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Track Listing: Caught Somewhere In Time Wasted Years Sea Of Madness Heaven Can Wait The Loneliness Of The Long Distance Runner Stranger In A Strange Land De Ja Vu Alexander The Great

24 years ago, on this very day, Iron Maiden released their sixth studio album 'Somewhere In Time' in an effort to carry out the hugely daunting task of following up an album that went by the name of Powerslave.

The artwork: Before getting to the music, it would be criminal not to talk about the piece of art that forms this album cover. Iron Maiden album covers, specially those for album #2 to #6 possess the best artwork you'll ever see. The Somewhere In Time cover is an incredibly detailed art by the one and only Derek Riggs, epic in the truest sense of the word. Cyborg Eddie, references to previous Maiden albums, and what not. I can't imagine any Maiden fan not buying this album back in the day, just for the cover if not for anything else, such is the sheer brilliance and power exuded by this work of art.

The music: This marked a significant change in Maiden's musical direction, with the use of guitar synthesizers for the first time, and the inclusion of material written by Adrian Smith which was preferred over whatever Bruce Dickinson wrote.

The title song gives a glorious kick-off to the album. At first listen I thought that even though the synth is quite distinct from the get go, all the musical elements that made me worship their previous albums were still very much in abundance, namely the signature guitar riffs, Godly vocals, out-of-this-world guitar solos, and bass that had the Steve Harris stamp all over it.

'Wasted Years', the first of Adrian's songs, comes next. Even though the title song remains to be one of their best songs to date, Wasted Years went on to become more of a regular part of their live set, because of the relatively short duration and easy chorus. The solo is again nothing short of brilliant. This is a great sing-along tune, without a doubt.

In stark contrast, the next track 'Sea Of Madness' hasn't been played live for ages, and it surprises me as to why this song isn't talked about more often even by the fans. A song that's as good as any other on the album, it has become somewhat of a rare gem these days, and is sure to make fans go bonkers if at all it's brought back into the live set again.

'Heaven Can Wait' follows. The album boasts of songs that are musically superior, but this one is really enjoyable nonetheless, specially the interlude for which the band has been inviting fans to join them on stage whenever it's played live.

'The Loneliness Of The Long Distance Runner' is another gem that has disappeared off the face of the earth, apparently. It is my favorite song on the album and one I am very much able to relate to on a personal level. The song really 'hits' me whenever I listen to it, and excites me to no end, inspiring me to strive for more than what's humanly possible. Words can't express the magical quality that this song possesses. One word: blissful.

For the most part, 'Stranger In A Strange Land' is kept to a consistent mid-tempo and has quite a relaxed aura to it, but it's the solo which makes it memorable. It's very identifiable, at least to me, and I can always tell this song just by its guitar solo.

'Deja vu' kicks the album into top gear again. This one makes me want to use the word 'blissful' once again, because it really is. Any further attempt at describing this song would be a grave disservice to it, for I'm simply not worthy.

Just when I thought it couldn't possibly get any better, the album closes out with 'Alexander The Great', which is quite simply put, a genius composition from start to end. For me the guitar riffs and solos in this one rank very, very high among the best pieces of music ever written. If someone from outer space challenged the earth to come up with it's best music and everyone on the planet conducted a poll for it, I would be very much inclined to put forth the 3:53 to 7:10 portion of this song as my submission.

It's a pity that songs from this album are featured the least often in Maiden's live set, but I can see why. This has the Steve Harris and Adrian Smith signature all over it, and is perhaps the only album in which Bruce's vocals are not in the foreground, so to speak, which explains why he is known to dislike the album.

Whenever I listen to this album, it satiates my mind and relieves me of any stress or frustration I might have. It's already been 24 years since it first came out, but I am more than certain that it will continue to live on and have the same impact another 24 years down the road. Easily one of Maiden's best pieces of work, this album vindicates my faith in music as a medicine and drug.