If there were ever a band worthy of the title metal kings, it is Iron Maiden. How many bands out there have the ability to make people wait for ten hours in mud and rain and still have them feel like it was the best night of their lives? Sonisphere Stockholm proved not only that Iron Maiden have a great crowd here in Sweden, but that they’re the genre’s undisputed giants.

Many bands, 30 years into their career, would settle for a record not unlike their many best of CD’s. But Iron Maiden doesn’t play it safe. Sure, they recently did their Somewhere Back In Time tour, celebrating the songs from the 80′s. But at the same time, when they released their last album A Matter of Life and Death, they decided to play the whole thing from start to finish. And right now, they are doing a tour playing mostly material from the post-reunion era. Among them are a song from their new album called The Final Frontier – a sign of this being their last album perhaps?

First off, it’s worth noticing that this album continues in the same vein of their last albums. It all begins with Satellite 15 – a dark, moody and weird song that is bound to confuse every one but the most die-hard fans. Only when Bruce Dickinson enters the scene with his vocals do you realize you didn’t put on the wrong CD! It segues into the title track The Final Frontier and now it begins to feel more familiar.

However, it’s worth saying that this album is filled with new sounds and explorations. Iron Maiden continues to push the boundaries and the whole CD doesn’t feel like the end of an era – it feels like the start of a new! Even the single El Dorado, released as a free download on their website, feels fresh and new, though maybe a bit unspectacular. And they continue in that same style of mixing new and old with the mid-paced Mother of Mercy, light ballad Coming Home and up-tempo headbanger The Alchemist.

However, it’s on the second half of the CD that you’ll find the meat. The sheer intensity and the constant changes in tone, tempo and feel all make Iron Maiden truly live their purpose. You got to admire a band that 30 years into their career still continues to releases unique and uncompromising music. My personal favorite is Isle of Avalon, a joint effort by Steve Harris and Adrian Smith, that builds great tension, culminating in a remarkable, prog-rock-inspired solo break reminiscent of early King Crimson. Great stuff!

You also have to admire the production that feels a lot more polished than the previous A Matter of Life and Death while still maintaining that live sound that you’ve come to expect from the boys.

And I also realize that this may come across as a fanboy review, but I truly believe that this is Maiden’s best effort since Brave New World. And what’s next in store? Is this the last album, as hinted by the title? If so, then they truly quit while on top of their game!