With Rush you had the most epic live shows within the progressive rock genre of the past 15+ years easily, the last several tours were simply phenomenal!

Like Rush, not only is the music epic but the shows are an optical mind freak. I really wanted to see RW The Wall and Us and Them, but he was asking uber money like $200-250 a ticket. I'm not a huge fan of him personally....I would gladly pay that money to see Gilmour though. 

I thought living in Toronto if you did not go see Rush in town, you were thrown out of the country?? WTH man!!

Catcher10 wrote: … Like Rush, not only is the music epic but the shows are an optical mind freak. I really wanted to see RW The Wall and Us and Them, but he was asking uber money like $200-250 a ticket. I'm not a huge fan of him personally....I would gladly pay that money to see Gilmour though.

 

There are some things in life that are worth catching … I remember for many years in the 70's the incredible high prices to see Pavarotti, Misha, and a few others … and earlier than that when Nureyev did a tour.

These things only come around once in a lifetime, and if one misses them, these things are gone.

THE WALL, read my review of it which compares the first one by Roger, compared to the original shows in LA, is worth seeing, since it is/was a magnificent event, and for anyone who has not seen it, it is worth it … it redefines what music and "entertainment" really is … but some folks are paying the same price and more for Rolling Stones, and Eagles, for what amounts to music that … has a lot less value beyond simple entertainment, or your (supposedly!) happy days getting stoned and laid in the beaches of Southern California without catching any crabs or worse!

That said, I really think that RW was pushed to do it, and he went ahead, but as you can see the amount of shows and WHERE is really limited due to the amount of everything they carry and take with them, including the champagne, the this and that, I'm sure! AND likely first class tickets if not a chartered jet, which is better, and fits the BNL song wayyyyyyy better!

Unfortunately, the show, as it was presented and seen on the tube, has not improved, and my take on it, is that all the digital bull-crap and what not did not make the material better … and catch the example in my review, which kinda says it all … you're supposed to imagine everything else … and while I can appreciate a band "expecting" me to be educated and intelligent, I find the whole thing ridiculous and sometimes insulting and … very lazy and cheap! The original 4 wall sound system (the late "quadraphonic") was way better at helping you imagine things as it placed you in the middle of them!

All in all, just to give you an idea, by the time he created CA IRA, I felt that he had lost most of his real ability and that he was now infatuated with his fame and money … and how to continue it … I didn't even bother getting his last album, and CA IRA could have been way better if it had an electric guitar and RW had not given in to some folks thinking that he was a classical composer … in many ways, he came off as an idiot and the singers on the piece made it really poor and it should have been done with rock singers that understand lyrics way better … than any classical singer out there these days … most of which have formulaic voices that can do notes but not words and letters!

For me … RW is done and gone … there are much better things out there, and I would rather spend my few retirement dollars on Rachel Flowers than Roger Waters … the feeling and the care, and the honesty behind it is what matters to me, and RW lost it a long time ago in my book.

As for Iron Maiden, I'm sorry to say that I have not given it a good listen at all, and I will make an effort to do so properly, but these days … I will likely see Riverside, and it might just be my last concert ever … the ones I really want to see I will never have a chance to … Sakamoto, Oldfield, Vangelis … can you imagine what a Vangelis ticket would be? Probably $1,000 and more!

As for set list. Suffice to say it is mostly a greatest hits gig right across their career. So they played everything you would expect them to play.

I agree Pedro. I'm not retired yet, but by the time I am most of the artists I like and listen to will be done probably so I suspect my concert days will be minimal. What I will probably navigate to is going to see jazz/fusion shows more small venue stuff.

I mean Iron Maiden will be done touring by then and in that vein of artists they are the last ones, again now that Rush are done. I don't see the massive arena shows from anyone we listen to today, they will NEVER be that big to command such a production. 

I have yet to see Marillion live and we were gonna travel to Lisbon Portugal to see the Marillion Weekend, but that weekend sold out super fast and can't get passes anymore. To your point Pedro a show should not only be musically entertaining but it should encompass the artist and what they are trying to convey with visual production, Steven Wilson is another who has gotten better at this recently.

But again, there are no prog, prog related/influenced bands that can achieve what Rush had for a live show, nor do I ever see one getting there in the next 10yrs. Those who never saw those shows will have to be satisfied with a bluray/DVD or YT clips to experience what we did.

So it should be , but guess what - I went to attend any public event here in the city.

Last time I've experienced a great acoustic performance of Subdivisions by Alex and Geddy in a park here in the city. Phenomenal experience, and these guys are so easy-going and humble...spent about 30mins talking to Alex Lifeson - great guy!

I hear you, and feel I am gonna have a similar problem considering the location where they play in the city. Not sure why ticket price has not relevance to selection of the venue, as it does to seat location.

