Bruce Dickinson
Skunkworks

THE REVIEW

I want to go out on a limb, I know I will probably exaggerate, I will make mistakes, but I have to do it: "Skunkworks" is one of the most interesting albums in Dickinson's solo career. It's not a stance on my part, but I want to emphasize with all my heart that one cannot go against such a work.

"Skunkworks" was not born as a simple album, but as a real project, involving Alex Dickson on guitar, Chris Dale on bass, and the Italian Alessandro Elena on drums (it’s no coincidence that Bruce composed a B-side titled "I'm In A Band With An Italian Drummer"). The former Iron Maiden vocalist wanted to try to infuse a sound to his band that completely cut ties with his musical past: songs of minimal duration; solos that are not a moment of Dickson's virtuosity, but an integral part of the structure of the individual pieces; lyrics reduced to a few lines. It was clear and obvious that all the Maiden fans wouldn't like it, making "Skunkworks" a commercial flop. But certainly, sales do not determine the quality of a good album. As happened with "Chameleon" by Helloween, we are faced with an album to listen to again and to reevaluate.

With this album, Dickinson seems to blend in a very personal mix of Metal and Grunge/Indie, making this work one of the most original of his solo career. It starts with one of the lighter songs on the album, "Space Race", almost a foretaste for the following tracks: "Back From The Edge" throws us into the fray immediately, with guitars alternating to create a beautiful stereo effect and giving more suggestion to the song; "Inertia" is instead direct, angry, a real slap in the face; "Faith" is certainly the most hard rock-oriented song, with a biting riff and a simple solo that perfectly fits the soul of the song. "Solar Confinement" is wonderful, in my opinion the best song on the record: unfortunately, we hit the first stopping point with "Dreamstate" and "I Will Not Accept The Truth", probably the least original and brilliant of Dickinson's entire work. Don't worry: "Inside The Machine", "Headswitch", and "Meltdown" make us once again understand why this album is worthy of praise! Fast, unexpected, adrenaline-filled: these seem to be the main ingredients for the conception of the songs on “Skunkworks.” Concluding our journey are "Octavia", a very catchy semi-ballad, the powerful "Innerspace" and "Strange Death In Paradise", which carries with it some echoes of the vocalist's past, and turns out to be one of the most articulated songs on the album.

Grab the CD. Put it in the stereo or your Walkman. Press play and enjoy it again, keeping in mind that this is not the usual Bruce, that this is not "The Chemical Wedding", nor "Accident Of Birth", that this is not the usual Heavy Metal album with a sound similar to the Maiden: this is the first and last work of "Skunkworks", a project born and died in 1996. We listeners killed it. Long live Skunkworks.