Strangest setlist inclusions? (SPOILER FREE)

Ascendingthethrone

Ancient Mariner
Please make sure this thread remains spoiler free.

I have been thinking about this recently whilst watching back live videos. What songs to you seemed like odd inclusions in a setlist? By 'odd' I mean songs that seemed out of place or interrupted the flow of the show. For me, I would go for the following:
  • Aces High 2012-2014. Amazing song live but Bruce did struggle with it at the end of the set. Not sure why they included it, to be honest.
  • Dance of Death 2010-2011. For me, it lacked the theatrical element from the DOD tour. They played it really well but I don't think it fit into the setlist.
What do you guys think?
 
Maiden England was full of oddities. As you mentioned Aces, regardless of Bruce's performance I thought it was a very strange choice for an encore opener. Other songs like Phantom and Afraid to Shoot Strangers really stuck out and later dropping Clairvoyant for Revelations was questionable.

Still loved seeing them all though. :)
 
  • Aces High 2012-2014. Amazing song live but Bruce did struggle with it at the end of the set. Not sure why they included it, to be honest.
  • Dance of Death 2010-2011. For me, it lacked the theatrical element from the DOD tour. They played it really well but I don't think it fit into the setlist.


I think that Aces High is a very logical choice to open the encores, but obviously it turned out to be a bit too demanding one for that spot; regardless, if looking at the song and setlist structures only, I think it does fit there very well. As for DoD, I could have done without in in 2011 in favour of something more "suitable", but the performances itself were pretty great - the En Vivo! version is pure gold. But I do see your point.

I'd put it this way: Aces High 2012-14 fits, but does not work too well. DoD 2011 might not "fit", but it works very well.

Maiden England was full of oddities. As you mentioned Aces, regardless of Bruce's performance I thought it was a very strange choice for an encore opener. Other songs like Phantom and Afraid to Shoot Strangers really stuck out and later dropping Clairvoyant for Revelations was questionable.

Still loved seeing them all though. :)

I could kinda see Phantom as a loose Somewhere on Tour inclusion in the Maiden England set. Anyway, it worked very well, but the set was indeed more of a 80's best of set (and very good one too) rather than pure "Maiden England." I loved ATSS, but there's no denying that it was an oddity; as I've stated in other topics, I think they could've included on or two other 90's songs in the set as well to cover that era too and make Maiden England much more clearly a period-tied history set, covering the late 80's and early 90's, but there you go... I loved the show too and I think some of the somewhat "odd" setlist inclusions were good and at least they sort of tried to break the mold there, opening the encore with Aces High for example, even if it didn't turn out too well then. :) Anyway, wasn't The Clairvoyant replaced with Wrathchild and ATSS with Revelations? Oh well, they both were replaced anyway, so no matter. :D

Personally, I can't think of any songs that were too out of place or killed the flow entirely, but I'd say that 2011 set in general had some pacing issues. From a casual fan point of view, there was a healthy bunch of classics, but the the set was rather slow-paced in general and while En Vivo! presents the band being on fire and Bruce nailing everything, not every single show on that tour was quite as intense. There were lot of great ones, but that set, starting with rather laid back, mid-tempo rocker and the fourth song of the set having an acoustic intro that takes two minutes etc. I'm not saying that any of the songs they chose for the set shouldn't have been there, but to work properly that set really needed a very focused, fiery and intense performance by the guys. In the dark. Seeing that show in the light of a Finnish summer wasn't the best Maiden experience out there. Then again, as it was my first Maiden show, it has a special place in my heart and I really enjoyed it and loved the new material, but later gigs were from another planet.

So, to get to the point... Outside pacing issues, it's hard to find that many oddities or problems in Maiden sets that could be "fixed" while staying in the realm of possibilities; I'd say that this little rethinking and refreshing some old setlist molds they have been doing during TBOS and LOTB runs, and even in Maiden England, to some extent, would have been healthy in 2011 too. Other than that... I don't know. I guess Virtual XI set in 1998 was full of pacing issues and while The Educated Fool, Sign of the Cross and Afraid to Shoot Strangers are all great songs, it's not that kind of a bunch you think would be played in a row. Heaven Can Wait-The Clansman-When Two Worlds Collide too, even if all three are good songs, would also need something a bit more aggressive and energetic in between to balance things out. So yeah, 1998, especially when considering Blaze's problems with some of the Bruce-era material, could have been improved a lot with one or two "rockers", like Prowler or some other Di'Anno era cut. Wasted Years could have worked too, since Blaze loves it and it would have suited much better for him than, say, Hallowed be Thy Name etc.
 
