Tag Archives: Heavy Metal

STRIKER – Release new single, announce tour dates.

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Photo Credit: Dana Zuk

Canadian shredders STRIKER will be hitting the road in April and May 2022 to support Finnish heavy metallers Beast In Black for their first North American headlining tour along with Florida power metal warriors Seven Kingdoms.

Before kicking off the first date of the tour in Orlando, FL on April 7th, STRIKER are unveiling their latest single “Strange Love” with a new music video that features the debut of the band’s latest lineup addition of long time friend and guitarist John Simon Fallon (The Order of Chaos).

“Strange Love” is the band’s first new music of 2022 since releasing their previous single 2021’s “Deathwish”. The band is currently in songwriting mode for their follow-up record to their Juno award-winning album 2018’s “Play To Win”.

“When we wrote Strange Love we were dabbling in the dark arts of funk, and although it really doesn’t sound like it we drew big inspiration from bands like Extreme and Faith No More. It was a bit of a detour on our metal journey, but it was a lot of fun to record. We have one more song to release from that recording session too, which leans even further into that style so keep an eye out for that!” adds vocalist Dan Cleary.

Spotify – https://spoti.fi/3s7uJjn

​Blending classic heavy metal, hard rock, and 80’s hair metal, Striker has been making shredtacular anthems since 2007. The band has toured multiple times across Europe and North America along with festival appearances at 70,000 Tons of Metal, Bang Your Head Festival (Germany), and more to add to their almost 1000 shows performed in their decade-plus career. The band has been honored with multiple Best Album awards in their home country of Canada from the JUNO Awards, Western Canadian Music Awards, and the Edmonton Music Awards. Since their inception, Striker has released six studio albums Eyes in the Night (2010, Iron Kodex), Armed to The Teeth (2012, Napalm), City of Gold (2014, Napalm), Stand in the Fire (2016, Record Breaking), Striker (2017, Record Breaking), and Play to Win (2018, Record Breaking).

Dark Connection Tour 2022 w/ Beast In Black, Seven Kingdoms, Striker​
April 7, 2022 – Orlando, FL – The Haven
April 8, 2022 – Tampa, FL – Orpheum
April 9, 2022 – Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade
April 11, 2022 – Dallas, TX – Amplified Live
April 12, 2022 – San Antonio, TX – Rock Box
April 14, 2022 – Mesa, AZ – Nile Theater
April 15, 2022 – Anaheim, CA – The Parish
April 16, 2022 – Santa Cruz, CA – The Atrium at Catalyst
April 18, 2022 – Portland, OR – Hawthorn Theatre
April 19, 2022 – Seattle, WA – Crocodile
April 20, 2022 – Vancouver, BC – The Rickshaw
April 22, 2022 – Calgary, AB – Dickens
April 23, 2022 – Edmonton, AB – The Starlite Room
April 25, 2022 – Salt Lake City, UT – Metro
April 26, 2022 – Colorado Springs, CO – The Black Sheep
April 27, 2022 – Lawrence, KS – Granada Theater
April 29, 2022 – Minneapolis, MN – The Fine Line *
April 30, 2022 – Joliet, IL – The Forge *
May 1, 2022 – Cleveland, OH – Beachland Ballroom *
May 2, 2022 – Detroit, MI – El Club *
​Striker Headline Tour Dates:​
May 6, 2022 – Brooklyn, NY – Sovereign #
May 9, 2022 – Quebec City, QC – L’Anti Bar #
May 10, 2022 – Montreal, QC – Piranha Bar #
May 11, 2022 – Ottawa, ON – Mavericks #
May 13, 2022 – Winnipeg, MB – Manitoba Metal Fest #
* = No Seven Kingdoms on show date
# = Only Striker

For more info:
​Striker-metal.com​
​Facebook.com/strikermetal​
​Twitter.com/StrikerMetal​
​Instagram.com/strikermetal

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCU67S5jpv-oENDrjRZEcmuA

3/’22

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DAYS OF WINE – Debut single from forthcoming album

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The brand new band DAYS OF WINE consists of close friends from the Oslo/Norway music scene. After years of playing in their respective bands, it was time to join forces to make a high class album. 
 
During Spring 2021, ten songs were recorded for the self-titled debut at Stable Studios, Oslo. The songs are based on the lyrics of Leif Johansen but musically grounded in the Classic Rock genre.  
 
