IRON MAIDEN (Live)

Adrian Smith and Dave Murray, guitarists of Iron Maiden playing side by side during live performance. They are wearing subtly matching waistcoats. The background features a view of Paris and the Eiffel tower caught in a menacing storm...although the performance was in Lyon and the French fans were grumpy about it. — Photo: Séverine Peraldino

Iron Maiden had not played in Lyon since the end of the 1980s. With recent shows at Hellfest and in Paris, including last year, the band’s arrival in France is not exceptional. Here, the exceptional aspect lies more in the venue than in the event itself. The fiasco in Paris the week before also remained fresh in everyone’s mind: the venue’s electricity was cut off for about an hour, thus forcing the band to cut short their Running For Your Lives Show, which should have been filmed for a DVD. As France was hit by a heatwave that week, other big events were cancelled throughout the country and the city. It was quite a relief for the fans that everything went according to plan and Iron Maiden delivered an incredible show!

The band was in excellent form overall, despite a few minor mishaps during the guitar solos. Dave Murray played the “Iron Maiden” riff noticeably slower than usual, perhaps a consequence of the heatwave. Steve Harris was, as always, unwaveringly manning the front of the stage without missing a single beat.

Adrian Smith maintained his characteristically relaxed posture throughout most of the performance, but disappeared during “The Trooper”. Bruce Dickinson briefly seemed out of breath during the pre-chorus of “Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son”, only to follow it moments later with one of the most impressive belting notes of the entire show. It was another reminder that he remains one of the greatest singers and is clearly not ready to retire.

Behind the drum kit, Simon Dawson did a very decent job. His playing is perhaps not as versatile or whimsical as Nicko McBrain’s, but it worked particularly well on the band’s earlier material played at the beginning of the show. It reinforced the punk-like energy of these songs. In the more progressive passages of “Seventh Son of a Seventh Son”, however, his more straightforward approach was perhaps a little less convincing.

Despite being a football stadium rather than a concert venue, the sound at Groupama Stadium was better than at La Défense Arena last year. It was not the best you could dream of for an Iron Maiden concert, but it was within reasonable expectations.

For the visual components of the show, Iron Maiden are now using a giant screen, allowing for a more immersive experience. Still, since nostalgia is in the hearts of the fans, this tour could have been an opportunity to celebrate the legendary tapestries of previous tours…especially since the screen displayed a view of Paris under a storm during the first song. The animations throughout the show were otherwise compelling, even if they sometimes made you wonder if they were not pure AI, which would be a shame.

The setlist remained the same as the first leg of the tour except for “Infinite Dreams” replacing “The Clairvoyant”: arguably one of the best Iron Maiden songs ever, this small swap was an excellent idea. As the setlist was a wild ride through the most iconic Iron Maiden songs, it is no wonder the Lyon crowd gave their all every time, to the point of fainting in the heat. The medical teams had their hands full the whole evening. “Fear Of The Dark” was for many a highlight of the show (as well as “Phantom Of The Opera” and “Powerslave”…it is difficult to select just a few). The chanting of the audience and their clapping were thunderous!

Bruce Dickinson even addressed the crowd in his best makeshift French, saying: “Peut-être Lyon, on vient jouer chez vous plus souvent” (“Maybe we’ll come and play here more often”).

Focusing on their earlier years and going for another round in France, one could question whether Iron Maiden is not giving in to fan service. However, even if it is not a goodbye show, it does taste a bit like one. Celebrating 50 years of Iron Maiden (52 now?), there probably will not be more milestones like this. It remains one hell of a show, and you would be wrong to miss it if you are an Iron Maiden fan.