It is the band's first studio double album, and therefore also their longest to date, with a total length of 92 minutes. Its launch and supporting tour were delayed to allow vocalist Bruce Dickinson time to recover from the removal of a cancerous tumour in early The band wrote and immediately recorded many tracks in the studio, resulting in a spontaneous live feel. The album's first release, " Speed of Light ", was issued as a music video on 14 August, and simultaneously as a digital download and CD single exclusive to Best Buy. In addition to being their longest studio record, it also contains the band's longest song, " Empire of the Clouds ", at 18 minutes in length, which was also issued as a single for Record Store Day on 16 April While not a concept album, references to the soul and mortality are prominent, realised in the Maya-themed cover artwork, created by Mark Wilkinson.

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Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed by bassist Steve Harris in The band's first album, 's Iron Maiden , was written primarily by Harris, with vocalist Paul Di'Anno co-writing two tracks and guitarist Dave Murray contributing "Charlotte the Harlot". Powerslave followed in , which featured one of Iron Maiden's longest songs to date in the form of "Rime of the Ancient Mariner", written by Steve Harris and running for almost 14 minutes. Blaze Bayley replaced the frontman, and received songwriting credits for five of the album's eleven tracks, all of which were alongside Harris, Gers, or both. Since their formation, Iron Maiden have also released numerous additional songs as B-sides to their singles, including original songs and cover versions. A collection of these B-sides were compiled and released in the form of Best of the 'B' Sides , one of three albums included in the Eddie's Archive box set released in From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Iron Maiden.
It also featured the longest song they have ever recorded in the shape of the show-stopping minute closing track Empire Of The Clouds. It represented a personal triumph, too, for Bruce Dickinson. The singer was diagnosed with cancer shortly after the album was completed, delaying its release for a year while he recovered. Firstly, how do you all feel about The Book Of Souls? Steve Harris: "The amazing thing for me is the way Bruce is singing on it. He sounds fantastic. Bruce Dickinson: "A double album is kind of cool really.
Classic rock bands, in particular those of Iron Maiden 's fame and vintage, tend to become static, unchanging figures — reliable nouns among the furious verbs emanating from the music of younger bands. The engagingly creative The Book of Souls , though probably longer than it needs to be, puts Iron Maiden back in the conversation. There's as much gumption here as in anything they've done, much to thrill die-hard fans, but just as much to challenge their preconceived notions. Iron Maiden pushed themselves when they didn't have to, composing in an entirely different way and emerging with something that builds on their stirring heritage rather than resting on it. At more than 90 minutes, it's the lengthiest project Iron Maiden have ever attempted, and it concludes with the longest single track they've ever released. Still, The Book of Souls was largely created in the studio, and a sense of visceral engagement runs through the album. They experiment with non-standard tuning in "If Eternity Should Fail"; with free-form jamming during a striking solo segment featuring Adrian Smith, Dave Murray and Janick Gers on "The Red and the Black"; with melancholy ruminations on "Tears of a Clown"; and with a elegiac piano figure in the concluding "Empire of the Clouds. Also, Iron Maiden sound like a band, not a studio creation.