Gather ‘Round and Let Bruce Dickinson Tell You a Story in His New Single “Rain On The Graves”
From what we know about Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson‘s solo effort The Mandrake Project, it’s going to be a multimedia effort that tells a cohesive story across the record and in the accompanying comic book project. So it only makes sense that the album’s second single and music video is full of exposition and imagery.
The song, “Rain On The Graves,” feels theatrical. With a driving heavy metal sound keeping the story moving, the track fluctuates between spoken word passages and a little bit of that doomy side he seems to be experimenting with.
Not only is the video below apparently an homage to old school horror/thriller flicks, but it’s also the official introduction to Dickinson’s live band, comprised of guitarist Roy Z, drummer Dave Moreno, bass-player Tanya O’Callaghan and keyboardist Mistheria.
Speaking of the song itself, Dickinson said it’s based on an idea he’s had rattling around his head for more than a decade now.
“I had the chorus lyric in my head since I visited Grasmere for a wedding back in 2012 and it wasn’t difficult years later to create the rest of the song with so much rich imagery in my head!”
Dickinson’s naturally no stranger to writing songs with a cohesive story behind them. Just check out Iron Maiden songs like “When The Wild Wind Blows,” “Rime of the Ancient Mariner”… or really any number of songs from his extensive career.
The Mandrake Project will be released on March 1, but you can preorder your copy today. Dickinson’s also heading out on tour later this year, so be sure to check out the dates below.
Bruce Dickinson – The Mandrake Project Tour
18th April – Diana Theater, Guadalajara, MEXICO [Tickets]
20th April – Pepsi Theatre, Mexico City, MEXICO [Tickets]
24th April – Live Curitiba, Curitiba, BRAZIL [Tickets]
25th April – Pepsi On Stage, Porto Alegre, BRAZIL [Tickets]
27th April – Opera Hall, Brasilia, BRAZIL [Tickets]
28th April – Arena Hall, Belo Horizonte, BRAZIL [Tickets]
30th April – Qualistage, Rio De Janeiro, BRAZIL [Tickets]
2nd May – Quinta Linda, Ribeirao Preto, BRAZIL [Tickets]
4th May – Vibra, Sao Paulo, BRAZIL [Tickets]
16th May – The Halls, Wolverhampton, UK + [Tickets]
18th May – Barrowland Ballroom, Glasgow, UK [Tickets]
19th May – O2 Academy, Manchester, UK [Tickets]
21st May – Arena, Swansea, UK [Tickets]
23rd May – Rock City, Nottingham, UK [Tickets]
24th May – O2 Forum Kentish Town, London, UK [Tickets]
26th May – L’Olympia, Paris, FRANCE [Tickets]
28th May – 013, Tilburg, HOLLAND [Tickets]
29th May – De Oosterport, Groningen, HOLLAND [Tickets]
1st June – Barba Negra, Budapest, HUNGARY [Tickets]
3rd June – Arenale Romane, Bucharest, ROMANIA [Tickets]
6th June – Mystic Festival, Gdansk, POLAND * [Tickets]
5-8th June – Sweden Rock Festival, Solvesborg, SWEDEN * [Tickets]
9th June – Rockefeller, Oslo, NORWAY [Tickets]
11th June – Grona Lund, Stockholm, SWEDEN [Tickets]
13th June – House Of Culture, Helsinki, FINLAND [Tickets]
14th June – Noblessner Foundry, Tallinn, ESTONIA [Tickets]
16th June – Huxleys Neue Welt, Berlin, GERMANY [Tickets]
17th June – Grosse Freiheit 36, Hamburg, GERMANY [Tickets]
19 – 22nd June – Copenhell, Copenhagen, DENMARK * [Tickets]
21st June – Graspop Metal Meeting, Dessel, BELGIUM * [Tickets]
22nd June – Summerside Festival, Grenchen, SWITZERLAND * [Tickets]
24th June – Zeltfestival Rhein-Neckar, Mannheim, GERMANY * [Tickets]
25th June – Circus Krone, Munich, GERMANY [Tickets]
26th – 29th June – Resurrection Festival, Galicia, SPAIN *+ [Tickets]
27-30th June – Hellfest, Clisson, FRANCE * [Tickets]
30th June – Rockhal, Esch-Sur-Alzette, LUXEMBOURG [Tickets]
3-6th July – Rockharz Open Air, Ballenstedt, GERMANY * [Tickets]
5th July – Ippodrome Delle Capannelle, Rock In Roma, Rome, ITALY * [Tickets]
6th July – Bassano Del Grappa, Metal Park, Vincenza, ITALY * [Tickets]
9th July – E-Werk, Koln, GERMANY [Tickets]
11th – 14th July – Masters Of Rock Festival, Vizovice, Czech Republic *+ [Tickets]
13th July – Hala, Zagreb, CROATIA [Tickets]
16th July – Kolodrum Arena, Sofia, BULGARIA [Tickets]
19th July – Kucukciftlik Park, Istanbul, TURKEY [Tickets]
21st July – Release, Athens, GREECE * [Tickets]
* – festival performance
+ – new date added
