Maiden World Forum

Snake · Thu Dec 21, 2006 6:20 pm

Dom Lawson of Kerrang! has reviewed Iron Maiden's concert at the NEC in Birmingham on December 12, giving it the maximum score of five K:s and providing a more or less entirely positive review.

Keep reading for the article.

Whether its Metallica tearing through a complete 'Master Of Puppets' at Download or Slayer re-visiting 'Reign In Blood' in its entirety, trips into the past invaribly provide spectacular entertainment and iron clad memories that fans will cherish forever. But, in contrast such a reliance on material written two decades amounts to tacit admission that even legendary bands would struggle to engage an audience if they had to rely solely on new songs.

NEC, Birmingham
12.12.2006
KKKKK (INCREDIBLE)

Therefore, when Iron Maiden announced their intention to base their current tour around an end-to-end performance of 'A Matter Of Life And Death', the acclaimed 72 minute opus that emerged barely four months ago, we simply had to stand back and admire the size and weight of their enormous metallic balls.

The fact is, Maiden are not like other bands and their fans are not like other fans. The relationship between the two is so powerful that Maiden are in the unique position of being able to embark on this undeniably indulgent project without anyone raising an eyebrow. And, as they hit the NEC stage tonight, launch into 'Different World' and then follow it with the latest albums other nine tracks - in sequence - the response from the sold out auditorium is every bit as rabid and explosive as it would be if Maiden were wheeling out their greatest hits. Admittedly, there are plenty of challenging and elaborate moments during 'A Matter Of Life And Death' and at times the audience seem temporarily subdued, as if they are absorbing the songs through their eardrums and eyeballs, rather than surrendering to the standard sonic nobrainer. But as each song ends the familiar roar of a Maiden crowd erupts and its business as usual.

The new songs sound phenomenal brought to life; even more urgent, aggressive and dramatic than their studio counter-parts. If there's any justice, the best of them - 'Brighter than a thousand suns' , 'The longest day', 'The legacy' - will remain on Maiden set lists for a long time. Its an unforgettable bravura performance.

Yes, there are dazzling lights, stunning stage-sets, giant tanks and a machine gun-wielding Eddie. Yes, the night is topped off with a flurry of old favourites including a electrifying 'Fear of the dark' and the immortal 'Hallowed be thy name'. But tonight was about the power and excitement of the new, and the fact that unlike many much younger bands, Iron Maiden continue to set the pace. Still relevant. Still the best.

Review by Dom Lawson of Kerrang.

Snake · Fri Dec 22, 2006 3:15 pm

Iron Maiden have announced that they will be headlining the DESERT ROCK FESTIVAL in Dubai on Friday 9th March 2007. The supporting bill for this day is currently The Prodigy as Special Guests plus Stone Sour, In Flames, Mastodon, Children of Bodom, Lauren Harris and Junkyard Groove .

This will be the fourth Desert Rock Festival in Dubai since it started in 2004 and it will take place at the Dubai Country Club. Tickets will be made available from the official Desert Rock Festival website - desertrockfestival.com - where full details of the festival and site can be found.

Says manager Rod Smallwood 'Maiden have always enjoyed and been prepared to visit and play in new parts of the World and this is certainly no exception. We expect to take the full European stage Production and as its our first time there. We will adjust the set to include more of the favourites these fans wont have heard live before along with selected tracks from our new album 'A Matter of Life and Death' which has been very successful in Arabia with a Top 5 Chart entry. As this tour has been so much fun we may even add a couple more special shows in mid-March so watch this space'

Adds Bruce Dickinson 'This is certainly something new to us as I don't believe anyone from the band has ever played here at all so we're all really looking forward to this. We all enjoy touring where we've always had fantastic support but there is something always a bit special about playing to new fans in a part of the world you'd never really expected to play. It certainly looks and sounds like a great festival and line up and I'm already planning a special BruceAir trip out for this one which will be amazing I'm sure.

We're just getting to the end of whats been a brilliant year for all of us and we've had a fantastic reaction to the tour throughout and we 'd like to thank all the fans for their support on the album and the tour. It's been incredible.'

