STEVE HARRIS – British Lion

Anyone who is a fan of Metal recognizes the name of Steve Harris as the bassist, founder, and main songwriter for the legendary Iron Maiden. It is not all together uncommon for the members of Iron Maiden to venture into solo projects as well. Harris has been counseling a band called British Lion since the early ‘90s. This band worked off and on with various personnel throughout the years, but nothing came to fruition due to Harris’ commitments to Iron Maiden over the past several years. However, in July 2012 Harris announced the release for the forthcoming album British Lion with a group of unknown musicians completely independent from Iron Maiden.

Harris has described the album as being “very British sounding, very ‘70s influenced and quite commercial.” Harris may not be that far off with his analysis. The ten tracks presented in this project do not sound anything like an Iron Maiden album, and many of the tracks contain a commercialized Hard Rock or even Pop Rock feel to them. It would seem the compositions are not quite “‘70s influenced”, but perhaps lean toward the ‘90s; either way there is not a modern sound presented at all.

One of the noticeable qualities of British Lion as a whole is the odd production value. For obvious reasons, the album is extremely bass heavy. Harris’ bass is extraordinarily pronounced on each and every track. Because of this, however, the overall sound is somewhat muddy and lacks clarity. When played at an excessive volume there is a significant amount of reverb that simply drowns out the vocals. Harris is credited as the main producer of the album.

Vocalist Richard Taylor is certainly a pleasant surprise. His emphatic, high pitched vocals resemble that of a young Phil Mogg from U.F.O., and maybe with a slight inflection of Bruce Dickinson as well. Taylor sings very articulately and theatrically. Like Dickinson, he puts forth an emotional emphasis into each and every word. So much, there are certain points during the album where it starts to sound like a Dickinson solo project. Regardless, Taylor’s vocal talent is quite good and does an impressive job of giving life to each composition. Essentially, if U2’s Bono were to make a Heavy Metal album, it would sound a lot like Taylor’s performance on British Lion.

There is a heavy dose of melodrama inscribed into many of the compositions on British Lion. The most dramatic track would have to be “The Lesson” — a melancholy, acoustic song filled with a large amount of angst and torment. Another anguish-heavy song is “Judas”, which contains a chorus line full of verve and spirit. The middle part of “Judas” breaks into a saddened acoustic segue that could literally bring you to tears, given the appropriate circumstance.

Overall, British Lion may not go down as a masterpiece; however, it is an enjoyable listen and provides an excellent framework for expansion into a follow up album. Cleaner production would certainly be an improvement, but there is enough depth and intensity to supply the listener with an agreeable sense of completeness.