Bruce Dickinson Solovivor 2024 - "BOOK OF THEL" WINS!
- Thread starter Diesel 11
- Start date
Kalata
Out of the Silent Planet
Oh! It doesn't matter now. I think the electric version really improved the idea of the song. It's basically another effective slow song like Gypsy Road. One of his memorable bonus songs imo. The cover in the debut album is in place of this song or Bring Your Daughter instead, methinks.
Diesel 11
As you scream into the web of silence...
Cyclops - Absolutely epic way to open up Bruce's first post-Maiden release. He's got something to prove and he's going for it completely. His voice is a little rough in spots but the music in this song is killer. Roy Z is already proving himself immensely.
Hell No - A stomping rocker with some Latin influence about Bruce stepping out of Maiden's shadows. Always a fun time, powerful chorus to this one. Plus Roy drops a killer solo in the middle as well.
Gods of War - Epic song. That chorus is an absolute monster. Love the percussion and build up all throughout this track.
1000 Points of Light - The riff is a little annoying but otherwise this is a pretty decent, inoffensive song. Unabashedly political, even including a Bush Sr. clip. With this one you definitely can see that Bruce was still trying to figure out what his solo career was going to be about, and who his new audience would be. Vote.
Laughing in the Hiding Bush - I know Bruce loves this one because it was inspired by his son, but I've always thought it was a bit overrated. It's fine. The album version isn't as good as the peppier Scream for Me Brazil performance, though. Vote.
Change of Heart - A nice little ballad. Bruce does a pretty good job with the vocals here. It's all pretty understated, more Latin influences - good stuff.
Shoot All the Clowns - Fun silly song, another politically-charged one. Bruce's voice in this is pretty song, probably one of the best performances on the album. The rap verse is fun too.
Fire - Never cared for this song 'til I heard the Alive in Studio A version. I now think it's pretty great overall, nice groove and fantastic instrumentation, but doesn't fully lift off because of a lackluster chorus. Could've been a killer, but it's still good.
Sacred Cowboys - This is such an odd song with its extremely political rapid-fire spoken word verses and then absolutely banger chorus. It's short but sweet and despite its weird structure this is absolutely one of the album's highest points. Also features another killer solo from Roy Z. Love it.
Tears of the Dragon - The album's final song is without a doubt its most defining one. I mean, "Tears of the Dragon" is Bruce's most iconic solo tune for a reason. It's brilliant. I think the original has some... questionable production choices but overall it's amazing. Great song.
Fire Child - The only performance of Bruce's that's worse than the ones on Balls to Picasso are the ones on this bonus track. Maybe hyperbole but man he sounds off on this song. I still can't tell if that's the mix or just him, but it really feels like the vocals themselves are from one of those old YouTube videos that are in piss-poor quality. It also sounds like Bruce did this in one take and wasn't sure yet of the vocal melodies, so it's a bit weird in certain spots. He's going for it with abandon and it's not coming together. If he worked on this some more it would've been an amazing addition to BtP. The music is awesome. Vote.
Elvis Has Left the Building - Not a serious song and not even good as a joke. You can kind of hear "The Breeding House" in the faster section; that's the only interesting thing about this song. Vote.
The Breeding House - This is easily one of Bruce's most beloved bonus track and for good reason. It's absolutely awesome. The twin guitars bridge the gap between his Maiden and solo career, and the riffing throughout is basically power metal, kind of making this a full circle moment given that Maiden inspired a lot of the bands in that genre. His performance is also better than just about anything on BtP itself. Compositionally this is great, too - the "angels of death" pre-chorus is a genius insertion with its sparkling guitar backing. A great song about a horrible subject. All it needs is a better production job and it would've set the tone for a completely different album.
No Way Out... To Be Continued - Another killer bonus track. Again, the only thing that could've made this better is a better producer. Epic song with a great riff, different sections that all fit together well, and an awesome solo as well. Better than most of the songs on the actual album.
Over and Out - This is unlikely to be a popular opinion on here but this song is fantastic. Once again, his voice sounds better here than on most of Balls. The production is great, I love the choir vocals, the groove, the guitar that comes in in the pre-chorus - it's all great and better than most of the actual album.
The Post Alternative Seattle Fall Out - Pretty inoffensive silly song, somewhere between easy listening/jazz and a grunge parody. Decent. Vote.
Tibet - I don't think one fully reaches its potential but it's another good outtake. Love the vocals here, again. Why didn't Bruce bring this energy to the actual album??
Cadillac Gas Mask - A poppy AC/DC parody. This is one that's kept growing on me over the years. I think it's a really good song. Very repetitive but super fun.
No Way Out... Continued - Completely different than the other "No Way Out" song. This one is more synth driven although it does feature guitar in a prominent role (that solo is awesome). Just as good as "To Be Continued" though. Both of these tracks are killer and better than most of the album.
Also voting for "Bring Your Daughter... to the Slaughter" and "Darkness Be My Friend".
