Iron Maiden - Seventh Son of a Seventh Son

By 1988, Iron Maiden had spent the decade building one of heavy metal's most fearsome catalogs, and they closed it out with their most ambitious record yet. Seventh Son of a Seventh Son marked the band's first true concept album, loosely inspired by Orson Scott Card's fantasy novel of the same name, and it pushed the group into progressive territory they'd only hinted at before. Recorded at Musicland Studios in Munich with longtime producer Martin Birch, it was also the first Maiden album to feature keyboards outright, layered beneath the twin-guitar attack of Dave Murray and Adrian Smith without ever softening the band's edge.

The songwriting reflects that ambition. The sprawling title track builds through shifting movements and mythic imagery, while "The Evil That Men Do," "Can I Play With Madness" and "The Clairvoyant" deliver the hooks that made the album a genuine chart contender. Bruce Dickinson's vocals stretch across the record's widest emotional range yet, matched by Steve Harris's intricate, story-driven bass work throughout.

Seventh Son of a Seventh Son debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart and climbed to number 12 on the Billboard 200, becoming Iron Maiden's sixth consecutive platinum album in the US and closing out their run of '80s masterpieces on a high note. It stands as one of the most fully realized records in the band's catalog, the moment they proved a metal concept album could be both heady and huge.

This pressing brings the acclaimed 2015 remaster to vinyl for the first time, cut on 180-gram wax for a fuller, punchier listen than earlier pressings ever offered. For longtime fans and newcomers alike, it's the definitive way to hear this one on turntable.