This article was originally published in Rolling Stone USAin July 2019, and subsequently included in the bookazine of Rolling Stone Argentina dedicated to Iron Maidenin 2021.
“Our legacy… really, is what you decipher,” says the bassist of Iron Maiden, Steve Harrisabout to begin the United States leg of the Legacy of the Beast tour, which shares its title with a recently released cell phone game.
The tour focuses on the songs most acclaimed by fans throughout the group’s almost 45-year history, such as “Run to the Hills” and “The Trooper,” and on what they announced as a major stage production, with a airplane that hangs above the stage when they play “Aces High.” But when he speaks to Rolling Stone from Florida, before the tour begins, Harris doesn’t seem interested in making any big revelations.
For fans, the place of Iron Maiden In the pantheon of metal it is obvious. The band emerged from the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, with a brighter sound than that of ancestors such as Black Sabbath and Judas Priest. His twin guitar harmonies and his galloping rhythms inspired Metallica and Slayer, and the progressive structures of many songs propelled a new generation of bands like Dream Theater and Opeth.
They earned seven gold and platinum records in the United States and their two most recent albums were at number 4 on the chart. They won a Grammy in 2011 for “El Dorado”, from their album Final Frontier. And throughout all those exploits, the core of the sound has always been Harris, who co-founded the group in 1975 and has been its primary songwriter ever since.
But through all this Harris remains humble, especially when it comes to talking about the band’s history and the anecdotes surrounding the creation of some of their hits. “If someone asked me what I would like to be remembered for, I would simply say because we were a band that sounded very
well live,” he says. “That’s what interests me, nothing more.”
Forty years have passed since Maiden’s debut EP, The Soundhouse Tapes. What memories do you have of that time?
I remember it was snowing. We recorded it during New Year’s, because it was the only date we could afford the recording studio. I wanted to have a demo, mostly because we were having a hard time getting dates in the pubs.
The first song was “Iron Maiden,” which they still play live. Do you remember what it was like to write it?
Everyone knows that the title comes from the name of a torture instrument that appears in The man in the iron mask [la novela de Alexandre Dumas]
Yes, but the lyrics are not about the torture device. It’s about the band going to “get you,” right?
Yeah, it was kind of an attitude we had. We wanted to go out and kill, like an army that takes no prisoners. Obviously we were young and hungry and had a lot of adrenaline. We were just trying to do our thing, play fast, heavy music with a lot of melody. There was no one doing anything like that. Although we were strongly influenced by people like Wishbone Ash, with very melodic guitars.
Did punk also influence you in some way?
No, some people mistook us for something half-punk, but we actually didn’t like punks at all. The punks of that time didn’t play like the punks of now.
Why play so fast?
I think we were naturally fast artists because of that adrenaline rush that I was telling you. It’s not that we decided in a meeting around a table, “let’s play super fast.” Your adrenaline starts to rise and in the end you are on stage and playing even faster than in the recording studio. Sometimes it
It gets a little out of hand, but the energy at a show can be really amazing. It was never premeditated.
A few years after The Soundhouse Tapes, you wrote the single that brought them to the mainstream, “Run to the Hills.” Did you feel a special connection with the American West?
We have always been fascinated by movies and cowboy novels. Although he had never been to the United States, he used to read many books by an author [de novelas de cowboys], Louis L’Amour, and I was inspired by him. The first lines of the song are definitely inspired by those types of books. I realized later
that what I thought was the United States was actually Arizona: cacti and desert areas and stuff like that [risas].
That song has the classic galloping beat that Iron Maiden is known for. Is it inspired in any way by the horseback riding scenes in Westerns?
Yes, I think so, even if it’s unconscious. When you create an image, you are creating a feeling or mood. It’s the same with “The Trooper,” where they’re galloping into the jaws of death. I think people like it when you take them on a journey to some kind of imaginary scene.
What was the inspiration for “The Trooper”?
The Charge of the Light Brigade [durante la guerra de Crimea en 1854], when they receive the order to go fight whatever. In those days, you weren’t allowed to question an order. You would get on your horse and go straight into battle, no matter how ridiculous, against cannons that were firing at you in front of you. Several of our songs are about moments like this, in which an order is given without any meaning, in the middle of a battle.