Aces High during Maiden England was odd.
I did almost cry when I found out they were playing SOTC on the current tour. Unexpected at the very least.
 
Last edited by a moderator:
The thread title says "Spoiler free". How hard is it to take the hint that you're supposed to use spoiler tags, @Collin ?
 
So as clarification: no posting about LOTB tour whatsoever so that those who are seeing it for the first time in the next leg can be surprised / won't know anything about the previous leg in case all the same songs are played?
 
I'm sticking to songs/tours that I've actually seen live in person, since I feel I can't fully judge otherwise.

Negative:

Afraid To Shoot Strangers - Maiden England Tour 2012-13. Totally out of context with the rest of the set and a pretty average/unremarkable tune... although it's one I never thought I'd get to see live. Would be a "neutral" due to its rarity if it hadn't replaced Infinite Dreams :(
Aces High - Maiden England Tour 2012-14. Maiden England was already dangerously close to just being "Somewhere Back In Time... Again", and this song put it over the edge. Aside from being totally out of place in the theme, it was at an odd spot late in the set and Bruce's performance suffered as a result.
Fear of the Dark - SBIT 2008-09. After sticking to their guns on the Early Days tour and not stepping outside the intended "era", it was incredibly disappointing to see this song sneak into the SBIT setlist.
Wrathchild - TBOS 2017. YAAAWWWWWN - I get that HBTN had to be dropped last-minute due to the lawsuit and they needed to replace it with something, but this song was totally out of place in the theme and flow of the setlist.

Positive:

Powerslave - TBOS Tour, 2016-17. Though not an obvious choice, totally fits the theme of the tour and was a complete surprise. Hearing the heartbeat/demonic laugh intro tape at the opening gig in Florida was one of the most spine-tingling Maiden moments I've ever had.
Wasted Years - TBOS Tour, 2016-17. Again, like Powerslave, not an obvious choice for the tour (especially as the encore closer), but totally fit! A great celebration of Bruce being back to good health and a reminder that one's time on earth is precious and shouldn't be taken for granted. Brought a tear to me eye, if I'm honest!
Tears of a Clown - TBOS Tour, 2016. After Steve's interview in the FC mag prior to the tour, it sounded like he wasn't too keen on Nicko's suggestion of doing this song live. But just like a lot of other setlist choices on this tour, it wasn't expected but made it in anyways. A really heartfelt tune with a unique feel that I though went down really well within the flow of the set.
Moonchild - SBIT Tour, 2008. I mean, holy shit... who in 2008 thought we'd ever hear this one again?! Plus, doing the intro acoustically was just great fun.
Phantom of the Opera - Maiden England 2012-14. Ok, so just like ATSS, it didn't fit the theme of the show at all, but this is a total bucket list song for me! This was the first Maiden song ever played with a band when I was a young'un, and never thought I'd get to see it live. They could include this on every tour 'til the end of their career and I'd never get tired of it!
Every Reunion-Era Song in the 2010 Setlist. I am a huge reunion-era fan, especially AMOLAD and BNW, so this whole set was a massive positive surprise for me. Sadly, by the time I saw them BTATS and Paschendale had been dropped, which was a major bummer, but the fact that they dedicated almost a whole set to nothing but modern material and then toured the USA with it was an amazingly ballsy move. Plus, the Wicker Man/Ghost of the Navigator opening made me feel like I was at Rock In Rio, which happens to also be my favorite live album of all time.
 
Well it’s a thread about strange setlist choices. Doesn’t have to be good or bad.
 
Lord of the Flies on Death on the Road tour just blew my mind.

Probably the oddest choice.
Loved it however

Yup! It's also interesting how they up-tuned it a bit, since Maiden does not do even that kind of rearranging that often. While I liked the idea and the execution is good, it would be interesting to see a bit slower and downtuned take of that one with Bruce. Not gonna happen though, but at least it definitely highlights the oddity-value of it being played in 2003-04.
 
