“1998 was not metal’s finest year. Nu-metal was rearing its ugly head and 80s bands were withering on the vine. It had also been five years since Bruce Dickinson left Iron Maiden, and while he had released a few decent albums since (and Iron Maiden had released, um, The X Factor), he wasn’t setting the world on fire with legendary recordings. Unlike with Ozzy and Black Sabbath, a separation did not inspire Bruce nor Maiden to go above and beyond – at least, not until 1998, when Dickinson released The Chemical Wedding and Maiden dropped Virtual XI on us.” Married to metal.
