by JOHNSON CUMMINS

It’s almost inconceivable to calculate the mark England’s Iron Maiden have left on heavy metal’s history. Their 1982 record Number of the Beast has been one of the biggest selling metal records of all time, and echoes of their trademark sound—galloping bass lines, twin guitar melody lines, operatic vocals—can be heard in the current crop of power metal bands, from Avenged Sevenfold and Dragonforce to Iced Earth and a host of others.

With the advent of grunge wiping out the metal map, singer Bruce Dickinson and guitarist Adrian Smith left the band to concentrate on other endeavours through the ’90s, while the band grasped at straws, tinkering with their sound in an effort to stay current. Thankfully, Dickinson and Smith’s exits were short-lived. They returned to the fold in 2000, bursting with new energy and an insatiable hunger to stay on top.

“I guess I was feeling a bit stifled in the band,” explains Smith of his departure in 1991. “With the kind of schedule Maiden has, you have to be 100 per cent there, because people want blood when you go onstage. Although we always got along on a personal level, I never thought they would ask me back, but I’m really glad they did because it’s never felt better.”

The 14th Iron Maiden record, the brand new A Matter of Life and Death, is a true testament to the band being stronger than ever, with some of their most progressive and epic moments.

“This record just seemed to go really easy in the studio,” recalls Smith. “It was just us gathered around and banging out all of the initial tracks, all in the same room at once. Everybody just seemed really inspired for this record. Usually, it will take us months to get a record done in the studio, but this one was probably one of the fastest records to record we’ve ever done.”

With songs like “Different Worlds” and “The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breer,” Maiden hit a melodic watermark and, dare I say, get downright catchy. “Some people see our Eddie character with blood dripping,” says Smith, “and forget that we can be a melodic band. Just look at ‘Run to the Hills’ or even ‘Number of the Beast’—those are catchy, singalong type of songs.”

With their early, diehard fans sticking it out during the lean years, the band have also managed to attract a whole new throng of younger fans recently, fans who’ve dicovered them through the current bands that Maiden have left an indelible mark on. As a live act, Maiden has never been stronger—they have over a dozen records’ worth of classics to fill up the set list, and for the past six years, a trio of guitarists, giving the old gems even more ballast. Their live show has been so good, in fact, that after stealing headliner Ozzy’s thunder every night during the 2005 Ozzfest, his wife/manager Sharon Osbourne reportedly attempted to sabotage Maiden’s set by getting Ozzy crew members to shout “Ozzy” during their show through the P.A. Others, including bands on the bill, were encouraged to pelt the band with eggs and beer during Ozzfest’s final stop in L.A.

The resultant song from the new record, “These Colours Don’t Run,” emanated partly from Mrs. Osbourne’s cowardly display—but Smith plays the diplomat perfectly when pressed to trash-talk the Beverly Hills reality TV star.

“Hmmm—I don’t really want to comment on that too much, and we’ve kind of forgotten about it, but I would have to say that she really does seem quite mad.”

With Bullet For my Valentine at Bell Centre on Tuesday, Oct. 10, 7:30 p.m., $46.50–$56.50

>> Music Listings