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Taming The Beast With STEVE HARRIS From BRITISH LION · HEAVY Music Interviews

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Hello mate.
• 0:01
  Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, hey Steve, how are you mate? I'm good mate, yeah, good, good, Yeah,
• 0:07
  Speaker 2: I'm fantastic mate. It's Simon from Heavy mag here in Brisbane, Queensland. Okay,
• 0:13
  Speaker 2: it's so so fantastic to talk to you, mate. How's
• 0:16
  Speaker 2: your day been?
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: Yeah good, yeah, all good.
• 0:20
  Speaker 2: Well it's just starting. Is it morning over there? Morning?
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: No?
• 0:25
  Speaker 2: I mean per Oh you're in Perth, you're already here.
• 0:27
  Speaker 2: That's right, fantastic because the two is kicking off in
• 0:30
  Speaker 2: like what is it eight days?
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: Yeah, well yeah, yeah, I suppose it is British and
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: I think.
• 0:40
  Speaker 2: Yeah, mate, that's fantastic. And mate, you're already here, you're
• 0:44
  Speaker 2: in You're in Perth. How how's it all going this
• 0:49
  Speaker 2: time around in Australia so far?
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: Yeah, just to climatize in trying to get over the
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: old jet lag and all that. I've play to know
• 0:58
  Speaker 1: when you come to Simon in the world is always
• 0:59
  Speaker 1: a bit but uh, you know, paying to try and
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: get over the time differences. So right, a bit early mate.
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: It's a long flight, isn't it so for the first
• 1:12
  Speaker 2: time in a long time. Obviously been open here with
• 1:15
  Speaker 2: Maiden more times than we could ever know. But this
• 1:20
  Speaker 2: time around, which it's with British Line for the first
• 1:23
  Speaker 2: time ever.
• 1:24
  Speaker 1: That's right, Yeah, so yeah, pleased to be here for
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: both bands, but obviously for British Lions for this. You know,
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: I was excited for the rest of the guys because
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: they've never before even as tourists, so it's really you know,
• 1:36
  Speaker 1: it's a big thing for them and obviously for the
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: first time with British Line and players is really good
• 1:43
  Speaker 1: and obviously made. You know, it's been well since you've
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: been here as well, so it's good all round.
• 1:50
  Speaker 2: And are you going to play tour guide with these
• 1:52
  Speaker 2: guys or.
• 1:56
  Speaker 1: Yeah?
• 1:56
  Speaker 2: To a guy, to a manager, mate, beautiful, beautiful. Have
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: you kept count of how many times you've been to Australia?
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: No, I don't really count how many times I've been
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: to a country, but yeah, I mean I've been coming
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: here since eighty two, so quite a few times.
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: I was born in eighty three. Bloody hell.
• 2:16
  Speaker 1: That scary. That's scary for me.
• 2:18
  Speaker 2: Anyway, you're still you're still doing it, which is bloody fantastic. Yeah,
• 2:26
  Speaker 2: so it's you know, it's it's well known that comparing
• 2:32
  Speaker 2: the two Iron Made is what it is, and the
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: beast that it is, you know, but British line it's
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: something a bit a bit different, and would you like
• 2:44
  Speaker 2: I'd love for you to give you the opportunity to
• 2:47
  Speaker 2: talk about that a little bit more on what British
• 2:49
  Speaker 2: line means to you.
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: Mate. Well, it's just I've known the guy's a long
• 2:56
  Speaker 1: time and I first was back in the nineties with stuff.
• 3:03
  Speaker 1: I was sort of managing them and doing all kinds
• 3:05
  Speaker 1: of stuff and so basically I just when it's sort
• 3:08
  Speaker 1: of imploded, I just thought, you know, when I've been
• 3:10
  Speaker 1: working on stuff with them, and I thought this, these
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: songs are just too good, you know, not to see
• 3:14
  Speaker 1: the light a day. So but the only way to
• 3:17
  Speaker 1: really do it is very well a scruff than being
• 3:20
  Speaker 1: the band myself and just get it out there. And
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: so it means a lot because you know, I've known
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: those guys a long time and we've been a big
• 3:30
  Speaker 1: up the same unit to give us for twelve years now.
• 3:32
  Speaker 1: So we've been we're we're, you know, a proper band now.
