Killers (1981)

Killers (1981)

Every classic band has its own transitional album, and Killers represents the moment Iron Maiden started to make that shift from gutter-level Cockney heavy metal to full-on stadium level conquerors. The first step was to beef up the band’s sound on record, and producer Martin Birch — fresh off working on Whitesnake’s Ready An’ Willing, Black Sabbath’s Heaven and Hell, and Blue Öyster Cult’s Cultosaurus Erectus — was brought on to helm the second album, marking the beginning of a partnership that would last for the next decade. In addition, guitarist Dennis Stratton was replaced by Adrian Smith, formerly of London band Urchin.

Because it’s nestled between two popular and well-loved albums, Killers, despite its iconic Derek Riggs artwork and all the love it gets from older Maiden fans, doesn’t attract quite the same amount of accolades, and it’s easy to see why. Steve Harris’s backlog of early songs was still strong enough that they justified inclusion on album number two, all of which having been longtime live staples and well known by the band’s British fanbase. However, there’s the unavoidable feeling that Killers is comprised of “leftovers,” even though most are anything but. In fact, the band had so honed its sound by 1981, had become so tight, that those nine live favorites practically leap off this record.

Two songs in particular highlight Killers, and are universally regarded as milestones in the band’s history. Originally released on the NWOBHM compilation Metal For Muthas in 1980, “Wrathchild” is given a complete overhaul on Killers, with the rhythm section of Harris and drummer Clive Burr churning away with force, Dave Murray delivering screaming leads throughout the song, Paul Di’Anno in full street thug mode and leading the charge with his menacing, confrontational persona. The title track, meanwhile, takes Iron Maiden’s “Prowler” to a much more theatrical level, highlighted by that haunting, dare I say — because Harris never would — gothic intro that explodes into the song’s ferociously-picked verse, and featuring a sublime twin harmony section that foreshadows the formidable duo Murray and Smith that would become a hallmark of the band.

Elsewhere, “Another Life,” “Innocent Exile’, “Purgatory,” “Twilight Zone,” and “Drifter” sound ferocious under Birch’s guidance, although all five are just a cut below the standards of such early Maiden favorites as “Wrathchild,” “Killers,” “Prowler,” and “Phantom Of The Opera”. And although Di’Anno is in as good vocal form as he would ever be on record, you can sense the band starting to outgrow its lead singer, especially on the two new tracks Harris wrote for the album. Much more intricate, multifaceted, brisk, and verbose than any Maiden song prior, “Murders In The Rue Morgue” nearly leaves Di’Anno in its wake as the singer does his best to enunciate those difficult lyrics and carry that quirky melody. On the other side of the coin, Di’Anno feels out of place handling the shameless progressive rock of the mellow “Prodigal Son”; although he puts in a yeoman’s effort, his singing lacks the expressiveness and range the composition requires.

It would be Di’Anno’s offstage behavior, however, that would serve as the catalyst for his firing at the end of the band’s tour in support of Killers. Samson singer Bruce Dickinson would be hired in September 1981, work would commence on Iron Maiden’s third album, and the rest, as they say, is heavy metal history.