Author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Artist: Bayley, Blaze
Label: Blaze Bayley Recordings
Release: 2018
Rating: 3/5
Even the famous former Iron Maiden »screamer« Blaze Bayley isn’t letting up. Truth be told, without his authenticity on the rock’n’roll and metal map, the world would be a lot more boring. The man stays ferociously driven and focused in everything he does. So focused, in fact, that this newfound ambition does him more harm than good, because all the ideas and vision he wants to pull off on his new releases simply outstrip his abilities. But let me hit the brakes for a second. Anyone who knows the first three studio albums of Bayley’s solo career, and adds the excellent »The Man Who Would Not Die« and »Promise And Terror« on top, knows this guy can deliver with real mastery.
Well, over the last decade of Bayley’s career that mastery has been missing way too often. And not because Blaze couldn’t do it or didn’t know how, or because he lacks a superb crew of backing musicians (the predecessor “Endure And Survive” came out nicer), but simply because Bayley insists on delivering an album that’s “a bit different” from the last one every single time. And in the hunt for that difference, things get a little tangled. So it stays crystal clear that Bayley is at his best only when he goes 100% with the songwriting instincts of his Iron Maiden days and the first era of his solo career.
Sure, the new album »The Redemption of William Black« is the final chapter of the sci-fi trilogy »Infinite Entanglement«, so it’s the closing part of a concept and needs a bit more finesse and forethought, but following the concept leads to yet another “experimental” detour. Bayley is far stronger when he goes for the personal, confessional stuff. When he hits hardest. Angriest, most wounded, beaten down, boxed in. That’s when his records get that real grip of darkness and »metal doom«! So. Better he copies himself and the stuff he made with Iron Maiden than surrenders to musical experimenting (including vocal duets, leaning way too hard on acoustic passages, etc…)
»The Redemeption of William Black« is a decent album, but just like its predecessors it leaves a bitter aftertaste that it could have been a lot better. The opener and the closer of the album prove the point. Opening track Redeemer and closing track Eagle Spirit are the best moments on the record. Redeemer is a punchy, wound-up opener, an unstoppable charge, and of course it recalls what Bayley wrote with Iron Maiden, and the same goes for the mini EP Eagle Spirit. The first is a distant cousin of Man on the Edge, the second a distant cousin of The Clansman. Everything in between is at times hugely promising, but far too often, thanks to the experimenting, slides into mediocrity. Bayley’s voice is extremely distinctive, and the man will finally have to accept that not every vocal setting suits him when it comes to getting the best out of his performance. In keeping with the concept, Bayley once again retreats into near-narrative chanting where the instrumental backing is practically nil. And those moments chop up the flow of the record. They rob it of punch, meaning charge, and (sadly) of some tastier listenability too This is no new discovery on »The Redemeption of William Black« either, but rather a songwriting element that the man has clung to convulsively in recent years, while the atmospheric and hard-hitting charge of his new releases suffers in the name of consistency and coherence.
The crew backing Bayley is excellent, and the man could squeeze considerably more out of the talent he has at his disposal than he’s managing right now. Appleton is a fantastic soloist, and he cleverly dresses up the riffs with ornamental harmonies in thirds. The man has an outstanding feel. But in a slightly different musical setting Bayley could have wrung even more out of his guitar skills. So let’s wait for the next album, which we can hope won’t be conceptual, and on which Bayley will once again serve up a pure-blooded application of the basic axiom of “the sacred simplicity of songwriting”.
Lineup
Blaze Bayley – vocals
Chris Appleton – guitar, backing vocals
Karl Schramm – bass guitar, backing vocals
Martin McNee – drums
GUEST MUSICIANS:
Chris Jericho – vocals on track no. 6
Luke Appleton – backing vocals
Michelle Scariotta – acoustic guitar, backing vocals, narration
Jo Robinson – backing vocals
Mel Adams – backing vocals
Liz Owen – backing vocals
Aine Brewer – narration
Rob Toogood – backing vocals
Production
Blaze Bayley & Chris Appleton
Tracklist
01. Redeemer
02. Are You Here
03. Immortal One
04. The First True Sign
05. Human Eyes
06. Prayers Of Light
07. 18 Days
08. Already Won
09. Life Goes On
10. The Dark Side Of Black
11. Eagle Spirit
