Iron Maiden fires off incredible start to Future Past Tour in San Diego

Iron Maiden’s Future Past Tour 2024 kicked off with one heck of a rocking start at the North Island Credit Union Amphitheater in Chula Vista, CA. Opening for the legendary heavy metal band was none other than the incredibly innovative and widely popular Mongolian folk metal band, The HU.

Bringing unparalleled fusion of Mongolian culture and classic heavy metal tropes, the band enraptured the San Diego audience with powerful throat singing, enchanting Morin Kuur melodies, and engaging crowd work. Their setlist included several tracks from both their 2019 album, The Gereg, and their more recent Rumble of Thunder, which released in 2022. Performing tracks such as “Wolf Totem” and “Yuve Yuve Yu”, The HU captured the hearts of the entire venue for a solid 45 minutes of nonstop, fiery passion for metal and Mongolian pride. If you have not listened to The HU’s cover of Iron Maiden’s “The Trooper”, do yourself a favor — fire it up and do not forget to blast the volume.

As The HU vacated the stage, the crowd grew increasingly restless as anticipation grew for one of metal’s most iconic groups to take over.

When the time came, in classic tradition, “Doctor, Doctor” began to hum in the speakers, igniting the crowd into an uproar. As the track subsided, a familiar tune enveloped the arena as the theme from Blade Runner signaled the proper start of the show. Nicko subtly took his throne at the drums just before the rest of the band emerged from the cyberpunk-themed backdrops, launching the show with “Caught Somewhere In Time”.

As Bruce Dickinson, the band’s renowned original vocalist, began to sing, the crowd transformed into a sea of whiplashing necks and horned hands waving in the air. The setlist appropriately played into the tour’s ‘Future Past’ theme, with backdrops providing moments throughout music history and time. From the Blade Runner-themed cyberpunk streets of Tokyo to a mystic battleground for “Death of the Celts”, a dark forest for “Fear of the Dark”, and ancient Macedonia for “Alexander the Great”, the energy from each member was infectious.

Bruce and bassist Steve Harris raced across the stage to the sound of shredding guitar solos.

Even Eddie, the band’s iconic undead mascot, made an appearance for several tracks. He took to the stage in a western garb during “Heaven Can Wait”, where he decided to pull out a massive firearm and took aim at Bruce. In retaliation, the vocalist laughed and unveiled “a real f***ing gun” in the form of a mounted machine gun on the side of the stage. During an unbelievable instrumental segment of the track, a heated gun battle waged until Eddie was finally struck down. The undead adversary made one more appearance in the latter half of the evening as the band performed “Iron Maiden” from their self-titled 1980 debut album as a fitting finale.

In full samurai armor, paying tribute to the band’s most recent album Senjutsu (2022), Eddie chased the band members across the stage, swiping and slashing, and ultimately falling — once again — to the power of Iron Maiden. As the setlist came to an end and the crowd stood applauding and chanting, the band re-emerged to play not one, not two, but THREE encores: “Hell on Earth”, “The Trooper”, and “Wasted Years”. The San Diego stop was an unbelievable start to the band’s 2024 North American tour and I doubt the city will see such a phenomenal performance again until Iron Maiden returns.

Photography by Erik Sieckert

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