So a few months ago I heard Iron Maiden was going to be playing in Irvine August 9th and 10th. I told fellow rocker and cyclist from work about it and he said, “We’re in!” Fast forward to two weeks ago [paradox?]Â and we begin to plan our yearly Chargers preseason tailgate festivities. What started as our usual 4 tickets turned to 8, then 18. The festivities were going to be epic; we probably won’t remember the game. But who cares, it’s preseason football. Somewhere along the line Roadie says, “Hey, you know Maiden is the same day as the Chargers game!” Notice the lack of question mark at the end of that line? It was a statement that clearly laid out our plans for a rad night in the OC.
One thing about Roadie — even if the event is your idea he will plan it and execute it 10 times grander. You want to see Metallica? He’ll get you on stage tuning Lars’ drum kit. You want to see the Chargers play the Raiders? He’ll have you in the middle of The Black Hole the first half, then having drinks with a Raiderette at half-time. Of course the details of said events are a bit fuzzy but that is the best as I can recall what happened. Obviously I left the planning up to him. Heat be damned we wanted to get a ride in, surely get a drink in, then go to the show. We meetup at Aliso with 2 friends of Roadie whose legs possess an insane amount of wattage. After getting my dick pounded into the dirt and running on the verge of dehydration/heat exhaustion/metabolic acidosis we figure the best way to rehab is at the Yardhouse with some IPAs. We grab a bite at Tommy’s Pastrami, which I recommend, then we walk across the street to the venue. Oh yeah, I nearly forgot, we need to get tickets.
Roadie didn’t deliver to his usual standards but he still came through. We got seats 15 rows back from the stage and no favors were performed, souls relinquished, nor first-born sacrificed. Iron Maiden came out with all the usual fervor. I’m watching Bruce Dickinson run around the stage, jumping over amps, and I think, “This guy just turned 54 a few days ago.” Then he came out. The one you can’t wait to see at every Maiden show — Eddie. He appeared in many forms as Maiden played all their best from over 30 years of rocking.
