Iron Maiden kicked off the Future Past Tour in May 2023. It will arrive in Brazil on December 6th and 7th, and fans are already eager to hear songs never played before.
The opening act for each evening will be the Danish band Volbeat .
The tour's setlist focuses primarily on the classic Somewhere In Time (1986) and Maiden's most recent work, Senjutsu (2021). Steve Harris explained the choice of theme for this new tour in a statement: "We decided to revisit Somewhere In Time because this tour hasn't appeared in the various historical tour retrospectives we've done over the years," he said.
“These were based on our concert videos from the 80s and, unfortunately, we didn’t film that tour (blame the manager!). We’ve received many requests from fans over the years for many tracks, so now we’re going to play them, plus, of course, some others that we know you’ll enjoy! It will also be particularly satisfying to finally play some of the most epic tracks from Senjutsu . It’s been a long wait! 2023 will be an exciting time and we’re really looking forward to seeing everyone again in the UK, Ireland and Europe.”
The 1986 album features one of the most beloved songs by fans, "Alexander The Great." Much of what surrounded the track had to do with the fact that it had never been played live until May 28, 2023—the first show of the tour—when Iron Maiden graced the fans with a performance almost forty years after its release.
Everything about this tour revolves around the concept of time. During the shows, fans embark on a journey, flying to the future with Somewhere In Time and returning to the past with Senjutsu . In the first, it's possible to perceive a connection with futuristic themes, not only in the music but also in the album cover itself, designed by the group's longtime partner, Derek Riggs , which features Maiden's mascot in a robot version with a weapon in its hand, in addition to several references to the band.
For the composition of Somewhere In Time , the band used synthesizers on the guitars, precisely with the aim of bringing a futuristic atmosphere to the album.
Iron Maiden's shows are known for being a true spectacle in visual terms — in addition to the music, obviously. Even the stage the band uses for their shows features futuristic elements, including in the lighting design. Rob , the band's lighting engineer, explained that he was inspired by the film Blade Runner for this part of the set design, specifically the Tyrell building.
After the journey into the future that the album proposes to the listener, fans are invited to delve into the past in Senjutsu . As is customary for Iron Maiden, historical events are very present in the compositions, and here, the band brings references to ancient Japan.
WikiBrother Diogo Tomaz Pereira wrote an analysis about the title track and the book "The Art of War" by Sun Tzu which can be found here .
Featuring a samurai Eddie on its cover, the album contains ten songs and is almost an hour and a half long.
The tour has already covered much of the globe, and Iron Maiden's last show to date took place at the Power Trip in California on October 6, 2023.
Some fans may find it strange that songs like “The Number Of The Beast” or “Run To The Hills” are not on the Future Past Tour ( via Setlist.fm ), but this tour invites them to navigate through the years, in a mix of past and future, revisiting songs that haven't been played in years and hearing others for the first time ever.
From the classic The Number Of The Beast (1982), the band is playing “The Prisoner” which, although not very common in the band's previous sets, is a great song to hear live.
Regarding Paul Di'Anno in the band, Maiden only retained "Iron Maiden," the title track from their self-titled 1980 album, which was already a signature song for closing the group's shows, the last song before the encore.
It's common for Maiden to change a song or two when the first leg of the tour ends and the next one begins, so there might be some surprises in the setlist when they return to action on September 1st in Australia.
Few tickets are available for the band's tour in Brazil, but they can be purchased through the Livepass .
Bruce Dickinson in Brazil
Until December arrives, Brazilian fans can watch Bruce Dickinson 's . The tour will pass through Curitiba (April 24), Porto Alegre (April 25), Brasília (April 27), Belo Horizonte (April 28), Rio de Janeiro (April 30), Ribeirão Preto (May 2) and São Paulo (May 4).
Ticket sales for São Paulo and Curitiba are handled by Uhuu , and the remaining tickets are sold by Bilheteria Digital .
Their upcoming album, The Mandrake Project, now available for pre-order at the Wikimetal Store. Click here to check it out.