I know what you mean about all this and it's true but I thought I would list the bands younger than Maiden who come the closest to a combination of at least some prog elements, music and a more monumental show like Rush and Maiden have.

There are Opeth, Nightwish (and to a lesser degree, Epica and Within Temptation) and possibly a band like Avenged Sevenfold (who actually to have proggier sections than most people realize) or perhaps Muse (who again do have some proggy parts) or Phish (not my thing but they did a ton of sold out shows at MSG and have prog elements).

Of all these groups, Opeth is my favorite and then Nightwish can be fun to see live as well. Steven Wilson is smaller scale than these but probably the closest in terms of full on prog with at least some spectacle like we're discussing (obviously not like Maiden).

I actually find Opeth to be quite prog and they played Radio City Music Hall when last I saw them which though it isn't an arena, is still almost 6,000 capacity so that's pretty big. Nightwish play arenas outside of the US and Canada a decent amount actually (they did in Mexico City and have been in Europe for a while now as have Within Temptation at times). You also have Mastodon who are playing 3,000 seaters and have obvious prog elements.

Then, we should also list the Trans Siberian Orchestra which does excel at spectacle and has proggy elements at times as well as endless packed arenas.

Then there's Ghost who actually just did 2 arenas on their last North American tour and while they aren't my favorite, they do provide some of the same elements as a band like Maiden and they are definitely building up their stage show which is already significant and theatrical.

I'd also mention Meshuggah and Gojira and bands with prog elements who are more successful than others as well as Devin Townsend and of course, Dream Theater who can do 3,000 seaters and are proggy and often have pretty good production.

Last but not least, though I am not a fan per se, let's recall that Metallica will likely be around then as well. The only other big band I can think of with some prog elements now and then is Radiohead but I think they are pretty awful live actually and increasingly less prog to my ears anyway or maybe the Decemberists at times.

Did I cover everything  :)  ?

Legends for sure although my favourite is Powerslave followed by Somewhere In Time and Seventh Son of a Seventh Son (their 'prog trilogy' if you like) . The last 4 albums have also been very good. I've seen Maidne before and Dickinson is one of the very greatest showman in rock along with the likes of Fish and Gabriel.

Enjoy!

I wish that today's audiences could experience the quad's and the really well done sound productions for some bands ... as most of them just had the amps on stage ... big deal! But the 3rd dimension in the music, which was defined for me with Pink Floyd at the Hollywood Bowl in that fall of 1972, is what sound could do for your imagination that a nothing stage show can't.

The Quad, with the sound effect bits and pieces, made you feel that you were there ... the opening of ONE OF THESE DAYS, going around all speakers and the audience, is something that gives you thrills in your spine and nerves that you can't even explain for a long time ... you were "there" ... it wasn't just a stage. And the same thing for the original WALL in LA ... it was in QUAD, and everything was defined in the "reality" ... and you were in the room with Pink, you "met" the girl looking at all those guitars, and just about had her step over you to go see them ... 

Even one of my favorites, Tangerine Dream, never had the type of stage production that helped their music, although in the later years their visual show got better, specially with Linda and Iris involved, which helped the music be interpreted with a "full'r" sound than before. But what they needed was a QUAD setup to really take folks from here to Pluto ... and hope to bring them back! Gracefully, their music was strong enough and flowed enough that you could do that trip on a VW, instead of a Cadillac ... but what the heck.

Thus, even things like Iron Maiden and many others that do "concept" this or that, is not turning me on, because there is very little staging wise that is done ... heck, my best work directing was done on an empty stages ... and a rock band is not capable of that? Bullsh*t! It tells you that there is too much worship of the fan thing going both ways, and for me, that eats up the music in half! And my attention span drops likewise.

Yep ... I'm definitely spoiled and hurt by the 3D style of film, theater and music ... and why is rock music being so cheap and cheezy with crappy lighting and a few this or that? To create another illusion like Judy Garland and a blue screen in the background? Right ... make me gag!

- Iron Maiden (1980) / For the sentimental attachment, and great sororities

- Piece of Mind (1983) / I think this album is very underrated from general public

- Brave New World (2000) / It just nails down so much good stuff that sounds solid

Blacksword wrote: I'll be the odd one out and say their best album is The Number of the Beast. Their 'prog metal' efforts are not as enjoyable to me.

 

I would say this was the beginning of their prog phase even though it has a few hit singles on it.

Easily one of the best bands of the eighties of any genre.

Somewhere In Time and Seventh Son of A Seventh Son are a bit lighter featuring guitar synths and maybe lack a bit of punch. At the time I wasn't convinced although I like them nowadays a lot more than I did then. Powerslave will always be my 'go to' metal album. Just a perfect balance of metal and prog to my ears.