Details of the Bruce Air three day trip out to Dubai and the Desert Rock Festival will be posted tomorrow, Friday 22nd December on seegigs.co.uk

Snake · Fri Dec 22, 2006 3:15 pm

More tour diaries are coming in - Nicko McBrain reports from Stuttgart and Rod keeps us updated on the Manchester gig. Read on for the articles...

Nicko in Stuttgart

We had the second of our two shows in Milano on Sunday. It was a great night. No problems for us on stage and all in all a fantastic night. Highlight was the audience singing FoTD. It was especially funny that they sang the ‘Your turn’ bit and the laugh. Talk about laugh, I couldn’t stop. I even missed the downbeat of the verse. It was so funny."

Hotel room - Stuttgart Germany
Time: 4: pm
December 7th 2006

Well, well, well, how are you all doing today?
Have had a most splendid time over these last couple of days I can tell you!!!!!!!!!

We had the second of our two shows in Milano on Sunday. It was a great night. No problems for us on stage and all in all a fantastic night. Highlight was the audience singing FoTD. It was especially funny that they sang the ‘Your turn’ bit and the laugh. Talk about laugh, I couldn’t stop. I even missed the downbeat of the verse. It was so funny. Thank you, you crazy, ‘kin Billie’s in Milano, what a great time!!!

After the show we did a runner back to Blighty. I was home by 2am and in me bed and lights off for 3.
Got up late that morning and popped down the village again for a spot of brunch. Got back to me drum and decided to go for a drive around the local area. Went and found a great rubber dub in the next village along called Chalfont St Giles. Great watering hole called Merlin’s Cave, good drop of IPA in there I can tell you. After a pint I decided to have an early supper. Found a gem of a restaurant called ‘Cape Fish’ just at the top of the hill up from the village green. I had a great starter of Scallops followed by a fantastic piece of Sea Bass. Lovely jubbly!!!!!!!!!!! After dinner I went for another wee drive and ended back at my place a little after 8pm. I watched some telly and had an early night.

Tuesday we were off to Zurich. We left London at 1:30pm and arrived at the hotel for 4pm. After checking in I decided to go to the gig early. Me old china Danny Zimmermann was going to meet me, he is the artist relations man for Paiste cymbals.
I arrived at 5:30pm and did a small interview with Danny for a top Swiss news program that will be aired tonight. The cameras were at the factory as well. I’ll tell you more about that in a little bit.
I had a special room arranged for my guests from the company. Ted Voellmy the financial director and a group of the production guys came. I haven’t seen Ted for an age and it was great to see him at the show, as well as the rest of me chums.

We hit the stage at 9:05pm and had a blast. I did however make a complete balls up on BTATS; I had a ‘Kin brain fart right at the point of the second swell just before the end of the song. I completely missed it. We got out of it well and things seemed to be a wee bit on the quick side from there on in. After the show, Harry, Bruce and meself had a chuckle about it but in general all thought that it was a storming show. What do I know!!!

After the show I took a shower and went to meet with Danny, Ted and the guys. We had a drink and then said our farewells. I got back to the hotel by 1:30pm and made last orders in the bar. Had me night cap and went to bed.

The next morning I was up and ready for a 1 pm departure from the hotel. I was due a visit to the Paiste factory, Geezer was coming with me especially as he has so much history with the family as well, after all he did tech for me for 13 years AAAAHHHEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I haven’t been to the factory in such a long time. I usually take a pilgrimage at least once a year to present to the production guys a gold record from myself as a token of my appreciation to them for their great workmanship and commitment to meself. I love this part of me job. I get to shake their hands and they stop work for the afternoon and we have a beer or two and a laugh. This time Ted had arranged a picnic table and food and wine along with copious amounts of beer,
Bless ‘im.
We all had a fantastic time.
I presented to the guys an award for the last three studio albums.
It will look good on the wall next to the vending and coffee machines that already have a number of our gold discs on it.
I am honored to have such a wonderful relationship with this family and the workers, they make such great sounding cymbals.
I Love you guys I do!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

