Music

Iron Maiden - Run for Your Lives World Tour

Earlier in the week I headed down to the Co-op Live in Manchester with my good friend Chris for a night of Maiden. This was my 4th time seeing Iron Maiden live, and honestly, they just seem to get better with age. This tour is specifically celebrating 50 years of the band, so the nostalgia was dialled up to eleven.

Before Maiden took the stage, we had The Raven Age opening up. I’ve seen a few support acts in my time, but these guys are easily one of my favourites. They have such a massive sound and incredible energy on stage. If they ever announce a headline tour of their own, I’ll be getting tickets immediately! Their guitarist is George Harris, son of Steve Harris!

The "Run for Your Lives" setlist was absolutely fantastic. Since it focuses on the first nine albums (from the debut through to Fear of the Dark), it was a brilliant mix of the early Paul Di'Anno era and the classic Bruce Dickinson years. There were a bunch of songs I’d never actually heard live before, which is rare after four shows, but it made the night even more special.

A few of my personal highlights:

The Clairvoyant & Seventh Son of a Seventh Son: Hearing these two was incredible. The atmosphere in the arena during Seventh Son was something else entirely, it's such a complex, theatrical track and they nailed it.
Powerslave: One of my all-time favourites. Bruce’s vocals are still mind-blowing, especially when you consider how long they've been doing this.
Rime of the Ancient Mariner: I didn't think I'd ever get to hear this 13-minute epic live. The storytelling and that atmospheric mid-section breakdown were a masterclass in stage production. I've wanted to hear this one ever since I watched the Flight 666 DVD back in 2009!
Hallowed Be Thy Name: It’s not a Maiden gig without this one, is it, let's be honest!
Aces High: They brought this out for the encore and the energy in the building went through the roof.

The production was, as you'd expect from Maiden, top-tier. Seeing various iterations of Eddie stalking the stage while the band flew through some of their most iconic tracks was the perfect way to spend the evening.

Up the Irons! 🤘

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