Hell No - A stomping rocker with some Latin influence about Bruce stepping out of Maiden's shadows. Always a fun time, powerful chorus to this one. Plus Roy drops a killer solo in the middle as well.
Gods of War - Epic song. That chorus is an absolute monster. Love the percussion and build up all throughout this track.
1000 Points of Light - The riff is a little annoying but otherwise this is a pretty decent, inoffensive song. Unabashedly political, even including a Bush Sr. clip. With this one you definitely can see that Bruce was still trying to figure out what his solo career was going to be about, and who his new audience would be. Vote.
Laughing in the Hiding Bush - I know Bruce loves this one because it was inspired by his son, but I've always thought it was a bit overrated. It's fine. The album version isn't as good as the peppier Scream for Me Brazil performance, though. Vote.
Change of Heart - A nice little ballad. Bruce does a pretty good job with the vocals here. It's all pretty understated, more Latin influences - good stuff.
Shoot All the Clowns - Fun silly song, another politically-charged one. Bruce's voice in this is pretty song, probably one of the best performances on the album. The rap verse is fun too.
Fire - Never cared for this song 'til I heard the Alive in Studio A version. I now think it's pretty great overall, nice groove and fantastic instrumentation, but doesn't fully lift off because of a lackluster chorus. Could've been a killer, but it's still good.
Sacred Cowboys - This is such an odd song with its extremely political rapid-fire spoken word verses and then absolutely banger chorus. It's short but sweet and despite its weird structure this is absolutely one of the album's highest points. Also features another killer solo from Roy Z. Love it.
Tears of the Dragon - The album's final song is without a doubt its most defining one. I mean, "Tears of the Dragon" is Bruce's most iconic solo tune for a reason. It's brilliant. I think the original has some... questionable production choices but overall it's amazing. Great song.
Fire Child - The only performance of Bruce's that's worse than the ones on Balls to Picasso are the ones on this bonus track. Maybe hyperbole but man he sounds off on this song. I still can't tell if that's the mix or just him, but it really feels like the vocals themselves are from one of those old YouTube videos that are in piss-poor quality. It also sounds like Bruce did this in one take and wasn't sure yet of the vocal melodies, so it's a bit weird in certain spots. He's going for it with abandon and it's not coming together. If he worked on this some more it would've been an amazing addition to BtP. The music is awesome. Vote.
Elvis Has Left the Building - Not a serious song and not even good as a joke. You can kind of hear "The Breeding House" in the faster section; that's the only interesting thing about this song. Vote.
The Breeding House - This is easily one of Bruce's most beloved bonus track and for good reason. It's absolutely awesome. The twin guitars bridge the gap between his Maiden and solo career, and the riffing throughout is basically power metal, kind of making this a full circle moment given that Maiden inspired a lot of the bands in that genre. His performance is also better than just about anything on BtP itself. Compositionally this is great, too - the "angels of death" pre-chorus is a genius insertion with its sparkling guitar backing. A great song about a horrible subject. All it needs is a better production job and it would've set the tone for a completely different album.
No Way Out... To Be Continued - Another killer bonus track. Again, the only thing that could've made this better is a better producer. Epic song with a great riff, different sections that all fit together well, and an awesome solo as well. Better than most of the songs on the actual album.
Over and Out - This is unlikely to be a popular opinion on here but this song is fantastic. Once again, his voice sounds better here than on most of Balls. The production is great, I love the choir vocals, the groove, the guitar that comes in in the pre-chorus - it's all great and better than most of the actual album.
The Post Alternative Seattle Fall Out - Pretty inoffensive silly song, somewhere between easy listening/jazz and a grunge parody. Decent. Vote.
Tibet - I don't think one fully reaches its potential but it's another good outtake. Love the vocals here, again. Why didn't Bruce bring this energy to the actual album??
Cadillac Gas Mask - A poppy AC/DC parody. This is one that's kept growing on me over the years. I think it's a really good song. Very repetitive but super fun.
No Way Out... Continued - Completely different than the other "No Way Out" song. This one is more synth driven although it does feature guitar in a prominent role (that solo is awesome). Just as good as "To Be Continued" though. Both of these tracks are killer and better than most of the album.
Also voting for "Bring Your Daughter... to the Slaughter" and "Darkness Be My Friend".
Lots of stuff here to vote for, so TM is safe for now (eventually Bring Your Daughter and Gypsy Road should go, but now is not the time).
Off the main album easy calls for Laughing in the Hiding Bush, Fire, and Shoot All the Clowns. To me, these are three of the worst songs in Bruce's whole catalog. Shoot All the Clowns in particular is a ridiculous Aerosmith parody that Is right up there with the worst off the previous album. Laughing in the Hiding Bush has a decent riff but Bruce's vocals throughout the song are really annoying.* Also not a big fan of the chorus. I know the song isn't meant to be taken too seriously, but it is just a little too goofy for me. Fire is just kind of a nothing song. Nothing too offensive, but a pretty weak hook and just screams filler.
