Maiden England 88 vs Maiden England Current Tour

Maiden10_0

Maiden10_0

Nomad
Now that the Maiden England Tour has been chugging along quite nicely for over a year now, I'd like to pose the following question to those of us that are old enough and lucky enough to have caught maiden on the SSoSS 88 tour:
Which tour was better visually and musically, the first go 'round or the current one?
For me, as much as I cherish having seen Maiden for only the second time with my own eyes last year in Houston and the first being in New Orleans in 1988, I'm leaning towards their original stage being slightly better visually as it actually had texture and 3d items literally built into the stage and lights within the stage... It seems now like they have this "cookie cutter" stage that they use with drapes or painted plywood. And just change the look to depict the era that they are representing. It looks like the exact stage they used for SBIT tour '08. IMHO, the FF stage was much more detailed and thought out.
Don't get me wrong... Maiden is just as incredible live now as they were in the 80's, musically, they are hitting on all cylinders, it's just that I am a tad underwhelmed by their current stage. Let me also be clear, their current concert presentation still is very atmospheric and each song immerses you with the mood and vibe of the song from start to finish. Maiden are masters at taking you out of your seat and along an incredible journey of each songs different theme and story. That's what I love about Maiden, they're not just playing songs, they're telling stories with each number they play! No other band comes close to them visually except KISS, but KISS has always been just eye candy while Maiden takes you on a musical journey... No slam to KISS, as I love them equally with Maiden... I thought it would be fun to see what you guys think about the contrast between the two tours.. Please be careful about spoilers just in case there are people who are still waiting to see them live for their first time!
 
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Maiden10_0 said:
I'm just curious to see what you guys think about the
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About the what? The stage? The setup? Nicko's hair? The strange ringing in my ears? The voice that tells me to kill Shadow? What? What is it? FINISH THE SENTENCE, MAN!
 
Unfortunately, I wasn't even a thought back in 1988 when they did the original Maiden England tour. But I have watched the concert countless times over the years, and will have the privilege of seeing them 4 times total (for their Maiden England 2012-13 tour) as of this weekend.

So, I'd probably by default have to go with this modern Maiden England being better; but a lot of that obviously has to with the fact that I've actually seen this one live. Others might argue, especially if they did see Maiden live back in 1988. My father always said that his favorite Maiden concert was the one he saw in '88. And he supposedly saw Maiden every time they came to St. Louis on every major tour from 1982-1990. So, there's that.
 
Demigod_Tyek said:
Unfortunately, I wasn't even a thought back in 1988 when they did the original Maiden England tour. But I have watched the concert countless times over the years, and will have the privilege of seeing them 4 times total (for their Maiden England 2012-13 tour) as of this weekend.

So, I'd probably by default have to go with this modern Maiden England being better; but a lot of that obviously has to with the fact that I've actually seen this one live. Others might argue, especially if they did see Maiden live back in 1988. My father always said that his favorite Maiden concert was the one he saw in '88. And he supposedly saw Maiden every time they came to St. Louis on every major tour from 1982-1990. So, there's that.
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I hear ya! If you're catching this current show this weekend, you are in for a Treat!
Yeah, the stage that they used in 88 was so atmospheric and ahead of it's time! I'd have to agree with your dad. On the other hand, Janick wasn't part of Maiden yet, and it's funny, because, now he adds a certain dynamic that they kinda lacked back then... Guitar showmanship! Dave and Adrian are consummate musicians and have to pay more attention to the music being "spot on", while Janick gives them a "fun energy" that they didn't have. So that being said, for me, the visuals were better in '88, but performance wise, they are now mind blowing! Janick is an accomplished musician in his own right, but I think 95% of the time, he's up there playing air guitar and dancing almost Paul Stanley style having a blast until solo or intro time comes! :). It's amazing how much chemistry they have and compliment each other!
 
LooseCannon said:
About the what? The stage? The setup? Nicko's hair? The strange ringing in my ears? The voice that tells me to kill Shadow? What? What is it? FINISH THE SENTENCE, MAN!
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! :lol:

Made me think of this:


Definitely a movie everyone should see ("Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas" for those who don't know...)
 
