With a catalog spanning half a century and 17 studio albums, constructing the perfect Iron Maiden setlist is an exercise in compromise. Even for the band’s founder and bassist Steve Harris, leaving certain fan favorites on the cutting room floor is a painful necessity—especially when there is one specific song he is itching to play again.
In a new exclusive interview with Metal Hammer, the 69-year-old heavy metal legend opened up about the difficult choices behind the band’s current “Run For Your Lives” world tour. While the trek has already seen the resurrection of epic deep cuts, Harris revealed that the 1988 single “The Evil That Men Do” is the one track he personally misses performing.
When asked which song he was most eager to revisit for the 50th-anniversary celebration, Harris admitted that while the current set is formidable, the Seventh Son of a Seventh Son anthem remains high on his wish list.
“I like them all! It’s hard to pick one,” Harris told Metal Hammer. “There’s certain songs like ‘The Evil That Men Do‘ that aren’t already in the set and I’d like to play. But we’ve bandied the ideas around and not ended up playing them this time.”
“The Evil That Men Do” was last performed by the band in 2019 during the “Legacy of the Beast” tour, but it failed to make the cut for the 2025/2026 run, which focuses exclusively on the band’s first nine studio albums.
Despite omitting that particular classic, the “Run For Your Lives” tour has not disappointed in the rarity department. Since kicking off last year, the band has dusted off tracks that haven’t been touched in decades, including “Killers” (first time since 1999), “Murders In The Rue Morgue” (first time since 2005), and the monumental “Rime Of The Ancient Mariner” (first time since 2009).
Harris acknowledges that with such a wealth of material, pleasing everyone—including themselves—is impossible.
“But it’s difficult to do a set from any part of our career [and not miss things out],” Harris added. “It’s a nice problem to have, I suppose.”
The tour continues this spring with a second European leg before heading to the Americas in the fall. Check out the full list of upcoming tour dates below.
Iron Maiden: Run For Your Lives World Tour 2026 Dates
European Leg
- May 23 – Athens, GREECE – OAKA (with Anthrax)
- May 26 – Sofia, BULGARIA – Vasil Levski Stadium (with Anthrax)
- May 28 – Bucharest, ROMANIA – Arena Națională (with Anthrax)
- May 30 – Bratislava, SLOVAKIA – Národný Futbalový Štadión (with Anthrax)
- June 02 – Hannover, GERMANY – Heinz von Heiden Arena (with Megadeth)
- June 10 – Amsterdam, NETHERLANDS – Ziggo Dome (with Evergrey)
- June 17 – Milan, ITALY – San Siro Stadium (with Trivium)
- June 22 – Paris, FRANCE – Paris La Défense Arena (with Evergrey)
- June 28 – Lyon – Décines, FRANCE – Groupama Stadium (with Anthrax)
- July 07 – Lisbon, PORTUGAL – Estádio da Luz (with Anthrax)
North American Leg (Featuring support from Megadeth and Anthrax on select dates)
- Aug. 29 & 30 – Toronto, ON – Scotiabank Arena
- Sep. 03 – Montreal, QC – Parc Jean-Drapeau
- Sep. 05 – Harrison, NJ – Sports Illustrated Stadium
- Sep. 09 – Boston, MA – TD Garden
- Sep. 11 – Bristow, VA – Jiffy Lube Live
- Sep. 12 – Charlotte, NC – PNC Music Pavilion
- Sep. 15 – Hershey, PA – Hersheypark Stadium
- Sep. 17 – Louisville, KY – Louder Than Life Festival
- Sep. 19 – Shakopee, MN – Mystic Lake Amphitheater
- Sep. 22 – Chicago, IL – Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre
- Sep. 25 & 26 – Los Angeles, CA – BMO Stadium
- Sep. 29 – San Antonio, TX – Alamodome
- Oct. 02 – Mexico City, Mexico – Estadio GNP Seguros
Latin American Leg
- Oct. 05 – San Salvador, El Salvador – Estadio Jorge “Mágico” González
- Oct. 08 – San José, Costa Rica – Estadio Nacional
- Oct. 11 – Bogotá, Colombia – Vive Claro
- Oct. 14 – Quito, Ecuador – Estadio Atahualpa
- Oct. 17 – Lima, Peru – Estadio Nacional
- Oct. 20 – Buenos Aires, Argentina – Estadio Huracán
- Oct. 25 – São Paulo, Brazil – Allianz Parque
- Oct. 31 – Santiago, Chile – Estadio Nacional
Photo credit: gregorylee / Depositphotos
