Iron Maiden 2012 Tour Dates: Alice Cooper, Coheed and Cambria to Open

Iron Maiden just announced that they'll be heading back for a tour of North America being dubbed the Maiden England World Tour. The trek will start on June 21 in Charlotte, N.C. and conclude in Houston, Texas on August 18. The iconic metallers will also be announcing legs in other parts of the world.

The Maiden England World Tour will closely mirror, in terms of production and content, the original 1988 concert video of the same name, shot on the Seventh Son of a Seventh Son Tour. This opening section of the tour is the band's most extensive visit to North America for many years and includes a number of cities the band have not played in a very long time, such as Charlotte, Atlanta, Buffalo, Indianapolis and Salt Lake City.

Alice Cooper will be the supporting act till July 21, and Coheed and Cambria will take over on the rest of the dates.

Comments vocalist Bruce Dickinson, "We have great fun playing the History of Maiden Tours because it gives us an opportunity between new albums to go out and play songs from our earlier catalogue. It's always fantastic seeing the crowd reaction from a new generation of fans who have never experienced some of these tracks performed live before, and of course we know our longstanding fans will enjoy seeing the original Seventh Son Tour re-visited - with many other surprises!

"Our intention is to play about two thirds of the original track list of Maiden England (shown below*), including some songs we have not played live in a very,very long time, plus other favourites we just know the fans are going to want to hear! We always try to give our fans a great show musically, but we have always tried to make it as entertaining and memorable an experience as we can visually. And we all feel this show is going to do that splendidly! We can't wait to get started in Charlotte".

Maiden England 2012 tour dates:

21st June - Charlotte, NC - Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre

23rd June - Atlanta, GA - Aarons Amphitheatre

26th June - Boston, MA - Comcast Center

27th June - Wantagh, NY - Jones Beach

29th June - Philadelphia, PI - Susquehanna Bank Center

30th June - Washington, DC - Jiffy Lube Live

2nd July - Newark, NJ - Prudential Center

5th July - Chicago, IL - First Midwest Bank

8th July - Quebec, QC - Colisee Pepsi Arena

11th July - Montreal, QC - Bell Center

13th July - Toronto, ON - Molson Amphitheatre

14th July - Sarnia, ON - Bayfest

16th July - Buffalo, NY - Darien Lake Performing Arts Center

18th July - Detroit, MI - DTE Music Theatre

19th July - Indianapolis, IN - Klipsch Music Centre

24th July - Winnipeg, MB - MTS Center

26th July - Calgary, AB - Scotiabank Saddledome

27th July - Edmonton, AB - Rexall Place

29th July - Vancouver, BC - Pacific Coliseum

30th July - Auburn, WA - White River Amphitheatre

1st August - Salt Lake City, UT - USANA Amphitheatre

3rd August - San Francisco, CA - Shoreline Amphitheatre

6th August - Phoenix, AZ - Ashley Furniture HomeStore Pavilion

9th August - Irvine, CA - Verizon Wireless Amphitheatre

12th August - Albuquerque. NM - Hard Rock Pavilion

13th August - Denver, CO - Comfort Dental Amphitheatre

15th August - San Antonio, TX - AT&T Center

17th August - Dallas, TX - Gexa Energy Pavilion

18th August - Houston, TX - The Woodlands