Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson is celebrating the 30th anniversary of his third solo album, Skunkworks, by giving it a massive sonic upgrade. The 1996 record, along with his 1990 solo debut Tattooed Millionaire, has just been officially re-released in immersive Dolby Atmos audio.
The fresh mixes were handled by mixer Brendan Duffey. This move follows a similar audio overhaul Dickinson gave to his 1994 sophomore album, Balls To Picasso, last year.
Speaking about the modernized version of the 1996 release, Dickinson was highly enthusiastic about how it sounds today:
“It will blow your socks off,” Bruce says about Skunkworks. “It’s a record of which I’m immensely proud. In fact, as the years go by I grow more and more proud of everything that happened on that record. In many ways, it was a bit advanced for its time because we were bringing in all kinds of influences that other people in metal were scared of. It’s very emotional and quite dark in places.”
The legendary vocalist also reflected on the rapid creation of his debut solo effort. He explained how the new technology breathes fresh life into the tracks originally crafted alongside guitarist Janick Gers and producer Chris Tsangarides:
“Kinda the solo album that wasn’t. We had two weeks to write it so myself and Janick Gers just had fun and wrote it round his house. Chris Tsangarides did a great job on the production and now with modern technology we can beef it all up and make it big in Atmos world! The album sonically sounds really good.”
Fans can stream the newly upgraded Dolby Atmos versions of both Skunkworks and Tattooed Millionaire on supported platforms right now.
Bruce Dickinson has also entered the final stages of recording his next solo album, with vocal sessions currently taking place at Dave Grohl’s Studio 606 in Northridge, California.