After my presentation, they gave me a wonderful 26” cymbal that all the production guys had signed and there was a very nice message written on it thanking me for being a great ambassador for the company. It most definitely bought a tear to me eye I can tell you.
We finished up around six after everyone had left to go home. Danny, Geezer and meself decided to go visit with me very dear friend Bobby Leiser. He was the man responsible for me getting my number one deal with Paiste way back in the late seventies.
He hasn’t worked with Paiste for the last 16 years. He has his own company called ‘The Swiss Cheese and Chocolate Company’, they retail and rent music equipment. What a crazy name for a rental company AAAAHHHEEE. He has a new home in a village which we would pass on our way back to Zurich and so we decided to make the wee detour and go see him and his lovely misses, Dominique, she runs a wee bar out of their home called Bar Luna, and Bobby has made a sort of museum of Hammond organs named, ‘The Hammond Gallery’. What a lovely, sweet and peaceful feeling there was in his home. I was very happy to be able to go and see them both.
We took a glass of beer and a wee drop of local wine and then made our way back to town. We were all feeling very hungry and so Danny took us to a great, French restaurant that he new. We had a great meal.

After dinner we had a wee libation in the bar at the restaurant, It was called Jules Verna. Great place, can’t remember the name of the restaurant though, bollox!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
After dinner we got dropped back at the hotel. We said goodbye to Danny and I hit the hay
What a phenomenal day it was. Thank you to everyone at ‘Paiste’ for the most memorable visit yet

This morning we made the journey to Stuttgart. It was a short flight and we arrived at the hotel for 3pm. I had a spot of room service and then wrote this diary. It’s a little after 4:45pm so I’m going to have a wee siesta and then head down to the show.
Me old china, Christian, from HK audio is at the show today. He has brought me a powered bass monitor cab. I had one of them in Japan and it really had the ‘Kin Bollox I can tell. Anyway I’ll get to see him later and speak at you lot later.

Stay safe and well
God bless you all.

=Nicko=

Rod in Manchester

"We had a fun moment though when Adrian’s guitar lead got caught up in the rotating wheels of the tank during Iron Maiden – which Bruce announced after as a true Spinal Tap moment of guitarist eaten by tank!!!
STILL AT MANCHESTER BLOODY AIRPORT FRI DEC 15 3.15 pm

So the flight has now been delayed a further hour – be quicker to walk soon. Three and a half hours at least late for such a short journey. Maybe its weather conditions. Anyway at least got time to continue and maybe even catch up!!

So to Cardiff – got train down there. I do enjoy travelling by train especially compared to schedule flights and the perpetual inconvenience of flying and security and queues etc etc etc. Anyway easy ride and got to Cardiff about 4.

One of the nice things about touring is meeting up with various old friends along the way and in Cardiff is one of my best mates from Uni, Tudor, who is a Prof and head of research at Cardiff Uni Hospital. One of the brightest people l have met – he was lecturing the Russians on cardiology when he was 27!! We met in the bar at 5 to catch up for a couple of hours before the show. Always interesting to see him – years ago he told me about chaos theory way before it became “fashionable”. It was such an exciting concept l called Bruce who like me enjoys these type of quirky theories and l think it was woven into some of his songs at that time.

It’s small gig in Cardiff, only about 7500 and sold out very quickly months ago. It’s called the CIA – Cardiff International Arena – but how they can call it an arena is beyond me. No disrespect intended but the “arena seating” is strips around the side. The audience is crammed on the floor and the sound sort of rotates around the curved hall. And it was unbelievably hot. The audience as always in Cardiff was good but even they were wilting by the end. But we do like to do a show in Wales – l think we have on every tour and we have always had great support there going right back to the early days and Newport – and this is the most appropriate venue. And anyway the Welsh are a nation of rugby fans so it’s always a pleasure to get to talk rugby with the locals – it was pretty tough in Italy and Germany!!

