It’s a scorching hot Saturday at Knebworth Park. The previous day had already seen a packed programme of preliminary celebrations of 50 years of Maiden, and now it’s time for the main course. Opening the event is The Almighty, a band with a venerable history. Ricky Warwick and co don’t mess about; they just get on with a scintillating performance that gets everyone in the party mood.
Cheeky chappies Airbourne are a reminder of what a rock and roll show should look like. There’s plenty of beer involved, with much of it ending up covering front man Joel O’Keeffe, who also gets a piggyback around the crowd while still playing his guitar at one point. It’s typically unsubtle fare, but beneath the surface you have to marvel at the quality of the music. It’s a great show played with slickness, and today it hits the spot perfectly.
On paper, The Hu might stand out a bit on this bill, genre-wise, but their mix of metal and traditional Mongolian music is a lovely change of pace and mood. The reception they receive proves that this metal family of ours truly appreciates diverse artists. The crowd, mostly sporting Maiden merch, absolutely loves them, and rightly so. Good music is, after all, good music, and this is top class. Those guttural, low vocals, the use of instruments such as the morin khuur, and their obvious boundless enthusiasm for what they do make this set truly special.
Not many bands can play a variety of events from a wide range of genres and just capture the moment like The Darkness do. Here they play a key anchor role brilliantly by simply doing what they do best – entertain. The quality of their songwriting shines as bright as the summer Knebworth sun as the band, led by a heavily inked Justin Hawkins, tears it up. Those falsetto vocals still hit just as hard as they did when we first heard them back in the early 2000s. Here on this massive stage, playing to a huge audience is where they look most at home.
Back in 1976, we had a heatwave, one that has become in its own way legendary. That same year, a young band called Iron Maiden were already taking early steps towards greatness. Fast forward fifty years and we are in the middle of another heatwave, and that same band are celebrating with tens of thousands of fans from all over the world. The thing that you really notice most about the West Ham obsessed Londoners is that, unlike many of the heritage acts around, they still have fire in their belly. And oh boy, can they still play! Backed up by one of the strongest and most instantly recognisable back catalogues in music history, this is so much more than just an outdoor gig or even a festival. This is a global family having an absolute ball full of emotion with the coolest soundtrack you can imagine. Bruce Dickinson commands the stage with age-defying athleticism. Dave Murray, Adrian Smith and Janick Gers are supreme on guitars while Steve Harris looks and sounds timeless on bass. Behind the kit, Simon Dawson is an absolute beast. Of course, we get to see Eddie too, the giant axe-wielding mascot that has become such an icon. As the sun sets and the stage lights begin to illuminate countless joyful faces, you just know you were present at a genuine “I was there” moment. Let’s hope this unique and much-loved band have at least a few more of these in store for us.
Review and Photos by Gary Trueman
We Saw You There!