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: You know, when it started off, it was kind of
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: bits and pieces whatever. So there was a few different
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: people who played on those songs, but after playing Love,
• 3:47
  Speaker 1: we had the same line up for the last twelve years,
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: so it's really you know, a band has been for
• 3:52
  Speaker 1: a long time now and it's just I think it's
• 3:53
  Speaker 1: just getting better and better.
• 3:55
  Speaker 2: Fantastic mate. And you had the first self titled record
• 3:59
  Speaker 2: twenty twelve, and they had the Burning in twenty twenty
• 4:03
  Speaker 2: when just before times became very different for everyone, and
• 4:09
  Speaker 2: is their plans for the for the future as far
• 4:13
  Speaker 2: as recordings go.
• 4:16
  Speaker 1: Yeah, And we've got two new songs already in is
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: sit Anyway, we did a lot of new songs before
• 4:21
  Speaker 1: the Burning album. We played them live quite a lot,
• 4:25
  Speaker 1: probably two thirds of the album, and actually we played
• 4:26
  Speaker 1: gud before we actually recorded it. So we've got two
• 4:29
  Speaker 1: new songs now in the set and then we'll just
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: keep adding new songs as they come along. So that's
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: the idea.
• 4:39
  Speaker 2: Anyway, Fantastic mate, Fantastic now, twelve years, you know, that's
• 4:45
  Speaker 2: that's a feat for any band, and it's so fantastic
• 4:48
  Speaker 2: that just on the outside of looking in a fan
• 4:52
  Speaker 2: looking in that you managed to keep the core of
• 4:54
  Speaker 2: the band or all of the members. Twelve years is
• 4:57
  Speaker 2: a long time, So that's fantastic.
• 5:00
  Speaker 1: It is. But I suppose we don't get to tour
• 5:04
  Speaker 1: as much as a lot of that normal bandward. I
• 5:07
  Speaker 1: I feel sorry for the guys in a lot of
• 5:09
  Speaker 1: ways because they're just hanging around for me a lot
• 5:10
  Speaker 1: of the time. But you know, they have other jobs
• 5:13
  Speaker 1: and stuff that they do anyway, so it wouldn't be
• 5:17
  Speaker 1: possible to tour all the time anyway. Yeah, but yeah,
• 5:21
  Speaker 1: I mean we just go out and go for it
• 5:24
  Speaker 1: and whenever we get a chance to do a full
• 5:27
  Speaker 1: on tour is just great. And doing stuff like this
• 5:30
  Speaker 1: as well. I mean it's just special for them to
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: come in and play the country. They've never even been there,
• 5:35
  Speaker 1: let alone played, so it's exciting.
• 5:38
  Speaker 2: That's fantastic. And you know, is there any just off
• 5:44
  Speaker 2: the top of your head, is there any I'll just
• 5:46
  Speaker 2: talk Queensland specific. Is there is there anywhere where you're
• 5:50
  Speaker 2: going to take the boys, like, is there sort of
• 5:53
  Speaker 2: something on the itinery that you must do.
• 5:57
  Speaker 1: Well? I just don't know. There's going to be a
• 5:58
  Speaker 1: lot of time. I mean, they'll have more time in
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: the meetings obviously, I'm every show I'm doing with British Line,
• 6:05
  Speaker 1: the following down, plumbing mating, so they'll have time to
• 6:09
  Speaker 1: go and do it. So I seeing on those days.
• 6:11
  Speaker 1: I don't know if they'll come up. They probably won't
• 6:13
  Speaker 1: come up all the mat and shows. I don't They
• 6:14
  Speaker 1: might come with a couple, but they'll have more time
• 6:16
  Speaker 1: do stuff. So I don't know if what's sort of
• 6:18
  Speaker 1: time I'm going to but I suppose I'll probably give
• 6:20
  Speaker 1: them a few pointers or whatever. But I've also got
• 6:23
  Speaker 1: quite a lot of family in Australia, some im Brisbane,
• 6:26
  Speaker 1: funny enough, oh well in Melbourne as well. I've also
• 6:30
  Speaker 1: got family in Auckland and so we'll be trying to
• 6:36
  Speaker 1: put that in as well.
• 6:37
  Speaker 2: May what a schedule are out he now Tony Moore
• 6:44
  Speaker 2: is joining you guys along for the ride. Yep, mate,
• 6:50
  Speaker 2: A long long history with that man.
• 6:54
  Speaker 1: Yeah, we go back to ninety seventy seven, so that's
• 6:56
  Speaker 1: a long long time ago. And you know we've we
• 7:00
  Speaker 1: get on really well. And I love what he's doing.