We have been meaning to get together with the Trivium boys for a few beers for ages but due to differing travelling arrangements and various local problems of closing times and distances we hadn’t managed it. But back in the good old UK you can pretty well guarantee if you have a decent hotel you can keep the bar open if drinks are still being bought. So we all convened in the hotel bar after the show with sundry friends and colleagues and managed to keep the bar open for quite some time.

Deserved lie in the next day then drove up to Birmingham with Bruce. He has a pretty fast car for the tour and we got there in minutes!!!! You can imagine – not that Bruce has an appetite for speed of course!!!

Great show that night which led to a major and excellent review in the Times!!! Now that makes a change!! The NEC is a very good hall and again we have played it many many times. Sold out ages ago about 11,500. The place was packed and also packed with band friends inc apparently about half of the Aston Villa FC who Steve brought along as he had a game earlier. Major mayhem everywhere but we are used to it.

After the show l drove back to London with Andy our promoter. Stayed near Marble Arch which his sat nav finally found after varied detours. I really don’t trust those things, they usually manage to find all the traffic lights

Went in to the new Phantom offices the next day. Starting to take shape. Had various meetings then went to see Dragonforce in the evening at the Astoria along with their mgr and my old mate and ex Sanctuary colleague the notorious Liverpool FC fan Steve McTaggert. I was instrumental in signing the band to Sanctuary records with Steve about 3 years ago and they have really come on. Terrific metal band and 2 sold out nights at the Astoria with incredible audience reaction and communal spirit almost reminiscent of early Maiden. Good guys too and from all over the world. If you haven’t already check em out.

After went along to the live nation (our promoters) xmas party. Great – it was at a bowling alley and also had table football. Bowling at 1.30 am – why not!! Really good night all round.

Got the train up to Manchester the following day – yesterday dec 14 – for the show at the MEN Arena. Another great venue, cap about 15,000 sold out a few weeks ago, first time we have sold it out for some time. Went straight to gig from station to catch up on a load of stuff with Dickie and Ian and a few things later with the band relating to 07. This was a fantastic show. Sound was amazing and so was the audience. It’s always a great feeling after a completely full on show and this was another of them.

We had a fun moment though when Adrian’s guitar lead got caught up in the rotating wheels of the tank during Iron Maiden – which Bruce announced after as a true Spinal Tap moment of guitarist eaten by tank!!!

Another unusual thing happened straight after the band finished. I was on the desk as usual and turned round to find the desk area barricades being forced over by a whole melee of young fans trying to get something given out by the security lady. The barrier was falling over. I checked what it was and it was ticket stubs. I asked a couple of fans if they had tickets and they said yes so l didn’t see what it was all about and as the barriers protecting the gear were being pushed back l just grabbed all the tix in handfuls and threw them out. Found out later that when those standing in the arena come in their tickets are taken and they are given wristbands. Then at the end of the show these tix are given back to fans on the way out and at the desk if they want them. I don’t think the hall realised how determined Maiden fans are hence the barrier potential problem. But if any of you guys missed out on a ticket as l grabbed ‘em my apologies – we will be aware next time and work it a better way. I can fully understand why the kids want a ticket as a souvenir – surely there is a better way though.

Short visit to bar after show, slept well, got to airport for 12 and still here at 4.30. Time to see if we have a plane yet. I won’t be at next few shows until EC but more after that. If you are going to be at Glasgow, Newcastle or Sheffield look after the guys for me!!!

Ps when l woke up this morning of course Sky 1 was on for the cricket …..Yet another disastrous day following a really good day for England. So from now on …..PLS DON’T MENTION THE CRICKET

Sources: Maiden Norway.com

Snake · Mon Dec 25, 2006 12:39 pm

Producer Kevin Shirley has issued the following brief update: "Just popped into Studios 301 in Sydney today to mix a couple of live Maiden tracks they sent me down here - they're playing great!!!"

He continues, "Maiden are doing the big Earl's Court shows in London this weekend - wish I was there to see them!"

No surprise there.

