Sing this to the tune of the chorus in Ghost of the Navigator:

Take my heart and set it free, Cast Kid Rock into the sea. Manson is a skank, Korn should walk the plank, Let the sharks feast on Britney.

Keelhaul Limp Bizkit today, Flog 'N Sync without delay. The Spice Girls are wh0res, Chain them to the oars, And send the ship far, far away.

THE CASE FOR MUSICAL JUSTICE IN THIS WORLD: The general reaction to this album is overwhelmingly positive, with a decidedly small presence of people who think that a band is as good as dead after three albums and that the new stuff can never touch the old (any band that has been around for more than two years has idiot fans like that).

THE CASE AGAINST MUSICAL JUSTICE IN THIS WORLD: In the USA, this CD was released on the same day as Kid Rock's "History of Rock". Anyone care to guess which CD was bought by merchants and consumers in obscene quantities with its own in-store display while the other was nonchalantly crammed into the bin with all of the artist's previous releases?

I think the Case Against carries more weight than the Case For. Alas, the war against musical incompetence is being fought by far too few.

Brave New World is an incredibly solid release. Iron Maiden could probably have made a killing in sales to the sheeplike by adopting that astoundingly obnoxious rap-with-guitars sound that people can't seem to get enough of these days. Instead, they turned out ten true-to-form tracks reminiscent of the material on Somewhere In Time and Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (all hail 9-minute songs). The Wicker Man is the hit single, The Nomad and Dream of Mirrors are the epics, and Ghost of the Navigator is the song that single-handedly renewed my will to live in a world upon which the musically inferior (in both skill and taste) are dominant. If Korn and their ilk ever form their own independent nation, raise a massive army of clueless MTV junkies, and conquer the Earth, I shall simply lock myself in a windowless underground room and play Ghost of the Navigator until I die of dehydration, rather than pulling a Cobain.

If you're already a Maiden fan, chances are you already own this CD. If you're not a Maiden fan, then chances are I'm not going to convert you. So instead, I merely say:

1. Up the Irons, and

2. Join the War Against Musical Incompetence (W.A.M.I.) if you don't want your children and your children's children to grow up listening to what somebody else wants them to listen to (as of yet there is no official War Against Somebody Else, but I'm working on it).

PERFECTION. This is the first word that comes into my mind every time i listen to this masterpiece. Everyone up to the release of this album either considered Maiden to be a thing of the past or dead. But here they come to prove everyone wrong. Bruce performs like he did in his previous solo records (Accident of birth, Chemical wedding etc) Murray, smith and gers sound amazing together, haris brilliant as ever and finally after the seventh son Mcbrain demonstrates his talent. All the songs are so powerfull that makes it really hard to pick up a favorite one. Ghost of the navigator, fallen angel, the nomad and out of the silent planet are definately some of the best ever written my the band while the thin line between love & hate is something they haven't done before with amazing vocals and a vast number of guitars in the end of the song (like savatage do sometimes). Fan or not of Iron Maiden don't miss this one. Up The Irons....

For most MAIDEN fans this album has been an eight-year wait. Vocalist Bruce Dickinson returns to the band, as does guitarist Adrian Smith, and both make their presences felt on BRAVE NEW WORLD. As much as most fans expected (or hoped) BNW to be a return to the POWERSLAVE and PIECE OF MIND style, it only gets part of the way there. BNW takes from the style of VIRTUAL XI (and, to a lesser degree, THE X FACTOR) just as much as POWERSLAVE and PIECE OF MIND, giving it a more progressive feel than early to mid 80's era MAIDEN had. Heavier than either of the last two studio albums, BRAVE NEW WORLD will satisfy most MAIDEN fans, but might leave those who did not like SEVENTH SON a little cold. The album gives occasional nods to late 90's style hard music, but make no mistake, this is an IRON MAIDEN album, and an uncompromising one at that. BNW is filled with A LOT of tempo changes, mood changes, dynamic changes, stylistic changes, etc, and features 4 songs over seven minutes in length (and three more over six minutes long). Some riffs are even reminiscent of their KILLERS era material. But is it good? Oh, HELL YEAH! ...(And it grows on you. A lot.)

THE BAND: Steve Harris (bass/keyboards), Bruce Dickinson (vocals), Dave Murray (guitar), Adrian Smith (guitar), Nicko McBrain (drums), Janick Gers (guitar).

THE DISC: (2000) 10 tracks clocking in at 67 minutes. The disc contains a 14-page booklet with band pictures, lyrics and thank you's. Recorded at Guillaume Tell Studios in Paris, France. Bassist Steve Harris once again is the creative force behind the album - co-producing and writing or co-writing each of the 10 songs. Each of the other band members (except McBrain) contribute in the writing of at least one song as well.

