Avtor: Aleš Podbrežnik
Izvajalec: Iron Maiden
Založba: EMI Records
Izid: 2006
Trajanje: 12:43
Ocena: 4/5
Maybe you’re wondering why we’re suddenly reviewing the first and lead single from “A Matter Of Life And Death”?!? A single that came out on 08/14/2006. Well, sometimes a promo gem turns up with a two-year delay. So here I am, holding the promo CD. The content on it differs from both official releases of this single that made it to the stores.
Since 1995 or so, Iron Maiden have been going for really sprawling song structures with long intros. But when it comes to singles, it’s not their habit to put out stretched-out, more complex compositions, which is absolutely not the case with The Reincarnation Of Benjamin Breeg.
The interweaving of Harris’s familiar gloomy acoustic bass lines and the arrival of Bruce Dickinson’s distinctive, one-of-a-kind vocals fleetingly echo the intro of a gem like Dance Of Death. But once two minutes have rolled by, a sharp “lick” cuts through the calm and the band hits together with a very simple but avalanche-heavy, massive riff, driven by what I’d call a slowed-down to mid-tempo rhythm. Iron Maiden conjure up a dark atmosphere in an instant, the kind you’ve been running into with this band since the mid-nineties up to today, and the blame for that lies in a somewhat changed approach to writing the music. The atmosphere feels dark, seriously dark. Fateful, doomed. The lead motif is incredibly well done, one that could make even a doom metaller jealous. Iron Maiden have never put a song like this together in their career, and yet it’s a typical Iron Maiden song. That proves the guys haven’t said the last word in their arsenal of musical expression. It’s also an excellent choice for a single, because with its structure it actually offers a seriously fitting glimpse into the whole “A Matter Of Life And Death” album, which many like to stick with the misleading “progressive” metal label.
After four and a half minutes, the song comes completely alive and swells in mood into an epic, darkly melancholic vibe, with the signature arrangement of triple guitar harmonies and sudden, unexpected shifts into new lead motifs that lead us to a guitar solo section. Through all of this, I really can’t find a sensible parallel with any Iron Maiden song from earlier albums, and yet it’s a typical Iron Maiden song — let’s call it a typical mini EP, of the kind the band has produced an enviable heap of over the last 21 years, despite only five albums released.
And who is Benjamin Breeg? It’s not hard to piece together from the lyrics that this is the rage of a martyr who didn’t fulfill the deeds he was sent to Earthly Paradise for. So he reincarnated again to tell us this story. The vibe even nudges something like Paschendale. And the theme? Occultism with a deliberate dose of evil, something Iron Maiden love above all and have always been drawn to. In that sense too, “The Reincarnation Of Benjamin Breeg” offers a very objective glimpse into the album “A Matter Of Life And Death”.
Alongside the song The Reincarnation Of Benjamin Breeg, as you’ll find it on the album “A Matter Of Life And Death”, there’s another version of it, trimmed by two minutes. The calm intro section is cut off cleanly. It opens straight with the guitar “lick” and the charge into the main guitar pattern. This version carries the label “Rock Club version” in parentheses, so it’s meant for all the DJs spinning in places with real music.
“The Reincarnation Of Benjamin Breeg” is a single any Iron Maiden fan could only wish for, and one that, given the more complex structure of the song itself, Iron Maiden haven’t released before in their career. With it, the predictable headbanging onslaught of the The Wicker Man, Wildest Dreams, The Man On the Edge or Futureal type is over for a while. As such, The Reincarnation Of Benjamin Breeg will one day, on some future new best-of compilation (Mercy, please. Which one is it now?), make for a really interesting touch of sparkling freshness on the level of Virus. A move, in other words, that confirms Iron Maiden are not aging at all. What a relief! More of this, please!
Line-up
Bruce Dickinson – vocals
Dave Murray – guitar
Janick Gers – guitar, backing vocals
Adrian Smith – guitar, backing vocals
Steve Harris – bass guitar, backing vocals
Nicko McBrain – drums
Production
Kevin Shirley
Track list
1. The Reincarnation Of Benjamin Breeg*
2. The Reincarnation Of Benjamin Breeg (Rock Club version)
* song from the album “A Matter Of Life And Death”
