Powerslave (1984)
Powerslave is a 1984 heavy metal album by Iron Maiden.
Iron Maiden at full gallop, dressed in pharaoh regalia and pointed at the horizon. Their fifth album, released in 1984, opens with the airborne charge of 'Aces High' and the Cold War snarl of '2 Minutes to Midnight,' Bruce Dickinson's siren vocals riding twin harmonized guitars. The record reaches for scope, closing with a thirteen-minute setting of Coleridge's 'Rime of the Ancient Mariner.' Egyptian sleeve art and the band's mascot Eddie frame songs about war, myth, and mortality, all delivered with the swagger of a band sure of its powers.
Quick answers
What is Powerslave about?
Iron Maiden at full gallop, dressed in pharaoh regalia and pointed at the horizon. Their fifth album, released in 1984, opens with the airborne charge of 'Aces High' and the Cold War snarl of '2 Minutes to Midnight,' Bruce Dickinson's siren vocals riding twin harmonized guitars. The record reaches for scope, closing with a thirteen-minute setting of Coleridge's 'Rime of the Ancient Mariner.' Egyptian sleeve art and the band's mascot Eddie frame songs about war, myth, and mortality, all delivered with the swagger of a band sure of its powers.
When was Powerslave released?
Powerslave was released in 1984.
Who made Powerslave?
Powerslave is by Iron Maiden.
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A few thoughts on Powerslave
If the literary reach of the closing epic grabs you, Iron Maiden's love of history and myth runs through their whole catalog. Fans of storytelling metal, galloping rhythms, and soaring vocals will find plenty to chase, and the album's Egyptian world rewards a deep dive rather than a quick skim.
Iron Maiden's classic 1980s albums, start to finish
Powerslave sits in the middle of Iron Maiden's imperial run, all galloping bass, twin harmonized guitars and Bruce Dickinson's air-raid vocals. These are the records around it, the studio albums that built the band's sound from the early snarl through the ambitious concept years, each worth playing front to back.
80s thrash metal for when you want it faster and heavier
Powerslave gallops, but if you want the era's sharper, more aggressive edge, these are the thrash landmarks running alongside it. Same appetite for speed, precision riffing and songs about war and dread, pushed into rawer, faster territory by the bands who took metal to its harder extreme.
Epic long-form metal that builds songs like symphonies
Powerslave closes with a thirteen-minute setting of Coleridge's Rime of the Ancient Mariner, proof metal can stretch to symphonic length. These albums chase the same scale, stacking movements, tempo shifts and story into sprawling tracks that reward listening the whole way through rather than song by song.