In this interview, we chat with Iron Maiden’s Adrian Smith about the second collaborative record with Richie Kotzen, his past projects outside of Maiden, going down guitar wormholes on YouTube and what’s really driving a desire to improvise more onstage.Smith is the latest Maiden member to release an album outside the band, back with the sophomore effort from Smith/Kotzen titled Black Light/White Noise.What is always refreshing about these musical pursuits is that when friends make music for music’s sake, it’s the purest form of expression. It’s also an exciting opportunity to gain a new level of understanding when it comes to the musicians we admire most. We know what they do best in the confines of their successful band(s) and songwriting partners, but hearing a deviation from this norm opens up new possibilities.On Black Light/White Noise, that means, as Smith also highlights, fans can hear a more heaving thump to the pair’s music. There’s plenty of familiar influences as well, as part of the focal point is revisiting those mutually inspiring bands. Something old with something new!Smith/Kotzen, “Black Light” Music VideoBelow, you can read our full interview with Smith.Look for Smith/Kotzen’s Black Light/White Noise to be release on April 4 via BMG. Get your copy of the album here and follow Adrian Smith on Instagram and Facebook.The first album is always a band trying to find your own sound, even though you’ve been making music for a really long time. Was there anything that surprised you about the development of what happened on this record?The longer you work with someone, the more you refine and hone your work. This album is a little more focused and consistent. A little heavier, maybe.The very first time we started working together [we wrote] a song called “Running,” which was on the first album, and that kind of set the blueprint. I think a dirty bluesy riff is kind of timeless. It draws people in and then you can tell the story and take it to another level.I grew up listening to ’70s blues rock— Bad Company, Free, Deep Purple, that sort of stuff. Richie’s got a lot of that in him as well, certainly in his voice. He’s one of the best rock singers out there and he’s very underrated.smith kotzen album coverBMGloading…One song that really sticks out to me is “Darkside.” It has a western feel that, probably due to recency, reminds me of Iron Maiden’s “The Writing on the Wall.” What about that country western kind of sound really catches your ear? That’s definitely more of an American thing.Blues is an American thing — or rock ‘n’ roll if you look back at the history. The Brits adopted it and then took it back to America.”Darkside” is a tip of the hat to bands such as Free and stuff that Paul Rodgers does — that sort of ballad with blues and a little bit of folk. It’s interesting the way these things sort of intertwine over generations.Lyrically it’s kind of a sad song. It’s about someone down on their luck and needing a helping hand, which we all do sometimes.richie kotzen and adrian smithPiper Fergusonloading…In Maiden, your frequent collaborators are Bruce Dickinson and Steve Harris. What does the process look like with Richie compared to working with those two?Richie has a studio. We just sit in a room and with a guitar and sometimes a demo. “Muddy Water” was a song Richie had and he played that to me. I was knocked out by it and I helped him finish the lyrics. That was the first thing we did. But we sit down and I’ll bring a riff or he’ll bring a riff. We record it, add a bridge, come up with a chorus and I’ll come up with a solo section. We have all this mapped out and Richie will put a drum beat down and I’ll put a bass on. No producer, no engineers — nothing. We just do it by ourselves.With Bruce, I’ve usually got an idea or I might have a title. “The Writing on the Wall,” I had the title and a few melodies. Bruce will carry a thick book of lyrics — he just writes lyrics all the time — so he’ll go, “Hang on, I’ve got something for that.” It’s very quick.With Steve. I usually have a piece of music already recorded and I’ll play stuff to him. I’ll leave it with him and he’ll write some lyrics or maybe we’ll work on lyrics together.Spencer Kaufman, LoudwireSpencer Kaufman, Loudwireloading…READ MORE: The Hit Iron Maiden Song Adrian Smith Didn’t Think Steve Harris Would LikeWith any great guitarist, everyone can tell within the first few notes exactly who that is. What do you think are the most identifiable aspects of your guitar playing and your style?You never stop being influenced by people and sounds that you hear. I try to. When I hear a piece of music and someone wants me to play a solo on it, I hear the solo in my head and I try and play it.That’s all I do, really. I’m not a shredder by any means. I’m not really technical, but I think I’ve got a fair musical sense. I try to make my solos musical because I think melody is kind of timeless, isn’t it?Melodies are earworms. I try to incorporate that into my playing as well as a bit of sort of flash and dash, if I can.Iron Maiden, Adrian SmithKevin RC Wilson, Loudwireloading…You solo in “Seventh Son of a Seventh