Senjutsu by Iron Maiden and New Rock and Heavy Album Highlights
By: Rui Alves
Tags: Music, Review, Metal, Culture, Rock

September started with a bang. Iron Maiden released Senjutsu, and we got several new rock and heavy albums from renowned acts. With new studio albums from Carnifex, The Night Flight Orchestra, among others.

New Rock and Heavy Releases — September 3, 2021

Iron Maiden — Senjutsu

On Monday, 19 July, we learned that the seventeenth studio album by British metal gods Iron Maiden would be entitled Senjutsu.

Back then, the band also revealed the cover, tracklist and announced September 3 as the release date. Looking at the title and artwork, we expected the new opus to have a strong oriental influence.

The first single, “The Writing on The Wall,” is a token of that influence, thinking how Senjutsu (“mage techniques”)means the art of gathering natural energy for performing magic. The music video depicts this magic power in an anime-like scenario.

Source: Iron Maiden | YouTube

Hence, this is a rather conceptual release featuring ten tracks inspired by Asian history and that according to Bruce Dickinson. In terms of duration, the album overpasses 80-minutes; thus, the songs are pretty long.

The Iron Maiden fandom is also in for a couple of surprises as some of the songs sound somewhat different from the bands’ usual style.

Hence get ready for some intricate melodies punctuated by crafty riffing, as after listening to it, I realized there are some highly complex songs in this opus. Namely, tracks like “Hell On Earth” (11:19) or “The Parchment” (12:39) are pretty experimental and drift further away from Maiden’s leitmotivs.

Source: Iron Maiden | YouTube

Carnifex — Graveside Confessions

Last week, San Diego dark Deathcore pathfinders, Carnifex released a new studio album entitled Graveside Confessions.

With just over 15 years in the business, Carnifex’s new album reflects the upsetting period we face.

Graveside Confessions began to take shape during the COVID pandemic; hence the album is precisely what the title depicts—an eulogy focusing on the past year—a time when so many faced their darkest hour.

In 2020, the musicians took a somewhat nonchalant stance toward a new record. Under lockdown, the only thing they could do was stay at home and write some music.

This unforeseen juncture produced a deeper connection to the inner self, and the songs came out more visceral and organic, giving way to an intense album.

Death was all around us, and the musicians felt this was the time to share those things we want to say but don’t; feelings you carry around in you for too long, sometimes even to your deathbed, as mentioned by the band’s frontman.

Hence, the album has a conceptual purpose and works as a catharsis. The band set out to release it in the most honest and vulnerable way.

Source: Nuclear Blast | YouTube

The Night Flight Orchestra — Aeromantic II

The Night Flight Orchestra is a rock/metal project founded almost ten years ago, joining musicians from Arch Enemy or Soilwork, among other bands.

With five albums under their belt, the Swedish band from Helsingborg, Skåne, released back in 2020 the first part of Aeromantic. Now, one year late, they are back with Aeromantic II.

Their music can’t be shackled to a specific genre. Even if it falls under the Hard Rock overarching aura, I can easily find references to prog-rock/metal with an epic, disco, poppish tone flickering around.

Source: Nuclear Blast | YouTube

Final Words

To finalize this musical roundup, I would like to mention the new releases by Bokassa — Molotov Rocktail and The Picturebooks — The Major Minor Collective.

Other rock and heavy releases:

Auri — II — Those We Don’t Speak Of

Beyond Grace — Our Kingdom Undone

Gerry Rafferty — Rest in Blue

Green Lung — Black Harvest

Portrait — At One With None

Tuesday The Sky — The Blurred Horizon

This is all for now; hence I leave you with this great potpourri of rock and heavy albums. Please let me know what’s your favorite musical release from last week, and stay tuned for many great musical pieces here at Rock n’Heavy. Cheers!