When I heard there was a chance of seeing Iron Maiden, I was thrilled. But the fact that the one concert I was able to attend was a 4-band roster blew me away.
Exodus kick started the event with a thrash metal filled afternoon. Immediately when the first song was belted out, Bonded By Blood, the biggest mosh pit I’d seen yet had opened right beside me. Another one was made in the lawn area above the main seats.
Despite microphone malfunctions, the band delivered one of the best performances of the entire day. Classics such as Fabulous Disaster and Blacklist were sung back perfectly by the audience, knowing each word by heart.
A major highlight of the event was the final segment in Exodus‘s set. In the middle of Strike Of The Beast, vocalist Steve Souza ordered a wall of death in both pits. People were divided east and west until Souza commanded the herd to collide in the center.
The whole gig was a kick in the ass and set the tone for the rest of the evening.
Kamelot was the next band on stage, bringing a different style and sub-genre to the mix. Symphonic metal was in the air and guitarist Thomas Youngblood’s performance was nothing short of amazing. Vocalist Tommy Karevik also delivered with his unique voice alongside
I was particularly curious to see Ghost in their live setting. After listening to their albums prior to the show, I was very impressed with their sound and couldn’t wait to see them in person.
I also noticed it was most people’s first choice to see Ghost judging by the number of T-shirts nearly outnumbering the amount of Maiden shirts.
As soon as they emerged on stage, the entire place exploded. Everyone was singing every song by mere memory and it was clear this band was huge. The whole band fired on all cylinders and it was personally satisfying to watch Ritual and Mummy Dust.
Afterwards there was only one thing that needed to happen: IRON MAIDEN!
Tension kept rising on through the night as the PA continued to play endlessly. Until finally, Doctor Doctor came blasting from the speakers and at that moment we knew the real show was about to begin.
A two minute clip appeared on the screen showing the theme of their latest album, The Book Of Souls. A Maya setting in the jungle chasing after a giant heart being guarded by Eddie.
Soon after, front man Bruce Dickinson emerged on stage behind a wall of smoke as he sang the beginning of If Eternity Should Fail. One of the most remarkable things about this was the band’s use of the stage. When Dickinson sang the second half of the intro, fire shot up from both sides of the stage and all the lights were directed towards the audience as the singer pointed out to the crowd.
Before you knew it, the entire band ran out to the front and a wave of excitement came over everyone. The moment we had been waiting for all day had just been set in motion.
I was stunned to see all the people around me knowing every word to this song off Maiden‘s recent album. There’s always rumors that fans only want to hear the classic songs from the band’s heyday and everything they do afterwards is irrelevant. That’s definitely not the case with Maiden. The whole audience was harmonizing this opening track, because they still care about the current state of the band.
This isn’t a band living off of past success, they’re still pushing themselves musically in the studio as well as on stage.
I was extremely happy to hear the first two songs from Book Of Souls, because that’s been Maiden‘s strongest album-opening tracks since 2000’s Brave New World in my opinion. There’s lots of atmosphere in If Eternity Should Fail, leaving me to believe they’ll continue to use it as a concert starter in the years to come.
Surprisingly, the first song they played from the 80’s went all the way back to the Paul Di’Anno era. As soon as bassist Steve Harris started the intro, the place erupted yet again. Wrathchild was specifically memorable being one of the band’s catchiest songs. Watching those tempo changes live was an incredible experience. I was shocked to see Children Of The Damned on the setlist and it proved to be one of my favorite moments of the night.
Although the biggest controversy right now is the amount of new songs taking up half of the setlist, I believe they picked the best ones. Book Of Souls is Maiden‘s greatest album in years, therefore I’m glad this is the album that finds its way dominating the show.
It’s a far cry from the 2006 A Matter Of Life And Death Tour where they played the album in its entirety.
The Book Of Souls title track was probably the pinnacle of the concert after Eddie came out in all his glory terrorizing the band mid-song. It all unfolded when he picked a fight with Janick Gers and the guitarist fought back. He then made Dickinson his next target which resulted in the singer ripping out his heart and squirting it on fans in the front row.
Not only did the song promote the latest album in the best possible way with an unforgettable stage performance, it also showed how their new material can play a huge role in their modern day concerts, resonating with old and new fans alike.
Dickinson proved to be an essential part of the overall show, constantly moving up and down the stage effortlessly throughout each song. He also dons specific outfits for individual tracks such as Death Or Glory and Powerslave. The most infamous example is the production of The Trooper. After seeing incredible footage of Bruce waving the Union Jack in a military uniform, it was amazing to see it firsthand.
Another notable factor is the energy of the audience. During both Fear Of The Dark and Number Of The Beast, the crowd sang every word until the end. It’s one thing to see it on Flight 666, but a completely different experience altogether in person. Surrounded by die-hard Maiden fans until the encore made for a memorable concert not only in 2017, but also one of the best I’ve been to so far.
It was an honor to see two extra bands along with the standard tour lineup. The entire experience was a dream come true and I feel lucky that it happened in my state.
Leave a Reply