Fresh on the heels of their new double album The Book Of Souls, which just debuted at #1 on many nations’ album sales charts, Iron Maiden have announced their 2016 “The Book Of Souls” tour, the band’s first dates in over a year and a half due to an illness suffered by lead vocalist Bruce Dickinson.
The arena tour will begin in the U.S. in late February for three yet-to-be announced shows before heading to Mexico and Central America in early March. Iron Maiden then heads to for Argentina, Chile and Brazil in South America before returning to North America in late March for U.S. and Canadian dates.
The band will play Japan in late April followed by their first ever shows in China. The initial announced dates are in New Zealand on April 29th and May 1st, followed by five Australian shows – where the new album debuted at #2 – and two in South Africa.
The British heavy metal legends and their entourage will travel on their Boeing 747-400 jumbo jet, dubbed Ed Force One, piloted by Dickinson, who stated, “We cannot wait to get back on tour. Maiden thrive on touring and getting out to our fans; it’s what we do best.
“Of course we haven’t decided on the set list as yet and won’t until we start rehearsing but we really look forward to playing a number of new songs live, especially as the recording was so much live.”
The release of The Book Of Souls – the band’s first studio album in five years – and world tour were delayed while Dickinson had a cancerous tumor removed. (Read about the multi-talented Dickinson’s career as a pilot and more here.)
Details are still to come on an extensive European summer tour, starting in late May and continuing to early August. Tickets for all shows go on sale at noon local time on September 24th. An exclusive pre-sale for fan club members begins this Thursday, September 17th.
Dates announced so far:
April 29 – Christchurch, New Zealand – Horncastle Arena
May 1 – Auckland, New Zealand – Vector Arena
May 4 – Brisbane, Australia – Brisbane Entertainment Centre
May 6 – Sydney, Australia – Allphones Arena
May 9 – Melbourne, Australia – Rod Laver Arena
May 12 – Adelaide, Australia – Adelaide Entertainment Centre
May 14 – Perth, Australia – Perth Arena
May 18 – Cape Town, South Africa – Grand Arena
May 21 – Johannesburg, South Africa – Carnival City Festival Lawns