I wasn't around in '88... but the stage is still pretty underwhelming. It looked pathetically flat in Milwaukee last year. I think the biggest thing missing amongst all that light-blue wash are some underlit steps and iceberg caps on the ramps immediately flanking the drums. SBIT did a much better job of recapturing the glory of its inspiriation. Not to mention...
the setlist was pretty lame. I've bitched about it plenty, but ME '88 was such a great celebration of some classic tunes (Still Life, Killers, DWYBO, Infinite Dreams) that deserved to get played again. Plus, the inclusion of Two Minutes, The Trooper, RTTH, NOTB, FOTD and Aces High again when so much kickass classic 80s material has gone unplayed is such a waste... I hope by some miracle stroke of luck they change the setlist radically for the last leg of the tour. Ok, end rant!
 
Lego said:
I wasn't around in '88... but the stage is still pretty underwhelming. It looked pathetically flat in Milwaukee last year. I think the biggest thing missing amongst all that light-blue wash are some underlit steps and iceberg caps on the ramps immediately flanking the drums. SBIT did a much better job of recapturing the glory of its inspiriation. Not to mention...
the setlist was pretty lame. I've bitched about it plenty, but ME '88 was such a great celebration of some classic tunes (Still Life, Killers, DWYBO, Infinite Dreams) that deserved to get played again. Plus, the inclusion of Two Minutes, The Trooper, RTTH, NOTB, FOTD and Aces High again when so much kickass classic 80s material has gone unplayed is such a waste... I hope by some miracle stroke of luck they change the setlist radically for the last leg of the tour. Ok, end rant!
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I totally agree with you. Also IMO, they should drop ATSS and play ID, and HBTN instead! I mean, hallowed was only voted one of the top 5 best metal songs of all time! It's like KISS not playing Rock and Roll all Nite!
 
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LooseCannon said:
Maiden10_0, do you always post before reading the rules of a forum?

http://forum.maidenfans.com/threads/forum-rules.23103/
http://forum.maidenfans.com/threads/regarding-upcoming-concert-threads-please-read.16293/
http://forum.maidenfans.com/threads/important-must-read.23104/

I've fixed your above post. Do not post setlist information without spoilers.
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Oops! I am so sorry! I thought I was using spoiler tags and didn't check before I posted! Using my iPhone. That me be the problem! I don't want to give any secrets away ! Thanks so much for fixing! If you read my original post on this thread, I even remind everyone of spoilers and I'm the one to accidentally break the rule! How embarrassing! I apologize again! :)
 
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I was not there in 88 but the stage looked cooler in 88 than now,they have missed many things,its not the same, sometimes feels like they put blue and White in everything and thats all.If they want to recreate and old tour they have to do it like somewhere back in tour 08.Bad move for maiden,its not only Eddie the stage.

The setlist and bruce voice are way better than 88


Just read that someone said exactly the same a few post before.
 
dickinson1978 said:
I was not there in 88 but the stage looked cooler in 88 than now,they have missed many things,its not the same, sometimes feels like they put blue and White in everything and thats all.If they want to recreate and old tour they have to do it like somewhere back in tour 08.Bad move for maiden,its not only Eddie the stage.

The setlist and bruce voice are way better than 88


Just read that someone said exactly the same a few post before.
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I feel the same way. The band has never sounded better. The stage just looks so flat compared to 88. I didn't get the chance to see them in 2008, but it seems that they've been using the same frame for the stage for the past three tours and the SBIT stage looks like they just hung Egyptian tapestries, or died sheets covering the main frame of the stage. The original Powerslave tour stage was so textured as well as SSOASS tour in 88. Don't get me wrong, they are still one of, if not the best live bands out there, but maybe my expectations were too high for the stage presentation. In their defense, From what I understand, is that they fly Ed Force One to all shows, so carrying the whole stage and all equipment in the back of the plane must dictate how much they can carry, but its a shame that the fans get a little short changed so the band gets around in a unique manner. I wouldn't mind if tickets weren't so darned high these days! I'm just sayin... :wtf:
 
I saw the original Powerslave, SIT, SSOASS tours ... the original stages were much better and elaborate compared to the newer ones. I am guessing this is due to record companies no longer putting money into tours, so prices go up, demand goes down and Maiden and bands like them that played larger arenas in the 80s are now playing sheds which have less room for stage shows. There is no way the Powerslave show would fit onto the current stages they are playing.