• 7:03
  Speaker 1: I absolutely love what he's doing. That's well, take him
• 7:05
  Speaker 1: out you know, with us as as much as I
• 7:07
  Speaker 1: can get him out there. It's it's a very special
• 7:12
  Speaker 1: show that he's doing. I think people just need to
• 7:16
  Speaker 1: get there really and see it. It's disappointing because it's
• 7:21
  Speaker 1: I don't know, I can't even It's like he's doing
• 7:24
  Speaker 1: something very unique. I don't anyone else is doing anything
• 7:27
  Speaker 1: what he's doing at the moment, so it's quite a special.
• 7:31
  Speaker 2: I think, fantastic mate. And yeah, I implore well at
• 7:37
  Speaker 2: any show, I implore people to get there early because some
• 7:43
  Speaker 2: of the most amazing talented people from young to old
• 7:47
  Speaker 2: actually do open the show. And I'll be honest, I've
• 7:53
  Speaker 2: missed out on some amazing opening acts in the past
• 7:55
  Speaker 2: and you know you regret it. So people get along totally.
• 8:00
  Speaker 1: One thing, back in the day when a CDC first
• 8:03
  Speaker 1: came to England, I went to see a bank called
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: back Street Corner at the Marquee in London and d
• 8:12
  Speaker 1: was supporting and I didn't even know where they were
• 8:14
  Speaker 1: and I got there early and I saw them. And
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: then they did a couple of headlines a couple of
• 8:20
  Speaker 1: weeks later and I went to them. And so if
• 8:23
  Speaker 1: I hadn't got there earlier, I wouldn't have. I would
• 8:25
  Speaker 1: have missed it.
• 8:27
  Speaker 2: As as as you're sitting in Perth and you know
• 8:30
  Speaker 2: what a what a part of s C d C.
• 8:33
  Speaker 2: You know that that part of the world means to
• 8:36
  Speaker 2: Bond Scott. So unbelievable, mate.
• 8:41
  Speaker 1: Yeah, it's just going to show how old I am
• 8:44
  Speaker 1: as well.
• 8:45
  Speaker 2: Right, it's I could only imagine the tales that someone
• 8:52
  Speaker 2: like yourself has, and it's where where do we begin
• 8:58
  Speaker 2: with the the years of the years you've been playing
• 9:01
  Speaker 2: music and the memories. You must have.
• 9:06
  Speaker 1: Talked about it with the other people in interviews about
• 9:09
  Speaker 1: doing a book, but it would take a long time
• 9:13
  Speaker 1: all that, because I could probably do a whole book
• 9:15
  Speaker 1: on what just the early times. At some point I'd
• 9:19
  Speaker 1: like to do one.
• 9:20
  Speaker 2: Mate, You maybe do volume one and try and get
• 9:24
  Speaker 2: to volume two, three, four, five.
• 9:28
  Speaker 1: Yeah, well, just getting one out of you know, tough
• 9:31
  Speaker 1: because I know it's like just even what I've written
• 9:34
  Speaker 1: a few forwards for different people, and even the time
• 9:37
  Speaker 1: it takes to do that, it's going to take me
• 9:39
  Speaker 1: forever the book, so.
• 9:42
  Speaker 2: Yeah, and trying to give give the memories and the
• 9:46
  Speaker 2: stories justice because one one thing is thinking it, but
• 9:50
  Speaker 2: putting it to paper. It is an art form in itself.
• 9:52
  Speaker 2: I believe.
• 9:54
  Speaker 1: I would have thought so yeah, no, but yeah, I
• 9:58
  Speaker 1: mean it's I've got a really good memory for all
• 10:00
  Speaker 1: that stuff. But those days were a lot of fond memories.
• 10:03
  Speaker 1: But yeah, we take a lot of time.
• 10:05
  Speaker 2: Oh mate, well, I hope, I hope that that one
• 10:09
  Speaker 2: day you were able to do that. That would be
• 10:11
  Speaker 2: fantastic for so many music lovers. Now, one question I
• 10:16
  Speaker 2: always like to throw out people is, and I'm going
• 10:19
  Speaker 2: to keep this specific to British Line, because, as you said,
• 10:23
  Speaker 2: you could write for or five books on the other band.
