The capacity crowd a CFG Bank Arena was thrilled with the band’s latest stage spectacle
Last night at CFG Bank Arena, Iron Maiden rocked a capacity crowd as part of their ongoing Future Past Tour. In support of their seventeenth studio LP Senjutsu (2021), the heavy metal icons have been grinding out a global tour for the last three years. Now, with just a few shows left, the band is performing with the same intensity as they did not only at the start of the tour, but throughout their entire career.
“Let me ask you a question, Baltimore,” singer Bruce Dickinson asked of the audience.
“Are you fucking ready?”
And the place erupted. It’s not even a question that needs to be asked at a Maiden show, quite honestly. Their fans are some of the most loyal diehards in all of music. They travel across continents, waving flags from their native countries. They show up, sell out, and are always fucking ready.
During the 15-song set, the band focused on their latest album Senjutsu and their 1986 hit Somewhere in Time, pulling five songs from each album. They rounded out the rest of the set with choice cuts from the first half of their career. The furthest they ventured was “Fear of the Dark,” the title track from their 1992 album. With such a monstrous catalog of hits and fan favorites, the band approaches touring in a very unique way – focusing on particular sections of their storied career. It’s a great way to keep things fresh for the fans without having to worry about cramming nearly five decades of material into a two-hour show every night.
It’s so impressive to see how Iron Maiden revitalize themselves for every phase of their career. Every tour, even, is something new and exciting for the fans. A lot of bands that have been around the block a few times easily slip into a lather-rinse-repeat pattern. They tour every so often, play the same setlist, with the same production; not that there is anything wrong with that, per say, but its awesome to see a band like Maiden make a serious attempt to be adventurous when they could easily just mail it in.
Singer Bruce Dickinson was particularly impressive. An absolute juggernaut of a frontman, Bruce is a rare talent that rock music hasn’t seen too much of over the last five decades. While a voice is a physical gift that fades over time, it is absolutely incredible to hear Dickinson still hitting the high notes and performing in near-peak form at 66. His energy on stage is still boundless, and it’s no wonder that Iron Maiden are giving Father Time the middle finger.
After taking fans back with their opening number “Caught Somewhere in Time,” they proceeded to pull out choice cuts like “Stranger in a Strange Land,” “Writing on the Wall,” “Days of Future Past,” “The Prisoner,” “Death to the Celts,” “Fear of the Dark,” and more. They wrapped things up with their namesake “Iron Maiden,” and then, because of unrelenting cheers, they returned to the stage for a three-song encore. The started off with “Hell on Earth,” followed by signature tracks “The Trooper” and “Wasted Years.”
The show was complete with all the theatrics, including Bruce and Eddie exchanging galactic gunfire. In the 70s and 80s, so many rock shows were over-the-top. There was a certain amount of danger and unpredictability when you were in the audience that was almost unnerving. Iron Maiden have quite literally never lost their spark. Every show is still an all-out spectacle, and fans getting their money’s worth is a guarantee when they buy a Maiden ticket.
It was another top notch show from one of the greatest bands to ever grace the earth. Not much less is expected from fans, and Iron Maiden are never ones to underdeliver. When this tour wraps up, it will certainly be exciting to wait and see what these metal legends have in store for us next.
Check our full photo gallery below, plus the setlist from the show.
Forever the road warriors, Iron Maiden recently confirmed their upcoming 50th anniversary celebrations. Next year, the heavy metal icons are embarking on their Run For Your Lives World Tour. The global trek will begin on 27 May, 2025 in Budapest and will consist of 27 stadium, festival and arena shows across Europe and the UK. The tour marks 50 years since Steve Harris formed the band in late 1975 and to celebrate, Maiden fans are promised a very special set list, spanning the nine studio albums from Iron Maiden (1980) to Fear of the Dark (1992). The band is also boasting that the shows will feature their “most spectacular and elaborate show ever.”
Throughout the run, Iron Maiden will be joined by very special guests Halestorm, The Raven Age, and Avatar on select dates. Halestorm will perform on the first half of the tour, including the London and Dublin outdoor shows – but not the UK arenas. The second half of the tour sees Sweden’s Avatar as the opening act. British metal band The Raven Age will open all UK and Ireland shows. Tickets for all shows go on sale next week at various times. Trooper VIP Packages will be available at all shows.
