Great posts everyone. I love the deep thoughts and careful consideration. Makes this all so much more fun!
"NavigatorsSon, sometimes I worry that they owe money to EMI for Ed Force 1, and have an obligation to tour as often as they do to justify it." ~ Robbiedbee
Guess I've taken 'Ed Force One' a bit for granted. However, Bruce did say that they saved a ton of money (and time) by using their own "magic carpet", so they are most likely in good shape as far as their funds go.
"No matter what they do, someone will always be unhappy (some want oldies, some want new stuff, some want rare songs, some want hits, etc). Alternating between "new" tours and the catalog from tour to tour seems to be as good a solution as what any other band has done." ~bearfan
Perhaps they could do both.
When I ask for
'more NEW material', I don't mean that they should do as they did on
'AMOLAD' and play the entire album, as cool as that was of them.
I enjoy the
'Brave New Tour' / 'Death On The Road' formula of
6 NEW songs leaving 10 or more slots open for the back-catalog.
Here is where my
"belief in Maiden" comes in to play;
I believe that Maiden can play 'BACK IN THE VILLAGE', 'THE PRISONER', 'MONTSEGUR', 'TO TAME A LAND', etc. in those open slots, and they will not only NOT disapoint anyone, but will please, charm, and completely gratify the entire audience.
I would say that
'Back In The Village' may be a better pick than the mighty
'2 Minutes To Midnight' in a way of giving the fans a
I feel special feeling. Thinking, "Yes, Maiden totally know and understand that I love their
entire catalog, not just the
hits". And, "They pulled that one out as if it were just for me. Wow, I feel so special.".
Of course the audience going bonkers would let you know that you arn't alone in that feeling.
"I'd consider myself a true fan, I have all the studio & live discs, the Eddie's Archive set and the majority of the best of's. The only best of I don't have is The Essential Iron Maiden." ~Ian Sane
I'm just like you. However, I did buy
'The Essential Iron Maiden' and it was cool as ever, except that it has
no NEW material, save for a couple of photos.
So, the rush didn't last. Which backs my point, best-ofs don't "hold me over", especially for 5 years!
"I think that I'd prefer one good album in five years than five bad albums in the same time span. ~ Perun"
Ahhhhhhhhhhh, do we have an unbeliever?

Here is where I disagree.
This line-up, at this stage in their craftsmanship, is absolutely capable.
Like
Ian Sane said above,
"Iron Maiden are still quite prolific."/i]

However,
"I think Maiden know their limits better than any fan. Last thing they'll wanna do is get in a rut and end up with No Prayer/FOTD standard albums in the space of two years. Not that those albums are bad, they're not but they're in no condition to rival the reunion era material." ~ snake plissken
I agree snake has a point.
If they reach a point of boredom/fatigue, as I believe they did arrive to during the 'Fear Of The Dark' days, then, yes, it will tend to reflect in their performance both as writers and players./list]