Iron Maiden’s support for the North American shows isn’t too shabby either. They’ve got Dio and Motorhead appearing from July 25 through August 30.

“This tour is all about having fun, as the name suggests,” Bruce Dickinson of Iron Maiden said. “We love summer and we love playing big shows. We are going to be playing a lot of our favorite Maiden songs and many people know we’ve got a new album in the pipeline for later this year. So perhaps we’ll be playing a new song or two, but basically it will be full-on Maiden!

“The band is firing on all cylinders and the show will be as spectacular as always. We’re headlining a lot of the biggest festivals across Europe this summer so it’s shaping up to be another huge year for the band. We’ve got big plans for the next 12 months and this is just the beginning.

“We’ve always said that one day metal would be back in a big way and some people would laugh at that. Well, I think the day has definitely arrived.”

And he’s not kidding. Some of Maiden’s biggest shows – including a headlining gig at New York’s Madison Square Garden – have sold out in a matter of hours. In parts of Europe, the demand is so great they’ve had to switch to bigger venues.

Speaking of tickets, European concerts are on sale now, while most of the U.S. gigs will go on sale within the next week if not already. Expect to pay under $50 for the best seat.