I don't get how Somewhere in Time is regarded as their best by so many people. The first track is really killer but most of the other songs are let down by the choruses. It's an album of terrible choruses. Heaven Can Wait is a cool live song and Deja-Vu has got good energy going but this one really isn't my favorite.
I do like all the songs on Piece of Mind though. Even Sun and Steel I think is kickass.
I really enjoy No Prayer For the Dying but Mother Russia is such a drag. This album has got some really unique songwriting, especially for maiden. I haven't heard another band play like this at all.
The two last songs are really bland but everything up to that point is raunchy, punch in the face, hose-swinging confidence. The guitar solos are incredible on this record.
Then the band took a turn for the worse on the Fear of the Dark album. This one's got a lot of fillers but some people may be into the 90s sound. It's not terrible but lots of filler. Standouts would be Judas Be My Guide (wow), title track and perhaps Afraid To Shoot Strangers but I don't like this record much.