Alright. As much as Queensryche's dark, pop metal is a revelation that will make me go out and buy it at the next opportunity I gotta go with Maiden on this one. If it weren't
Powerslave, then things would probably be different, but
Powerslave is just the perfect heavy metal album. It's everything that I think of when I think of traditional metal. It's music is just the right combo of infectious pop hooks, galloping straight up headbanging riffs, and epic atmosphere. The lyrics capture the shtick of metal without sounding cliched and goofy. Not to mention the album cover is not just the greatest thing since sliced bread, but it beats sliced bread hands down. And not being the biggest prog fan, I'm not so hot on 10 min+ songs, but "The Rhyme of the Ancient Mariner" is quite possibly the only one that holds my attention for the entire thirteen minutes of it's perfect existence. If god made a heavy metal album, it would still suck in comparison to
Powerslave.
Operation: Mindcrime - 3
Powerslave - 3