To answer the question in the title of the thread, I'd say the main flaw of
No Prayer For the Dying is mainly the
lack of focus and motivation, which made Steve Harris take the "back-to-the-roots" direction by default. It feels like they did not really know what to do after Adrian Smith's departure and the input of another "creator" in the band was sadly missing- but it is just supposition on my part. The album -though likeable on many points- sounds patchy, mixing crisp rock-sounding numbers (Tailgunner, HS, HIY) and reminiscences of a more atmospheric sound (title track, MR, FW, PE#1). Let's not even mention the fact they have used a song written by a member that had left the band.
Moreover,
Bruce Dickinson, having tasted reasonable success with his solo venture,
did not seem that committed (let's remember that "BYDTTS" was a solo song originally and that "Run Silent Run Deep" derives from some folk idea that had been rejected during the
Somewhere in Time sessions - don't bother asking for the reference, I've lost it
). Besides, years of world tours had strained his vocal chords a little, hence the raspy sound of his voice on those two albums that have not been to everybody's taste.
However, I think the real problem is that
Steve Harris (on Smallwood's insistence?)
had become the sole captain on board again and the lack of healthy creative challenge from the other members took its toll on the surprise factor of the music, and on the production - all the albums from the 90s having been recorded at Harris's home, in the Barnyard Studios.
Sales tend to suggest
Fear of the Dark was slighly better because it was more a collective effort - with Janick Gers's input and Dickinson's more relevant contributions (although that is subjective) and a jolt of motivation on Bruce's part... before his mood swang later on.
All in all, I would say that
the band should have waited until they really knew what to do when Adrian left. Yet, Maiden already being a big business machine at that time, they might not been able to afford to wait that long.