Iron Maiden Survive Mini-Tornado at Recent Concert

Iron Maiden bassist Steve Harris has played some strange shows over the years, but one of the strangest in recent memory was at the Sonisphere festival in Pori, Finland on Aug. 8. Before the band went on, a mini-tornado touched down in the concert area and destroyed the second stage, damaging some of Iron Maiden's equipment.

"20 minutes before we got there, the wind was on the floor and trees were down, and when we got to the show the second stage was all messed up and all our monitors and lights were messed up," Harris told Noisecreep. "We were lucky, because our gear hadn't been put on yet. It was weird, because the wind veered in and out. Some parts were untouched and other parts of the place were just trashed. We still managed to do the gig, but we went on two hours late."

By the time Iron Maiden played, the storm had passed, but conditions on stage were dangerous. During the show, vocalist Bruce Dickinson fell flat on his back after he lept from the drum riser to the stage. "Fortunately, he didn't hurt himself," Harris said. "It was just very, very humid and the stage was all wet, so it was very slippery. The last half our of the show was completely fogged over, so we could hardly see most of the crowd. Fortunately they could see us because there was lighting, but it was a very weird gig."

Mötley Crüe, who were scheduled to headline the second stage, canceled their show because the stage was damaged beyond repair and posed a safety hazard. Alice Cooper performed a full set on the main stage, but had to borrow Slayer's drums. Iggy Pop also performed an acoustic four-song set on the main stage right after the storm.

Iron Maiden's new album, 'The Final Frontier,' is out now.