04-01-2016, 05:19 PM
U.K. metal legends Iron Maiden announced that the final stop of the "Book of Souls" tour on August 4th at Germany's legendary Wacken Festival will be the band's final live performance. The band promises that the performance will be the most special live event ever conceived in its 41 year history. Dubbed "The True Best Of The Beast," Iron Maiden will perform both new and classic material spanning its entire history with guest appearances from former vocalists Paul Di'Anno and Blaze Bayley.
In a statement issued by long time band co-manager Rod Smallwood: "After over 40 years rocking the world so many times over, Iron Maiden will perform for the last time at Wacken on August 4th. The decision wasn't made overnight, but carefully planned out over the last year. If there was ever an Iron Maiden show you should see, this is the one. We have so many surprises in store for the fans."
Some of the surprises that Smallwood was able to reveal include:
- Every album in the band's history will be represented with at least one song in the set
- Special guest vocalists include Paul Di'Anno and Blaze Bayley, both of who will perform material from their respective eras
- The stage show will be unlike any other Iron Maiden performance, featuring props and stage sets from the band's classic tours for "Powerslave," "Somewhere in Time," "Seventh Son of A Seventh Son"
- Special Iron Maiden "stage tickets" will be made available as a special side sale, which opens up opportunities for additional fans to attend this performance as Wacken is currently sold out. Each fan with a special stage ticket will receive a 150 page commemorative program, which features never published live and memorabilia pictures spanning the history of the band.
Smallwood added: "The band plans to carve open up a section of the main stage which would accommodate an additional 500 fans. Those special tickets will be a ringside seat for what surely will be the event of a lifetime. Wacken attendees will also have a chance to upgrade their existing tickets for the 'Iron Maiden Experience.'"
As for the news of the band's retirement, vocalist Bruce Dickinson stated: "I know this all sounds very sudden, but we have been planning this for many months now. Wacken is such a sacred place for heavy metal music, so we felt it would be the perfect place and time to put on the most amazing Iron Maiden performance ever. Trust me, you will not want to miss this."
When asked whether his recent bout with cancer was a factor in the decision, Dickinson added: "Not at all. We were targeting that date and time well before I was diagnosed. I am working on a new solo record, so I have no intentions of retiring from music."
Band founder Steve Harris added: "The decision didn't come easy, but I've come to grips with the fact that none of us are getting any younger and its time to pass the torch to the younger generation. It will be a bittersweet moment for us - like watching our lives flash before our eyes."
Stage Tickets for the "Iron Maiden Experience" at Wacken will go on sale on sale April 30th at this location.
Iron Maiden's latest album "The Book of Souls" has gone platinum in the United States and worldwide it is one of the band's biggest releases to date.
In a statement issued by long time band co-manager Rod Smallwood: "After over 40 years rocking the world so many times over, Iron Maiden will perform for the last time at Wacken on August 4th. The decision wasn't made overnight, but carefully planned out over the last year. If there was ever an Iron Maiden show you should see, this is the one. We have so many surprises in store for the fans."
Some of the surprises that Smallwood was able to reveal include:
- Every album in the band's history will be represented with at least one song in the set
- Special guest vocalists include Paul Di'Anno and Blaze Bayley, both of who will perform material from their respective eras
- The stage show will be unlike any other Iron Maiden performance, featuring props and stage sets from the band's classic tours for "Powerslave," "Somewhere in Time," "Seventh Son of A Seventh Son"
- Special Iron Maiden "stage tickets" will be made available as a special side sale, which opens up opportunities for additional fans to attend this performance as Wacken is currently sold out. Each fan with a special stage ticket will receive a 150 page commemorative program, which features never published live and memorabilia pictures spanning the history of the band.
Smallwood added: "The band plans to carve open up a section of the main stage which would accommodate an additional 500 fans. Those special tickets will be a ringside seat for what surely will be the event of a lifetime. Wacken attendees will also have a chance to upgrade their existing tickets for the 'Iron Maiden Experience.'"
As for the news of the band's retirement, vocalist Bruce Dickinson stated: "I know this all sounds very sudden, but we have been planning this for many months now. Wacken is such a sacred place for heavy metal music, so we felt it would be the perfect place and time to put on the most amazing Iron Maiden performance ever. Trust me, you will not want to miss this."
When asked whether his recent bout with cancer was a factor in the decision, Dickinson added: "Not at all. We were targeting that date and time well before I was diagnosed. I am working on a new solo record, so I have no intentions of retiring from music."
Band founder Steve Harris added: "The decision didn't come easy, but I've come to grips with the fact that none of us are getting any younger and its time to pass the torch to the younger generation. It will be a bittersweet moment for us - like watching our lives flash before our eyes."
Stage Tickets for the "Iron Maiden Experience" at Wacken will go on sale on sale April 30th at this location.
Iron Maiden's latest album "The Book of Souls" has gone platinum in the United States and worldwide it is one of the band's biggest releases to date.