Review: Iron Maiden – Budapest, Prague, Bratislava – 27, 28, 31 May and 1 June 2025

Iron Maiden is back with another tour, this time named Run for Your Lives, kicking off with two shows in Budapest, Hungary. These were smaller arena gigs with a capacity of 12,500. Then came a massive open-air concert in Prague, drawing a crowd of 60,000 at an airfield. After that, they headed to Bratislava for one of the smaller stops on the tour – just 10,000 people. This review is based on those four shows.

The Setlist
Longtime Maiden fans know that once a tour setlist is locked in, it’s more or less carved in stone. There are exceptions, but it’s been years since they swapped songs once the tour has started. The main reason is the scale of the production – every song comes with its own tailored stage setup. Especially this year, where everything runs on digital backdrops, it’s just not possible to swap things out on the fly.

This year’s tour covers the period from 1980 to 1992. With nine albums from that era, there was a lot of excitement about what would make the cut – especially from the less frequently played albums from 1990 and 1992. But in reality, it ended up being a setlist from “1980 to 1988 + One!!!” That “one” being Fear of the Dark, which has been played almost every tour since its release, except during the Early Days Tour in 2005.

For the last 25 years, Iron Maiden has alternated between album tours and concept-themed retrospectives. In 2005, they released The History of Iron Maiden Part 1: The Early Days, and the tour focused on the first four albums. Part 2 followed in 2008 (included with the Live After Death reissue), leading to the Powerslave-centric tour. In 2013, Part 3 came bundled with Maiden England ’88, and the tour focused on Seventh Son of a Seventh Son. But DVD sales declined, and the reissues of old VHS tapes eventually stopped. As a result, albums like Somewhere in Time and the 90s records never got their own dedicated tours.

That changed slightly when Somewhere in Time got its moment in The Future Past Tour. Naturally, fans assumed this new 2025 tour – which included 1992 in the title – would finally shine a light on No Prayer for the Dying and Fear of the Dark.

So why were those albums ignored? Well, No Prayer for the Dying is arguably the least popular Bruce-era album and has taken a lot of heat over the years. I personally love it, but it is the album I most often has to defend. In fact, it’s been 22 years since they played anything from it – the last time was “Bring Your Daughter… to the Slaughter.” That seemed the likely choice again this time. It’s the most played track from that album and hit No. 1 on the UK charts. Sure, it came out on Christmas Eve, when no one else was releasing music except holiday songs, and it had three different cover variants which many fans bought multiple times. But a No. 1 is still a No. 1. “Holy Smoke” and “Tailgunner” would’ve been good picks too – but it wasn’t meant to be.

Fear of the Dark? Same story. The natural choice would’ve been “Afraid to Shoot Strangers,” last played in 2013.

But adding songs from those albums means cutting others. This year’s set lasts over two hours, which is even longer than the usually Maiden tour. Can they really afford to drop staples like “Fear of the Dark,” “Run to the Hills,” or “The Trooper”? Occasionally they do skip the hits, but they also need a balance – a setlist that caters both to diehards and casual fans. And the casuals are clearly the majority. They want the classics.

Out of the four shows, I had seated tickets at two. When I had standing tickets and got close to the front, the atmosphere was fantastic for every song. In the seats, it was a different story.

In Prague, I sat just behind the Trooper VIP section. These are premium tickets with exclusive merch and perks. That’s why it was such a shock that many of the people in that section just sat there through most of the show. Only when the big hits rolled around did the crowd sing and clap along. I was especially surprised when Rime of the Ancient Mariner hit its epic mid-section – and nine people in front of me stood up and left… to get beer. For many of us, that’s a highlight of the entire show. For them, it was just intermission they could use to get more beer.

Speaking of highlights, there were many. Phantom of the Opera and Seventh Son of a Seventh Son were both epic. And I’m personally thrilled to see The Clairvoyant back in the set.

The show opens with “The Ides of March,” played over a video montage from East London, featuring iconic locations like Ruskin Arms, The Bridgehouse, and Cart & Horses. Then Maiden launches into “Murders in the Rue Morgue” – a song they used as opener in 1982 – then again on the Early Days Tour in 2005.

For the observant fan, there’s a lot of visual nostalgia too. Adrian Smith pulls out a Lado guitar – just like the one he used on the Powerslave tour in 1984–85 (as seen in Live After Death). Bruce Dickinson, meanwhile, has a new version of the bird mask he wore back then, and when he steps out wearing it during Powerslave, it’s goosebumps.

