There are ways to improve DOD.
A better mix for starters, allegedly a reaction to the high-in-the-mix drum sound of BNW. Personally I've never had an issue with the mix on BNW and consider it second only to SSOASS in terms of production quality. And the drums in BNW are nowhere near as high as they are on TXF where on some songs they literally drown out the guitars. I bring this up because I've seen TXF defenders attacking BNW for the same reason and I find this hypocritical. DOD sounds flat and muddy, like a thick soup. it's heavier yes but at the expense of a brighter, cleaner EQ which Maiden are usually known for.
I'd also remove a few questionable songs. Firstly Age of Innocence, with it's cringe Daily Mail headline lyrics. No Steve, criminals do not get free holidays as punishment FFS. I'd also cut New Frontier for simply being filler. Like a rejected VXI track.
Finally, I'd burn every copy of that horrid cover and start fresh. There's plenty of superior fan made covers out there. What the hell were they thinking?
DOD remains a crucial album because of Paschendale, to this day their best post-reunion song (even if they did go cheap and used keyboards instead of an orchestra) and because it showed that even a lacklustre album couldn't slow Maiden's climb back to the top. They still had a lot of goodwill left over from BNW and I believe that more than anything helped sustain them.
