Review: Bruce Dickinson Goes Through the Motions On The Mandrake Project

Look, I like Bruce Dickinson as much as any other guy. He’s a legend. His body of work has left an indelible mark on metal, he still has a powerful voice, and puts on an electrifying performance to this day thanks to his unparalleled work ethic. Nobody can say the man hasn’t earned every bit of success that’s come his way.

…That being said, a great track record alone does not the Midas touch make. Even the greats put out stinkers from time to time, and while The Mandrake Project isn’t objectively “bad,” what it actually is may arguably be even worse: boring.

Like many of us, I automatically equate Bruce with Iron Maiden. And as much as we might try to separate an individual from their collective past works, you don’t get to be that famous and that groundbreaking for that long without the two entities becoming synonymous. I was aware of this going in, and I really, really tried to judge Mandrake strictly on its own merits, but no matter how you slice it, it’s just… dull.

Obviously it can’t hold a candle to Iron Maiden, but even without those inevitable comparisons it’s still just a bunch of uninspired quasi-hair metal riffs accompanied by an equally uninspired rhythm section. This album might have been cool if it came out 40 years ago, but even then it would have had some very stiff competition. Nowadays, it just sounds extremely generic and played out. The only saving grace is that Bruce still sounds great after all this time, even throwing in a strong occasional bluesy vocal fry that would have been a lot more satisfying with more interesting songwriting to back it up.

There is, however, one bright and shining beacon amongst the buffet of banality, and that is the sixth track “Eternity Has Failed.” Where all of the other songs are very predictable, this one actually takes its time in crafting the sort of vibrant imagery that they clearly had in mind the entire time. It has an extremely cinematic opening with a host of Peruvian percussion and woodwind instruments as Bruce croons out, “Here is the soul of a man.” Once the rest of the band finally kicks in it still sounds very much like an ’80s anthem, but a good one, a triumphant one that slowly builds up to a killer guitar and keyboard solo where you can practically see the sparks shooting up out of the stage as the crowd goes wild.

That’s the caliber of songwriting that I know and expect from someone like Bruce Dickinson. That is what we all know he’s capable of, which is part of what makes the rest of the album so disappointing to me. If it weren’t for the fact that it’s been so long since his previous solo release, I would have guessed that the band had some kind of deadline to meet and this is what was cranked out in order to appease the suits. That’s the vibe that I got. Call me crazy, but if you’ve established a decades-long working relationship with musicians like Steve Harris, Nicko McBrain, and Adrian Smith, then I’d say the standards have been set pretty damn high, don’t you think?

From all of the buzz and the press that I’ve seen about this album since it was announced, a lot of people seem to be really enjoying The Mandrake Project. Raving about it, even. The continuation of a dynasty, some are saying. I personally don’t see it. I guess I’m just in the minority on this one, but that’s alright. It’s certainly not the first time, and I’m sure it won’t be the last. I’ll just wait until the next time Maiden comes to town, and if they don’t, then at least I can say I’ve already had the pleasure of seeing them twice.

I’ll wrap it up by saying this: if you’re a fan of Bruce Dickinson, there is no shortage of Bruce Dickinson to be had here. The man still has perfect control over his powerful signature voice after all these years, which is very impressive given how long he’s been around and how hard he’s gone the entire time. The lyrics and the imagery are on point, painting vivid pictures and telling grand, epic stories with every song as only Bruce can.

The problem is, all of that vibrant imagery and the voice of a bona fide legend feel like wasted potential when paired with music that sounds like it belongs in a commercial for a pickup truck.

Bruce Dickinson’s The Mandrake Project is available now via BMG.