EXCITEMENT is already building ahead of Iron Maiden’s Dublin show that was announced recently as part of their Book of Souls World Tour.
The rock legends will be continuing their hugely successful tour into 2017 with a series of European arena shows that opens in Antwerp, Belgium on April 22, Maiden’s first visit to this city since 1981.
The band then travel to Germany for shows in Oberhausen, Frankfurt and Hamburg before heading into the UK and Ireland for an extensive series of concerts in May, which includes a return to Dublin, their first visit here in seven years, for a date at the 3Arena on May 6.
Maiden founder member and bass player Steve Harris, said: “The whole band is really enjoying this tour and though we love playing festivals and stadiums, it is terrific to return to the intimacy and atmosphere of arenas for a few shows.
“The songs from The Book Of Souls album and the new Maya-themed Eddies and stage sets have gone down really well and fan reaction has been amazing. And of course we know our fans appreciate us playing a lot of the older songs too, which we will continue to do.”
Special guests on all shows will be American arena headliners Shinedown.
Shinedown’s Zach Myers said: “Iron Maiden are the kings of metal and one of the greatest live bands of all time. It’s an honour to be touring with them in Europe and in their home country and to play in front of their fans. We can’t wait to see you in 2017.”
Tickets went on sale in September with the band ensuring their fans always have full access to the best possible tickets in the fairest possible way.
Their latest stance on combatting ticket touts for the 2017 Irish and UK dates utilises paperless ticketing where seating information is assigned to a customer’s credit card.
This is to eliminate the resale of tickets and reduces fraud by requiring the cardholder/purchaser to be present at venue entry.
The Book Of Souls World Tour opened in Florida in February and visited 36 countries using their new 747 jumbo jet Ed Force One piloted by singer Bruce Dickenson which flew band, crew and 22 tonnes of equipment over 61,500 miles (99,000 km) across six continents during the 72 date leg, while playing to around 1.5 million fans.
The Book Of Souls is Maiden’s first ever double studio album and their most successful chart-wise to date, debuting at the number 1 spot in over 40 countries around the globe.
