acoustic guitar. When I had this originally on vinyl it was a track shorter than my current digital version. That track is called Twilight Zone and it's fantastic. I don't know why it was left off (it was released as a single only) but it was definitely part of the Killers recording session. It is perhaps Iron Maiden's only proper love song (with the twist of someone trying to contact their lover from beyond the grave). There are a few other tracks I haven't mentioned, but they are all great with no `fillers'. The rough and ready sound on this album actually adds to these songs rather than taking anything away. You could almost believe it was recorded in the 70's rather than the early eighties. It's almost in complete contrast to Maiden's later pristine produced cuts; but at the same time the Maiden trademark sound is stamped deep inside it. For newer Maiden fans this is a very worthy addition to the collection and contains the earliest drafts of the blueprint they would later follow. An excellent album with quite a lot of ideas thrown into the smelting pot and yet it still holds together fairly well. This is closer to your more traditional mix of rock and heavy metal than the style they develop after this album which I think leans towards a more progressive metal sound. There isn't really a bad track on the album and although I'd neglected it for a few years for the later stuff it's grown on me once again and it stands up shoulder to shoulder with the rest of the Maiden catalogue.

I just had to give this album 5 stars as it still remains one of the best metal albums to come out of the early NWOBHM era,following on fast,and i mean fast,from Maidens classic first album. When this first came out I could never understand why it was not that well received in the metal press,i seem to remember Sounds only giving it 3 stars! Well this is faster,heavier and more kick ass than that first album. Maiden dont fail to disappoint here,with all the band members delivering the goods - superb lead guitars,what a rhythm section(one of the best ever in the history of metal) and Pauls vocals scare the pants off you. A real shame this was to be Pauls last album with the band,kinda makes you wonder what would have come next! Full of classic Maiden style tracks,and a great start to the album with the powerful Wrathchild,followed by the speedy Murders In The Rue Morgue...the list go on...whilst i remember i also have to mention the Killers track...one of my all time Maiden favourites,and oh those vocals! Also please dont forget that this was Adrian Smiths debut with the band,and he fulfills his role admirably,proving to be a worthwhile addition to Maidens fast/slow/fast style and heavier sound. This cd is well presented and comes with a colourful and compact inner - you get some rare photos of all members of the band(and crew!) a long with lyrics to each song,and not forgetting the Special Multimedia Section that include 2 live tracks from Maidens famous gig at the Rainbow.All in all well worth the price and also a big thanks to Amazon for getting this to me so quickly.

Great album and great quality. I bought this CD last year and my CD player cant play it very well. When I realised this is a different edition and I bought it and it is alright, and Im happy