Breaking this out into its own thread since it’s a hot topic and we don’t want to drown any other Mandrake Project news that might come up.
I like the new song a lot. The pre-chorus is a bit odd, but the riffs and chorus and overall mood are all winners.
I even like the video — it’s cool in a schlocky kind of way, which I think was the whole point.
Definitely a good sign for the rest of the album. I honestly got chills on that first chorus. Love the somewhat harsh vocals towards the end. Bruce’s voice has changed a bit since Senjutsu but he still sounds absolutely amazing.
Hey @Jer, to me the pre-chorus is probably the best part of the song. Weird and cool! But maybe the bridge is broken, you know…?
And the song is great! I was surprised by the chorus because the main riff and the outro vocals are so god darn heavy, and the chorus is not. But it’s beautiful and atmospheric. I think the keyboards play a very important role here. I’m not sure about the drums and guitars because I’m not a big fan of ultra-modern metal soundscapes.
But Bruce sounds so good! And it’s a relief because the album has been in the making for such a long time, the man himself not getting any younger in the process, and some things he’s done with Maiden in recent years haven’t seen him at his best, so to say. I hoped and expected that with a more strict production or maybe even more thought-through arrangements there would be no problem, and well, this song delivers! At least here Roy plays in B tuning, which is two and a half steps lower than Maiden; that might have a notable effect on some vocal lines, and indeed, the chorus is quite low for a Bruce vocal melody.
Well, I got a bit technical here. Back to streaming the song! The Sun will rise agaaaaaaaiiiiiiin! Agaaaaaaaiiiiiiinnn!!!
Oh, and I’m pretty sure that the video is quite close to what they wanted it to be. But what is the Mandrake Project? I don’t think they’re up to anything good…
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Has anybody heard the demo/Bruce’s version for ‘If Eternity Should Fail’ yet?
Yes, you can hear it here for now. It’s an interesting curiosity, but the finalized Maiden version sounds better, as you’d expect.
I would have loved that too if I was Steve!
Yeah, I like the purpose it serves in the song, but I wasn’t completely sold on its execution the first couple of times I heard it. I’m sure I’ll warm to it.
Thanks for the link! I actually prefer Roy’s bass lines to Steve’s in this one!
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It has been worth the wait just to hear THAT EPIC CHORUS!!!
What’s interesting to me how much there is a sonic space filled by keys/synth/choir. Mistheria has a lot to handle! This is definitely not a twin-guitar attack song. I like that Roy and Bruce explore other keys that D and E minor, LOL. B minor is great for Bruce now.
I hoped for a little more fiery solo from Roy, but I expect other tunes will get him to show off more. Do we know who played drums on the record? I also can’t hear much of what the bass is doing, due to the aforementioned keyboard stuff…
Anyway, the song titles make me any more excited…
ALL HAIL BRUCE!!
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Dave Moreno, same as Tyranny Of Souls.
…and we already have a Zwijsen acoustic cover! Pretty cool, actually.