Leading the charge is the melodic and “raspy” voice of singer Leif Digernes. To  emphasize the 60’s and 70’s influences, all backing tracks were recorded “live” in the studio.


Some friends also came by and contributed to some of the songs, i.e. brothers Gregg Bissonette (drums, David Lee Roth, Ringo Starr, Joe Satriani,, etc.) and Matt Bissonette, (bass, David Lee Roth, Ringo Starr, Joe Satriani, Elton John, etc) on “Angles In Disguise”, Jon Pettersen (Ammunition) played the acoustic intro to “Healerman”, Markus Klyve (Tekro’s Kingdom) the solo on “Never Stop Believing”, Lars Andrè Kvistum (Conception) keyboards on “Spread Your Wings”
And Ronni Le Tekro (TNT/Tekro’s Kingdom) add. guitars on “Paint The Sky”
 
Line-up: 
Leif Digernes:  Vocals (Westpoint, Bronx, Stuntbandet)
Leif Johansen, Bass, keyboards, Vocals (21 Guns, Phenomena, A-ha) 
Geir Digernes, Drums/Percussion, (Sons Of Angels, Stuntbandet)
Tom Sennerud, Guitar, Vocals (Stoneflower, Diezel)
Jon Johannessen, Guitar, (Stoneflower, Diezel, Ronni Le Tekro`s Kingdom

03/’22

H.E.A.T. – Announce new single, tour and album.

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earMUSIC is delighted to announce the release of H.E.A.T’s new studio album Force Majeure on August 5th, 2022.

For most people, the last two years have probably been marked by exactly what has given H.E.A.T’s album it’s name – a “force majeure”. But H.E.A.T definitely don’t let such force stop them, quite the opposite.   The band is back with original singer Kenny Leckremo on the lead, taking everyone on a speedy and energetic ride through H.E.A.T city!

Today, the band returns with a new single and its title “Nationwide” could hardly be a better answer to the current global situation. It not only kicks off the band’s Scandinavia tour, but also makes us look forward to the festival season 2022 that so many are longing for. “Nationwide” is the epitome of what the band have done so successfully in the past – unite young and old rock fans alike. 

But not only sonically, but also visually, the band takes it up a notch. For the music videos as well as the whole artwork, a vibrant fictional world – H.E.A.T City – has been built for this release only, creating an exciting surrounding for the band’s energetic album. 

Pre-order Force Majeure here: https://Heat.lnk.to/ForceMajeure . Available in CD Digipak, 2LP Gatefold, and Limited Edition Colored 2LP (yellow).

TRACKLISTING:
1. BACK TO THE RYTHM
2. NATIONWIDE
3. TAINTED BLOOD
4. HOLLYWOOD
5. HARDER TO BREATHE
6. NOT FOR SALE
7. ONE OF US
8. HOLD YOUR FIRE
9. PARAMOUNT
10. DEMON EYES
11. WINGS OF AN AEROPLANE

*From 9th April, the band will go on a big Scandinavian tour followed by an EU tour throughout May and will also have the first songs from the album in their luggage.

Since the band’s early days, starting from their song “1000 miles” – a huge hit in their Scandinavian home in 2009, media worldwide has been praising every one of the band’s albums as one of the best rock albums in the respective years.

H.E.A.T
Kenny Leckremo – Lead Vocals
Dave Dalone – Guitars
Jona Tee – Keyboards, Organ
Jimmy Jay – Bass
Don Crash – Drums

03/’22

DEADWOLFF – Release debut EP, Announce Canadian Tour

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Toronto’s DEADWOLFF announce they will be hitting the road across Eastern Canada this coming April 2022 to support their self-titled debut EP released digitally via Boonsdale Records and on cassette via Metal Assault Records. The tour will kick off on April 1st in Ottawa, ON and see the band perform dates in Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

“We’re hitting the pedal to the metal and are super stoked to head out on the east coast tour. We’ll be playing some new cities, revisiting some favourites, and can’t wait to bring our tunes to fans and friends new and old! So if you happen to see a date that’s close to you, come on out and let’s get loud!” adds the band.

A blend of hard rock, punk, and metal, Deadwolff set themselves apart from other bands with their take on the New Wave of Heavy Rock and Roll. Recommended for fans of Judas Priest, Motorhead, and early W.A.S.P,  Deadwolff‘s is a revival of foot-tapping, beer-drinking, headbanging tunes, and more.

