Up The Irons! World's only female tribute to Iron Maiden delivers the goods and proves their eternal loyalty to their mentors. Yes, we have seen dozens of tribute albums (Maiden had their share in this trend too). We have also seen bands doing covers of entire albums, sometimes bootlegs (Dream Theater), other times official releases (Six Feet Under desecrated the mighty Ac/Dc - Jihad on your asses!). But something like this? No, without any hesitation I say this has to be the most complete covers album to have ever seen the light of day!
The Iron Maidens formed in 2001 in South California. As with many cover bands, they steadily built a reputation performing live as much as possible. Within their ranks they include three members of the exceptional Hard Rock act Phantom Blue. They have managed so far to be part of shows with 80.000 people attending. They have appeared on the same stage with members of Motorhead and Testament! They have pretty much achieved what other normal bands would only dream of!
A few technical details before discussing about the music. The album's artwork is crafted by none other than Derek Riggs himself. Derek designed a female beast (Eddie's girlfriend?), the whole package will bring in mind Iron Maiden's debut album. The album has been recorded in Silver Cloud Studios where Bruce Dickinson has also recorded many of his solo records. The band used Iron Maiden / Steve Harris amps and cabs in order to achieve the authentic Iron Maiden sound. Finally there is a hidden track but I won't spoil the surprise!
As probably you have pretty much figured out on your own, The Iron Maidens are professional musicians and not just a garage band. These gals are skillful and manage to cover the Iron Maiden songs flawlessly, almost perfect. The album covers a huge timeline of the band's history, until Somewhere In Time (if I'm not mistaken). Asking me to pick a favorite out of the bunch is like asking me what finger you want me to cut off so... no, I won't do it!
Now I know what most of you think. Any experienced musician can play any song with a little practice. But handling the vocals? Aja Kim is NOT an air-raid siren and she is NOT a clone of Bruce Dickinson. However she is a magnificent performer with a lovely (and very heavy) voice that manages to handle the majority of the songs almost perfect. I cannot ask anything more from her, she has passed my exams with an A+!!!
Why should someone buy this album? First of all, it is a great gift to any Iron Maiden fan. However, its value is elsewhere. Once you get this album you will realize how far a bunch of friends can go once they are united under a common goal: to honor their favorite band. I guess the best way to close this review would be by mentioning that this is the closest you can get to the real thing. Up The Irons x 2!!!