Up The Irons

Up The Irons is an Iron Maiden tribute band, home-based in , United States of America.

History

The band was founded by Peruvian Bassist/Lead & Rhythm guitar player Ivan Ramirez and Puerto Rican Bassist/Percussionist David M. back in November of 2006. After auditioning numerous Musicians within the local circuit, the band settled on Drummer George Paps, Lead guitar player Shane Chadek and Lead vocalist Denim. This lineup never performed live, due to the fact that Paps quit the band right before their first show ever. He was soon replaced by Erik McCray. It was with McCray that the band finally started playing out live and getting recognized as a true Iron Maiden tribute band, thanks to the professionalism, excellent musicianship displayed by all band members and extent of their live shows. With this lineup, the band performed at venues such as The Berkeley Cafe, Volume 11 Tavern, and The Lincoln Theatre in and around , gathering hordes of fans along the way.

Right after his performance at The Lincoln Theatre, Lead guitar player Chadek decided to quit the band, due to personal reasons. He was replaced by Tom Speziale, who had been recommended by Denim. The band's last performance at The Berkeley Cafe, alongside AC/DC tribute band High Voltage proved to be Denim's, McCray's and Speziale's first and final show with Up The Irons, as all three quit the band to pursue other musical interests. All three were soon replaced with new members.

Long time friend and Iron Maiden fan Alexander Kolovos was invited to audition for the Lead vocalist spot left open by Denim, since his voice closely resembled Iron Maiden vocalist Bruce Dickinson's voice. He was hired on the spot. The band also found a new Lead guitar player in the form of Jeff Horton and Drummer Percy Blest. With this new 5-piece lineup, the band went into the studio and recorded their first , a 6-song affair featuring the songs "," "Invaders," "Wasted Years," "2 Minutes To Midnight," "" and "The Trooper." Soon after the recording sessions were over, both Horton and Kolovos decided to quit the band, citing musical and personal differences as their reasons, although Kolovos did perform live with the band afterwards. Ramirez went back into the studio and re-recorded all of Horton's lead parts. Horton was eventually replaced by Lead guitar player Nuny Ensenat, while Kolovos was replaced by a fellow Lead vocalist named Chris Winchell.

After a string of unsuccessful gigs with this current lineup at places such as The Pour House Music Hall in and The Rock Shop in , Ensenat, Winchell and Blest decided to leave the band and form their own brand of original music, which was to also feature Bassist David M., although this never materialized. With Ramirez and David M. left alone for what seemed to be the end of the band, less than a month later Ramirez found new Lead guitar player Jim Clark, with original Drummer Paps and Lead vocalist Denim re-joining the ranks. Paps played only one show with the band before deciding to quit the project altogether and forever, quickly being replaced by Drummer Michael "Bam Bam" St. John. The band's current incarnation consists of "Bam Bam" on drums, David M. on bass, Denim on lead vocals and keyboards, Clark on lead guitar and Ramirez on lead and rhythm guitar. This is probably the best and most stable lineup the band has ever had since its inception.

Partial Set List (in no particular order)

Although the band covers Maiden's catalog in its entirety, in trying to stay true to the melodic dual guitar sound uniquely developed by the dynamic & Adrian Smith combo, they prefer to cover Maiden circa 1980 to 1988 mostly:

The Trooper

Hallowed Be Thy Name

2 Minutes To Midnight

Wasted Years

Invaders

Prowler

Charlotte the Harlot

Drifter

Websites

Up The Irons USA

Up The Irons Raleigh

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See Also

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