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Photos: Iron Maiden @ Madison Square Garden

photos by P Squared

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden
Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Last night’s show kicked off with the classic song “Doctor Doctor” by UFO, a band who Steve Harris, Iron Maiden’s bassist and primary songwriter, cites as one of Maiden’s bigger influences, playing over the house system. Afterwards, the room went black and an animated video played showing a jungle entangled Ed Force One being thrown into the air by a massive, rotten, subterranean hand (Eddie’s). The stage elements were uncovered, fog began rolling out of every crevice on the stage, and four cauldron fires became alight at the top of the stage. A single super bright spot light lit up frontman Bruce Dickinson and so began the Iron Maiden set in earnest, with a one-two punch of “If Eternity Should Fail” and “Speed of Light,” both from Book of Souls. For the next two hours Iron Maiden thrilled the audience with a fantastic career-spanning setlist (full setlist below). Their newer stuff really did stand up to time-tested classics like “Children of the Damned,” “The Trooper,” “The Number of the Beast,” and “Wasted Years.” I always sort of wince when a band that’s been around for 40 years is about to put out a new record because there is always the very real risk of unbearable samey-ness and caricature. But Souls is so full of sick riffs and heaviosity that it’s really a triumphant continuation of the Maiden catalogue.

Iron Maiden brought their tour in support of their 2015 double album Book of Souls to NYC last night (3/30) for a sold-out show at Madison Square Garden. The above quote is from Klaus Kinski’s review on BrooklynVegan (read the rest HERE), and as he points out, the set brought together classics and new songs, and all of it sounded great. Their stage show was quite the spectacle too.

We’ve got a set of pictures from the show on BrooklynVegan and even more in this post (including shots of opener The Raven Age). Pics continue below…

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

The Raven Age at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Iron Maiden at Madison Square Garden

Setlist
If Eternity Should Fail
Speed of Light
Children of the Damned
Tears of a Clown
The Red and the Black
The Trooper
Powerslave
Death or Glory
The Book of Souls
Hallowed Be Thy Name
Fear of the Dark
Iron Maiden

Encore:
The Number of the Beast
Blood Brothers
Wasted Years