​Deadwolff.bandcamp.com/album/deadwolff (Cassette)
YouTube – https://youtu.be/rco8vukqo_A​
​Spotify​

Track Listing:​
1. Walking On Nails (4:04)
2. Double Up (3:17)
3. Pedal To The Metal (4:05)
4. Wanted Man (3:11)
5. Six To Midnight (3:12)

For more info:
​Facebook.com/officialdeadwolff​
​Instagram.com/deadwolff.official​
​EPK​

About:​
The New Wave of Heavy Rock n’ Roll, Deadwolff is a three-piece band based out of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 2020, Deadwolff is composed of Thomas Wolffe, on bass and vocals. Bobby Deuce, on guitars and backing vocals. Rawa Brant on Drums. In late December of 2020, Boonsdale Records released the band’s debut EP digitally. Though recently, Deadwolff signed with Metal Assault Records, based out of Los Angeles, to release their debut EP on cassette on May 7th, 2021.

DEADWOLFF – East Coast Tour Dates​
April 1 – Ottawa, ON – Dominion Tavern
April 2 – Montreal, QC – Traxide
April 3 – Quebec City, QC – Quarter De Lune
April 4 – Fredericton, NB – The Cap
April 6 – Woodstock, NB – Monteith Manor
April 8 – Saint John, NB – The Panic Room
April 9 – Halifax, NS- Gus’ Pub
April 10 – Halifax, NS – Radstorm (All Ages)
April 13 – Belleville, ON – 116 Smokin’ Bistro
April 14 – Oshawa, ON – The Atria
April 15 – Toronto, ON – Bovine Sex Club
April 16 – Peterborough, ON – The Red Dog

03/’22

EWINIAR – Burning The Night Interview

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EWINIAR is a new band from Croatia, consisting of Marin and Katarina Tramontana (husband & wife). They have recently released their independent debut album Burning The Night, which has received plenty of great reviews and following. In this interview Marin and Katarina talk about their influences, as well as various aspects of their new album. *Check out my previous review, as well – check out the links below.

  • First, can you tell me a bit about the band name, what it means or where it came from?

Marin: Ewiniar is the name of the Micronesian god of thunder. Since we share a love for rain and heavy rhythms it seemed very interesting to us. Also, it does not suggest a style of music that we play, so we have extra freedom of expression that is very important to us.

Had you been making music together prior to this, and how did it evolve in to Ewiniar – the sound and direction your album has taken?

Marin: We were both in a few bands that played mostly covers, but we wanted to go in a different direction and start something on our own. That’s how the idea of Ewiniar was born. It all started with a few demos, but later we realized we wanted to make a complete project. We weren’t targeting a specific style; we were just looking for a sweet spot between our musical possibilities and our musical tastes and I think we achieved that on our debut album.

What influences have you both as singers, musicians, songwriters?  [favorites of each, as well as a few favorite albums each]

Katarina: I adore music and I understand it very broadly so I have been and still am influenced by artists from different genres. It’s definitely not easy to pick some favorites from everything I listen to, but let’s say these are artists I’ve been listening to for years: Paradise Lost, Dead Can Dance, Depeche Mode, AIR, The Sisters of Mercy, Nick Cave and Vangelis.

As for the albums, the choice is also not easy as I could choose many of them. The first that come to my mind are: Type O Negative – October Rust, Candlemass – Epicus Doomicus Metallicus, Tiamat – Wildhoney David Sylvian – Secrets of the Beehive, Mark Lanegan – Blues Funeral, Nightwish – Century Child.

Marin:  I can say that that I grew up with classic metal bands like Iron Maiden, Metallica, Black Sabbath, Slayer and I still like them very much, but later I discovered some of the bands that Kate already mentioned and that was my way to go. My albums would be in no particular order:  Type O Negative – October Rust, Paradise Lost – Icon, Amorphis – Tales From the Thousand Lakes, Alice In Chains – Dirt, anything from Dead Can Dance…

Can you tell me a bit about how songs were put together — what they started with and how they developed?

Marin: Usually, I have a bunch of short ideas, that can be musical part or some vocal line and everything starts from there. From there I add new things, while trying to keep the flow of the song. Sometimes it goes smoothly, sometimes I need to rearrange songs multiple times before the balance is reached. Once song is musically done, I am forwarding it to Katarina for the lyrics. Our roles are fairly divided. I make the basic construction of the songs and the vocal lines. Once the song is ready, Kate works on the lyrics, in the end we work together on the vocal arrangements and details.

