Bruce Dickinson has finished work on a new mix of Accident Of Birth, the 1997 solo album that took him back to straight heavy metal, and will issue it in October in stereo and Dolby Atmos.
The remix was handled by Brendan Duffey, who worked on The Mandrake Project and is now Dickinson‘s regular collaborator.
“It has been a real pleasure to spend time revisiting my solo back catalogue over the past couple of years alongside Brendan Duffey, remixing it all for Dolby Atmos and really bringing the sonic side of the album completely up to date,” Dickinson said.
“Accident Of Birth was a really important album for me at the time and I think contains some of my very best work. It lit a fire under me once more, especially as a songwriter, and was a great chance to work with Adrian again,” he continued.
Dickinson added: “I’m so proud of this record, and these new mixes sound fantastic. Turn it up loud and enjoy!”
Accident Of Birth came out on June 3, 1997, his fourth solo record and the one that followed the Skunkworks project. It was produced by Roy “Z” Ramirez, his second album with the Los Angeles guitarist, and recorded at Silver Cloud Recording in Redondo Beach and Sound City Studios in Los Angeles.
Adrian Smith played guitar on it. At the time neither man was in Iron Maiden, Smith had left in 1990 and Dickinson in 1993, and both returned to the band in early 1999. “Man Of Sorrows“, “Darkside Of Aquarius“, “Road To Hell” and the title track have all featured in Dickinson‘s recent solo sets.
According to the announcement from BMG, the album title and the Derek Riggs cover refer to the circumstances of Dickinson‘s birth, following a medical procedure his mother underwent that meant he was not expected to be born.
The remixed edition comes out in the UK on October 17, timed to National Album Day, and everywhere else on October 23 through BMG. It is available as a tri-panel digisleeve CD and as a double splatter-colour vinyl in a gatefold sleeve. A new mix of “Omega” is streaming now.
Accident Of Birth Tracklist:
- “Freak”
- “Toltec 7 Arrival”
- “Starchildren”
- “Taking The Queen”
- “Darkside Of Aquarius”
- “Road To Hell”
- “Man Of Sorrows”
- “Accident Of Birth”
- “The Magician”
- “Welcome To The Pit”
- “Omega”
- “Arc Of Space”
Dickinson recorded his next solo album this year, with release tentatively set for early 2027 through BMG. It follows 2024’s The Mandrake Project, which he toured across North America in 2025 on his first extended solo run there in almost three decades.
Dickinson recorded with his touring band, keyboardist Mistheria, drummer Dave Moreno, bassist Tanya O’Callaghan and guitarists Chris Declercq and Philip Näslund, the same lineup he has said will take the album on the road in 2027. Andreas Kisser of Sepultura added percussion during the February sessions, and Jeff Scott Soto and Sepultura vocalist Derrick Green both visited the studio.
One track features his eldest son. Austin Dickinson, 35, previously fronted Rise To Remain and As Lions.
Speaking to Steve Harkins of “TalkShopLive“, Dickinson said material would surface before the album itself: “Tracks will be out this year, a little bit, so people can hear a little bit of it. At some point this month, I’m shooting four or maybe five videos for it.”
He also left a broader tease hanging: “I’m pretty busy in ’27. And I think everybody’s gonna be very happy with what I’m busy with —in every sense of the word.”
The Atmos project has already produced one release: More Balls To Picasso, a partly re-recorded, remixed and remastered version of his 1994 album Balls To Picasso, which came out in July 2025.
