Fear Of The Dark Vs. The Book Of Souls

Which one is your favourite?

  • Total voters
    46
Siddharth

Siddharth

Long Distance Trooper
Well guys, a few days back I was ranking all the 17 Maiden albums, which is definitely a tough job.

1. Somewhere In Time
2. Powerslave
3. The Number Of The Beast
4. Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son
5. A Matter Of Life And Death
6. Brave New World
7. Piece Of Mind
8. Dance Of Death
9. Iron Maiden
10. Killers
11. Fear Of The Dark
12. The Book Of Souls
13. The X Factor
14. Senjutsu
15. Virtual XI
16. No Prayer For The Dying
17. The Final Frontier

But somehow even after doing it, I felt a sense of dilemma between some couple of albums here and there. So, give me your best shot and this is your time to defend your favourite album right here! And I may consider a change in my list.

(Basically a thread for albums comparison)
 
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I've said it before, but Fear is one I get the urge to randomly listen to in its entirety more so than a lot of other Maiden albums. Might have something to do with it being the first Maiden album I got as a new fan, but I still love the album, spotty as it is. Even have a soft spot for the The Apparition, less so for Weekend Warrior. Great production, and has some hidden gems that I've always loved, like The Fugitive, Chains of Misery, and the painfully-neglected-in-a-live-setting Judas Be My Guide.

Book of Souls to me has some great songs, but is spotty in a different way to Fear. It's probably overlong like Fear, but it's the songs themselves that tend to wear out their welcome sometimes rather than a sheer volume of songs. Never been a fan of Great Unknown, always felt like Tears of a Clown should've been more an acoustic vibe a la Journeyman than a midtempo rocker, and the verses of The Red and the Black hamper probably the best instrumental section the band has ever done. Then there's the muddy production that brings the whole project down a big notch for me. The title track is brilliant, great single in Speed of Light, and unforgettable closer in Empire of the Clouds, though.
 
CA Bryers said:
I've said it before, but Fear is one I get the urge to randomly listen to in its entirety more so than a lot of other Maiden albums. Might have something to do with it being the first Maiden album I got as a new fan, but I still love the album, spotty as it is. Even have a soft spot for the The Apparition, less so for Weekend Warrior. Great production, and has some hidden gems that I've always loved, like The Fugitive, Chains of Misery, and the painfully-neglected-in-a-live-setting Judas Be My Guide.
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I absolutely adore the general soundscapes on Fear. It has one of the more unique atmospheres and productions. You know how when you hear any part of Somewhere In Time and you can immediately say that it's from that album? I get the same thing with Fear, which has this almost mysterious and nebulous quality to its sound.

I get that people might not enjoy the more accessible, rock-y songs. I really like how the acoustic guitars are incorporated throughout the record. A bit of a shame that they scaled down stuff like that for the most part on later albums, though I get it.
 
TBOS is a better album as a whole, no doubt, I think it only has 1 weak song (everything else is great Reunion Maiden, more or less), but I just love FOTD. Yes there are 3-4 weak songs for Maiden (Apparition, Weekend Warrior, Key... Chains and Fugitive could have been stronger), but I still enjoy them and the others are all winners for me. TBOS is a special album, so it's not easy. My heart says Fear, the logical answer is Book. It's not easy. Both albums have the classic Maiden sound, among other stuff. And I really like both albums productions.
 
Filler of the Dark but at the same time it's not an interminable slog like most of Maidens last few albums.

This is genuinely difficult.

BoS has a couple of absolutely brilliant songs, better than most of the stuff on FoTD but as an album it's so overstuffed.
 
I'd vote for The Dark Souls

1. Be Quick or Be Dead
2. From Here To Eternity
3. Afraid to Shoot Strangers
4. Childhood's End
5. Judas My Guide
6. Fear of the Dark

7. If Eternity Should Fail
8. Speed of Light
9. The Red and the Black
10. The Book of Souls
11. Death or Glory
12. Tears of a Clown
13. Empire of the Clouds
 
Azas said:
I'd vote for The Dark Souls

1. Be Quick or Be Dead
2. From Here To Eternity
3. Afraid to Shoot Strangers
4. Childhood's End
5. Judas My Guide
6. Fear of the Dark

7. If Eternity Should Fail
8. Speed of Light
9. The Red and the Black
10. The Book of Souls
11. Death or Glory
12. Tears of a Clown
13. Empire of the Clouds
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I don't get the connection between Judas My Guide and Tears Of A Clown.
 
naranja said:
BoS has a couple of absolutely brilliant songs, better than most of the stuff on FoTD but as an album it's so overstuffed.
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It can feel overstuffed because of the few really long songs and the 3 slower songs to end the album, but I don't have an issue with that. Same with FOTD. The shorter songs are enough, better balance than SJ. Ofc one more would have been good, like for SJ.

Book, Red And Black, Empire and Eternity make one of the strongest cores in a Maiden album for me.
 
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Siddharth said:
I don't get the connection between Judas My Guide and Tears Of A Clown.
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One is Judas, the other the Clown or Jester. Both are archetypes—easily misunderstood, often rejected, and sometimes seen as bad—well, Judas is bad, and the Clown can be too. A devil in disguise. Classic symbolic roles.
 
The main connection between Judas and the Clown/Jester lies in the fact that both are archetypal figures—though very different in essence. That’s why I marked the songs in the same color.

Judas, the betrayer, represents treachery, greed, and ultimately, self-destructive remorse. He’s the embodiment of betrayal—someone who crosses a sacred line and pays the price.

The Jester, by contrast, is a figure of humor and playfulness, but also of subversion. Traditionally, the Jester uses wit and satire to mock authority, expose hypocrisy, and challenge societal norms—all from behind a mask of foolishness.

Yet in modern mythology—especially pop culture—the Clown has taken on a darker shape. Think It by Stephen King: the Jester becomes the monster, the trickster the predator. Evil in disguise.

So both figures—Judas and the Clown—end up circling the same themes: deception, fear, and the collapse of trust.
 
Fear of the dark all day long for me. Absolutely love the album and a definite top 5 album.

Sometimes I wonder if it’s nostalgia and rose tinted glasses telling me it’s a great album as it was the first new release album for me as a maiden fan and at the time it was released I just listened to it non stop for months.

Even now when I listen to the album I still love it and don’t want to skip a single track. Weekend warrior is one of the tracks that seems to get a bit of hate from folks but I love it. Being from the uk and a big football fan I thought the lyrics were spot on. Another track that gets some stick is the apparition and I think it’s a great little catchy bouncy track.

Book of souls is a great album but for me it’s just a bit too long. If it just had if eternity should fail, speed of light, death or glory, shadows of the valley, red and the black, the great unknown, title track and empire of the clouds it would be a top 5 album, 10/10. As it is the other tracks are not terrible just ok and drag the whole album down to an 8/10 for me.
 
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