What influences or inspires the lyrics or lyrical topics? Any stories behind any songs you can tell me about? 

Katarina: I write about everything I feel, see and hear. Sometimes inspiration comes from my own experience, and sometimes it’s from other people’s experiences. Sometimes it’s just a feeling I draw from a book I read or a film I watch. Honestly, I tend to over-analyze everything, so from that tendency comes the inspiration for the lyrics I write. As for the context, I don’t like to say what the song is about but I prefer the listeners to interpret as they want and find their own meaning in it. But, since you ask, I can tell you a secret that the film Scream for me Sarajevo was a great inspiration for me while I was writing the lyrics for the song Mother.

Do you plan on playing this album live? If so, presumably you’ll be adding players to the band for live shows.

Marin: Regarding live gigs, we were slowed down by corona virus situation, but once everything goes back to normal (at least to some extent), we will hopefully be able to be active in that way, as well. Of course, we want to perform live, but until the conditions for that are met, we will continue to release new material as duo.

Did you have a hand in choosing the album’s artwork? and can you tell me a bit about the cover? [what’s it about and about the artist who created it]

Katarina: Artwork was done by English artist James Hutton. In search for something that will be interesting and suit our style we found his sketches and drawings on social networks and immediately fell in love with them. His works are brilliant, mostly in occult folk style with pen and paper. There is no specific message behind the cover, it is more like a glimpse of the visual atmosphere that can be heard in our music, mix of the good and evil, hope and sadness, dream and reality sharing the same space, or in this case, burning fingers of the hand.

What is the hard-rock / metal scene like in Croatia?  And the music scene there in general? Any fellow Croatian bands you’d recommend to rock fans?

Marin: I would say that Croatian scene is not too big, but those who are there are very passionate about what they do. Before COVID-19 it was just fine, concerts were being held very often with good communications between the bands. There are always some enthusiastic promotors who are willing to push scene little bit further, but unfortunately, Covid made everything worse and there are lot of bands quitting these days. The bands I would recommend are: Act of Denial, Kryn and Manntra. These are great musicians; you may even know some of them.

Have you started thinking about or writing a follow up album?  When might that happen and how might it differ?

Marin: Our future plans are to be active as long as possible and to produce new songs and albums. As soon as we were done with the debut album we started to work on new songs, so I can say that it is already in progress, but for now we are still promoting current album and hopefully later in the year we will be able to talk about follow up album with more details.

Links:

https://ewiniar.bandcamp.com/album/burning-the-night

https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Ewiniar&i=digital-music&search-type=ss&ref=ntt_srch_drd_B09FYQ623W

https://www.deezer.com/en/artist/145169492

https://www.instagram.com/ewiniarofficial/

https://www.facebook.com/ewiniarofficial/

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCUsjnpNGqkRMkPj7DL7yMyw

ENTREVISTA CON KATARINA TRAMONTANA

VANDERLUST To release debut album

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For fans of Maiden, Helloween, and Angra, among others. Italian band Vanderlust will release their debut album next month. The album features fast and metallic rockers, as well as using some acoustics on the stand out cuts “The Last Ganymedian” and “Zima Blue”. Fave rockers being “High Hopes” and “Ten Years Black”, great sounding heavy guitar, and the latter should appeal to fellow Maiden fans.

*Check out the press release below

Cosmic metallers VANDERLUST (ft. members of S91, Dreal) will be rocketing their self-titled debut album on April 15th, 2022 via Rockshots Records

Birthed to travel the cosmos, Italy’s Vanderlust is a power-heavy metal band with prog-thrash influences that tells tales of space travels, astronomy, space engineering, and sci-fi adventures.

“We tried to mix a prog-thrashy riffing in the roots of Megadeth, Vektor and Tool with epic vocal parts like Iron Maiden, Helloween, Angra, and Lione’s Rhapsody. We also put sci-fi elements in our songs, so you can hear also something from Voivod.” adds the band.

This debut recording is like a stellar system with 12 different planets. The star at the center of the system represents the heavy-power metal around all the songs revolving. Despite all the tracks being irradiated by the same light, they are all different from each other. Vanderlust has fast thrash, slow and doom, shiny and brilliant to grunge, and darker songs. Like planets, which appear like simple small bright spots, but in reality, are all big worlds, Vanderlust‘s songs are more complex than they sound at first listen. In fact, you can easily sing along to some of the choruses even if there are complex riffs in the background. Vanderlust is particularly proud of the participation of opera singer Letizia Cappellini who does vocals on select tracks and helps the band further expand the vocal register of their compositions. The band also adds the presence of synths and electronic elements to the compositions to set the sci-fi mood of the lyrics.

