Iron Maiden: Empire Of The Clouds (RSD Picture Disc)

RARE Record Store Day Release with die-cut cover and picture disc.

On this day, back in 2016, Maiden released their longest epic to date. Clocking in at a staggering 18:01 minutes, Empire of the Clouds (both written by and piano played by Bruce), recounts the story of the R101, a British airship that was the largest flying aircraft at the time. On Sunday 5th October, 1930, on its maiden voyage, the craft crashed in France, killing 48 of the 54 passengers.

The B-Side, titled “Maiden Voyage – The Story Behind ‘Empire of the Clouds’”, is an account by both Bruce and Nicko on the creation of the single. The cover art was done by the great, Hervé Monjeaud.

Steve is quoted as saying, “I think it’s a masterpiece, actually. I think I can say that because I didn’t write it! It sounds like Maiden, but it’s totally different from what we’ve done before…eighteen minutes sounds like a long time, but it’s actually such a journey that…well, it’s best just to leave people to listen to it and see what they think. But it’s very interesting. It’s certainly not boring.”

The epic has never been played live with Bruce having said, “You need strings, you need cellos, you need horns, you need all this stuff to play it properly, and it’s such a dominating song. In the format of a regular Iron Maiden thunderous stage show, it would be altogether too dominant.”

Here’s to never saying never, and maybe we can hear the band perform the song live, one day.