• 10:27
  Speaker 2: One of your one of your favorite memories of British Line,
• 10:31
  Speaker 2: that's one of the first memories that pops in your
• 10:34
  Speaker 2: mind for British Line, mate, live.
• 10:37
  Speaker 3: Well, I think when we did the very first gig,
• 10:40
  Speaker 3: we played like a boat club in Pharroh in Portugal,
• 10:45
  Speaker 3: you know, I mean basically going back further that.
• 10:48
  Speaker 1: In the nineties they did it funnyough they did a
• 10:50
  Speaker 1: short tour of Portugal and I got up and did
• 10:54
  Speaker 1: a song with him in a place called Sealia, which
• 10:56
  Speaker 1: is sort of in the middle of nowhere. Really there
• 10:59
  Speaker 1: wasn't was the people there back then either. But so
• 11:02
  Speaker 1: when we played for the first time, the lineup we
• 11:05
  Speaker 1: still haven't there after twelve years, it was it was
• 11:10
  Speaker 1: amazing and you know, we had sold out like six
• 11:13
  Speaker 1: hundred people or where it was, and yeah, it was.
• 11:16
  Speaker 1: It was fantastic. So it was very very special. The
• 11:21
  Speaker 1: fact that it was the first night with that, you know,
• 11:23
  Speaker 1: the playing some stuff that have been some of the
• 11:26
  Speaker 1: stuff had been written a long time before that. The
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: band had imploded back in the nineties, I mean back
• 11:32
  Speaker 1: when I was and all that stuff. You know, there
• 11:34
  Speaker 1: was loads has kind of been documented that I did
• 11:37
  Speaker 1: back then with a lot of things, but you know,
• 11:40
  Speaker 1: it's just wanted to you know, I thought, I'm going
• 11:43
  Speaker 1: to take the band of the stuff that they get
• 11:44
  Speaker 1: it out there, and it was just that first show.
• 11:47
  Speaker 1: It was just proof that it was like it was
• 11:49
  Speaker 1: the right thing to do.
• 11:51
  Speaker 2: Fantastic mate, yeah, full circle, fantastic, fantastic, fruition, all those
• 11:56
  Speaker 2: great words, fantastic mate out. Obviously the stadium shows that
• 12:05
  Speaker 2: you used to the worldwide tours, where you know you've
• 12:12
  Speaker 2: got people in the palm in hand, and then you
• 12:16
  Speaker 2: have British Line playing playing venues that you would call
• 12:20
  Speaker 2: more intimate and obviously Maiden's goal has always been to
• 12:27
  Speaker 2: be engaging and that you have done. But do you
• 12:31
  Speaker 2: find I want to throw this question at you simply
• 12:34
  Speaker 2: because of the situation with both bands, British Line are
• 12:38
  Speaker 2: playing some more intimate venues. Does that does that give
• 12:42
  Speaker 2: you any memories of the early days of Maiden and
• 12:45
  Speaker 2: coming back to those without.
• 12:48
  Speaker 1: Doubt, it definitely gives members of early remember the challenge
• 12:53
  Speaker 1: that it was as well. And it's the same sort
• 12:55
  Speaker 1: of challenge to go out there and prove to people
• 12:57
  Speaker 1: what you can do. And I know there's some people
• 13:00
  Speaker 1: that would come and know the songs you know from
• 13:03
  Speaker 1: the albums and stuff, but there's also a lot of
• 13:05
  Speaker 1: people that sort of just come and check it out
• 13:08
  Speaker 1: and see what they think of it, maybe sitting on
• 13:11
  Speaker 1: the fence with it perhaps, And that's what it was
• 13:13
  Speaker 1: like we made in the early days as well. You
• 13:15
  Speaker 1: go every night, you need to go out there and
• 13:16
  Speaker 1: just fight for that and prove what the band can do.
• 13:20
  Speaker 1: And I like that challenge. I mean, it's a whole
• 13:24
  Speaker 1: different thing we've made now. We still go out and
• 13:27
  Speaker 1: give undred ten percent every night. I think everyone knows that.
• 13:30
  Speaker 1: But I think when you're playing small clubs and you're
• 13:33
  Speaker 1: wondering whether people are even going to turn up, especially
• 13:35
  Speaker 1: when you've got a new country like this or for example,
• 13:38
  Speaker 1: it was the first time in for British Line, so
• 13:41
  Speaker 1: you don't even know if you're going to have that
• 13:43
  Speaker 1: many people there or not. So it's just it's that
• 13:46
  Speaker 1: kind of easiness that is a challenge. I like that.