“The main goal was to start a metal band that could be an inspiration for young people, a band that could tell them stories from the future when mankind will have overcome its limits and the solar system will be an entire human colony. This idea came to mind to founding members Francesco and Santo when they began their search for other members that could fit. Drummer Giacomo Mezzetti joined the space odyssey right before the covid-19 outbreak. Vocalist Riccardo Morello joined the band during the first lockdown in Italy, so the first song was entirely composed online, using videocalls and file sharing.” adds the band.For their live aspect, Vanderlust is currently working hard to create a thrilling spectacle, giving all their energy to the fans and letting them join them on the space journey.

Track Listing:
1. Intro (0:58)
2. High Hopes (3:34)
3. Orphan Planet (3:41)
4. Forgotten Breed (5:13)
5. The Last Ganymedian (3:45)
6. Scavengers Of Kuiper Belt (4:02)
7. Mass Effect Destruction (2:04)
8. Requiem For An Ancient World (4:59)
9. 3 Suns (4:44)
10. Dyson’s Swarm (4:00)
11. Ringworld (3:26)
12. Ten Years Back (3:38)
13. Zima Blue (4:39)
Album Length: 48:49

Rockshots.eu | Facebook.com/vanderlustofficial | Instagram.com/vanderlustband | Spotify

Album CD pre-order – https://bit.ly/Vanderlust_CD

Digital – https://bfan.link/vanderlus

Vanderlust is recommended for fans of Iron Maiden, Angra, Tool, Helloween, and Vektor.

LEADER OF DOWN – Former IRON MAIDEN guitarist guest’s on new single

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British rock heavyweights Leader of Down, who are the final band of the late great Würzel (Ex Motörhead) recently announced that following the bands critically acclaimed debut album “Cascade into Chaos” in 2018, they are ready to unleash a second album entitled “The Screwtape Letters” on April 8th 2022.  Mixed by long-time Motörhead producer and Grammy winner Cameron Webb and mastered at Abbey Road Studios, the album will be available worldwide through US label Cleopatra Records and will be released on all formats including a special limited edition red vinyl and CD with full color 20 page booklet, featuring 10 blockbusting tracks with titles such as “Cat’s Eye Night” and “Holloway Motel” that will take no prisoners with their own brand of heavy rock ‘n’ roll. 

Leader of Down launch the first single and video from the album Hitman on 3rd March.   Hitman features special guest and long-term friend, ex Iron Maiden guitarist and member of Lionheart Dennis Stratton. “It was a great pleasure to be asked to provide a solo for Hitman and having guested on stage with Leader of Down on a recent UK show it was great to be back with the boys and appear in the video as well”

Leader of Down’s career so far has seen them headline shows across Europe as well as supporting the likes of Phil Campbell and the Bastard Sons and Nitrogods receiving rave reviews for their live shows from around the world. Leader of Down will be supporting Tank on their spring UK tour before headlining the Heavy Metal Mayhem Festival in England, many more shows will follow throughout 2022 and the band have now been added to the Hard Rock Hell Festival in January 2023. The new album will see the band take a new journey as we sail out of the unfortunate circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic.  

Leader of Down are:  Matt Baker – Vocals  / Alex Ward – Guitar / Tim Atkinson – Bass  / Daniel Akaoui – Drums 

*Leader of Down’s 2018 would also feature a guest vocal appearance from the late Lemmy –

https://facebook.com/leaderofdownofficial. https://leaderofdown.com/home .  https://twitter.com/leaderofdown  . https://instagram.com/leaderofdown . https://open.spotify.com/artist/48llR4uRL1F33GWJrQkin3  . https://music.apple.com/us/artist/leader-of-down/1435415599 

03/’22

BIBLE BLACK: 80s Recordings featuring members of Rainbow, Manowar, Anthrax

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BIBLE BLACK was a New York based band that featured former ELF / RAINBOW members Craig Gruber and Gary Driscoll, who after playing alongside Ronnie James Dio in the ’70s, formed their own band in the early ’80s. The band survived a few years, fronted by such singers as Jeff Fenholt (Joshua, Driver), Eric Adams (Manowar), and Joey Belladonna (Anthrax) and recorded a number of tracks with them. Keyboard player Mickey Lee Soule (also ex of Elf) was also in the band at one point, though there’s not a lot of keyboards here. This was a great heavy 2 guitar band, as evidenced by the songs here. Standouts include “Gone”, “Down On The World”, “Ain’t No Crime”, and “Deceiver”. Highly recommended as a great set of early ’80s American metal, and not just for the big name connections here. More in tune with the NWOBHM stuff happening at the time, along with ’70s Judas Priest and Dio than what was happening in the US at the time (IMO).

