I was probably not the most impartial concert reviewer on April 2, 2009. When you wait half your life to cross a band off the number one slot on the concerts-to-see-before-I-die list, you get excited. I'm positive the rest of the Bank Atlantic Center crowd felt the same way as Iron Maiden pounded one classic metal anthem after another.
But before leaving the stage, Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson made a promise. Maiden would visit Florida again in 2011.
In fact, Florida will be the envy of every Iron Maiden fan in the U.S. and Canada. "The Final Frontier World Tour" will only make two stops each in Mexico and Florida on this continent.
Iron Maiden hits St. Pete Times Forum on April 17, 2011, for their first Tampa concert since 1988. Will the setlist be as good? Given how much I liked their latest album, The Final Frontier, probably not. But then again, the greatest test for Maiden's material has always been how the music sounds live. (Full tour details and some classic Maiden live clips after the jump)
This article appears in Oct 28 – Nov 3, 2010.