IRON MAIDEN's BRUCE DICKINSON: 'I Don't Want To Go Onstage And Look Out At A Bunch Of Crumblies My Age'

In a brand new interview with the San Francisco Chronicle, IRON MAIDEN singer Bruce Dickinson was asked about heavy metal's "enduring appeal." He responded: "I can speak about what IRON MAIDEN's enduring appeal is: we exist in our own world. Our fanbase is a little bit like plywood. It's formed of lots of layers of different age groups. Every layer sticks to the layer underneath it and doesn't detach. People come to a show expecting to see people of my age, and they get a whole bunch of kids between fifteen and twenty-eight. I don't want to go onstage and look out at a bunch of crumblies my age. People of my age go along to shows, but you never see them in the mosh pit — mainly they're standing by the toilet, waiting to get their prostate problem solved. We like seeing rabid kids leaping around. That's what makes our hearts pump onstage. Our music is still fierce. It's still in your face."

Dickinson's autobiography, "What Does This Button Do?", will be released in the U.S. on October 31 via Dey Street Books (formerly It Books),an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

In the book, Bruce — a man who famously never gives interviews about his personal life — shares, for the first time, the most fascinating recollections, including his thirty years with MAIDEN, the early days, his childhood within the eccentric British school system, going solo, realizing his dream of flying jumbo jets and his recent battle with tongue cancer.

Dickinson will read from "What Does This Button Do?", talk about the experience of writing it and answer questions from the audience at half a dozen U.S. appearances in late October and early November.