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To be quite honest, I've never seen Iron Maiden play tighter than this. B. Dickinson sounded great, the trio of guitars sounds much better live as well IMO. The stage is awesome as usual, and the crowd is one of the largest I've ever seen....

The quality of this DVD is top shelf, as is the sound and camera work. I was very happy after seeing this for the first time. Actually, as much as I hate to say it, I was expecting a bunch of old geezers struggling to stay on top of their form. What I witnessed, kicked me in the teeth!!!...Maiden has lost nothing!

This will certainly go down as one of the best live Heavy Metal performances you can buy on DVD today. Maiden is in top form here, and they've proven that they are the true "Gods Of Heavy Metal".....

"Rock In Rio" = 4 1/2 stars...."Live After Death" = 5.

UP THE IRONS!!!!


Rio, Welcome To Iron Maiden   December 19, 2002
 12 out of 13 found this review helpful

January 19, 2001 marked perhaps the highest point in Iron Maiden's career. It was approximately 25 years before this date that Steve Harris, Dave Murray and a plethora of their early members were gigging all around the East End and throughout their hometown with ambitions to be on top of the world. On that day in January, they triumphed over ambition as one of the headliners at the Rock in Rio festival, playing before 250,000 people. This DVD isn't just a live concert; it's a part of Heavy Metal history.

Iron Maiden has always been known for their over-the-top performances and this DVD definitely captures the best of the best. Every member puts everything they have into playing the music. Disc One of the set is the actual live show, edited and mastered by Steve Harris himself. Disc Two is some bonus footage including interviews, a photo gallery, web site links and a portion entitled 'A Day In The Life'. The last of which I believe can also be found on the Rock In Rio double album.

Disc One. The quality is very good. It's clean and crisp. I didn't find any problems with it at all. Obviously, if you've heard the double CD, you'll know what the sound quality is. However, you experience the full effect of the music and the show, you should probably have two speakers on your TV. With just one, some of the sound is lost (in my case, all of Janick's guitar parts aren't heard). I don't know if it's the DVD but do yourself a favor anyway.

The footage itself is amazing, in my opinion. Shot from a series of different cameras, Steve Harris viewed all of it and spliced it all down to create the two hours of footage seen. I think he did a fantastic job covering every aspect of the stage that night while still capturing the essence of the band's live performance (I have read some pretty poor reviews about the editing work, however). Every member is in top form (especially Bruce) as they command the stage, running from place to place, plowing through the classics. The stage set up is great, the lighting is good and the camera work is great. Overall, an awesome and entertaining viewing of the band's stellar live show.

Disc Two. The second disc starts off with the interviews. Each member is interviewed while showing what they do on their time away from touring, writing and recording. It gives a little insight into how heavy metal stars enjoy normal things just like anyone else. While some of it is somewhat comical, the rest of it is pretty informative as to how each member lives, how they got their start in music and a little bit about how they view on the band in the present. The second part is the 'A Day In The Life' portion, which shows the band's day up to and after the Rock In Rio performance. Press conferences, their arrival, preparing for their performance and the parties afterward. Entertaining and comical, at times. Not much else can be said. Third is the Photo Gallery of the band with commentary on each picture by Ross Halfin. Some cool pictures and some good information. The last two items on the disc are the credits and some website links.

January 19, 2001 marked perhaps the highest point in Iron Maiden's career. The essence of their live shows was put into overdrive that night as they performed for their biggest headlining crowd to date. That performance, all the power, energy, anguish, ability and excitement, can be found here on this DVD. I recommend this to any die-hard Maiden fans as well as anyone who has never seen the band perform live before. Anyone who wasn't satisfied with the Rock In Rio CD might be turned off by the music but the performance is sheer excellence. Definitely buy this.


Maiden rocks! ...   September 6, 2002
 10 out of 10 found this review helpful

Iron Maiden and AC/DC are my favorite bands. When AC/DC's "Stiff Upper Lip" DVD came out, I borrowed it from a friend. The quality of the audio and video was excellent but I was disappointed with the video editing. Using a gazillion cameras, the video jumped from camera to camera barely resting on any one artist for a few seconds. After watching for 30 mts, I got a headache and swore never to buy this DVD.

When I saw Maiden's "Rock in Rio", I was hoping that the video editing would be better but I was disappointed. It is worse! I got a headache watching the DVD within 10 minutes and it wasn't from the loud music, it was from the trigger happy STEVEditor
who seemed to be playing drums on the button which switched between camera feeds (Maybe NICKO really did the editing!)

