BRUCE DICKINSON – More Balls To Picasso (2025)

Here to talk about a new release by Bruce Dickinson, with his More Balls To Picasso reissue, he’s taken the original material and enriched it with elements not present in the initial recordings. This is somewhat good news for me, at least on paper, as I have always liked those songs from Alive in Studio A (rerecorded live and with a new band), but not much in this record.

We find ethnic instruments in “Gods Of War,” string arrangements in “Change Of Heart” and “Tears Of A Dragon,” or a brass section in “Shoot All The Clowns.” Other times, the changes are far more dramatic, such as the decision to “metal up” much of the guitar work by layering Philip Näslund’s (the guitarist who performs live with Dickinson) contributions over the original tracks originally laid down by Roy Z. 

Personally, I have mixed feelings about the operation and the reimagined versions of these songs. Speaking of the most famous one, for instance, “Tears Of A Dragon,” I really like the orchestration in the chorus and final part of the song; it really enriches it, but not much during the verses, it sounds a little too much. Sometimes the songs feel a little too "loaded" (the chorus of "1000 points of light" is too much) in general, but it comes to personal tastes, and probably, overall, I prefer the production and arrangement of this new version. 

So I don't mind this new version as, again, I didn't really like the production of this album, but my feelings probably would have been different if I were a fan of the original Balls To Picasso.

Tracklist:

Cyclops
Hell No
Gods Of War
1000 Points Of Light
Laughing In The Hiding Bush
Change Of Heart
Shoot All The Clowns
Fire
Sacred Cowboys
Tears Of The Dragon
Gods Of War (live in the studio)
Shoot All The Clowns (live in the studio)