BRUCE DICKINSON And Z2 Unleash 'The Mandrake Project: Year One'
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2024 was the year of IRON MAIDEN singer Bruce Dickinson, as he rocked the world with the release of his seventh solo album, "The Mandrake Project", and an accompanying tour across Europe and South America. Never content to simply do the expected, Dickinson also released a companion comic series by the same name as an integral part of "The Mandrake Project" identity. The series, which had been brewing in Dickinson's head for over a decade, was received to thunderous acclaim.
Now, Z2 is proud to announce the impending release of "The Mandrake Project: Year One" on August 5, 2025, which collects the first four issues in the series, along with the prologue (previously only available in the vinyl release of the single for "The Afterglow Of Ragnarok"). Additionally, the oversized 12"x12", 184-page volume deluxe editions include an extensive series of interviews and essays recounting the road Dickinson and the creative team took in bringing the album, tour, and comic series to life. With an introduction by "Sons Of Anarchy" creator Kurt Sutter, the book is housed in an exquisite slipcase with a rotating embossed Mandrake dial and is bound with a sealing ribbon and gilt paper edging. The case also contains four exclusive foil collectors cards and the cast metal "The Mandrake Project" medallion seen in the comic and music videos.
"The Mandrake Project" is a dark, adult story of power, abuse and a struggle for identity, set against the backdrop of scientific and occult genius. Created by Dickinson, the comic series is scripted by Tony Lee and stunningly illustrated by Staz Johnson for Z2 Comics.
When asked about the book's release, Dickinson said: "Finally we are at the end of the beginning. I honestly have to pinch myself to believe that Volume 1 of 'The Mandrake Project' is upon us. I sometimes get the feeling that I am not fully in control of the story, and that some other entity is squeezing the blood out of my subconscious and turning it into ink on the page before my very eyes. We are just getting going. We are all… formed… of the dead."
In May 2024, Dickinson became a patron of the William Blake Cottage Trust, which owns and preserves William Blake's only surviving house. In homage to the storyline and with total reverence for "The Mandrake Project"'s inspiration, the Z2 team collected soil from the grave of the legendary English artist and poet, which was mixed into the ink for the printing of "The Mandrake Project: Year One" Deluxe Editions.
Bruce added: "William Blake has given me so much over the years and I want to repay the debt by helping to restore the Cottage. Despite his impact on the world, there is no center for Blake, nowhere people can visit to see where he actually lived and worked during a key part of his life. I want to change this."
The oversized 12"x12" Deluxe Edition with spinning slipcase and the limited, signed platinum edition will only be available directly from Z2 at Z2Comics.com, while a 9"x9" smaller hardcover edition without slipcase will be available via Z2's retail partners Amazon and Barnes & Noble in the United States, and at HMV UK (Exclusive HMV Cover + Trading Card),as well as many independent comic and music shops worldwide.
When asked about "The Mandrake Project: Year One", Z2's editor-in-chief Rantz Hoseley shared: "You pray for collaborators like Bruce Dickinson. While we've always taken pride in the presentation and production of our books, Bruce challenged us to exceed our previous best, and we happily took that challenge on. The end result is a design so ambitious and lush it'll make your jaw drop, and we cannot wait to have you dive into this beautiful beast of a book!"
Preorder yours today at Z2comics.com/BruceDickinson.
This summer Dickinson takes "The Mandrake Project" on the road for his first extensive North American solo tour in almost 30 years.
"The Mandrake Project" album was released in March 2024 via BMG. Bruce and his long-term co-writer and producer Roy "Z" Ramirez recorded the LP largely at Los Angeles's Doom Room, with Roy Z doubling up as both guitarist and bassist. The recording lineup for "The Mandrake Project" was rounded out by keyboard maestro Mistheria and drummer Dave Moreno, both of whom also featured on Bruce's previous solo studio album, "Tyranny Of Souls", in 2005.
(Source: www.blabbermouth.net)