Lord of the Flies on DOD tour 2003/2004 - I think nobody had expected to see this song. Bruce done a very good job and I'm happy that we have this live version of that song.

Moonchild on SBIT tour 2008 - I thought that we never gonna hear this song live again (we heard it one more time, but it was a right inclusion), and for the thematic of this tour was a strange inclusion. The Clairvoyant and CIPWM was the same. Any song from SIT onwards for this tour was odd. (incl. Fear of the Dark)

Wasted Years on TBOS tour 2016/2017 - not that it is strange to see this song being played, but as the encore closer was really odd.

Afraid to Shoot Strangers on ME tour 2012/2013 - I like the inclusion of FOTD on this tour, but no other songs from the 90's should have been added. Though, ATSS was a really fresh piece in the set, sounded great and it was a highlight of the tour along with SSOASS and The Prisoner... Phantom of the Opera was a really good addition to this set too.

Aces High on ME tour 2012/2014 - I think this tour should only included one song from the Powerslave album (2MTM) as a tribute to the original SSOASS tour. Aces High as an encore opener was great, but not for Bruce. This song works the best when it is the opener. Revelations was also a odd inclusion in the 2014 leg (SL, ID, DWYBO, Killers and why not 22AA instead of it). Wrathchild was good, that song really fits everywhere. And it was played in the ''Seventh Son'' tour at Donington '88.

Another Life on Early Days tour 2005 - how you choose to add this song instead of Killers, 22AA, FOI, Still Life or TTAL (this tour was perfect for this song to return). It is not so good song and still to this day I think it was one of the oddest inclusions in a Maiden setlist. Drifter was logical, since the song was a live staple until 1983. Charlotte the Harlot was also very odd inclusion for 2 shows.

The whole AMOLAD album on AMOLAD tour 2006 - That was a very unexpected move from the band, but it was a nice surprise.

Children of the Damned on BNW tour 2002 - I think it was in honor of Clive, but it was a unexpected addition to the set (though only for 3 shows). Maybe like it was on TBOS tour too.

And this one:
(
amazing setlist and decision from the band)
Every Reunion-Era Song in the 2010 Setlist. I am a huge reunion-era fan, especially AMOLAD and BNW, so this whole set was a massive positive surprise for me. Sadly, by the time I saw them BTATS and Paschendale had been dropped, which was a major bummer, but the fact that they dedicated almost a whole set to nothing but modern material and then toured the USA with it was an amazingly ballsy move. Plus, the Wicker Man/Ghost of the Navigator opening made me feel like I was at Rock In Rio, which happens to also be my favorite live album of all time.
 
Last edited:
Yup! It's also interesting how they up-tuned it a bit, since Maiden does not do even that kind of rearranging that often. While I liked the idea and the execution is good, it would be interesting to see a bit slower and downtuned take of that one with Bruce. Not gonna happen though, but at least it definitely highlights the oddity-value of it being played in 2003-04.
I thought it was great... except for Bruce himself, who sounded bored in the low parts and messed up the lyrics in the chorus. I just can’t get over that.
 
Honestly, I can't really say there's that many strange setlist inclusions. Some of the ones already pointed out particularly make perfect sense to me. ATSS was a track with a very similar feel to Infinite Dreams and a total rarity - it's the perfect replacement. Phantom replaced Hallowed as the rights issue prevented the latter from being played. Aces High in the ME encore was a bit odd, yes, but it makes sense too being a high energy track to open the encore with and an absolute fan favorite. It also created a nice symmetry with the Somewhere Back in Time tour and its encore. I think Bruce figured it would basically be the same as doing Hallowed in the encore which turned out to be a bad miscalculation, but oh well.

I would maybe call the '09 setlist alterations strange, admittedly. Playing the incredibly worn out TETMD instead of the more rare SSOASS tracks just feels like a downgrade, even if the addition of Phantom brought in some additional Live After Death flavor. But why not go whole hog and throw in something like DWYBO and 22AA? Actual rarely played tracks that nevertheless got a lot of airtime on the original tour. Just felt like a missed opportunity.
 
Back
Top