In a new interview with Big Issue, Iron Maiden’s Bruce Dickinson confirmed what we already knew: that the band’s fanbase is one of the most loyal and fervent across the entire metal spectrum.
“I don’t support a football team but I look with astonishment at how supporters react. And I don’t think there’s a word for the level of commitment and devotion people have to a football club. And people have that same level of devotion to Iron Maiden.” Bruce said.
The frontman expressed mixed feelings about the band’s enduring popularity. While he appreciates their fans’ loyalty, he sometimes worries that it might inhibit their artistic growth: “Part of me says, wow, that’s amazing. The artistic half of me worries that maybe we don’t challenge ourselves artistically because we have this devoted following and they’re happy with the way we are. One reason for doing solo records is to push the envelope of what you can do emotionally and get out of the tram line. The tram lines are great. They’re quite broad, but they do exist.”
When asked to choose a moment from his career to relive, Dickinson singled out the day he performed in Sarajevo during the Bosnian War. Reflecting on the experience, he shared: “The difference that show made to people’s lives was beyond anything I could ever hope to achieve. They were down to three days’ supply of food, water, and diesel, the siege had lasted longer than Stalingrad, people were living in houses that barely existed and had burnt the last of their furniture for firewood. And in the middle of it, we drove through a firefight in a truck driven by a second-year student from Edinburgh.”
“We didn’t mention the war once. You don’t need some rock star turning up saying war is a bad thing. They’re in it, dude. Just play your music. It might just make people happy – and that’s the most useful thing you can do,” he added.
