Steven Wilson Quotes

It seems like everything I do musically I tend to lose a few fans and gain a few fans, and it all kind of evens out.

When you make a lot of money for a record company, they don't want you to evolve. Growing older, you naturally do.

I just try to make the best music that I can. People are going to label it whatever they're going to label it.

The thing about being an artist today is you get to develop right in front of people's eyes before you even put out an album.

I just make music. If you don't like it, you don't need to buy or listen to it.

When you're recording a ninth studio album, you can't fail. You don't really have any fears. You just make the best record that you like. You hope your fans are gonna like it, but if they don't, they have eight other ones to listen to.

It's something I've recognized in the careers of those people who have been inspiring to me over the years - Neil Young, Kate Bush, David Bowie, Frank Zappa, and Prince. These are all people who constantly redefined themselves, and had to deal with the difficulty of trying to take their audience with them when they did that.

I care deeply about anyone who listens to my music. That's a sacred connection between the artist and the person who appreciates what you do - it's beyond words how meaningful that is. But I'm not going to stifle myself from trying new things because I feel like people that are already into my stuff might not like it.

I've tended to look at my albums as research and development. I was just trying to get someplace new on each one.

It doesn't matter how many records you've made; there's always a new experience you can get with a new producer.

With Damageplan, we had to endure the Pantera fans, because Pantera is what they really wanted. But with Hellyeah, at a show in Baltimore, the crowd knew all the words.

Now that I have a little platform, and there are more eyes on me to release something, all that does is challenge me and put me under pressure, and I love being under pressure, especially musically. I might fail, but I'm excited about the possibilities.

I have friends that are reps and run labels, but I don't like to get into that world. I just like to pick what I like with my ears and play it for no other reason, not because of the label or the rep.

It's my music. It's my craft. If you don't like it, then turn it off. Don't listen to it. But a lot of people listen to it... The numbers, they add up.

After years of doing composition, the risk is always that you might start to repeat and be cliche. Every time, I try find a way to be reborn again as an artist. Its not easy to reinvent yourself every time, as it takes a lot of creative energy, but I am happy to do it.

I read about two reviews early on when my first record came out, and it just freaked me out, good and bad, so I've never really kept up with that side of it.

Especially when I finish one of my songs I play it to my friends who are just normal people and not people in the music business.

Any change in my style depends on many things, but it's whatever fits the project. It's important to me to make style changes from time to time; it makes me feel alive as an artist. For instance, with 'Moonshine,' I'm doing all my own coloring. That's a new development!

People say, 'When are you making this comeback?' I say, 'It's not a comeback, it's a record.' They say, 'Where have you been all these years?' I say, 'I've been making records.'

Our crowds seem to keep growing whether we put out a record or not, so I feel very lucky to have that support.

I can't make hard street music for the rest of my life. Your references change.

And when it comes to the music, the fans are the most important thing because they get you and put you where you are. And so often - too often - that whole idea gets cast aside.

I can try new genres because I know there are fans who will always be there to support what I would like to pursue.

Fans be reflecting the way I be making music.

We cut songs that touch us because if they don't touch us first, there's no way in the world we're going to be able to sell those songs to somebody else.