Its unfortunate when multiple cameras are used to make the user dizzy. I don't understand why the editor cannot focus on an artist for more than a second or two. If I went for a live concert of Maiden's (and I did), I wouldn't be whipping my head round and round trying to look at every artist at the same time.

Want to see better editing? Watch King Crimson's VRROOOM DVD. They have used multiple cameras to give the user multiple viewing angles with each angle (mostly) focusing on a different artist. No headaches here and very sensible editing.

Rock on Maiden, you are still my favorite band. I just won't buy your DVDs :-)


Get out the tapes and do it over   June 22, 2004
 10 out of 15 found this review helpful

Rock in Rio had all the ingredients to be a classic concert DVD, perhaps one of the best ever. There was 250,0000 loyal fans ready to sing along with every note. There was a behemoth stage and light show, a fantastic set list, and of course probably the most refined, polished and exciting hard rock/heavy metal band of all time. But this DVD fails when you thought failure was impossible. While the music is utterly fantastic, the editing, which apparently was done by band founder and bassist Steve Harris, destroyed the whole effort. No camera shot appears on screen for more than what seems to be 1/100th of a second. It is far easier to focus on the white lines on the highway while doing 120 MPH than it is to focus on what's happening during this concert. At first it leaves you wishing you could see more of a Janick Gers or Dave Murray solo; it then gets frustrating because it won't stop switching; and finally your eyes get so tired of trying to see something that you get a headache.

It is even more frustrating because while the DVD is playing, you know that something great is going on here but you just cannot enjoy it. The DVD is pretty much unwatchable. I agonized through it and will never watch it again. There is no doubt that Iron Maiden ought to pull out the tapes again and re-edit this concert. All the ingredients are there for a classic DVD to enjoy over and over again. Do it over and call it Rock In Rio Revised. If not, Rock in Rio will stand forever as a lost opportunity.


Two thumbs Way Up the Irons .. Maiden never lost a step !   February 16, 2005
 9 out of 10 found this review helpful

Very long time Maiden fan posting. Like a lot of the reviewers here, I lost interest in Maiden after the Live after Death/Somewhere in Time period. Honestly, it was more of my life/priorities changing, than Maidens music. Does this DVD ever prove that point. I'm still shocked/stoked at how GREAT this DVD is ! I can't figure out what took me so long to pick it up. Maybe it was the low expectations I had regarding song titles I wasn't familiar with ... or the reviews regarding the camera angles/changes. Whatever it was disappeared the second Adrian hits the first chords of Wicker Man ... actually the build up to that point gives you goosebumps. There ARE a TON of camera changes, and yeah as a guitarist, I would have liked to have seen a little more solo sections shown longer up close ... but Harris didn't totally blow it with the rapid changes ( he really should have toned it a bit down though ). The changes keep you as a viewer constantly absorbed in each song. Seeing, and most importantly capturing the energy of all the band members at any given time is damn hard to display over a tv screen. Even seeing them live with the whole spectacle you miss a lot ... ESPECIALLY with a stage that big. I never thought I'd see a Maiden production to rival Live after Death, and although the stage set up was better in 85, this production with all the camera angles exceeds it for the viewer. I saw Maiden up close in 85 at Long Beach Arena when they filmed and recorded Live after Death. I also saw them sitting further back for the Somewhere in Time tour at Irvine Meadows. Up close, you have a limited view ... turn your head to see one thing, and you miss a couple others. Far back, you see the stage/light show better, but a bunch of ants running around the stage. I think Harris realized this too ... it's spooky how well this dvd conveys the energy a Maiden show produces. Remember, theres 6 guys to cover ( actually Janick Gers moves so much he should count for two ), PLUS the 250,000 fans going beserk singing and clapping along the ENTIRE time. THOSE are fans ! The real treat for me was hearing newer Maiden material and feeling as if I just discovered some lost classic album. Although I would have loved to have seen more "jurassic" classics like Phantom of the Opera or Killers performed, I tell you what ... Sign of the Cross and Clansman just rip your head off. I'd never heard those songs before, and they came across as instant classics. I didn't intend to be long winded here, but it seems the excitement Maiden conveys in their shows is contageous ... even after all these years. Buy this DVD, and if you don't like it, I'll buy it from you since I know Im going to wear out my current one. Watching this takes me back to Long Beach Arena in 85 ... Scream for me Brazil !

p.s. the 2nd DVD is pretty cool in showing the various band members doing what they love to do on days off. The Janick Gers segment is especially well done. I knew nothing of the man, since I basically stopped following Maiden once he joined ... his attitude and positive views on life and Maiden show why they are even stronger today than they ever were