The seventeenth studio album and up to this point the last from the band and sixth of the reunion era. Continuing the more recent sound similar to Book of Souls with several more long epic tracks mixed with a few shorter songs. All of the longer songs were written by Steve Harris alone. The shorter more catchy songs mostly had Bruce, Adrian, or Janick(co-written by Steve) involved. There were two singles released, “Writing on the Wall” and “Stratego”.
The title track “Senjutsu” opens the album and is eight plus minutes of of a different style from the band and full of a lot of Nicko’s great drumming. The song is a grower and not immediate at all which makes it an odd opener. Translated to “tactics and strategy”, the lyrics tell the story of protecting a wall by being invaded. Considering the samurai Eddie on the cover this could be about Japan being invaded by the Mongols, or it could be anywhere as it doesn’t seem to specify.
“Stratego” was the second single and is one of the shortest songs on the album and the vibe is very 80s Maiden and is right to the point. This probably should have been the opening track. Continuing the theme of war it seems to be about a military leader questioning the mission.
“Writing on the Wall” was the lead single and caused quite a stir online with the 70s classic rock and almost country and blues sound to start. The song really grew on me but at first I was definitely scratching my head but it’s very catchy and another good Smith/Dickinson song but it took a few spins to fully appreciate. Based on the story of King Belshazzer from the Old Testament in the Bible, and warns of impending doom and destruction.
“Lost in a Lost World” is over nine minutes long and written fully by Steve Harris. Starting out very slow with a strange keyboard sound and backing vocals it’s an odd start and goes on too long for two minutes before picking up the pace. The song does get better but again is just too long. It appears to be about the destruction of Native American culture by settlers and those in the present having regret over what was done in the past.
“Days of Future Past” is shorter and really good and is right to the point with no fluff. A Smith/Dickinson composition and it’s one of my favorite tracks on the album. Based on the graphic novel “Constantine”.
“The Time Machine” starts slow and then picks up. Another Harris/Gers songs and it’s very good for me and gotten better over the years. The lyrics seem to be about a time traveler telling the story of their travels but doesn’t seem specific or really have an ending to the story.
“Darkest Hour” is another Smith/Dickinson song and is a darker ballad and it’s a really good song.
Inspired by the Winston Churchill movie of the same name and his actions leading England in the events leading up to WWII.
“Death of the Celts” at ten minutes long starts slower and kicking in around two minutes or so the song is probably at least a minute or two too long. Supposedly about the battle of Alesia where the Celts were defeated by Julius Caesar.
“The Parchment” supposedly about the Parthian empire which I had to look up information on since I wasn’t familiar at all. It seems to be talking about a religious war or possibly about the rise of Christianity or a similar religion and the murder of many believers in that area of the world. This song was really a grower and has that whole eastern musical vibe and just seemed to get better for me over time.
“Hell on Earth” starts upbeat right away instead of the long slow intro the previous songs have. At eleven minutes it still feels long but I do think this song seems like it’s going somewhere and keeps the listener entertained. Lyrically seems to be about the changes in the world and how many live with no hope in their lives. One of my favorites on the album and easily the best of the longer epic songs on the album. This album was definitely the most difficult reunion era Maiden album to digest. With the last three songs being over ten minutes and several other songs at eight to nine minutes it’s one that has a lot going on and even more so lyrically there’s a lot of historical references about various wars and fallen nations.
Iron Maiden – Senjutsu (2021)
