Iron Maiden, the heavy metal titans from East London made Capital One Arena in Washington, DC their home last Sunday evening for their Legacy of the Beast World Tour 2022. Playing to a sold out crowd of 20,000+, Steve Harris and the boys filled every seat clear up to the nosebleed sessions.
Fortunately, no matter where you were in the arena on Sunday night, there’s two things that were undeniable. First, the energy (and volume) of Iron Maiden’s performance was a spectacle in itself. Secondly, the electricity that the crowd gave back to the band was uncanny. It’s a rare gift when these elements come together—and Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson owns it, feeding the crowd exactly what they wanted with seemingly endless stamina.
In distinctly good form, Iron Maiden blazed through the evening’s setlist which spanned material both old and new(er). One song after another, the audience hung right with the band, singing along with every word of every song. The magic didn’t stop there. An Iron Maiden show wouldn’t be complete without tons of props, background changes, large scale pyrotechnics, fog machines, bone chilling theatrics, and enough raw pageantry to make even John Cena jealous.
Iron Maiden wasted no time bringing their beloved mascot, Eddie to the stage to join his bandmates. During the very first song of the set, “Sanjutsu,” Eddie appeared in full Samurai armor wielding a blood covered sword. He took turns battling band members one by one before he retreated backstage. Not to worry though, Eddie would appear throughout the night in some form or another.
Maiden’s set included the song “Blood Brothers” as the fifth song of the set. Dickinson had the whole arena waving their arms in unison and chanting along with the chorus, proving again that Maiden fans never disappoint and are among the best in the game. “Up the Irons!” Another memorable moment in Maiden’s set was the dramatic red ambience and morbid cemetery landscapes during “Sign of the Cross.” Dickinson appeared through the smoke wearing a dark cloak wielding a giant illuminated cross which he presented to his audience to cheers.
For the mighty “Flight of Icarus,” Dickinson wore a double flamethrower, one on each wrist. He happily launched flames towards the sky where a giant Icarus sculpture flew over the stage until it crashed and burned to ashes as it disappeared behind the scenes. “Fear of the Dark” was another crowd favorite. The room went black and Dickinson appeared sporting a Venetian death mask and carrying a lantern that illuminated the audience with a green spotlight. Up next were the classics including a scorching rendition of “The Number of the Beast” along with the self titled anthem, “Iron Maiden” which again had the arena singing in unison.
It was during the first encore that Maiden pulled deep from their roots delving into their most beloved classics. First, “The Trooper” had fans exploding with screams as Dickinson emerged in English military garb waiving a weathered British flag like the single’s famous cover artwork. Dickinson and Eddie battled like swashbucklers all around the stage. “The Clansman” was up next with its rumbling steady bass lines before the band transitioned to the piercing guitar intro for “Run to the Hills” which came next. The night ended with “Aces High,” the last song of the evening.
Within Temptation, the Dutch Symphonic metal group fronted by Sharon den Adel had the pleasure of opening the night’s festivities.
WITHIN TEMPTATION
IRON MAIDEN SETLIST
Senjutsu
Stratego
The Writing on the Wall
Revelations
Blood Brothers
Sign of the Cross
Flight of Icarus
Fear of the Dark
Hallowed be thy Name
The Number of the Beast
Iron Maiden
The Trooper
The Clansman
Run to the Hills
Aces High