Why have you been so fascinated by war over the years? You’ve written so many songs about it…
I grew up a history lover. It was one of my favorite subjects in school, so a lot of songs derive from that. And it’s just a fascination with the horrible things that some people are capable of doing to others and the position that ordinary people who normally wouldn’t have to fight are left in. I respect anyone who has to go and do whatever it takes to protect their country.
They also continue to play “The Number of the Beast,” which got them into trouble in the United States in the 1980s for its satanic imagery. How was that topic?
It was like watching The Prophecy but it was more inspired by a poem [de Robert Burns] called “Tam o’ Shanter.” I always liked reading books and watching horror movies.
Another dark song is “Fear of the Dark.” Did it come from a personal experience?
No. I wrote it because I lived for many years in a very ancient British medieval house. Not medieval “style” but really built in 1400 something. My kids always said it was a little scary. And I said, “Look, the scariest thing in this house is me.” We used to make jokes like that. But it is a house with a wooden structure that creaks a lot. If it is too hot or cold, the wood warps and every corner of the house starts to creak. The people who came sometimes felt a little strange. It didn’t bother me, I lived there, but the imagination has no limits. Some people thought there were ghosts there. Maybe there were.
You made a lot of songs about religion and Christianity, including “For the Greater Good of God.” What do you think of religion these days?
I respect religion and the vision of the subject that each person may have, I believe that we should all be able to do what we want with our lives. I don’t like anyone trying to impose their ideas on others. With that song, I wanted to say that there are people who don’t do things for the highest good of God.
That song is from the 2006 album, A Matter of Life and Death, which they played in its entirety when it came out. What did you learn from that experience?
I think our audience is able to listen to the entire album and they never got bored. Well, maybe one or two people got bored. But it was quite bold, without
doubts. We believed in that album. When we were about to go on stage, we thought: “What are we going to leave out? Let’s not leave anything out! Let’s do everything, let’s go hard.” It was a challenge for the public, yes, but it went fantastically well for us. I loved it. I like challenges.
What comes first, the music or the lyrics?
Nine times out of ten, the music. The most difficult part is trying to fit the words to the melody, because melodies always have a very precise rhythm. They cannot be stretched like in jazz and sometimes words or syllables have to be changed to fit the melody. My argument has always been that many people who listen to Iron Maiden don’t even speak English as their first language. But even if it weren’t like that, you first hear the melody of a song, that catches your attention before you know the lyrics. Still, you always have to try to make sure that the lyrics mean something, that they’re not rubbish.
I was surprised to see that they were playing “Flight of Icarus” by Dickinson and guitarist Adrian Smith. In his book, Dickinson talks about an argument the two of you would have had about the tempo of the song and suspects that’s why they hadn’t played it live in 30 years. It was like this?
Many songs are left out of the repertoire for long periods and then return. As for “Flight of Icarus”, I thought the tempo was a little slow, yes. The way it’s played live now is so much better, it’s how it should have been done in the first place. I even enjoy playing it now. It’s a different song and I think it’s good to do different things. It was the same with “Wasted Years.” Adrian wasn’t even planning to show it to me. He buried her at the end of a tape. After we heard it, he told me: “Oh, it just didn’t seem right to me.” “Adrian, any song is suitable if it’s good,” I told him. [Risas]
Are there Maiden albums that you don’t like? They didn’t touch much of No Prayer… dwarves.
It wouldn’t be good for people to think that if we don’t play songs from an album. I think there are really strong songs on that album. There are also great songs on one or two of the albums that are always mentioned as supposedly not as good as the rest. Honestly, I would love to play most of the songs on No Prayer. It is a very strong album.
Lastly, on the topic of legacy, Iron Maiden have been candidates for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame since 2004, but they were never elected. What do you think?
That I don’t care. It’s nice to get awards, but we don’t get into the business for that kind of thing. It’s not that I can’t sleep if we don’t get a prize. And I’m not saying that one in particular, any award. I don’t think we necessarily deserve to have this or that. With what we do, whatever happens, great. And what’s not, great too.
