Blaze Bayley's solo career has been, in terms of output, pretty inconsistent. The first few albums (under the "Blaze" namesake, whilst not bad at all, were continually accused of attempting to deviate attention from the mixed reactions to Iron Maiden's Blaze-fronted records,
The X Factor and
Virtual XI. Yet when he restarted his solo career using his full name and the release of arguably his best work to date,
The Man Who Would Not Die (surely a title to annoy the haters), such comparisons to his work with Iron Maiden were soundly shafted into the past. In fact, it's safe to say that the man is known more for his divisive albeit passionate vocal work than his brief stint with one of heavy metal's biggest groups.
...So why exactly is Bayley's latest album,
The Redemption of William Black, so uninspired and why does it feel like a chore to get into? It could be that the man himself is now showing his age. Though I can visualize the steam coming out of several fans' ears at the behest of this previous statement, you only really have to listen to the opening track to soundly confirm that vocal delivery on Bayley's latest solo release is all too grainy and certainly struggles to get pitch perfect with the galloping musicianship. The songs which utilize poetical narrative and place this aspect at the forefront ("Redeemer", "Immortal One" and "Eagle Spirit") turn out to be slightly above average, but the moment half-hearted rhythms come into play and Bayley's vocals rail at the mastered sound, the mood is essentially bittersweet. Earlier in his solo career, you wouldn't have experienced much of this, if at all. The previous albums were essentially spot on in that respect.
However,
The Redemption... does still have a few golden moments. The problem here is that these golden moments, i.e. the album's best songs, are intertwined with the album's worst. So you're left with inconsistent placement of well-written songs coupled with uninspired metal tunes, the latter sounding as if it's there simply to extend the runtime. The almost ballad-like "Human Eyes" explores Bayley's softer approach to vocal delivery and funnily enough, he actually makes it work. The dulcet tones perfectly match the song's generally gentle, serene feel and for the first time in this album it sounds as if Blaze Bayley is actually putting effort in. It's a beautiful song, as is the balance of driving musicianship and galloping rhythms in "18 Days", which also features a decent dual vocal lead with Liz Owen, herself being a versatile vocalist. The final obvious highlight from this effort is the bold and effective closer, "Eagle Spirit", which soars and proves fluent even for its near 10-minute runtime. Although the mood is crushed slightly by the tedium of the previous few songs, which are hard to tell apart, "Eagle Spirit" develops sound proof that Blaze Bayley can still pen an epic and almost outdo his past achievements when nobody expected him to.
It's a shame that the rest of the album is far from the quality of these few aforemetioned songs, but that's what happens to many artists in a similar position and with the same level of experience as Blaze Bayley.
The Redemption of William Black therefore turns out to be half-filled with forgettable tunes and evidence that Bayley is losing his touch, the other half seeming inspired and proving that his solo career is still fully intact. Perhaps with the next release Blaze Bayley will kick back into touch with a stronger overall vocal performance and consistent songwriting, but for now it would be best to return to
The Man Who Would Not Die if you want Blaze Bayley at his very best (under the guise of Blaze Bayley, not merely Blaze).
