Some lineups only come around once, and on Friday night, Los Angeles got one of them. Iron Maiden is celebrating 50 years as a band with their Run For Your Lives World Tour; Megadeth is out on what they have said will be their last-ever tour; and Anthrax joined the bill for only a handful of the biggest North American dates, Los Angeles among them. Three bands that helped build heavy metal, all on one stage, in a stadium full of fans who knew exactly how lucky they were to be there.
On September 25, Iron Maiden headlined the first of two sold-out shows at BMO Stadium in Los Angeles. They were supported by Anthrax and Megadeth. Traffic had other plans for me, and I did not make it into the stadium in time to see Anthrax. By every account, I missed something special. Joey Belladonna and company kicked the night off with “Caught in a Mosh,” got the pits going early, and put fans in the right mood for the mayhem to come. Anthrax has been one of thrash’s great live bands for more than four decades, and from what I heard, they proved it all over again.
They were followed by Megadeth, who delivered an amazing, high-energy set. Dave Mustaine and the band ran through “Devil’s Island,” “Hangar 18,” “Sweating Bullets,” “Tornado of Souls,” “Symphony of Destruction,” and “Holy Wars… The Punishment Due.” Fans sang along to every song. Knowing this is Megadeth’s farewell run made every one of those songs hit a little harder, and the crowd treated it like the send-off it is.
Then Iron Maiden came out, and it was like a tidal wave of sound. They hit hard and fast from the opening “Murders in the Rue Morgue” and never let up: “The Number of the Beast,” “Powerslave,” “2 Minutes to Midnight,” “Seventh Son of a Seventh Son,” and “The Trooper.” During the third song, “Killers,” a giant Eddie emerged and tried to attack the band members with a massive axe. They were flipping him off and running under his legs to dodge him. This made for a really fun show.
And what a band to watch. Bruce Dickinson ran the stage like a man half his age, and every time he yelled “Scream for me, Los Angeles!” the whole stadium did exactly that. Founder Steve Harris planted one boot on the monitor and aimed his bass at the crowd like a machine gun, driving that famous gallop through song after song.
Dave Murray and Adrian Smith traded solos like the old friends they are, while Janick Gers spun, kicked, and twirled his guitar like the stage was his personal playground. Behind the kit, Simon Dawson, Harris’s bandmate in British Lion, has the tough job of following Nicko McBrain, and he made it look easy, keeping everything locked in and hitting as hard as the songs demand.
The whole set came from the band’s first nine albums, and it played like a greatest hits record come to life. They even made room for the epic “Rime of the Ancient Mariner” before closing the main set with “Hallowed Be Thy Name” and “Iron Maiden.” The encore brought “Aces High,” “Fear of the Dark,” and “Wasted Years,” and nobody in the stadium was ready for it to end.
All in all, this was an amazing night, and it’s easy to see why Iron Maiden has been rocking sold-out shows for 50 years.
MEGADETH