• 13:49
  Speaker 2: Yeah, that's fantastic. And like, as I've seen a few times,
• 13:57
  Speaker 2: you've done this a fair while. You've been here a lot,
• 14:01
  Speaker 2: some of these venues that you're playing with British Line.
• 14:03
  Speaker 2: Have you ever actually played at some of these venues.
• 14:07
  Speaker 1: No, that's the thing. That's another thing because although it's
• 14:09
  Speaker 1: the first time in the country for the lads, it
• 14:11
  Speaker 1: was the first time for Meat play these venues. I've
• 14:13
  Speaker 1: never played those venues before, so we didn't, you know,
• 14:17
  Speaker 1: right past those venues. Even when we first come to
• 14:20
  Speaker 1: Australia in eighty two, it was we weren't we were
• 14:23
  Speaker 1: playing places that were bigger than that. And because we'd
• 14:26
  Speaker 1: already had like three albums out by an end exactly,
• 14:29
  Speaker 1: and so it was it was doing well around the
• 14:33
  Speaker 1: world anyway, so it was it was a different ball game. Really.
• 14:37
  Speaker 1: It's the same thing. In Europe. I played a lot
• 14:39
  Speaker 1: of venues now with British Lion, famous type venues like
• 14:42
  Speaker 1: I don't know, for example, just one thing to while,
• 14:44
  Speaker 1: like the Milky Way in Amsterdam, Yes, and I never
• 14:48
  Speaker 1: got to play that with British Lion. We've made it,
• 14:50
  Speaker 1: and I did with British Line because we've made and
• 14:54
  Speaker 1: we toured with Kiss as a support and we did
• 14:56
  Speaker 1: so well and that we just bright past those those
• 14:59
  Speaker 1: size venues exactly. So when I went back there with
• 15:01
  Speaker 1: British Line, it was just nice to play. Not a
• 15:05
  Speaker 1: famous club like that, mate, I've never had a chance
• 15:08
  Speaker 1: to play before.
• 15:10
  Speaker 2: What a spin out? What a spin out? Wow? Well
• 15:13
  Speaker 2: I'll speak for one venue, the Triffid in Brisbane. It's
• 15:18
  Speaker 2: actually an old boat hanger, so it's actually like a
• 15:21
  Speaker 2: like a round round like Florida. The ceiling to the ground,
• 15:26
  Speaker 2: it's like round, it's like looks like a like a
• 15:29
  Speaker 2: it's like an old hangar. It's a ship hanger, which
• 15:32
  Speaker 2: is which is a crazy venue, so looking forward to interesting. Yeah,
• 15:38
  Speaker 2: it's got a lot of history, that venue, and and
• 15:42
  Speaker 2: it was once I don't know if it is now.
• 15:44
  Speaker 2: But I don't know if you've ever heard of the
• 15:45
  Speaker 2: Australian band powder Finger, but it was once owned by
• 15:49
  Speaker 2: or maybe still owned by one of the members of
• 15:51
  Speaker 2: that band.
• 15:52
  Speaker 1: So yeah, I don't know, I'm not aware of.
• 15:54
  Speaker 2: The Yeah, anyway, Australian Australian listeners will know who they are,
• 16:00
  Speaker 2: so yeah.
• 16:00
  Speaker 1: I'll check him out, No, check him out.
• 16:02
  Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, they're seeing Bernard Fanning. He's going an incredible voice,
• 16:06
  Speaker 2: a very emotive sort of rock band. In the early
• 16:09
  Speaker 2: days they had some some oh for their whole career,
• 16:13
  Speaker 2: but the early stuff was just so alive it was unbelievable.
• 16:17
  Speaker 2: So yeah, there you go a bit of history there.
• 16:21
  Speaker 2: Well mate, I know you're a busy man. Enjoy your
• 16:25
  Speaker 2: time in Australia. I look forward to seeing your live
• 16:28
  Speaker 2: and I've had the honor of seeing your live once
• 16:31
  Speaker 2: before in two thousand and eight back in Melbourne, and yeah, mate,
• 16:37
  Speaker 2: enjoy your time.
• 16:39
  Speaker 1: I will do.
• 16:40
  Speaker 2: Cheers mate, all right mate, thank you so much for
• 16:42
  Speaker 2: your time, Steve, cheers yeah, mate, thanks mate, both Simon