Iron Maiden Concert 2008
When: Thursday, June 5, 2008
Where: Calgary Saddledome 

Reviewed by: Amanda Waschuk (Calgary Correspondent - Canada)

Previous to Thursday night's show, all I had known about Iron Maiden was the song "Run to the Hills" due to it's persistent play time on local radio stations since the announcement of their tour and that my uncle had a scary-looking poster with that title in his garage. That poster was my first encounter with the "poster-boy" of Iron Maiden: Eddie the Monster.

Known as a death metal band, Iron Maiden has always incorporated horror images with their reputation; although today these figures may not be quite the shock that they were in 1975 when the band first formed. 

After experiencing Iron Maiden, the first thing that comes to my mind when describing the band is theatrical.  This thought stems from the massive, Egyptian-style stage set-up that was necessary due to the band consisting of seven members (lead vocalist, bassist, 3 guitarists, drummer, and pianist). As the show went on, each song seemed to have its own backdrop always consisting of Eddie in some shape or form.   

Iron Maiden has produced 14 albums during their career and this concert showcased many of their main hits including "2 Minutes to Midnight" and "Number of the Beast".  With smooth transition from song-to-song, the crowd is never left waiting and always has plenty to watch between seven different entertainers.  Lead singer Bruce Dickinson puts the stage to good use while making his rounds interacting with all sections of the venue.

The fans are a big part of what made the show.  Everyone was involved to the point that even if you didn't know the songs, you had to get up and rock out.  There was barely an empty spot in the 20,000-seat Saddledome and the fist pumping/head banging was contagious all the way to the nosebleed section.  The crowd was at Dickinson's command as a single, slow pointing of the finger around the arena resulted in the wave.  

Also worth mentioning is Lauren Harris, the opening act.  Based out of the United Kingdom, as is Iron Maiden, it was great to see a lead female in a rock band, until she began to sing... There were some raunchy vocal sounds that fit the genre, but for the most part all I could think was that her voice is too pretty for rock and roll.  Low and behold, it turns out Lauren is the 24 year old daughter of Iron Maiden bassist Steve Harris. He certainly knows how to market the family business between taking his daughter on tour as the opening act to promoting his band by wearing an Iron Maiden t-shirt during the show.  But as fans know, Harris is good at what he does being the main composer and creator of Iron Maiden. 

If you're not familiar with the music of Iron Maiden and are deterred by their reputation of heavy metal (although they are tame when judged by standards today), don't run to the hills just yet. Attending a show you will be encompassed by the surrounding loyal fans and the enticing tunes to keep you entertained all night long; this is a show to be put on the must-see list.