Press Release:

Bible Black was an East Coast American band formed by former Elf/Rainbow musicians Gary Driscoll and Craig Gruber, along with Andrew “Duck” McDonald.
 
 The bands longest tenured singer was Jeff Fenholt, well known for his very brief stint with Tony Iommi/Black Sabbath and his work with the band Joshua.
 
 The band also featured in its ranks 2 well known vocalists:
 Lou Marullo who later became known as the one and only Eric Adams…and Joey Belladonna who of course went on to join Anthrax.
 
 All three vocalists recorded demos with Bible Black between the periods of 1981-1983. This cd for the first time compiles all recorded works of the band in one place.
 
 Sadly Gary Driscoll, Craig Gruber and Jeff Fenholt have all since passed away, making this release a fitting epitaph to their time together as Bible Black.
 
 Restored and remastered by Patrick Engel and licensed directly from the last surviving member Andrew “Duck” McDonald” we can now hear one of the great “lost bands” and a piece of Heavy Metal history.

Track list: 1. Gone, 2. Metal Man, 3. Back To Back, 4. Down On The World, 5. Ain’t No Crime, 6.Fighting The Wind 7. Back Door, 8. Paint It Black, 9. Fires Of Old, 10. You Got Me Where You Want Me, 11. Deceiver, 12. Midnight Dancer, 12. Gone (Jeff Fenholt vocals), 13. Metal Man (Jeff Fenholt vocals)

Links:

http://jeffcramer.blogspot.com/2009/11/very-candid-conversation-with-craig.html

https://www.rockeyez.com/interviews/int-joey_belladonna.html

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duck_MacDonald

KJ, 02/’22

SAXON – Metalhead (Revisited)

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Released in November of ’99 Metalhead was the first SAXON album I actually got – and really liked! I vaguely remember a track from the Rock The Nations album received some radio play over here at the time (“Northern Lady” or “Waiting For The Night”), and I picked up that album in a cut-out bin not too long after. It didn’t make a huge impression on me and through a few moves the album was lost or given up (I hated packing things up, so on a few occasions parted with some records). Anyway, Saxon was not on a major label here, nor did I hear much else from them, aside from that cover of Christopher Cross’s “Ride Like The Wind”. In late ’99 I received the Metalhead CD (and bio) and put it on. The title and cover was certainly appealing to me, as a metal fan, and one looking for a great ‘new’ (old) band to discover and pick up on. Metalhead featured the founding members – Biff Byford and Paul Quinn, along with guitarist Doug Scarratt, bassist Nibbs Carter, and German drummer Fritz Randow (ex of German prog bands ELOY and EPITAPH).

From the opening build-up leading in to the title track I was expecting something big, and by the time I got to the end of the 4th song – I had to go back and re-listen! “Metalhead”, “Travelers In Time”, and especially “Conquistador” (love the acoustic intro before the band kicks in and the song takes off). These had my hooked and I listened to the first 3 songs repeatedly before I even got to the rest of the disc. And after that there’s really no duds here, this is a full-on classic metal album, with further great tracks like “All Guns Blazing” (killer intro) , “Watching You”, and epic finale “Sea Of Life”. Love the production, the big guitar sound, Biff’s distinctive voice; it all worked so well. A great album, and the follow up (w/ the same line up) made for a fine pair. Killing Ground featured another outstanding title track, as well a cool cover of King Crimson’s “In The Court Of The Crimson King”.

KJ, 02/’22

SAXON – Carpe Diem out soon!

