After a few listens I can accept/appreciate this song. Some positive thoughts: overall, I like guitar sound; keyboards/organs fits this song, enhances it's impact; Roy's solo is very good, reminds me of TCW era. I like theatrics of it all. I like the video.
Negative: chorus part It's just rain, rain, rain to me seems melodically not fitting/not fully fleshed out. This song been in the making for many years... and I don't like it's ending. Fade-out type songs - no matter what band - to me always reeks laziness and unfinishedness even if song is great.
Overall 7.5/10
...and yeah that chugging guitar rhythm part is straight out from The Green Manalishi.
I appreciate the different nature (and after more listens), it's just not my thing. I can't like it enough, I can enjoy it, but still. The chorus is really effective, the riff is solid, but I think it's the weakest single of Bruce. Rating is 5-6/10 at most. I prefer something different like Priest latest single, for example. Bruce should have delivered better with the 2nd single, with something classic for him.
This time the song doesn't have enough interesting parts and is masked with heavy repetition and keys. Unlike Ragnarok imo. It makes even a song like ''Believil'' stand out (I never thought I'd say that). There are also some issues with the vocals mix here and there and Roy's double solo sounds odd now. It's underwhelming and disappointing, because of their talent and especially because the song was in the works since 2014! Albeit created different on purpose. It's a lazy song for Bruce's standards. So far, it feels that maybe because of the long process with the album, Roy and Bruce just wanted to finally finish it without more deep thought. Why would they record it when Roy had a problem? I hope I'm wrong.
They keys/organs fits, but it also sounds a bit empty and lazy. Like chorus lyrics (Bruce had plenty of time to change them). The ''rain, rain, rain'' part is not bad imo. The chorus is:
There is rain on the graves
There is rain on the graves
There is rain on the graves
It's just rain, rain, rain
There is rain on the graves
But you came to be saved
There is rain on the graves
Let it wash your soul of dying
He could have cutted some of the repetition. One of the first 3 lines for the 6th line.
If I have to be honest, it would have been a nice bonus song - and I bet the song called Nightmares is much much better. I hope we find out someday.
What I would have done - verses & outro/ending like Priest's Evil Never Dies (both songs have a similar vibe), calm middle part before the solo like Priest's Sword Of Damocles (something along those lines) and chorus like Maiden's Days Of Future Past. There, I said it.
I’m also thinking long term here. If Maiden comes to an end and Bruce starts releasing albums with songs like this every few years, would I be happy? Yeah. He’s got nothing left to prove so he dabbles in whatever ideas he may have, and I’m digging it so far. Not on a TCW level maybe but we’re in a different era for solo Bruce anyway.
No matter what, I will always want Bruce to create songs like his classic solo style - and Maiden's style. Songs like Rain, no thanks.
It's a different era for his solo music, but I think he gets carried away with experimentation (again). Steve knows better for Maiden. You use such heavy riffs and make such a different and atypical song for them...? And Roy said that he wanted to go beyond the sound of TCW?
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