Bruce also brings back a lot of classic stage banter. He repeats “You ain’t seen nothing yet!” – a slogan Maiden used in promos all the way back in the ‘70s. And he includes his legendary “This is what not to do when the bird shits on you” speech before Rime of the Ancient Mariner.

New Stage Show
As always, Maiden brings a massive production. This time, they’ve done something completely new – replacing the classic printed backdrops with a gigantic LED screen. Personally, I’m not a big fan of bands using video screens as the main visual. It can distract from the band and sap the energy. But here, it mostly works.

Only a few songs use full-on video. For the rest, the screen functions more like an animated backdrop – and that’s actually pretty cool. For example, during Seventh Son of a Seventh Son, Eddie’s head bursts into flames, his eyes blink, and his apple-heart pulses. When the eerie mid-section kicks in, icy lamps hanging overhead move in slow waves. It’s stunning and adds to the atmosphere.

In other songs, the screen blends with what’s happening on stage. During Hallowed Be Thy Name, Bruce starts out in a cage. An explosion goes off, and suddenly he’s onscreen, climbing a long staircase to the gallows. The rope drops, another explosion – and he’s back onstage, noose around his neck.

Same thing during Iron Maiden. Eddie breaks out of his Piece of Mind cell and appears onscreen as a towering figure, ripping out cables and triggering a huge explosion on stage.

But that brings me to my only real gripe with the tour: the lack of a physical Eddie during Iron Maiden. The animated version looks cool, but it’s not the same. It feels like something’s missing – and it is.

Also, the digital backdrops don’t shine quite as well in broad daylight. During the Prague open-air show, they were still visible thanks to powerful LED lighting, but it wasn’t ideal.

That said, I have to give Maiden huge credit for refreshing the show year after year. Most bands from the ’80s and ‘90s don’t evolve like this. But Maiden does – and it keeps things exciting. Every tour offers something new, and fans know it’ll be good. That’s why even non-fans follow along on YouTube every time Maiden launches a new tour – just to see what they’ve cooked up this time.

Because of the new visuals, it’s no surprise that many fans were tempted to film the show on their phones. Manager Rod Smallwood went on social media asking people not to – a smart move. You don’t want to watch this kind of show through someone else’s phone. In Budapest, the crowd respected it – barely any phones in the air. That might be because the audience was mostly diehards who had travelled in for the opening shows. But in Prague, it was a sea of screens. Unfortunately.

New Drummer
Last but definitely not least – Iron Maiden has lost their faithful drummer of 43+ years. Nicko McBrain has stepped down from touring, and Simon Dawson has taken the throne. I’ve honestly hoped that if one of them ever stepped down, the whole band would call it a day – something Steve Harris has hinted at in interviews. I don’t want Iron Maiden to turn into a “cover band”, that way too many bands feels like nowadays. But when Nicko retired from live duty, it felt too soon. Maiden is still too good. They sound fantastic. The fans are the best in the world. And Bruce Dickinson still sings like a god. They couldn’t stop now.

So here’s the workaround: Nicko steps down as the live drummer but remains the band’s official drummer. That likely means he’ll still record future albums if there are more to come. If we are lucky.

Enter Simon Dawson – longtime member of Steve Harris’ other band, British Lion. Just to be clear: most fans probably won’t notice the change in the drumming. But some of us do. Nicko has a playful, unmistakable style. His fills are his own. But live, that’s not the most important thing now. No one expects – or wants – Dawson to mimic Nicko’s every move. As long as he plays the songs faithfully, that’s good enough. And he does just that.

At the first show in Budapest, he seemed a bit nervous – understandable – and there were a few slips. But from show two onward, he was rock solid. So welcome, Simon Dawson – and congrats on a job well done so far.

Epilogue
Iron Maiden’s new tour is spectacular in so many ways. A perfectly balanced setlist filled with epic gems, rarely played songs like “Killers” (last played in 1999!), and of course, the classics for the more casual fans. Sure, it stings that No Prayer for the Dying got ignored – it might mean we’ll never hear those songs live again. And yes, we get two walk-on Eddies, but the massive one during Iron Maiden is missing.

Some fans have complained about the lack of deep cuts, but let’s be honest – when you market this as “the greatest show,” it would’ve been weird not to include the songs that most people consider Maiden’s best. It’s simply impossible to please everyone, and maybe, in the end, they’re just playing the songs they want to play?

Either way – nitpicks aside – Iron Maiden once again delivers at the highest level. They are still one of the best live bands on the planet. No question about it.