Voting for all bonus tracks. Hearing this album develop through the demos and various stages of production is extremely fascinating. It also shows that Balls To Picasso is the best possible result from where Bruce was at the time. The Olsen demos have this Peter Gabriel art pop thing going on and it just isn't a good fit for Bruce's vocal style. They're also very bland and don't have the ingenuity or creativity that you get on the PG albums that Bruce was influenced by here. To my ears, these songs are outtakes for good reason. The best cut is definitely The Breeding House, but even then it's pretty undeveloped and forgettable.
*Bruce's voice in general drags a few of the songs down I think. He has some incredible moments, but there is also quite a bit of awkwardness with him trying to explore new musical styles and also accommodate and aging and tour shredded voice.
Off the main album easy calls for Laughing in the Hiding Bush, Fire, and Shoot All the Clowns. To me, these are three of the worst songs in Bruce's whole catalog. Shoot All the Clowns in particular is a ridiculous Aerosmith parody that Is right up there with the worst off the previous album. Laughing in the Hiding Bush has a decent riff but Bruce's vocals throughout the song are really annoying.* Also not a big fan of the chorus. I know the song isn't meant to be taken too seriously, but it is just a little too goofy for me. Fire is just kind of a nothing song. Nothing too offensive, but a pretty weak hook and just screams filler.
Voting for all bonus tracks. Hearing this album develop through the demos and various stages of production is extremely fascinating. It also shows that Balls To Picasso is the best possible result from where Bruce was at the time. The Olsen demos have this Peter Gabriel art pop thing going on and it just isn't a good fit for Bruce's vocal style. They're also very bland and don't have the ingenuity or creativity that you get on the PG albums that Bruce was influenced by here. To my ears, these songs are outtakes for good reason. The best cut is definitely The Breeding House, but even then it's pretty undeveloped and forgettable.
*Bruce's voice in general drags a few of the songs down I think. He has some incredible moments, but there is also quite a bit of awkwardness with him trying to explore new musical styles and also accommodate and aging and tour shredded voice.
Diesel 11
As you scream into the web of silence...
I knew as soon as I saw you post in this thread that the bad takes were gonna start flyin.
Spambot
Meme Lord
Holy Picassoballs Bruceman!
Those B-sides on BTP are something... else. I've definitely heard them before, but I completely forgot about them. When I heard them for second time, I went with mindset "This is just Bruce trying to be satirical/letting his steam off". Then I'm OK with them.
Shhh, don't tell Loose, he's still letting me vote in GMSC.
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
First round is easy for this album, it'll get harder after that. Voting for:
all of the B-sides except The Breeding House + Clowns + Cowboys
all of the B-sides except The Breeding House + Clowns + Cowboys
Black Bart
Ancient Mariner
Darkness - Cadillac - Seattle - Tibet
Kalata
Out of the Silent Planet
Gypsy Road
Bring Your Daughter... To The Slaughter
Darkness Be My Friend
Fire Child
Over And Out
Tibet
No Way Out... Continued (I prefer the rock/metal version to go through and we have to vote for something)
Cadillac Gas Mask (it's enjoyable and fun, but it's like a TM song)
Shoot All The Clowns (I like it, but I really don't like the post-chorus melody and the song shouldn't have been on the album in the first place)
It will get harder after the bonus stuff.
Bring Your Daughter... To The Slaughter
Darkness Be My Friend
Fire Child
Over And Out
Tibet
No Way Out... Continued (I prefer the rock/metal version to go through and we have to vote for something)
Cadillac Gas Mask (it's enjoyable and fun, but it's like a TM song)
Shoot All The Clowns (I like it, but I really don't like the post-chorus melody and the song shouldn't have been on the album in the first place)
It will get harder after the bonus stuff.
Kalata
Out of the Silent Planet
I agree with most of what you said, but I think Bruce's vocals on the album are great. I love his voice during 1994-1996 - as much as after 1997. The performances are strong and the album is full of powerful and energetic vocals/parts (even though it's mid-tempo overall). With some of the bonus songs, he shines more for sure.
Agreed.
Wow. I think the album is good because almost all songs are on a same solid and good level. Like NPFTD.
I like his vocal takes when trying to explore new musical styles too.
Diesel 11
As you scream into the web of silence...
It’s a cool inclusion but he really added way too much from the Tattooed Millionaire sessions. Why on earth would you include “Ballad of Mutt” when there are so many more interesting rarities? (Also “Italian Drummer”???)
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
The opinions on Bruce’s solo material is absolutely wild.
Fire, which I think is pretty good (if generic), has the absolute most votes while lame, jokey b-sides slide by and the terrible Sacred Cowboys has one vote (me).
Fire, which I think is pretty good (if generic), has the absolute most votes while lame, jokey b-sides slide by and the terrible Sacred Cowboys has one vote (me).
I kinda like Sacred Cowboys.
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
Apparently so do 14 other people.