The Iron Maidens
Encyclopedia
The Iron Maidens are an American heavy metal
band formed in Los Angeles
, California
in 2001 as an all-female tribute act to English heavy metal band Iron Maiden
. Hailed as "The World's Only Female Tribute to Iron Maiden", the band currently consists of vocalist Kirsten Rosenberg
, guitarists Nita Strauss and Courtney Cox
, bassist Wanda Ortiz
and drummer Linda McDonald
, all of whom have adopted separate aliases to mirror their Iron Maiden counterparts – "Bruce Chickinson", "Mega Murray", "Adriana Smith", "Steph Harris" and "Nikki McBurrain", respectively.
and bassist Melanie Sisneros
, formerly of the Iron Maiden tribute band Wrathchild. Linda McDonald
(drums) and Josephine Draven
(guitar), both formerly of Phantom Blue
, and Sara Marsh
(guitar), joined Warren and Sisneros shortly afterward to form the band's first lineup.
In 2003, the band started work on their debut album; however, the project was delayed when Warren gave notice of her departure from the band to focus more on her personal and child's needs. After Warren's departure, new vocalist Aja Kim
made her debut in the band and helped complete the album (World's Only Female Tribute to Iron Maiden), which was released in June 2005.
After the album's release, Draven left the band. In May 2007, the band released their second album Route 666, which features a guest appearance by Motörhead guitarist Phil Campbell
.
In summer 2008, Heather Baker and Aja Kim left the band to pursue solo careers. The two were replaced by guitar prodigy Courtney Cox
and vocalist Kirsten Rosenberg
(formerly of the Maryland
-based cover band HighWire). In January 2010, Marsh, who was ill, was taken off some of the Japanese tour shows and did not rejoin the band. Baker rejoined the band to temporarily fill in Marsh's spot for a handful of shows.
In August 2010, The Iron Maidens released a DVD of their Japan tour titled Metal Gathering Tour Live in Japan 2010
.
Former members
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
band formed in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
in 2001 as an all-female tribute act to English heavy metal band Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden
Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from Leyton in east London, formed in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. Since their inception, the band's discography has grown to include a total of thirty-six albums: fifteen studio albums; eleven live albums; four EPs; and six...
. Hailed as "The World's Only Female Tribute to Iron Maiden", the band currently consists of vocalist Kirsten Rosenberg
Kirsten Rosenberg
Kirsten Rosenberg is an American female singer, currently with the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens. She is also an animal rights advocate, as well as a former co-owner of Sticky Fingers, an all-vegan bakery in Washington, D.C.-Personal life:...
, guitarists Nita Strauss and Courtney Cox
Courtney Cox (musician)
Courtney Cox is a female American guitarist and member of the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens.- Career :A native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Courtney Cox first started playing guitar around the age of 13. When she turned 15, she enrolled at The Paul Green School of Rock Music...
, bassist Wanda Ortiz
Wanda Ortiz
Wanda Ortiz is the bassist of the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens .-Biography:...
and drummer Linda McDonald
Linda McDonald
Linda McDonald is the drummer of the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens . In addition, she is a member of the Ozzy Osbourne tribute band The Little Dolls and the cover bands Valley Dolls, Crabby Patty and Unholy Pink...
, all of whom have adopted separate aliases to mirror their Iron Maiden counterparts – "Bruce Chickinson", "Mega Murray", "Adriana Smith", "Steph Harris" and "Nikki McBurrain", respectively.
History
The Iron Maidens were originally formed in June 2001 by vocalist Jenny WarrenJenny Warren
Jenny Warren is an American female singer, best known as the co-founder of the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens.-Biography:Jenny Warren first had an Iron Maiden tribute band called Wrathchild. The idea came when she discovered the website of a Chicago-based tribute band called Revelations...
and bassist Melanie Sisneros
Melanie Sisneros
Melanie Sisneros is an American bassist and is currently a member of four bands: , , and . She was also a former member of the bands Sinergy, The Iron Maidens and .-Biography:Melanie Ann Sisneros was born the second of three daughters and raised in various towns in New Mexico...
, formerly of the Iron Maiden tribute band Wrathchild. Linda McDonald
Linda McDonald
Linda McDonald is the drummer of the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens . In addition, she is a member of the Ozzy Osbourne tribute band The Little Dolls and the cover bands Valley Dolls, Crabby Patty and Unholy Pink...
(drums) and Josephine Draven
Jojo Draven
Josephine Soegijanty-Draven is an Indonesian musician and film score composer. She is currently a cast member of the Blue Man Group. She was also a guitarist for the American all-female heavy metal band Phantom Blue and the tribute band The Iron Maidens....
(guitar), both formerly of Phantom Blue
Phantom blue
Phantom Blue was an all-female American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California, formed in 1987. Phantom Blue were the first and only female artists to be signed to Mike Varney's Shrapnel Records, only three months after forming....
, and Sara Marsh
Sara Marsh
Sara Marsh was one of two guitarists of the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens . In addition, she is a former founding member of the Ozzy Osbourne tribute band The Little Dolls...
(guitar), joined Warren and Sisneros shortly afterward to form the band's first lineup.
In 2003, the band started work on their debut album; however, the project was delayed when Warren gave notice of her departure from the band to focus more on her personal and child's needs. After Warren's departure, new vocalist Aja Kim
Aja Kim
Aja Kim is an American female singer and songwriter.- Biography :Born in Fayetteville, NC and raised in Philadelphia, PA Aja Kim first came to public attention when she collaborated with rock and roll saxophonist, Clarence Clemons on the 1995 Japan-only CD release Aja and the Big Man - Get It On...
made her debut in the band and helped complete the album (World's Only Female Tribute to Iron Maiden), which was released in June 2005.
