Bruce Dickinson has released his brand new single, ‘Rain On The Graves’, accompanied by a thrilling video introducing Bruce’s live band, comprising guitarist Roy Z, drummer Dave Moreno, bass-player Tanya O’Callaghan and keyboard maestro Mistheria.
‘Rain On The Graves’ is the second single to be taken from Bruce Dickinson’s forthcoming solo album The Mandrake Project which will be released on March 1st, via BMG.
Riding on a towering guitar riff, with dramatic keyboards and a commanding vocal performance, it was inspired by a rainy visit to Romantic poet William Wordsworth’s grave in the Lake District. The song grew into a rumination on the nature of mortality and the deal with the Devil that artists have come to feel themselves making ever since Robert Johnson proved it worthwhile back in the 1930s.
“I had the chorus lyric since I visited Grasmere for a wedding back in 2012,” explains Bruce, “and it wasn’t difficult years later to create the rest of the song with so much rich imagery in my head!” It is a classic Dickinson/Roy Z collaboration; a catchy but heavy piece – full of melody but stripping out the spoken vocals of the verses in almost poetic fashion – maybe a further ode to the great wordsmith who inspired the title, somehow juxtaposed with music fit to raise the ghost of Robert Johnson at his metaphorical crossroads.
With a video shot entirely in a wintery Cornwall – again with Director Ryan Mackfall – we get to see Bruce the actor, a preacher no less, making his own deal with the Devil and dragging his ‘House Band from Hell’ into the bargain.
The follow up single to the hugely acclaimed track ‘Afterglow Of Ragnarok’, ‘Rain On The Graves’ showcases the inventive, expansive and absorbing nature of The Mandrake Project.
Sonically heavy and rich in musical textures, the album sees Bruce bring to life a musical vision long-in-the-making. Created with co-writer and producer Roy Z, they have crafted one of the defining rock albums of 2024.
However, The Mandrake Project is not just an album. The comic book of the same name is a dark, adult story of power, abuse and a struggle for identity, set against the backdrop of scientific and occult genius. Created by Bruce Dickinson, it is a collectable series of graphic novels scripted by Tony Lee (Dr Who), stunningly illustrated by Staz Johnson (2000AD) & with covers by industry heavyweight Bill Sienkiewicz for Z2 Comics, which will be released as 12 quarterly issues that will be collated into three annual graphic novels with the first coming at the end of 2024. The first individual episode was released in comic shops on January 17th & the special Collectors’ Edition sold out within 48 hours of release.
The Mandrake Project will be Dickinson’s seventh solo album. It will be released via BMG worldwide on multiple formats.
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