82 MINUTES. TEN SONGS ONE SAMURAI,
“NICKO CAME IN AND SAID, ‘WHAT THE FUCK ARE WE MAKING A RECORD FOR?!’”
BRUCE DICKINSON
The last 18 months have been a nightmare of frustration and cancelled plans for most musicians, but imagine being Bruce Dickinson. When Hammer meets the Iron Maiden singer in London, as the band prepare to unveil their 17th studio album, he has a restless, fiery look in his eyes. Dressed, as has become traditional, in the leisurewear of a dedicated cyclist – dark, plain vest; joggers – he greets us with some expected cheery enthusiasm. But as we unzip the monstrous wonders of the album in question, the mighty Senjutsu, it becomes increasingly obvious that Bruce has been going slightly mad waiting for the world to open up again. The last time we spoke to him on the eve of the release of a new Maiden album (2015’s The Book Of Souls), he cut a relaxed and relieved figure, the spectre of his battle with throat cancer then receding into the distance. But today, Bruce is visibly excited about what comes next, not least because it turns out that Iron Maiden have been sitting on Senjutsu since... hang on a pissing minute... 2019?! No wonder that he is so clearly delighted that we’ve just been granted a sneak preview of the full album. He leans forward in his chair and grins.
“Good, isn’t it?” he says. Yes, mate. It’s fucking great.
Surprisingly, but due to some very obvious logistical reasons, the legendary Brits’ 17th studio record has been gathering dust in a can, quite conceivably in some obscure, subterranean vault and guarded by Eddie’s snarling minions, for the best part of two years. Recorded once came together during a brief pause in live activity following the first part of Maiden’s wildly acclaimed Legacy Of The Beast world tour.
