The Final Frontier - Iron Maiden
The Final Frontier Image
Metascore

Generally favorable reviews - based on 15 Critics What's this?

User Score

Universal acclaim- based on 51 Ratings

  • Summary: The heavy metal legends return with their 15th studio release, still reinventing rock 35 years into their careers.
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 9 out of 15
  2. Negative: 0 out of 15
  1. There are more ideas here than many bands manage in their entire career, but in inimitable Maiden style, it's woven together beautifully.
  2. The Final Frontier might sound alien at first, but Iron Maiden's DNA is splashed all over it.
  3. Now they've reinforced their position as the credible elder statesmen of metal, with a tightly focused, self-referential effort.
  4. While sometimes The Final Frontier seems to mine the Maiden groove until the canary chirps its last, the better songs are an indication that they aren't yet trading solely on their reputation.

See all 15 Critic Reviews

Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 18 out of 19
  2. Negative: 0 out of 19
  1. 10
    Brilliant comes to mind.
    Listen to it a few times in its entirety, its honestly too big to digest in one listen, you may ask yourself along th
    e way if they can do this or that the way they did and then you will come back to it again latter and say yes, yes they can and then you smile as it just keeps getting better and better. Expand
  2. I've been mildly disappointed by every Maiden album since Seventh Son. This one took a few listens to grow on me, but then it really-really grew on me. I'd now rank it as one of their best. Expand
  3. 7
    While the album is different, and experimental, it only works about 70% of the time, not the most exciting offering from a band I have been following avidly for 28 years! A step backwards for me after the excellent AMOLAD. Expand
  4. 4
    I'm one of those old timey Maiden fans who thinks their absolute creative peak was "The Number of the Beast" and their last really good album was "Seventh Son". Since then they were producing auto-cloned and sub-par versions of their own music, progressively less interesting as the years went by. Listenable in a pinch, but why would you want to listen to weak Maiden when you have the first seven strong albums? This time, they don't even sound like themselves and you might feel that's a good thing, but it isn't. Instead of the uninspired and tired music you kind of like, you get uninspired and tired music you might not necessarily like as much.

    Still, even here, with the "new sound" we get the obligatory syncopated "Alexander the Great" clone and the assortment of adolescent, movie and history channel inspired themes understandable when the musicians are barely legal, but kind of sad when coming from the 45+ lot. This is their third consecutive album which I have listened to once and never had the need to listen to again. Even the album cover is among the worst in their discography. I love Maiden and they will always have a special place in my heart but this is just not good. As ever: Up the Irons!
    Expand

See all 19 User Reviews