After the album's release, Draven left the band. In May 2007, the band released their second album Route 666, which features a guest appearance by Motörhead guitarist Phil Campbell
Phil Campbell (musician)
Philip Anthony Campbell has been the lead guitarist of the British heavy metal band Motörhead since 1984. He is also the former guitarist of Persian Risk.-Early life and career:...
.
In summer 2008, Heather Baker and Aja Kim left the band to pursue solo careers. The two were replaced by guitar prodigy Courtney Cox
Courtney Cox (musician)
Courtney Cox is a female American guitarist and member of the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens.- Career :A native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Courtney Cox first started playing guitar around the age of 13. When she turned 15, she enrolled at The Paul Green School of Rock Music...
and vocalist Kirsten Rosenberg
Kirsten Rosenberg
Kirsten Rosenberg is an American female singer, currently with the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens. She is also an animal rights advocate, as well as a former co-owner of Sticky Fingers, an all-vegan bakery in Washington, D.C.-Personal life:...
(formerly of the Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
-based cover band HighWire). In January 2010, Marsh, who was ill, was taken off some of the Japanese tour shows and did not rejoin the band. Baker rejoined the band to temporarily fill in Marsh's spot for a handful of shows.
In August 2010, The Iron Maidens released a DVD of their Japan tour titled Metal Gathering Tour Live in Japan 2010
Metal Gathering Tour Live in Japan 2010
Metal Gathering Tour Live in Japan 2010 is a Japan-only live video by the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens. Recorded live during their tour in Japan on January 2010, it was the band's first release with new lead vocalist Kirsten Rosenberg and new guitarist Courtney Cox, and also the last to...
.
Albums
- World's Only Female Tribute to Iron Maiden (2005)
- Route 666 (2007)
- The Root of All EvilThe Root of All Evil (EP)The Root of All Evil is a Japan-only EP release by the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens. It includes three new cover recordings of Iron Maiden songs and a dance remix of "The Trooper." This was the band's last recording to feature lead vocalist Aja Kim and guitarist Heather Baker, who left...
(2008)
Band members
Current members- Kirsten RosenbergKirsten RosenbergKirsten Rosenberg is an American female singer, currently with the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens. She is also an animal rights advocate, as well as a former co-owner of Sticky Fingers, an all-vegan bakery in Washington, D.C.-Personal life:...
("Bruce Chickinson"), vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments... - Nita Strauss ("Mega Murray"), guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
- Courtney CoxCourtney Cox (musician)Courtney Cox is a female American guitarist and member of the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens.- Career :A native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Courtney Cox first started playing guitar around the age of 13. When she turned 15, she enrolled at The Paul Green School of Rock Music...
("Adriana Smith"), guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with... - Wanda OrtizWanda OrtizWanda Ortiz is the bassist of the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens .-Biography:...
("Steph Harris"), bassBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick.... - Linda McDonaldLinda McDonaldLinda McDonald is the drummer of the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens . In addition, she is a member of the Ozzy Osbourne tribute band The Little Dolls and the cover bands Valley Dolls, Crabby Patty and Unholy Pink...
("Nikki McBurrain"), drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
Former members
- Melanie SisnerosMelanie SisnerosMelanie Sisneros is an American bassist and is currently a member of four bands: , , and . She was also a former member of the bands Sinergy, The Iron Maidens and .-Biography:Melanie Ann Sisneros was born the second of three daughters and raised in various towns in New Mexico...
("Steve Heiress"), bass - Jenny WarrenJenny WarrenJenny Warren is an American female singer, best known as the co-founder of the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens.-Biography:Jenny Warren first had an Iron Maiden tribute band called Wrathchild. The idea came when she discovered the website of a Chicago-based tribute band called Revelations...
("Bruce Chickinson"), vocals - Jojo DravenJojo DravenJosephine Soegijanty-Draven is an Indonesian musician and film score composer. She is currently a cast member of the Blue Man Group. She was also a guitarist for the American all-female heavy metal band Phantom Blue and the tribute band The Iron Maidens....
("Adrienne Smith"), guitar - Aja KimAja KimAja Kim is an American female singer and songwriter.- Biography :Born in Fayetteville, NC and raised in Philadelphia, PA Aja Kim first came to public attention when she collaborated with rock and roll saxophonist, Clarence Clemons on the 1995 Japan-only CD release Aja and the Big Man - Get It On...
("Bruce Lee Chickinson"), vocals - Elizabeth SchallElizabeth SchallElizabeth Schall is a female American singer, songwriter and guitarist, and founder of the death metal band . Prior to that, she was a guitarist of the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens and the death metal band .-Biography:...
("Adrianne Smith" and "Deena Murray"), guitar - Sara MarshSara MarshSara Marsh was one of two guitarists of the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens . In addition, she is a former founding member of the Ozzy Osbourne tribute band The Little Dolls...
("Mini Murray"), guitar - Heather BakerHeather BakerHeather Baker is a female American singer, songwriter and guitarist, and founder of the band The Afterlife. She is currently touring with the all-female tribute band The Iron Maidens .-Biography:In 2004, Heather Baker and a group of friends formed the band As Night Falls...
("Dee Murray" and "Adrienne Smith"), guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...