The Soundhouse Tapes

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"The Soundhouse Tapes" is the debut EP by Iron Maiden and contains the band's earliest released recordings. It was released on 9 November 1979 and features three tracks taken from a demo recorded at Spaceward Studios on 30 and 31 December 1978. The songs, "Iron Maiden", "Invasion" and "Prowler", appear in an earlier, less refined form compared with later studio versions recorded for the band's debut album and subsequent singles, as they were recorded in a single session. Although interest from major retail chains reportedly led to requests for large quantities, the EP was limited to 5,000 copies and distributed by mail order only. It sold out within a few weeks and later became a collector's item, with copies reported to have been sold for up to £1750 on online auction sites. During a period when punk rock was prominent in the UK, Iron Maiden had difficulty securing gigs outside London's East End and decided to record a demo to promote themselves. The band chose Spaceward Studios in Cambridge after becoming aware of recordings made there by V1, the band of former vocalist Dennis Wilcock. Although recording in Cambridge was more expensive than options in London, bassist Steve Harris stated that they considered it worthwhile for quality reasons. The band booked a session over the New Year weekend of 30 and 31 December 1978, costing approximately £200, and recorded four songs: "Prowler", "Invasion", "Strange World" and "Iron Maiden". According to Harris, the band entered the studio with limited prior experience but found that the songs were already well rehearsed from live performance, allowing them to be recorded quickly, often in early takes. After the initial session, the band had planned to return for remixing and additional recording. However, guitarist Dave Murray later stated that the studio requested additional payment for the master tape, which the band could not provide at the time. When they returned later, the original tape had been overwritten. As a result, the recordings were released from the original session without further studio modification. The engineer Mike Kemp later stated that the studio could not afford to store multitrack tapes indefinitely and typically retained them only until payment or further arrangements were made. Following the recording, bassist Steve Harris and guitarist Dave Murray gave a copy of the tape to DJ Neal Kay, who ran the Bandwagon Soundhouse heavy metal club in Kingsbury, London. The tape received regular airplay at the club, and "Prowler" reached number one in the Soundhouse charts published in Sounds magazine. The exposure contributed to increased attention for the band and helped bring the demo to the attention of Rod Smallwood, who later became the band's manager and assisted in securing a recording contract with EMI Records in December 1979. In late 1979, while awaiting the EMI contract, Iron Maiden decided to issue the demo recordings themselves on their own label, Rock Hard Records. The EP was named after the Bandwagon Soundhouse club. According to Harris, the release was prompted by demand from fans who had seen the band perform and were aware of the demo recordings but had no official release to purchase. The track "Strange World" was excluded from the EP due to the band's dissatisfaction with its production quality. The initial pressing of 5,000 copies sold quickly, with 3,000 reportedly sold by mail order in the first week. Demand exceeded expectations, and some retailers, including HMV and Virgin, reportedly attempted to order additional copies in large quantities. Despite this demand, the band chose not to increase production, prioritising its limited nature ahead of their forthcoming deal with EMI. The EP is regarded as a notable early release in Iron Maiden's discography and is considered a collector's item. In 2011, Record Collector reported that copies of the original release had sold for up to £800. The recordings from the EP, along with the previously unreleased version of "Strange World", were later included on the 4-LP edition of the band's compilation "Best of the Beast". Commentary from Götz Kühnemund, former editor of the German magazine Rock Hard, has described Iron Maiden as a significant influence on a range of heavy metal subgenres, including power metal, speed metal, thrash metal, death metal and black metal, and has noted their role in shaping later developments in heavy rock and metal.

via Last.fm