COMMENTS: Most of what Iron Maiden put out in the 1990's was horrid, so I came apon this album with hesitation. Exit Blaze Bailey, re-enter Bruce Dickinson. Seeing the original line-up from the 1980's back in tact (plus Gers), I decided to absolutely chance it... having only been kept alive on Dickinson's solo work throughout the 90's. "Brave New World" (BNW) is a pleasant surprise. Gone are the bass and guitar synth's that were present on "Somewhere In Time" and "7th Son"... BNW features voice, drums, driving guitars, and an occasional stroke on the keyboard. This is easily their best studio album in 12 years (7th Son...), maybe more. Bruce Dickinson is back and sounds great. Although I do miss his high piercing vocals (like on the classic "Where Eagles Dare")- and I really didn't hear it until the last song ("Thin Line Between Love & Hate"). I have a slight problem with the title of the last song - an Iron Maiden tune with the word "Love" in it? It just doesn't sound right. The band sounds very tight on "Brave New World". They have obviously taken their time to do things write on this album. Nicko sounds like he has a new drum kit. The snare drum sounds a bit higher pitched than normal. That's okay tho, it sounds good. Track 1 "The Wicker Man" is one of those classic "2 Minutes to Midnight" type songs, fast from the get-go. The title track has a nice slow intro and then the rest of the band kicks it up a notch. Track 4, "Blood Brothers" has a Jethro Tullesque feel to it (no problem). "The Mercenary" and "The Fallen Angel" are the hardest rocking tunes on the disc - and they kick some seious tail. "The Nomad" is a marathon of a song at just over 9 minutes. I like it's irregular guitar chords and story line. The album ends with "The Thin Line Between Love & Hate" - this song has it all... It's fast, it's slow, Bruce is all over the place (a good thing) and the song has a great melody. At the very end you'll hear one of the band say "I missed it". If any of them missed something, I don't know what it is. The song is a strong one - the whole album is STRONG. "Brave New World" gets my vote for best metal album of the year in 2000, and 'Comeback Artist' of the year as well. Up the Irons! Great disc.

Iron Maiden has always occupied a strange place in the world or heavy metal: virtually no acknowledgment outside the metal community, yet within that hailed as one of the forms most potent, challenging, and ground-breaking bands. Their work in the early to mid-80s set standards that will never be equaled, so to see them reform their classic line-up in 1999 was to question their very existence. Then, they put out this album--within the metal community the buzz was high, because they had a huge legacy to live up to.

After a short, well-received tour last year, Maiden went back to the studio to produce an entirely new album, "Brave New World." And to the relief and delight of true metal fans the world over, it's a scorcher, filled with everything that made Maiden great in the '80s.

It's dense, rich, filled with a sense of loss and melancholy. The songs have come to life, insinuating themselves into my head to rival classics like "The Trooper," "Hallowed Be Thy Name," and the rest. It combines the best of all their greatest work: the SF cosmic sound of Somewhere in Time, the complex arrangements of Seventh Son of a Seventh Song the hooks and metal attack of The Number of the Beast and Piece of Mind and the epic historical scope of Powerslave.

Bruce Dickinson's voice has never sounded clearer, more emotionally wrought, or more convincing. His voice carries the album, double-tracked at times to great effect. He means every word, soaring transcendently, growling with menace and then dropping to a heartfelt, world-weary croon. His voice is showcased best on "Out of the Silent Planet," "Dream of Mirrors," and "Blood Brothers." These songs are melodramatic powerhouses, with choruses sure to move you in a way Maiden never has. Remember the longing and regret of "Stranger in a Strange Land" and "Wasted Years"? Those feelings are even stronger here, lending a sadness and maturity one does not expect from Maiden.

"There are times when I feel I'm afraid for the world/ There are times when I'm ashamed of us all," he sings on "Blood Brothers," the chorus of which seems to lift off this world. In the album's longest song, "Dream of Mirrors," the band builds and builds slowly, the chorus bolstered by fat riffs and mid-tempo drumming, finally releasing all the pent-up feelings, Dickinsons growls, "Lost--a hell that I revisit/Lost--a nightmare I retrace," and then they're off, Smith, Dave Murray, and third guitarist Janick Gers trading some serious harmonies with Steve Harris and Nicko McBrain holding down the backbeat. "The dream is true," Dickinson sweetly sings as the tune comes to a quiet resigned end. Whew!

As for historical scope, "The Nomad" evokes a real sense of mystic, ancient desert wastes, legendary figures that wander this earth alone. The long musical interlude, including Harris on keyboards, is marvelous. You can lose yourself in it, just like in "Rime of the Ancient Mariner" or "Seventh Son of a Seventh Son."

Other fantastic songs include "Out of the Silent Planet," "Ghost of the Navigator" and the title track "Brave New World"--as Huxley intended, ironic--wherein Bruce sings: "Dragon kings dying queens/Where is salvation now/Lost my life lost my dreams/Rip the bones from my flesh...Dying to tell you the truth/You are damned in this Brave New World."

These are songs that reflect upon loss, death, dashed hopes and an ache for understanding and knowledge that will probably never come. Plus they're all catchy as hell, with muscular, brutal riffs and headbangin' drumming.

The musicianship and songcraft is superb, rivalling anything from the mid-80s. This is not recycled Maiden, but a true, honest continuation of their greatest and most unique talents.