IRON MAIDEN The Number Of The Beast

This was the album that marked Bruce Dickinson's debut after vocalist Paul Di'Anno left, and it was the final work for Clive Burr, who had been drumming since the first album.
While their later albums are also of very high quality, I think the period up to this album (from the first to this third one), which still retained a scent of punk, was the best.
I feel like there are actually many fans of Clive Burr, and Nicko is just too skilled. Even on this album, the drumming—which wasn't technical and was rather frantic—is what made Maiden what they were up to that point, and I think I found it likable. There's something strangely endearing about how you can hear him giving it his all in the sound.

Bruce is also far too skilled compared to Di'Anno, so there is no doubt that this album became a turning point between the two previous works and the many that followed.
The first track, 'Invaders,' is a punkish song that serves as a greeting, but Di'Anno would never have been able to sing it. Conversely, although Bruce sings songs from the Di'Anno era, he could never surpass the original.
Personally, I think it's nonsense to argue about whether Di'Anno or Bruce is greater, and that only a purely personal opinion about which one you prefer can hold any weight.

By the way, I am on the Di'Anno side. His vocal range isn't that wide, and he has some super painful high notes, but I feel like he embodies the 'guts and determination' philosophy that Japanese people love, managing to sing through everything on sheer momentum alone, haha.

However, the many masterpieces included on this album wouldn't have been born if it weren't for Bruce, which is interesting.

It has a strong scent of the first and second albums, but this opening track has an increased sense of orthodox metal. If you play it on bass, your fingers will cramp in just one song. Since Harris plays songs at this speed for two hours or more, I wonder what on earth is going on with his hands.

Personally, this is one of my favorite songs on this album, vying for the top spot. The dramatic quality is something only Bruce could have brought out. The way it gradually builds up from the intro (especially the part where it goes from a low tone to a high tone) is entirely thanks to the vocalist's expressive power. It's a song over six minutes long, but the tension and tempo keep rising until the very end, so you never get bored listening to it.