If Iron Maiden had to replace Nicko..

As he said himself, he dont see himself as the drummer of the band in eight years. Many bands tend to bring back ex members into the fold, for example Chris Slade, but that would be less likley in Maidens case with Clive gone. Doug Sampson still plays, I think the band is called Airforce, but would it make sense to have him in the band again? He played on The Soundhouse Tapes and on some b-sides. Obviously, I would like to see an English drummer. I wouldnt mind someone like Simon Wright or Pete Gill. The one closest to hand is Simon Dawson from British Lion.
 
I wouldn't pick anybody.

As Steve has said numerous times, if Nicko (or any one of them, for that matter) decides to retire, then they should bow out gracefully and call it quits.

Besides that fact, Nicko is pretty unique as a player, and pretty much irreplaceable at this point (unless they can find an ex-jazz/blues session drummer with a machine-gun right foot who's spent the past 30 years playing in a massively prolific prog-tinged metal band).
 
Fekso, I think Simon Wright would be a great choice. He's an excellent all around drummer.
 
I go back and forth on this one, but if they had to replace Nicko I hope they wouldn't go with an already established drummer. Go the Priest route and get someone who's relatively unknown. Or one of their kids.
 
Although I don't think Nicko is irreplaceable technically, I would never accept a different drummer. It just wouldn't feel right. But if such choice had to be made, I think it would be the best idea to look for someone old-school, perhaps with prog rock background.
 
I survived Adrian's and Bruce's departure in Maiden back in the day...but I don't want to do that again and I've really been enjoying their current stability. I'd rather they just ride off into the sunset together as a group. Getting a hired hand this late in the game would feel pointless IMHO.
 
Portnoy!

But when Nicko is done, the band is done.


No. I feel like Portnoy would do a good job at the beginning but would begin to overcomplicate drum parts as the time goes by. And as @Lego says the drummer must origin from blues-rock-jazz roots (plenty of feel, Portnoy doesn't), must have a fast right foot and a love affair with ride cymbal.
 
No. I feel like Portnoy would do a good job at the beginning but would begin to overcomplicate drum parts as the time goes by. And as @Lego says the drummer must origin from blues-rock-jazz roots (plenty of feel, Portnoy doesn't), must have a fast right foot and a love affair with ride cymbal.
Nicko is truly a one-off, one of the last of the old guard of metal drummers who got their start playing music that wasn't metal. IMO, makes all the difference in separating the greats from the herds of double bass blast beat maniacs out there (like I used to be :D )
 
Portnoy did good in A7x. He's also a huge Maiden fan, I'm sure he would play the parts as intended out of respect for the band and not overcomplicate everything.
 
Portnoy's personality would clash with Maiden big time. I get the feeling A7x regret bringing in Portnoy because of all the drama that came with him. Granted this was when he had just left DT, but A7X are pretty similar to Maiden as far as their preference for a certain level of privacy goes. Portnoy's social media presence would likely cause problems in that area.

They need to go with a relative unknown. That's always been their style when replacing long time members and I see no reason for that to change now.
 
They need to go with a relative unknown. That's always been their style when replacing long time members and I see no reason for that to change now.

Worked for Priest with Travis, now didn't it?

Also, I know they'd never do that, but since I actually like the full sound of two and more drummers (from Allmans to Miles' electric combos), I probably wouldn't mind seeing two drummers as Nicko's replacement. In fact, I'd think that might sound just about right.

But definitely not Portnoy (I love him, but I don't want to see him overplaying everything as f*** in Maiden, of all bands) and surely as hell not Dailor (same as above ... TIMES HUNDRED).

It's a pity Bruford retired. But Gavin Harrison might be a good choice, too.
 
I survived Adrian's and Bruce's departure in Maiden back in the day...but I don't want to do that again and I've really been enjoying their current stability. I'd rather they just ride off into the sunset together as a group. Getting a hired hand this late in the game would feel pointless IMHO.

But keep in mind that both Adrian and Bruce are the most important song writers in the band next to Steve. Its hard to keep the band going creativly without 66% of their writing team.
 
I understand that people get attached to Nicko, he is very likable. But something was lost to the band when Clive was fired and it would be intresting to see what the band could do with a drummer with a similar style to Clive!
 
Is it just me or is Portnoy the go-to suggestion whenever a replacement for a metal drummer is mentioned?
 
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