Paul's Statement about (the Dance of) Death

Posted by The Saint on December 15, 2004 @ 22:45

The Australian reports comments reportedly made by Paul Di'Anno after the Darrell Dimebag killing.

The article mentions Paul still being the lead vocalist of the band, arising a doubt over the journalist's thourough check of information. However, here it is:

*In a statement from heavy-metal band Iron Maiden, lead vocalist Paul Di'Anno stressed the metaphorical nature of the band's lyrics, in contrast to the literalness of Abbott's brains being blown out.

Explaining the lyrics of the song Dance of Death, Di'Anno pointed to the tradition of the danse macabre in drama stretching back centuries.

He argued that lines such as "As I danced with the dead/my free spirit was laughing and howling down at me" should be understood as a poetic allusion rather than as an actual welcoming of death. "I believe it was the seminal critic I. A. Richards who established the distinction between literal and poetic language, like," said Di'Anno from a safe undisclosed location.

"We implore fans to study his 1929 classic Practical Criticism before buying a gun and decorating the stage with our brain matter."*

Source: The Australian

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