Son” is a great example of that very angular, emotive, expressive playing.When I first joined Maiden, I’d never really done much recording before, but I tended to work out my solos in advance. I don’t do that so much these days, although I still have a few preconceived ideas going into it.If I could play like Yngwie Malmsteen, I probably wouldn’t shut up. It’s like athletes — some guys can run all day up and down a pitch and some guys just say in one position. Everyone has their specialty.I’ve noticed that a lot of guitarists, over time, tend to prefer improvisation. When did that start becoming more interesting to you?For a lot of years, the sound wasn’t always great when we’d play arenas or bigger places. You really had to knuckle down and stick with what you know because it was physically very difficult.That changed with the advent of the new monitor and in-ear systems. It’s much easier to play. And up until probably 10 years ago, they were using different lights in the rig. The old lighting rigs were like playing under a tropical sun and you would lose weight from sweating so much during the show. It was physically very difficult.Now it’s much easier, so that lends itself to a little bit of improvisation. Having said that, when you play in my sort of style, the solos are melodic and people kind of expect to hear that. Steve will quite often say to me, “You know, do you have to improvise so much? I like the solo you play.”People want to hear what you played on the record because it’s part of the song, so I have to take that into account as well.Johnny Perilla, LoudwireJohnny Perilla, Loudwireloading…There’s a song called “Life Unchained” on the new album. However, I want to talk a little bit about the life mundane and your relationship with music just at home in your daily life. On the weekends, I’ll put on some acoustic or piano music and make some coffee… What’s playing throughout the day?I listen to music when I’m going somewhere in the car or I’ll go down a YouTube wormhole of guitar players. I like to watch them play. I don’t like to have music — I find it scrambles my brain a little bit.Because I do it for work, I need to let my brain rest from music so I can recharge it. But I do usually play the guitar for at least an hour a day. That’s my kind of musical fix rather than listening to stuff.There’s a lot of technical stuff and I have guilty pleasures. There’s a guy named Jerry Reed who is an absolutely amazing country player from the 70s. He did a duet with Glen Campbell and it’s just outrageous country picking.I’ll try and work out a few licks or watch other instructional stuff, but it’s always the same. “If you want to play, improve without any effort you can do this,” but, of course, there’s no way can improve without making the effort. If you want to learn something new, you’ve got to dedicate yourself to it.Jerry Reed & Glen Campbell, “Guitar Man”Listening to this new record spurred me to revisit some of your other bands from throughout the years, including Primal Rock Rebellion with Mikee Goodman from SikTh, who are an eccentric band.I was talking to Bruce last year about System of a Down, another eccentric band. What other heavy music from beyond Maiden’s ’80s breakout do you love?Metallica, obviously. Specifically, ‘The Black Album.’I think has such a wide appeal because it was a little bit more groove oriented. I love the chunky rhythm guitar — I really do enjoy that.With SixTh, I saw them and I was impressed with how good they were technically. Mikee had his very unique vibe and I think originally I approached him about writing with them to try and do more of a crossover thing. That’s my forté — shorter songs, melodic, but incorporating their thing with it as well.I actually listened to Primal Rock Rebellion recently and I was like, “Wow, this is actually really good. I forgot how good it was. It was very different to anything I’ve ever done before. I like being creative.”Primal Rock Rebellion, “No Friendly Neighbor”How often do you go back and listen to other albums you’ve released?My first solo album was Silver and Gold under the name ASAP [Adrian Smith and Project]. I was in the gym the other day and I just ran out of things to listen to, so I played that and it sounded really good.We do have the Iron Maiden 50th anniversary tour coming up — no spoilers! For me personally, it’s a surreal feeling that I’ve been a fan for half of the band’s career, going back to the early 2000s as a teenager. Brave New World was obviously a very important album and a big comeback. What else from the 21st century Maiden catalog are you particularly proud of?It’s quite a body of work since Brave New World. I really like that album.There’s a song called “Paschendale” and I was quite proud of that. That was quite an epic one and it was great fun to play live. It’s the sort of thing that I’d never attempted before — a longer, more proggy song. I think that’s the stuff that Maiden tends to do best.Iron Maiden, “Paschendale” (Live, 2003)How Many Songs Each Iron Maiden Member Has WrittenHere’s a breakdown of Iron Maiden’s song-writing credits.Gallery Credit: Joe DiVita
