Written: 22nd September 2024
In February, Blaze Bayley released his excellent new album Circle of Stone (review here) following his recovery from open heart surgery (read about it in my interview with him here). Having returned to the stage earlier in the year, to play European dates in support of the new album and a series of dates to celebrate the thirtieth anniversary of his time in Iron Maiden, Bayley returned to the UK and Ireland in September to continue the Circle of Stone Tour.
On a warm evening in London, The Underworld welcomes Blaze and his band to the stage with rapturous applause. Opening with the powerful double salvo of Alive and Ten Seconds from Blood and Belief, Bayley immediately draws the gathered crowd to his cause, fists pumping the air and hands gesticulating in emphasis of his thought-provoking lyrics. When on stage, he gives everything to every moment and he encourages the audience to do the same. Vocally blending raw power and melodic precision, he is singing as well as he ever has. Ghost In The Bottle from Circle of Stone (his eleventh solo album) is welcomed like an old friend and voices rise as one giving back to the band with every opportunity.
At different points in the evening, Blaze makes impassioned speeches about resilience, following our dreams and his gratitude to the audience for allowing him to do what he does. “You are the reason I do this. Everything has to be the best it can be. I am constantly reminded of the incredible support and love you have given me over the years,” he intones. With some singers and bands, while most probably well meaning, this is lip service; with Bayley, it comes from the heart. At every show, Blaze makes himself available to fans for a free meet and greet and having spent time interviewing him, he never fails to come across as anything less than a genuinely nice guy who values each and every fan.
Lyrically, Bayley’s 2021 album War Within Me, in part, tackled various aspects of mental health and a trio of tracks Warrior, the title track and Pull Yourself Up, display the extensive songwriting abilities of Blaze and partner in crime Chris Appleton. Although each song uncovers different thoughts in a fragile mind, they are also a celebration of the fight for life that dwells within us all. Bayley’s voice is enthrallingly haunting during the introduction of Warrior, defiant and ardent throughout War Within Me and insistently demanding of the audience on Pull Yourself Up. Having used Absolva as his backing band for many years now, the musicians have an innate understanding of how to get the best out of every song. Further credit should go to the sound man; rarely have I heard such a consistently clear and precise sound at The Underworld.
Introducing the next section of the gig, Blaze explains how the last moments of the Circle Of Stone album were recorded and ready to go to pressing just hours before he suffered his heart attack. There follows however, a moment of hilarity as he discusses how bagpipes came to be used on The Call Of The Ancestors and Chris Appleton’s initial scepticism towards this. With the Appleton brothers combining magnificently to take the place of the bagpipes on the introduction, thus begins a five-song odyssey through Bayley’s latest album. Among the best solo albums of his career, each track resonates with the crowd and the vocalist is clearly proud of this latest offering but all the more pleased that it has found such favour with his fans. Rage and A Day Of Reckoning allows Blaze to utilise the full range of his vocal prowess in terms of both power and range.
From his most recent material, Blaze then looks back thirty years to his time with Iron Maiden, playing two songs from Virtual XI: Lightning Strikes Twice and When Two Worlds Collide. There is an appreciation amongst the audience of his contributions to Maiden and in this environment, both tracks take on new life. The band clearly enjoy having the opportunity to play tracks by one of the most loved metal acts of all time and revel in the audience’s participation. Returning to Circle of Stone, Mind Reader (the opening track on the album) is a raucous rampaging three minutes of metal, while Stare At The Sun from his debut solo album, Silicon Messiah, is an exhilarating, driving, nuanced examination of isolation and loneliness. Following a gorgeous and touching acoustic rendition of Iron Maiden’s 2 A.M., Every Storm Ends from War Within Me sees the singer wring every ounce of emotion from a beautifully constructed track.
As we approach the end of the concert – Bayley does not leave the stage for the pretence of an encore, more interested in giving the fans more music due to the early curfew - the introduction to Man On The Edge falters and Bayley jokingly mocks the crowd for their lack of commitment in their response. Hands raised and voices loud, the audience show they are ready for the challenge and the band launch into a blisteringly fast version of the first single from The X Factor. The Appletons, bassist Karl Schramm and drummer Martin McNee provide a talented foundation for his vocals, their chemistry and musicianship evident in every track. The synergy between Blaze and his bandmates is a key factor in the concert’s success, as illustrated during a furious Futureal and a rampant The Angel and The Gambler, which bring a stunningly captivating evening to an end. His delivery of every note during the evening has been convincing and heartfelt.
During the concert, he mentions that he once played the same venue to sixty people and tonight there are three hundred, still some way below The Underworld’s capacity. The fact that a singer who has produced a string of brilliant solo albums, together with his Maiden legacy is playing to a relatively small crowd, surely goes to show that talent, desire and hard work does not always equal commercial success. However, Blaze Bayley is a man who is truly grateful for every moment he spends on stage and for every person that has supported him. He is living his dream and he will continue to do so for as long as he is able. Inspiring, entertaining and exciting.
Setlist
Alive
Ten Seconds
Ghost In The Bottle
Warrior
War Within Me
Pull Yourself Up
The Call Of The Ancestors
Circle Of Stone
Rage
A Day Of Reckoning
The Path Of The Righteous Man
Lightning Strikes Twice
When Two Worlds Collide
Mind Reader
Stare At The Sun
2 A.M.
Every Storm Ends
Man On The Edge
Futureal
The Angel and The Gambler
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