Iron Maiden and Eddie come to Tampa with the ‘Book of Souls’ tour

Iron Maiden has been a powerful force in hard rock and metal music for more than 35 years, and the band doesn’t show signs of stopping anytime soon.

“Book of Souls,” Iron Maiden’s first double studio album, came out last year and got a lot of praise from critics, and was even more enthusiastically embraced by fans. It hit the top of the charts in countries around the world (though only No. 4 in the United States) and has been compared to the band’s most legendary work.

Maiden’s “Book of Souls” world tour has been going on since early 2016 — it actually started in Sunrise — and has just returned to North America. It will arrive in Tampa on Sunday night for a show at Amalie Arena.

The tour’s been praised for both its visual and musical elements. Eddie, the band’s omnipresent mascot, trudges through a Mayan-themed set and eventually has his heart torn out of his chest by singer Bruce Dickinson, who throws the heart into the crowd.

Opening the show is another band that’s known for its visuals, Ghost is a Swedish metal band that dresses in identical costumes, with their faces obscured. Only the singer, who is known as Papa Emeritus, has his face visible. He dresses in a kind of demonic pope outfit (or at least has in the past). Each of the other band members simply goes by the moniker Nameless Ghoul.

Ghost won the 2016 Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance for its single “Cirice.”

Details: 7:30 p.m. June 11, Amalie Arena, 401 Channelside Drive, Tampa. $39.50, $49.50, $79.50, $99.50. 813-301-2500, amaliearena.com.

This story was originally published June 7, 2017 at 4:56 PM with the headline "Iron Maiden and Eddie come to Tampa with the ‘Book of Souls’ tour."