Review by Phil Rozier for MPM
Did you ever hear of that scientist fella called Einstein? He was before my time but apparently, he was pretty clever at calculations and assumptions. He even came up the theory of relativity. Thinking that the laws of physics were true if applied to the same entity, if in the same space and time, he gained quite the following. Clever chap.
And on that basis, we can therefore agree that if you are in a different spatial plane and time, you experience things differently. Which is exactly what I experienced this weekend. Parking was a dream. Entering the site took just a few minutes. And I leisurely rolled out the car park, at a time to suit myself, without concern. Contrary to popular tinterweb moaning’s that surfaced almost immediately after the event, I drifted in and out the site with ease! But then again, I did arrive Friday at 5pm, and stayed in a borrowed campervan all weekend (thank you to the Viking Queen!!!). Home made dinner in the gas oven, cold beers from the fridge and a comfy bed. However, I wasn’t in a sufficiently obscure spatial existence to avoid the sweltering, unshaded 30 degree heats, or the queue for the merch stands that appeared to be static for hours on end.
But, as the awesome Stray took to the stage on Friday night, frontman Del Bromhall, tongue in cheek proclaimed, ‘this climate change, it’s alright isn’t it’ referring to the fact that 20,000 rockers could bask in the English sun, beer in hand and listen to Del’s band, 50 years in the making, belt out some cracking rock n roll. The weekend was here, and it was already shaping up to be an excellent, truly one-off event.
By this time of night, I had already walked around Maidenville and visited the Iron Maiden Open Air Museum. Guitars, basses, drums, tanks, stage props, lights, guns, canons, more tanks, flame throwers, a Somewhere in Time figure standing over 15 feet tall… the list goes on. Mighty murals and colourful backdrops were the perfect chance to grab a once in a lifetime photo to capture the memory. In fact, there were 2 chances for lifetime photos, as us fan club members got the heads up about a photo opportunity in front of one of the said murals on Saturday afternoon. If you look closely, you’ll just about see my hand in the background!
And, you could do all this, whilst drinking cold Iron Maiden beer from an overpriced plastic cup. A choice of 4 cups in fact, and a ‘Rum of the Ancient Mariner’ if you wanted a headache in the morning. I got one (a headache), even though I didn’t really want one. But that Rum, it was too good.
Blaze Bailey took to the stage to headline the Friday. I’ve always had a soft spot for those 2 Blaze era albums. Despite the Maiden fan base at the time not being hugely endorsing of the loss of Dickinson up front, I sucked it up and thought, well, I’d rather Maiden with a new singer, compared to no Maiden at all. And, I think ‘Sign of the Cross’, ‘Man on the Edge’, ‘Futureal, ‘The Clansman’ amongst some others, are pretty stand-up tracks. Blaze isn’t perhaps quite as sprightly as Bruce was on his return, or to this day, but, Blaze absolutely gave it his all. He loved the crowd, and the crowd loved him for the effort and the memories. There was a genuine respectful connection between band and audience. This was after all, a party of special significance, not just another gig.
Saturday arrived, and any attempt to lay in or sleep would have been dashed by the sun, and friendly rowdy crowds. If you weren’t axe throwing by mid-day, or trying to capture a rubber duck on a stick to win an Eddie squishy, then you weren’t at Eddfest obviously. P’tang! What was that? That was the sound of air rifles firing corks at stars on sticks, under the towering fair ground rides.
3pm sharp, and on his 60th birthday, Ricky Warrick and The Almighty hit the stage. Sharp and crisp as ever, ‘Wild and Wonderful’ and ‘Free and Easy’ served as guaranteed crowd pleasers and that sun just got hotter. Can you get to the bar and back in time for Airbourne? Easy! And we’re off with one of my high lights of the weekend.
Joel and his gang of Aussie noise makers haven’t skipped a beat in the last 25 years. Yea, I know. 25 years! They’re hardly the new kids on the block. But, the beer cans being opened on heads, guitar solos on the shoulders of security in the crowd and piercing loud wall of Marshalls can’t be ‘unliked’. They’re an incredible act to watch, hear and feel. No wonder they’re on Steve Harris’s invite list.
Now, technically, I can’t review The Hu, or The Darkness. But, I can, ish. Let me explain. Come around 5ish on Saturday, nearing 6pm, and after 5-6 hours in 30 degree heats, I needed to seek shade. In search for such a rare commodity, I witnessed people piled up behind ice cream vans shadow, like vampires in the dark, shrieking if their pasty pale skin got exposure to the sunlight.
