Iron Maiden performs at the Concord Pavilion in Concord, Calif. on Sept. 27, 2022. Nate McKinley/STAFF.

CONCORD, Calif. — Forty years ago this month, a relatively young Iron Maiden came through the Bay Area for its second go-round on The Number of the Beast tour. The band wasn’t even headlining yet, but its scope and ambition was right up there with KISS, long considered the greatest live theatrical band on the planet. At least that was the collective analysis of many suburban 15-year-old boys afterward.

All these years later, that’s still true, at the very least. Probably more so. No band has played to more humans on Earth the past four decades, I’m guessing. That it still drags giant, grand, heavy metal theater wherever it goes, running around stages like kids, and plays even better than during its salad days, is doubtlessly one of life’s great mysteries.

Even better – and shown with great fearlessness Tuesday night at a sold-out Concord Pavilion – the oldies circuit isn’t Iron Maiden’s bag. These guys still release new material and, like most recent record, 2021’s Senjutsu, they still play much of it live, and dare you to complain.

Iron Maiden performs at the Concord Pavilion in Concord, Calif. on Sept. 27, 2022.

No, the new stuff isn’t of the same quality as the old. But like all great bands, Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band being the prime example for about a half century – the music on the records sounds so much better after they gift-wrap it in stage sweat. Seeing music played with that kind of effort makes all the difference in the world.

Yes, that may be the first time Iron Maiden and the E Street Band have been compared. It’s sensible because both bands leave it all on the stage every night and has somehow been doing so for decades. That’s why so many of those kids from 1982 tried squeezing into their old Maiden gear and sold out the Pavilion on Tuesday.

With a Japanese village on stage, Maiden opened with the first three songs from Senjutsu: the pounding title track, “Stratego” and the epic “The Writing on the Wall.”  Even with mechanical mascot Eddie out swinging a samurai sword, it wasn’t the most exciting opening for old fans. But the band’s energy made the songs better than on the record.

Iron Maiden performs at the Concord Pavilion in Concord, Calif. on Sept. 27, 2022.

Singer Bruce Dickinson has morphed from vaguely threatening metal man to an older swashbuckling vampire in a Broadway show. He’s funny, he’s active, he owns the stage more completely now than ever. It was always difficult to tell if Dickinson was having fun as a younger metal man. At 64 with gray streaking his hair, there’s no doubt (and his voice truly sounds as good as ever).

The set completely changed into a tribute to the Eddie of old (the mascot goes through different phases on each record cover), which brought the first oldie, but goodie “Revelations,” a live masterpiece once it gets rolling like a downhill freight train.

Dickinson then told everyone to put down their phones and greet the person next to them. “Well, hello there, brother in Maiden,” he suggested, rather cheerfully, before the bad kicked into “Blood Brother,” a song that would sound perfect in a British war film set in the Middle Ages.

Iron Maiden performs at the Concord Pavilion in Concord, Calif. on Sept. 27, 2022.

Musically, bassist Steve Harris and drummer Nicko McBrain still run at a heavy gallop, while the three-guitar attack of Dave Murray, Adrian Smith and the very-animated Janick Gers took turns being the most awesome guitarist on stage.

“Flight of Icarus” was huge, with Dickinson strapped into a two-fisted flamethrower he’d let loose at various points, under a giant inflatable Icarus that presumably flew too close to Dickinson’s flamethrower and “melted” at song’s end. Dickinson shifted into lantern-swinging cemetery sentry during a huge version of “Fear of the Dark,” possibly the best song of the night, with the band showing why it’s so good at crowd interplay.

Dickson climbed into a cage and swung a hangman’s noose for “Hallowed Be Thy Name,” and the stage exploded into shades of deep devil’s red and flame pots for “The Number of the Beast.” The band wet very old school for a relentless “Iron Maiden,” just before Eddie came out dressed as a British redcoat to dual Dickinson during first encore “The Trooper,” going into “The Clansman” and “Run to the Hills.” The show ended with the traditional playing of Churchill’s speech before the always-great “Aces High.”

See you again in 40 years? Never say never.

Florida metal band Trivium opened the show, playing at the Concord Pavilion for the second time since last fall’s Megadeth and Lamb of God tour, opened with a seven-cut set that included songs from its most recent album, 2021’s In the Court of the Dragon.

Follow music critic Tony Hicks at Twitter.com/TonyBaloney1967. Follow photographer Nathan McKinley at Instagram.com/memories.by.mckinley.