.....And my god, i have never had more fun at a concert in my life! Holy shit, what a show! It started off with Number Of The Beast, Vincent Price spoken word intro and all, it was great. In the backgound, there were these 3 big 6's and whenever Bruce would scream "6!66!" , they would light up so bright, it would hurt your eyes! But i was sitting front row, center, so that didn't help much.
Anyhoo, they continued with The Trooper. and this was a highlight. Not so much because it's favorite, 'cause it's not, it was just the way they performed it, studio perfect and then some! Bruce would go up the beautiful setting, that had all these old airbrushed Derrick Riggs drawings, one representing each period of the band, (there were also lots of lights and every song had some sort of background to go with it) and he would wave this tattered old English flag and then stand one up on each side of the stage, while singing. They then did "Hallowed Be Thy Name", which went over really well with the fans...they were much louder than Bruce at times, and this song, like The Trooper was played almost perfectly....with some help from the crowds! After that song,Bruce then started talking about this audience is by far the best they had ever come across in California and they always look forward to playing San Diego. He also went on about how the fans were the ones that put them where they are today and to quote Bruce, "The Media Doesn't give a fuck about us, and guess what? We don't give a fuck about them!", that got a good reception to say the least.
He then started talking about the new album and that led us to...."Wildest Dreams". I agree with most of the people when they say it's quite forgettable, but not really bad. But even i can be wrong, because quite a few people seemed to know the words already!!! And the band played it really well, better than studio, IMO. They played it with more of a youthful energy than they did in the studio. Then came "The Clansman". OH...MY...GOD. this was handsdown the main highlight of the show. The way they played it here runs circles around the studio version and i'll even dare say after hearing it live, it can spoken in the same breath as most maiden classics, because this sure as hell is one! They extended it a bit with more drums(Nicko has gotten better!) and longer solos by all three men. All worth hearing. "Die With Your Boots On" was next as was well done. Not as much punch as the studio, but hey it wasn't bad either. And during the solo, someone decided to drop by....yes, a 9 foot tall Eddie in royal garb, crown and all! He was clawing away at Dave, he chased Bruce and tried to scare Adrian, but to no avail. It was pretty funny. They also played "Revelations" which was nice, but a bit average. I could have taken it or left it. I dunno why, but they just lacked spark on that one. "The Clairvoyant" was next and i was so full of energy and so pleased while hearing it. You could tell by watching and listening that the band enjoys playing this one, and i especially enjoyed this song, since it's the only song from 7th son of a 7th son they played, which happens to be my favorite Maiden album. And then they played "Iron Maiden"...wow! what energy!!!! Nicko played it extra fast and that helped my neck feel just alittle stiffer. Throughout the song, there was a giant mechanic Eddie in the background behind Nicko and during the bass solo in the song, the top of the head opened up and down came a brain and into the head. After the brain was inserted, and the head was closed, the eyes glowed, smaoked came from the head and nose and it started moving,
After a great rendition of "Iron Maiden", the mechanical Eddie still flailed it's arms out, the band said goodnight, the lights wen tout, two minutes later, 2 MINUTES TO MIDNIGHT! And my, what a great performance this was! Bruce jumped and ran everywhere, Steve, Dave, Janick and Adrian did a cool posing thing at the fron of the stage, where they all stood side to side, same pose, having their guitars to the chest, playing. I thought it looked cool. And then the final song, which happens to be one of my all-time favorite songs ever, "Run To The Hills"! This was played FLAWLESSLY! No mistake whatsoever and i even gained more respect for Nicko, as he played without missing a sinlge beat and playing just like the almighty Clive Burr. After a note perfect song, sadly it was over.....but i have memories of a great show with me foever.
Anyhoo, they continued with The Trooper. and this was a highlight. Not so much because it's favorite, 'cause it's not, it was just the way they performed it, studio perfect and then some! Bruce would go up the beautiful setting, that had all these old airbrushed Derrick Riggs drawings, one representing each period of the band, (there were also lots of lights and every song had some sort of background to go with it) and he would wave this tattered old English flag and then stand one up on each side of the stage, while singing. They then did "Hallowed Be Thy Name", which went over really well with the fans...they were much louder than Bruce at times, and this song, like The Trooper was played almost perfectly....with some help from the crowds! After that song,Bruce then started talking about this audience is by far the best they had ever come across in California and they always look forward to playing San Diego. He also went on about how the fans were the ones that put them where they are today and to quote Bruce, "The Media Doesn't give a fuck about us, and guess what? We don't give a fuck about them!", that got a good reception to say the least.He then started talking about the new album and that led us to...."Wildest Dreams". I agree with most of the people when they say it's quite forgettable, but not really bad. But even i can be wrong, because quite a few people seemed to know the words already!!! And the band played it really well, better than studio, IMO. They played it with more of a youthful energy than they did in the studio. Then came "The Clansman". OH...MY...GOD. this was handsdown the main highlight of the show. The way they played it here runs circles around the studio version and i'll even dare say after hearing it live, it can spoken in the same breath as most maiden classics, because this sure as hell is one! They extended it a bit with more drums(Nicko has gotten better!) and longer solos by all three men. All worth hearing. "Die With Your Boots On" was next as was well done. Not as much punch as the studio, but hey it wasn't bad either. And during the solo, someone decided to drop by....yes, a 9 foot tall Eddie in royal garb, crown and all! He was clawing away at Dave, he chased Bruce and tried to scare Adrian, but to no avail. It was pretty funny. They also played "Revelations" which was nice, but a bit average. I could have taken it or left it. I dunno why, but they just lacked spark on that one. "The Clairvoyant" was next and i was so full of energy and so pleased while hearing it. You could tell by watching and listening that the band enjoys playing this one, and i especially enjoyed this song, since it's the only song from 7th son of a 7th son they played, which happens to be my favorite Maiden album. And then they played "Iron Maiden"...wow! what energy!!!! Nicko played it extra fast and that helped my neck feel just alittle stiffer.
Throughout the song, there was a giant mechanic Eddie in the background behind Nicko and during the bass solo in the song, the top of the head opened up and down came a brain and into the head. After the brain was inserted, and the head was closed, the eyes glowed, smaoked came from the head and nose and it started moving,After a great rendition of "Iron Maiden", the mechanical Eddie still flailed it's arms out, the band said goodnight, the lights wen tout, two minutes later, 2 MINUTES TO MIDNIGHT! And my, what a great performance this was! Bruce jumped and ran everywhere, Steve, Dave, Janick and Adrian did a cool posing thing at the fron of the stage, where they all stood side to side, same pose, having their guitars to the chest, playing. I thought it looked cool. And then the final song, which happens to be one of my all-time favorite songs ever, "Run To The Hills"! This was played FLAWLESSLY! No mistake whatsoever and i even gained more respect for Nicko, as he played without missing a sinlge beat and playing just like the almighty Clive Burr. After a note perfect song, sadly it was over.....but i have memories of a great show with me foever.