That said, I still like the recent stages, they are just not as massive and cool as they were the first go around.
 
Honestly, im not going to talk about the setlist of songs as after seeing iron maiden 7 times now in the past 10 years first gig when i was 10. I dont care what they play, they always entertain and no matter what the song is you sing along. Be it the entire AMOLAD played in full or RTTH for the 100th time. Obviously i wasnt even born for the original 88 tour, but ive watched many videos and the one thing i note thats different is the stage itself. They can spend all this money on a plane but theyve used the same set style for the past 10 years since DoD tour. All they change is the drapes along the stage and the floor, the biggest thing they added was in 2010/11 when they put radio towers up. 88 set just seemed to have much more effort put into. After seeing bands like Rush, Metallica, Megadeth, hell even Avenged Sevenfold live they all seem to put something different to the set from tour to tour. Maiden put on a great show, they have the giant eddies and are my favourite live band. But they havent changed their stage for the past 10 years, all they change is the drapes on it. Thats my only fault on this tour, the performance at Download was amazing and the song selection was great i only have one complaint. But the stage itself needs to have a mixup other than a change of drapes.
 
The older sets look great, but the drapes have the advantage of being very quick and easy to set up. At Download, I'm sure I was at the main stage with only about 20-30 minutes remaining until Maiden came on, and they literally unfolded the backdrops in seconds, completely transforming the stage. Something this portable probably offers a lot of flexibility for touring.
 
I am not sure what a good alternative would be. I am not a fan of giant monitors, I'd rather have the drapes versus constant video playing behind the band.
 
bearfan said:
I saw the original Powerslave, SIT, SSOASS tours ... the original stages were much better and elaborate compared to the newer ones. I am guessing this is due to record companies no longer putting money into tours, so prices go up, demand goes down and Maiden and bands like them that played larger arenas in the 80s are now playing sheds which have less room for stage shows. There is no way the Powerslave show would fit onto the current stages they are playing.

That said, I still like the recent stages, they are just not as massive and cool as they were the first go around.
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Honestly, it's probably just logistics. Maiden have a couple of modular metal frames on wheels (like we saw in the En Vivo! Behind the Beast feature) that make up their stages. Sure, on TFF they added some additional metalwork and set pieces to the walls of the stage (plus the towers), but they basically have used the same frame for their stages since around 2000. It makes it easier to transport, easier to setup, and easier to design since all you really have to do is swap out some fabric.

I thought the SBIT stage was a great recreation, because they did redo the glowing hyroglyphs, sarcophogi and dog statues. In addition, combining that with the SIT-esque lighting rig and Eddie was a pretty cool mix.
 
well, this is how I see it. This is a history tour, they are not promoting and going all out like 88 when the album was new. The Final Frontier tour was a great stage set because it was a new album and tour. I expect the same for 2014 if a new album is what they pursue. I really wish they would resurrect the SIT tour though :/ I think the stage show was better in 88 based on videos I've seen but after going to several shows this tour, I think Bruce's voice is better and the sound seems better too. It's a tie :) Only because I wasn't alive in 1988. I came along a year later
 
Maiden10_0 said:
I feel the same way. The band has never sounded better. The stage just looks so flat compared to 88. I didn't get the chance to see them in 2008, but it seems that they've been using the same frame for the stage for the past three tours and the SBIT stage looks like they just hung Egyptian tapestries, or died sheets covering the main frame of the stage.
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I think the basic stage set has been the same since either the Dance of Death or Early Days tour. It should be noted that there are a few more changes than just the sheets, like sandbags and flak lights in the AMOLAD tour, or Anubis statues and backlit hieroglyphs during Somewhere Back in Time, but those are just gimmicks.
 
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