“Next year is a very special one for Iron Maiden and we’re going to be giving our fans a once-in-a-lifetime live experience,” frontman Bruce Dickinson states. This is a tour that’s gonna put a smile on your face and a cheer in your throat. If you’ve seen us before, then get ready to take that experience to a whole new level. If you’ve never seen us before, then what the hell have you been waiting for? Now’s your chance to find out what you’ve been missing! Iron Maiden’s definitely gonna get ya!”
The band’s long-time manager Rod Smallwood adds, “50 years of Maiden and I have seen 46 of them! With well over 100 million albums sold and almost 2,500 shows in 64 countries and counting, to countless millions of fans, we are all still loving every second and consider every tour a new challenge to bring something different and exciting to our fans. And for this very special one we’re pulling out all the stops!
We will cover classics and fan favourites from the first nine albums, from Iron Maiden to Fear of the Dark, many of which we haven’t played in years and many we will likely never play again in the future. We have already been hard at work for months putting together an even more spectacular and elaborate new show which will bring the songs to life more than we have ever been able to do before. This is going to be a huge couple of years for Iron Maiden, and Eddie of course, and we are very excited about what we have up our sleeves for you fans throughout the whole of our 50th year. I promise you are all going to be very happy indeed!”
On Saturday, 28 June, the band will perform at the London Stadium, home of West Ham Football Club – the team that band founder Steve Harris has supported throughout his life, and with whom Iron Maiden have a long and storied history.
This concert in front of over 60,000 fans, will be the first time that Iron Maiden have performed on the club’s hallowed turf. A true homecoming show – with Steve Harris, Dave Murray, Adrian Smith, and Nicko McBrain all born in the surrounding area – it will also be the biggest UK venue the band have ever headlined outside of their festival appearances.
Steve Harris states, “My love of football and my support of West Ham is no secret, and I know many of our fans around the world have shared that with me too. So we’re all very excited to be playing at the London Stadium as part of the Run For Your Lives Tour. We can’t wait to see you all there!”
This leg of Iron Maiden’s Future Past Tour kicked off back on October 4 at the North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre in San Diego, California. A highlight of the trek was their headlining performance at Aftershock Festival 2024 in Sacramento, California. The run wraps up on November 17 at the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas. From there, the group will head to South America for an exclusive show in Santiago, Chile at Estadio Nacional.
Late last year, the band announced that they would be extending their Future Past run, which wrapped at Power Trip in Indio, California earlier this month. The first round of shows is set for this September at in Australia, New Zealand, and Japan. Very special guests Killswitch Engage will be serving as special guests for the trek.
“We’ve really enjoyed playing all the shows on the Future Past Tour this year, and the reaction from our fans has been incredible,” Iron Maiden bassist Steve Harris said in a statement. “Being able to play some of these songs for the very first time has made the tour even more memorable, and we can’t wait to continue it next year.”
Regarding the Australian dates, which were previously postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Harris adds, “We’re all really excited to finally be able to return to Australia as we know our fans have waited so patiently for us over the past few years. It’s going to be great to get back out there, especially with this new show. We promise you all, it’ll be worth the wait!”
The band’s longtime manager Rod Smallwood said, “All our best-laid plans to bring the Legacy of the Beast Tour to Australia were derailed by the shut-down of the live music industry during COVID, but we assured everyone at the time that we would come back to Australia and, as our fans know, we always keep our promises. So, as you would imagine, we’re very much looking forward to bringing this amazing new show to the Southern hemisphere and giving our loyal Australian fans the best Maiden show we can. You can be assured it’s worth the wait. See you all in 2024!”
Still one of the hardest touring acts around, Iron Maiden brought their Legacy of the Beast Tour back to North American last year for another massive run. The band’s latest album Senjutsu arrived in 2021. The album peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200, and No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Rock and Top Hard Rock Albums charts. Last fall, they played a string of shows in Canada, followed by an appearance at Power Trip in Indio, California alongside Metallica, AC/DC, Guns N’ Roses, Judas Priest, and Tool.
