Iron Maiden with Megadeath
Wednesday, Sept. 9th
TD Garden Arena, Boston, MA
* Anthrax did not appear at this show.
The three-hour drive to Boston goes by smoothly. We quickly and accidentally find a small, cheap parking lot. Boston feels loud and busy - and beautiful in its own way - as we walk through crooked roads and loads of brick. Pedestrians and car honks fill the streets. There is a threat of rain which occasionally sprinkles but never fully materializes.
An unfortunately closed restaurant leads us to Alma Cantina which turns out to be very delicious and highly recommended. I had four tacos: baja fish, carnitas verde, carne asada & ground beef, and each one was better than the last. The Whaler Pale Ale was a perfect pairing.
TD Garden Arena is huge and flooded with folks of all ages wearing Megadeath or Iron Maiden t-shirts and battle jackets. Our nosebleed seats were a little claustrophobic and sweaty but the stage view and sound were both terrific. We sat down just as Megadeath started. The sound was great and the stage production was well lit in so many different styles. Boo to the targeted lights that were aimed right into our section and repeatedly blasted us in the face.
The playlist was short but sweet. Every song was played with precision and they sounded as good as ever. Bittersweet that it's their farwell tour, as frontman Dave Mustaine (age 64) was diagnosed with Dupuytren’s contracture, a hand condition that causes fingers to bend inward and makes playing guitar painful. This was my first Megadeath show and could very likely be my last.
Dave gave a sincere thanks to the fans and really seemed to soak in the cheering as the stadium said goodbye.
Megadeath's Playlist
Tipping Point
Hangar 18
Take No Prisoners
Sweating Bullets
Trust (Tour debut)
Tornado of Souls
Encore
Symphony of Destruction
Peace Sells
Holy Wars... The Punishment Due
After a visit to the merch table we sat down just minutes before Iron Maiden started their set. They are impressive. The tour is essentially a greatest hits compilation that showcases the bands first nine albums.
There is a confluence of things happening here - incredibly loud and crisp sound; a unique stage production featuring animation, special effects and pyrotechnics; and the band leaning into a bit of theater with each song. Frontman Bruce Dickinson, despite being 68 years old (and having a cancerous tumor removed from the back of his tongue in 2015), belted out every song and fearlessly scrambled about the stage.
Eddie the Head, the skeletal band mascot, was featured all night in the backdrop animations but also physically appeared on stage a couple of times walking 15 feet tall and looming menacingly over the band members. The crowd cheered everytime.
As the band said goodbye, Bruce reminded everyone: "Have a good night. Have a good weekend. Have a good week. A good month. A good year. Have a good life because you deserve it! You're the only friends we've got so take care of yourselves and each other. We'll see you soon."
Iron Maiden's Playlist
On speaker: Doctor Doctor (UFO song)
On speaker: The Ides of March
Murders in the Rue Morgue
Wrathchild
Killers
Phantom of the Opera
The Number of the Beast
Infinite Dreams (Played for the first time since 1988)
Powerslave
2 Minutes to Midnight
Rime of the Ancient Mariner
Run to the Hills
Seventh Son of a Seventh Son
The Trooper
Hallowed Be Thy Name
Iron Maiden
Encore
On speaker: Churchill's Speech
Aces High
Fear of the Dark
Wasted Years
On speaker: Always Look on the Bright Side of Life (Monty Python)
What an incredible show. We discuss and dissect it over snacks on the ride home. The rain finally begins to come down in the last hour of our drive.
I'm so thankful for the opportunity to see these legends. The whole day and experience was just perfect. I won't forget it.