Bruce Dickinson

[Vaenyr]

I'll post a more comprehensive review of my thoughts on the album later tonight.

Sonata? Are those time-capsuled vocals? 0 lisp and sounds completely different than rest of the album. Sounds to me like 2014 Bruce or even 1998 Bruce.

Definitely older vocals. Just like Shadow Of The Gods which is almost entirely 2014 (or earlier) Bruce.

 

[Kalata]

The intro is good but the same as the song Freak.

That's a minus for sure.

but the verses are awful: this is not melodious and he has not the voice anymore to sing this way.

I can't agree. He just could have done more takes (like in some other parts). The album is full of melodic singing, let one song take a more aggressive approach.

 

[Vaenyr]

The best part about Mistress Of Mercy is the chorus with its heavy Skunkworks vibes.

 

[Gd78]

The best part about Mistress Of Mercy is the chorus with its heavy Skunkworks vibes.

Yes indeed, Skunkworks vibe

 

[TheMercenary]

What page is that post on?

Métal Intégral - Chronique / BRUCE DICKINSON - The mandrake project

Metal Integral. Webzine de l'association PLANETE MUSIC au service du metal melodique. Chroniques d'albums, galeries photos, reportages, live report... et une rubrique 'Futures stars' consacrée aux groupes underground du monde entier

www.metal-integral.com

 

[GhostofCain]

First listen... not blown away. Looking forward to Mandrake growing on me of course over time.

Honestly, enjoying Blaze's Circle of Stone far more at the moment.

Same here.

 

[Helmuth Von Moltke]

Not sure I'd even rank it above TOS at the moment.

Let's see how it goes, but AOB and CW were made with H and when Bruce was 39 and 40 years old. Even TOS he was only 47.

I can see what he means by 'mature metal' but so far, Mandrake is missing a lot for me.

Very bitty sounding album with tracks that literally sound like they were made at different times. I don't even like the cover art for the first time on a Bruce album since Balls to Picasso (which had a very bad cover picture )

 

[Diesel 11]

but AOB and CW were made with H

…and Eddie Casillas and Dave Ingraham, not just the tightest rhythm section Bruce has ever worked with but also one of my favorites overall. This specific incarnation of Bruce’s solo band had terrific writing, fantastic groove, and memorable guitar leads and solos. It’s a shame we’ll never see this band back together again, unless Iron Maiden comes to an end and H needs something to do.

 

[Vaenyr]

Same here.

Would love to hear your thoughts in a week or two after having had the change to listen to the songs a bit more. I'm still not a big fan of the album, but Many Doors To Hell for example has grown on me.

 

[Brazilian Benjamin Breeg]

I like how some of the songs sound like a 15-year-younger Bruce. Not sure what caused it in the mix/recording process though.

 

[GhostofCain]

I have listened to the album once and there are some good things on it and some others that I do not particularly enjoy.

Positive aspects first: Shadow of the Gods is quite possibly the best song on the album. I also liked Many Doors to Hell, with that very Scorpions-like riff and the Hammond organ. Mistress of Mercy is a nice throwback to the Accident of Birth era, although it is nowhere near the quality of Freak. Face in the Mirror is a good ballad, showcasing the excellent qualities of Bruce's voice for this type of song.

On the other hand, some other songs are fairly mediocre and sound like a copy and paste of very different bits without any sort of coherent flow. Resurrection Men is a perfect example of this, as is Fingers in the Wounds (the latter is redeemed by the Kashmir-like interlude). Sonata is overlong and somewhat boring; younger Bruce's voice shines on the song though.

The production is disappointing considering what Roy Z had managed to achieve on previous Bruce solo albums. It does not help that Bruce is straining a lot in places and does not sound that good on the more recent vocal takes. The contrast with his voice on Sonata, for example, is striking.

I hope the album will grow on me, but I struggle to think it would ever get in my top 5 of Bruce solo albums.

 

[GhostofCain]

I like how some of the songs sound like a 15-year-younger Bruce. Not sure what caused it in the mix/recording process though.

He recorded some of those takes in the late 90s and some others a decade ago, that's why!

 

[redandtheblack92]

Mistress Of Mercy

This is Bruce Dickinson. What a track. Love it. Vintage Roy solo on this one. Great sound layering on this one. Best track on the album so far, by far. The ending could've been halved, tho.

The final chorus brings about that feeling of joy and like everything in life’s going well for a change. Plus for some reason reminds me of TMNT kicking ass

 

[redandtheblack92]

I think it's pretty close. The instrumental section of Eternity Has Failed is sweet. The keyboards generally elevate this album.

Got a very Stratovarius feel to it

 

[Poto]

Face in the Mirror is a good ballad, showcasing the excellent qualities of Bruce's voice for this type of song.

I also liked that one.

 

[Prowler]

I've listened to the album once and I have mixed feelings. I can hear a lot of Deep Purple, Zeppelin, Alice Cooper, Arthur Brown etc. Resurrection Men riff is like Chris Rea or something. Some oriental influence in some other tracks. Many Doors to Hell and Rain on the Graves are my favourites and Afterglow and Face in the mirror my least favs. Eternity is a lot weaker than the Maiden version although the intro is better here. Sonata is a weird one but I like the vocals. I don't know if it will grow on me, but right now it's like a 5 or 6/10 album.

 

[GhostofCain]

Definitely older vocals. Just like Shadow Of The Gods which is almost entirely 2014 (or earlier) Bruce.

The difference between older vocal takes and new ones is significant.

 

[Ascendingthethrone]

The difference between older vocal takes and new ones is significant.

It’s really noticeable in Eternity.

 

[PhantomOfTheOpera]

For what Im now at last listening to the album, I've heard few songs that weren't prereleased from the album and so far Im liking this one.

 

[Vaenyr]

It’s really noticeable in Eternity.

Yeah, almost got whiplash when the chorus with the new lyrics came in. Of course it's not really fair to compare post-cancer Bruce to his younger self, but on the other hand having both voices on the same song kinda invites these comparisons.

I'm not gonna pretend that he's a bad vocalist nowadays; he's still great. But hearing his younger voice on the same track makes me think two things: 1.) It's such a shame that he didn't release the album a decade ago and 2.) I would've liked him to commit one way or another; either use the old vocals or re-record the entire vocals. Don't mix and match.