On September 29th, 1986, Iron Maiden looked toward the future.
After the exhausting “Powerslave” era and the massive World Slavery Tour, the band could have simply made another classic Maiden album.
Instead, they went somewhere completely different.
“Somewhere in Time” brought guitar and bass synthesizers, futuristic textures and a cyberpunk atmosphere into Maiden unmistakable heavy metal sound.
And not everyone was happy about it.
Maiden Goes Futuristic
The synths were the big shock.
Traditional keyboards were banned. Instead, Dave Murray and Adrian Smith used Roland GR-700 guitar synthesizers through Marshall amps, creating shimmering textures without losing Maiden heavy guitar sound.
The gamble worked.
“Caught Somewhere in Time” immediately establishes the futuristic mood, while “Stranger in a Strange Land” brings a darker, atmospheric side to the album.
Then comes “Wasted Years”.
Adrian Smith reportedly wrote it while messing around with a guitar synthesizer in a hotel room. Inspired by the exhaustion and homesickness of endless touring, its message about not wasting the present turned into one of Maiden most beloved anthems.
Adrian Smith Takes the Spotlight
With Bruce Dickinson creatively burned out after the 331-day World Slavery Tour, songwriting duties shifted heavily toward Adrian Smith and Steve Harris.
Dickinson even presented acoustic, folk-influenced material for the album, but Harris rejected it as something that didn’t fit the band direction.
As a result, Bruce received no songwriting credit on the record.
Instead, Smith delivered “Wasted Years” and “Stranger in a Strange Land” while Harris handled the towering historical epic “Alexander the Great”.
The album closes with that eight-minute journey, giving “Somewhere in Time” an epic finish worthy of its futuristic adventure.
An Album Cover You Could Get Lost In
Derek Riggs artwork is almost an attraction by itself.
The futuristic city is packed with hidden references, including “Two Minutes to Midnight”, Ancient Mariner Seafood, the Powerslave pyramid, a TARDIS and even a West Ham United football score.
There’s something new to spot every time you look at it.
And that’s basically “Somewhere in Time” in a nutshell.
It sounds like Iron Maiden, but it doesn’t look backward.
They had conquered the 1980s.
Now they were ready to explore what came next.
Synths or no synths – “Somewhere in Time” is proof that Iron Maiden never needed to stay in one place.
What are you playing first: “Wasted Years”, “Caught Somewhere in Time”, “Stranger in a Strange Land” or “Alexander the Great”? 🤘
By
By
