IRON MAIDEN's founding bassist Steve Harris spoke with Rick Florino from Artist Direct recently about a number of topics including his debut solo album, British Lion. A few excerpts from the chat follow:

Artist Direct: What's your take on British Lion as a whole?

Harris: "It does feel very cohesive like an album. Yet, with the way it was put together over a long period of time through bits and pieces here and there, it's almost a wonder it feels like that. It was done at all different times. I'm really happy and pleased with it. It flows really well, and the tracklisting picked itself."

Artist Direct: Did you get to try anything performance-wise you'd never done in the past?

Harris: "I tried a few different things out. I suppose recording the album at different times gave me the luxury to do that. For example, I could let the strings go really dead if the song needed that. Or, I could grind it out a little longer to make an even more top-y sound than I usually get. The sound I've got for Maiden is the right sound. I've got to cut through three guitar players for that. It makes it even more important to have that top-end. The stuff tends to be a little faster, and I need to cut through. With some of these songs, I was able to experiment more with different guitars and sounds. Doing everything in bits and pieces is not the normal way I'd like to record. Everything in my whole life is dictated by what Maiden is doing [Laughs]."

Artist Direct: Have you begun writing more music already?

Harris: "That just comes together when I'm working with the guys who are on the album. That's what happens. I work with ideas for whatever I'm focused on. As soon as I start working with someone like that outside of Maiden, then I know that material can be used in Maiden. That's it really."

Read more at Artist Direct.

This is My God from Steve Harris on Vimeo.