Snake · Thu Dec 28, 2006 9:39 am

UK broadsheet (that means not full of smut and supposedly more "real" view of news compared to tabloids - for those outside the UK) newspaper, The Independent published an article reviewing the recent Newcastle gig and comparing it to Tenacious D's show in London. Read on to read the full article. Comments appreciated Smile

Iron Maiden, Metro Radio Arena, Newcastle
Tenacious D, Hammersmith Apollo, London
The nursery school of rock
By Simon Price
Published: 24 December 2006

Mock rock versus the real deal. That was the compare and contrast concept for this week's column. But reality has a way of throwing a spanner in the works.

On their latest arena tour, Iron Maiden fans are being charged £37 for the privilege of hearing the band's brand new album - which many of them haven't yet bought, or listened to much - played in its entirety (with a handful of oldies thrown in at the end). That is to say, the privilege of being advertised to.

A Matter of Life and Death is something of a concept album concerning warfare, religion, and the causal connections between the two. Accordingly, Maiden enter the stage to the sound of war-movie music, in front of a backdrop which initially shows the bombed-out ruins of what might be Strasbourg 1944 or, given the band's East End origins, Stratford, then progressively depicts Eddie - the band's zombie/scarecrow mascot - in a variety of martial scenarios (Eddie dressed as a Second World War Tommy, Eddie marching in front of a Chieftain tank, and so on).

Such gaucheness is only to be expected from a band whose passports all say 50 or nearly, but whose mental age is still 12. With verses like "Far away from the land of our birth/ We fly a flag in some foreign earth/ We sailed away like our fathers before/ These colours don't run, from a cold bloody war", AMOLAD is clearly an album with its heart in the right place, but it is also clearly the work of overgrown children (all that histrionic imagery: "valkyries" this, "Armageddon" that...)

As they riff away, in front of a wall of painted sandbags, it occurs that this is a band who are, both literally and metaphorically, entrenched. With Adrian Smith, Janick Gers and Dave Murray twiddling away and Bruce Dickinson shrieking at that unmistakeable scalded-cat pitch, this is an album - and a performance - which could have come from any year since 1981 (the year Dickinson joined).

Tonight, the audience too is a very 1981 crowd, and also one of the ugliest I've seen. Everybody's dressed in washed-out, off-black denim, as though faded by a quarter-century of getting your mum to do your laundry.

The appeal of Maiden to children is no mystery. IM aren't only pre-political. Almost uniquely among heavy metal bands, they're pre-sexual too. They're stuck in the pre-pubescent phase of playing with toy soldiers, and reading Battle and Warlord.

None of which would matter if, on the night, Maiden gave good show. But they don't. Bruce Dickinson, inseparable in my mind from Bill Oddie (same stature, speaking voice, and puckish demeanour) leaps from podium to podium, but rarely speaks, aside from raising some cheap laughs by describing reality TV as "bollocks". The theory, he explains, is that the new album should be allowed to speak for itself..

Oh, it speaks. For what seems like an eternity (10 songs in 70 minutes). But by the time they reward our patience with a handful of oldies ("Two Minutes", "Fear of The Dark", "The Evil That Men Do", "Hallowed Be Thy Name"), the disappointed faces around me have already stopped listening.

What hell hath Jack Black's scene-stealing turn in High Fidelity unleashed? By mesmerising the gullible into the temporary delusion that he is actually funny (a delusion which is curable in most cases by watching School of Rock, catching the trailer to The Pick Of Destiny, or merely glancing at a poster for Nacho Libre), Black has gurned and mugged himself into a position where his comedy-rock band, Tenacious D, can fill major venues.

A gonzo duo in the Bill and Ted/Beavis and Butthead/Wayne and Garth tradition (with just a hint of Jake and Elwood), Tenacious D allows 37-year-old Black and his 46-year-old sidekick (and classically-trained guitarist) Kyle Gass indulge in puerile fratboy humour.

