#stratego

When the weather wasn't obnoxiously horrible (as it often was), my father would take me to the field down the street in his blue, outdated Volkswagen van every evening after dinner, and we would play catch with these two baseball gloves and a worn baseball we had longer than I was alive. We'd always bring my dog, who'd play monkey in the middle until we threw a toy for him. After, we'd head home, maybe an hour later, and play my favorite board game, Stratego. And every time, I would play the red team, since it was closer to my favorite color. I believe Stratego may have contributed to the obsession with TF2, given the similarities. My favorite piece was always the spy, to a point my father started hiding his marshal in the front on the far sides, beside the lakes.

Iron Maiden: Senjutsu (2021)

I don’t know if it was the Covid-19 quarantine hangover or the enduring quality of 2015’s The Book of Souls, but I don’t think many fans were quite ready for a new Iron Maiden album when Senjutsu unexpectedly dropped into our laps in the fall of 2021 -- and to think it was put on hold for two whole years.

Whatever the reason, initial spins of Maiden’s 17th studio LP left me a little cold, but recent writing assignments to evaluate the band’s best album openers and closers for Loudwire forced me to give Senjutsu (戦術 in Japanese, which loosely translates as ‘tactics and strategy’) a closer listen that rehabilitated my opinion considerably.

But you have to be patient ...

Far from an optimal first impression, the opening title track pounds along (go, Nicko, go!) at a steady, deliberate pace for a taxing eight minutes-plus, and a quick glance at the ten-song, nearly hour-and-a-half program with no less than three, Steve Harris-penned behemoths bringing up the rear honestly filled me with dread.

Well, I’m happy to say that my second do-round with this record proved some of my fears were unwarranted -- not least because both the galloping “Stratego” and first single “Writing on the Wall” provide a few breaths fresh air, energy, and economy to the proceedings.

But I’d still call Senjutsu an album of ‘moments,’ such as the brooding intro melodies to “Darkest Hour,” the slashing staccato riffs on “Days of Future Past,” and Bruce Dickinson’s understated crooning at either end of Harris’ “Lost in a Lost World” -- maybe the album’s best track.

On that note, I do wish Bruce wasn’t so often pushed to top of his range (though the old chap always pulls through), and I occasionally questioned Steve’s ever-present synthesizer backdrops (maybe the most he’s used since Seventh Son).

But I can’t say enough about the triple guitar threat of Dave Murray, Adrian Smith, and Janick Gers, whose solos illuminate many of those longer, nebulous numbers -- both the good (“The Parchment,” “Hell On Earth”) and not-so-good (“The Time Machine,” “Death of the Celts”) -- with fantastic fireworks.

In fact, there were many times I found myself labeling Senjutsu “a guitar player’s album,” whatever that means in a heavy metal album (lots and lots and lots of guitars, obviously).

In conclusion, I still wouldn’t elevate this LP alongside Iron Maiden’s best efforts of the Third Millennium (Brave New World, Book of Souls), but this further exposure convinced me that it’s definitely not in the lower tier (Dance of Death, The Final Frontier), either.

Finally, while I’m all for deluxe packaging -- and every last image and incarnation of Eddie I can set my eyes on -- I do wish the high-gloss finish on this lavishly decorated trifold sleeve didn’t force me to don fucking museum curator gloves to handle it without leaving finger smudges.