Iron Maiden

It all started here: the galloping basslines, the soaring choruses, the skeletal Eddie mascot snarling on the sleeve. Released in April 1980, Iron Maiden’s full-length debut was nothing short of revelatory. Led by bassist mastermind Steve Harris and fronted by ex-skinhead Paul Di’Anno, Maiden set the gold standard for the burgeoning New Wave of British Heavy Metal with the punk-injected single “Running Free”, the highlander prog of “Phantom of the Opera” and their harmonised signature ripper “Iron Maiden”. But they also flashed a talent for ghostly atmospherics on “Remember Tomorrow” (later covered by Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats) and for serialised fiction on “Charlotte the Harlot”, a character who would go on to appear in future Maiden epics. With a grittier, streetwise sound and fewer historical themes than they would later adopt when Bruce Dickinson took over on vocals, <i>Iron Maiden</i> stands as an essential building block in the infrastructure of heavy metal.