Iron Maiden bassist Steve Harris recently shared his thoughts on songwriting and offered advice to young musicians during an appearance on the Scars and Guitars podcast.
When asked about any events that influenced his songwriting, Harris reflected on his creative process, explaining that he rarely analyses his songs or the reasons behind them. “I just write as I feel at the time,” Harris stated. “Any album that we do, Maiden or whatever, it’s just a statement of where you are at that point in time.”
Harris spoke about the importance of intuition in songwriting, advising musicians to trust their instincts rather than overthink the process. “When you’re doing new stuff, you just do stuff that you think feels right,” he said. “You don’t want to be trying too hard to not repeat yourself. You just write with feel and write whatever you think is best at the time.”
Addressing young bassists who are trying to find their own sound, Harris advised against emulating a single musician. “Listen to as many people as possible, and don’t try and stylise yourself on one person,” he urged. “Eventually, hopefully, you’ll come up with your own style and sounds, otherwise, you’re just gonna get people saying, ‘Oh, you just sound like someone else.'”
Harris’s comments come as Iron Maiden continues their The Future Past tour, which recently kicked off its Australian leg in Perth. The tour features performances of tracks from their latest studio album Senjutsu, as well as songs from their 1986 album Somewhere In Time and other fan favourites.
