When reviewing the CD version of Death On The Road, released back in August last year, I mentioned that "given the whole emphasis on the visual props, in this respect 'Death On The Road' fails to capture the essence of the tour".... and ...."that my advice would be to hang out for the upcoming DVD release where you can see 'Death On The Road' as it should be seen, as an all round sensory event and one that will stand proud in the lexicon of Maiden's work". Well here we are some six months after the release of the CD and finally the DVD hits the shops, the big question is was it worth the wait?

The answer to that question is a big YES. With two versions of the concert included, one stereo mix and one 5.1 surround mix, and a third disc containing a raft of extras this is one fabulous DVD package. For the record if you are lucky enough to have a 5.1 set up then the surround mix is quite outstanding, giving things the sonic space that the three guitar line up of Maiden deserves, whereas the normal stereo mix compresses everything into its two channels and at times can seem a little bit muddy.

The entire Death On The Road experience was as theatric as Maiden have been in recent years and this DVD certainly captures the essence of what the band were hoping to achieve. The light show is simply outstanding, whilst the stage props and design harkens back to the days of Powerslave or Somewhere In Time for their gargantuan proportions.

If there is any criticism at all it is in the lightning fast editing employed on the DVD, hardly giving the eye time to take in one shot before switching to the next and with the emphasis on close ups of the band members and audience you do seem to lose the scale of the whole show at times. But this is just being picky really.

The other great aspect of this DVD is the raft of extras that come on the third disc. A comprehensive rockumentary on the making of Dance Of Death and the accompanying tour kicks things off. Containing interviews with all the key players, from band members to producer Kevin Shirley and manager Rod Smallwood, it gives a true feel for the way things work inside the Maiden machine Then you get a whole bunch of interviews, both with the band, and also with fans filmed at Earls Court in London. Finally, to wrap things up, there are also the promo videos for Wildest Dreams & Rainmaker. Definitely a comprehensive package.

A lot of thought and effort has been put into this release and that effort has definitely come up trumps as 'Death On The Road' covers all of the bases and is by far the best DVD Maiden have yet released. To be honest the DVD makes the CD version of 'Death On The Road' obsolete to this reviewer. One can only hope that future live packages from the Maiden camp include both audio and visual representation together in a single release as the splitting of formats, and the six months between the CD and DVD, simply seems a way of selling the inferior CD first whilst fans wait for the DVD to hit the streets. 

Steve Cummings