People sat at the feet of those who stood and even tried to ‘thin down’ by using flagpole shade to try and avoid the searing sun, even just for a moment. In my attempt to avoid melting, I was way back in the arena, probably about as far from the main stage as I could get. But, The Hu absolutely reached everyone, no matter where you were melting. And fair play to them. A gang of kids by other bands of the day standard, hailing from Mongolia.
Their constant stomp of native instruments, and folk metal cross was definitely a welcome addition to the day. And even from the rear of the crowd, I could see ten of thousands of rockers head banging in unison and all calling out ‘Huuuuuu’ when beckoned to do so by the band’s leaders. I’d expect by this time of the day, a 30,000 – 40,000 strong crowd issuing a war cry, ‘Huuuuuuu’, could be heard in neighbouring farms. It pretty much shook the ground. A clearly emotional response from the crowd and band. Everyone was loving it.
So, final support of the day the day, we return to another band that can hardly be described as ‘newcomers’, The Darkness opened with ‘Rock n Roll Cowboy’. The crowd began to draw through a mixture of fan zone for The Darkness, but also now, gone 7pm, the arena was absolutely jam packed with people trying to get a viewing spot for their idols who were headlining the show. With a set of mainly historical classics,
The Darkness can still definitely entertain, even if it was the first time in 23 years since they’ve played Knebworth. Supporting Robbie Williams apparently according to front man Mr Hawkins.
And so we have it, 24 hrs have passed. And it’s all been about the 8:20pm start time. The last 50 years has literally led to this point in time. Being asked by the giant screens not to film the show, out of respect and focus on being in the moment, Iron Maiden were about to explode onto stage after the hugely popular recording of ‘Doctor Doctor’. The experience is immense. I don’t know how many people Knebworth holds, or how many tickets were sold, but call it 50,000. Who cares. What you can’t not care about, is the sheer volume that 10’s of thousands of humans can create. The ground really did shake, and the roar of the crowd was beyond deafening. And that’s just during the pre-recorded song played by someone else!
Then the true volume really hits you. As Bruce, Steve, Adrian, Yannick, Dave and Simon take to the stage, the noise is out of this world. Everything erupts. ‘Murders in Rue Morgue’ is swiftly followed by ‘Wrathchild’. 50,000 rockers shouting ‘Wrathchild’ is enough to wake the dead, and then kill them again. It’s unbelievable. I’ve got goosebumps even thinking about it. Knebworth’s layout and lie of the land is such that from where I was standing, I looked down on a proportion of the crowd, rather than being lost in it. This also allows you to see the volume of hands in the air and waves of movement created by thousands of moshing fans.
‘Killers’, ‘Phantom’, ‘Number of the Beast, it’s just belter after belter. So loud, so clear. Played by professionals, 50 years in the making. Everyone here is experiencing history. A truly once in a lifetime opportunity. This will never happen again. I’m truly gutted for those that missed it. However, don’t fret! The show was being filmed, so expect a digital experience later in the year.
Rarely played ‘Infinite Dreams’, followed by heavy as fuck riff ‘Powerslave’ ignites the sky with flames and animations. The enormous back drop screens, new for Maiden, replaced the heavily used analogue curtains of old. In fact, so effective were the screens and storytelling, that I literally thought Bruce was being chased by a ghost up an incline before soaring to his death. Wait for the film release, you’ll get it. Equally, the mesmerising stories of ‘Rime of the Ancient Mariner’ were beautifully bought to life as live music meets digital filming. The intricate timing and visuals were a welcome addition to an already pounding stage show.
I won’t spoil all the show, even though I’ve covered most it, but wait for the gargantuan Eddie to appear during ‘Iron Maiden’, and then subsequently cause all sorts of havoc as he tears up the wiring, causing explosions and pyro galore. Put him in a spitfire, and you’ve got the most awe-inspiring rendition of ‘Aces High’ I’ve ever seen.
Having seen Metallica play in London, just 6 days ago, I’ve ‘completed music journalism’ now, and seen two the most successful, heavy hitting titans of the rock and metal world. Equally as other worldly as each other. What these bands, and their crew are able to produce is nothing short of incredible. I’ve seen each band over 20 times over the years, and I don’t think I could ever say one show was a class above another.
However, this particular evening, this ‘Eddfest’, in July 2026, representing and celebrating 50 years of Iron Maiden and all things heavy metal, I was truly honoured, and lucky, to be able to get tickets for the event and witness what was one of the best experiences a rocker could dream of.
How to wrap up, how to leave you Metal Planet Music readers, until the next review… I think Steve and his team put it best…
‘So, understand, don’t waste your time always searching for those wasted years. Face up, make your stand. And realise you’re living in the golden years’
Photography by Pete Key for MPM
