Bruce Dickinson performed a two-night stand at the iconic Whisky a Go Go in West Hollywood, California, marking his first solo non-spoken-word concerts in 22 years.
The last-minute “secret” gigs took place Friday (April 12th) and Saturday (April 13th) and served as a warmup for Dickinson’s international tour supporting his new album The Mandrake Project. A third California warmup gig is also slated for Monday night (April 15th) at The Observatory in Santa Ana.
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As we reported, Dickinson himself showed up Friday morning to work the Whisky box office, selling tickets to the concerts that were announced on short notice.
On the opening Friday night, Dickinson played a 15-song set with his backing band of Dave Moreno (drums), Mistheria (keyboards), Tanya O’Callaghan (bass), Swedish guitarist Philip Näslund, and Swiss guitarist Chris Declercq (Dickinson’s longtime guitarist and collaborator Roy “Z” Ramirez, who helped co-write The Mandrake Project, is not part of the touring lineup).
Bruce and his band busted out many songs for the first-time ever. Previous Dickinson solo cuts that were premiered include “Abduction” (from 2005’s Tyranny of Souls) and “The Alchemist” (1998’s The Chemical Wedding). And of course, numerous songs from the new album were played for the first time: “Afterglow of Ragnarok,” “Many Doors To Hell,” “Resurrection Men,” and “Rain on the Graves.”
The setlist from the second night was similar, though Dickinson did throw in “Starchildren” from 1997’s Accident of Birth, marking its first live performance since the year of its release. The encore of “Book of Thel” (first performance of the song since 1999) and “The Tower” were also a changeup.
After the final California date, Dickinson and company will head to Central America to kick off the international tour, which extends into July (get tickets here).
Below you can see the setlist and fan footage from Dickinson’s shows at the Whisky a Go Go.
Bruce Dickinson Setlist:
Night 1:
Accident of Birth
Abduction (live debut)
Laughing In The Hiding Bush
Afterglow of Ragnarok (live debut)
Chemical Wedding
Many Doors To Hell (live debut)
Tears of The Dragon
Resurrection Men (live debut)
Rain on The Graves (live debut)
Frankenstein (The Edgar Winter Group cover)
Gods of War
The Alchemist (live debut)
Darkside of Aquarius
Encore:
Jerusalem
Road To Hell
Night 2:
Accident of Birth
Abduction
Starchildren (first live performance since 1997)
Afterglow of Ragnarok
Chemical Wedding
Many Doors To Hell
Tears of The Dragon
Resurrection Men
Rain on The Graves
Frankenstein (THE EDGAR WINTER GROUP cover)
Gods of War
The Alchemist
Darkside of Aquarius
Encore:
Book of Thel (first live performance since 1999)
The Tower (tour debut)