But, on their own terms, Jables and Kage (to give them their stage names) entertain. You go to a Tenacious D concert, and you'll get dancing robots, skits involving the Devil and Jesus challenging them to a "rock-off" (hey, I never said it was hilarious), band members dressed as Col Sanders and Charlie Chaplin, classic rock covers (including a Tommy medley), and their own songs such as the lurve-ballad spoof "Fuck Her Gently", "Tribute" (which crosses The Charlie Daniels Band's "The Devil Went Down To Georgia" with Led Zeppelin's "Stairway To Heaven"), and "The Pick Of Destiny", which boasts a hook that stays in the brain longer than anything on the latest Maiden album.

In purely relative terms, the jokers edge out the real rockers. In either case, I can think of better things to do with my 37 quid...

Gul_Ranek · Thu Dec 28, 2006 10:27 am

Ne znam zasto sve te novine salju pristrane ljude na ovakve koncerte... Naravno da ce neki ljubitelj hip-hopa kao sto je ovaj lik srati po Maidenima jer nemaju pjesama o seksu (!?), ratovima crnackih bandi i bjezanju iz zatvora. Ono, posaljite nekoga tko zna cijeniti rock opcenito, ne mora biti Maiden-freak.

Kako god bilo, slazem se s njim u jednome - These Colours Don't Run je takvo primitivno smece od pjesme da ne moze biti vece. Ono, pjesma govori o tome kako je super biti u ratu, kako nikad nema predaje. Ma gonite se kvragu sa takvim sranjima koja veličaju napadački rat.

Snake · Thu Dec 28, 2006 3:01 pm

Do you want to hear the Maiden concert from Sweden on the 18th November 2006?
Iron Maiden Sweden FC have a direct link to the show, starting 20:03 Swedish time tonight 28/12/06
To hear it, visit them at http://www.ironmaidensweden.se

*Wratchild* · Thu Dec 28, 2006 9:59 pm

Snake · Fri Dec 29, 2006 10:32 am

bitrate?
koncert u komadu? podijeljen na pjesme?

rapidshare? Very Happy

*Wratchild* · Fri Dec 29, 2006 12:53 pm

Snake · Sat Jan 06, 2007 7:13 pm

"You know it's love when your betrothed gets you two tickets to Iron Maiden on the last night of their most recent tour in their home town. The fact the seats were some of the best in the house...ok, the best seats in the house made it even sweeter. The kicker comes later."

Read on for the full review of Maiden's 23rd December show!

Trivium & Iron Maiden
Earl's Court, London
23 Dec 2006

First up we had the upstarts Trivium who have just released their Metallica album (or rather album) where they demonstrated their true metal love. Opening for the legendary Iron Maiden must have been quite daunting and they tried to live up to it. The band are a damn good opener, but they still don't have all the elements they need to be a great headlining band.

For one thing they barely have enough good songs to fill a headline set. Their newer stuff like 'Anthem, We are the Fire' went down far better than some of their older material. Matt spent a bit too much time nattering on stage as well. Overall it was a pretty tight performance from a talented band.

Iron Maiden, on the other hand, had all guns blazing (quite literally at the end) and made the brave move of playing their most recent album, A Matter of Life & Death, in its entirety in proper order. This would be an idiotic move for all but a very few bands.

Besides making those who didn't have the new album feel a bit prat-like, it gave the Maiden masses a chance to see something other than a "greatest hits" show. The stage set was spectacular and the large screens allowed the entire audience to see the band doing their thing, including Nicko's bare footed drumming. (Imagine the calluses.)

As one has come to expect with Iron Maiden, the band were tight as a monkey's and delivered all the complexities of their later material without a single hitch. Despite the fact there was no 'Run to the Hills', 'Number of the Beast' or 'Bring Your Daughter' - they did less played tracks like 'Fear of the Dark' - the crowd left pleased as punch. Oh yes, and I was pleased to "catch" my non-metal betrothed head-banging like everyone else. She rather enjoyed herself and was duly impressed with Maiden (alas, less so in the case of Trivium).

Got a pile of stuff heading my way, so expect an onslaught of reviews. I hope you had a musical holiday season and have lots of rocking CD/DVDs to enjoy this winter. As always stay rocking, safe and check out live music where ever it might be.

Thanks to Marty's Musical Meltdown for the review!

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