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 Saxon may not have caught on in North America the way fellow NWOBH leaders Iron Maiden did in the ’80s, but for the past few decades the band has consistently released solid albums, toured regularly, and also released live gems from their archives. Battering Ram [from 2015] got me back on track with the band, and then I saw Saxon in 2017 [w/ UFO] and it was a real eye opener. So, following the excellent Thunderbolt, a few side projects, such as Biff Byford’s solo album, the band’s covers’ album – Inspirations (released earlier this year), a slew of reissues and live releases, we get a brand new album Carpe Diem. By now most Saxon fans would be familiar with the title track issued a while back, a classic heavy riff & anthem based around the song “Carpe Diem (Seize The Day)” and a fine opener to an even better album, Saxon may be a heavy metal band who should’ve peaked decades ago, but here they are still coming up with an album full of songs amongst their best, offering not only their own thundering approach, but enough changes to keep things fresh from their previous records. On Carpe Diem, there is no shortage of tunes that will appeal to the Saxon faithful, from those big dark sounding riff rockers like “Super Nova”, “Black Is The Night”, “Dambusters”, and speedier “Living On The Limit (do I hear a twist on Sabbath’s “NIB” in there?). And Saxon never shy about timely topics and anthems deliver “Remember The Fallen” and “All For One”. Favorites here are the slightly slower “The Pilgrimage” which sits in that same class as “Lionheart”, (for me) and “Age Of Steam”, the best of the heavies here, killer intro and solo, with one of Biff’s historical content tales. Fantastic album from a band who’s still delivering their best. *Available on CD, vinyl (+colored0, cassette, and in Box set form!

*See the press release below for track-listing and more info…

.

Life hath no fury like a legend in full roar… and on February 4th, 2022, Saxon will show just that to the world when they release their 23rd studio album, Carpe Diem, through Silver Lining Music, serving notice to anyone who ever felt otherwise that they remain both vanguards and masters of British Metal. Comprised of 10 titanic tracks bristling with steel-clad riffery and proud intent, the Barnsely (UK) born band draw on a variety of ingredients from their career to forge what is their most dynamic release in many a year. 

“It all starts with the riff,” says front man and co-founder Biff Byford, “if the riff speaks to me, then we’re on our way. It’s a very intense album, and that’s all down to the fact that the essence of a great metal song is the riff that starts it, and this album has loads of them.”

Unleashing today the title track’s roll-back attack, this is Saxon at their purest and most definitive; aggressively parading the pure metal flag and imploring fans old and new to gather and celebrate the very best of both Saxon and the genre itself.

“In Latin it means ‘seize the day’ and I think it’s a great thing to say;” continues Biff “it’s what the Romans used to say to each other on a regular basis, apparently, never having met one, I wouldn’t know! But we’re gonna do the Seize the Day world tour, the album’s Carpe Diem, this song’s called “Carpe Diem (Seize the Day)” and it’s such a powerful thing to say.”

Produced by Andy Sneap (Judas Priest, Exodus, Accept and Priest guitarist) at Backstage Recording Studios in Derbyshire with Byford and Sneap mixing and mastering, Carpe Diem strikes the ear as one of the most essential British metal statements of the last few years and not lacking in pace or bite, an album which will ignite the joy in stalwart supporters and attract a whole new legion to the Saxon fold.

“We want every album we make to go platinum,” says Biff defiantly. “We never make an album that we don’t expect to be fantastic because there are no laurels around here, and as a band, we’re always trying to do something a little bit new, a little bit daring. I love fast metal like “Princess of the Night” and “20,000 Feet”, and I try and bring that style of Saxon into the music now, but in a more modern style. We don’t sound like an old band on records because we’re not sitting back on our past success, we’re always trying to make a great album.”

The genesis of Carpe Diem’s fierce intensity lies in two extremely significant life events – “It’s been a difficult two years,” offers Biff with considerable understatement, “because I had the heart attack back in September 2019, so things went a bit pear-shaped for the band. And then Covid hit two or three months later, but luckily, we started writing and recording this album before Covid.  We did the drums in Germany and we did the guitars in various places. I was doing a lot of writing while I was in the hospital bed, and we spent quite a long time writing and arranging the ideas that we all had. I do think it’s a very intense album, and maybe some of that intensity comes from the frustration of not being able to do anything in the Covid period.” 

Carpe Diem Track Listing:
Carpe Diem (Seize the Day)
Age of Steam
The Pilgrimage
Dambusters
Remember the Fallen
Super Nova
Lady In Gray
All for One
Black is the Night
Living On the Limit

SAXON
BIFF BYFORD – Vocals
PAUL QUINN – Guitar
NIGEL GLOCKLER – Drums
DOUG SCARRATT – Guitar
NIBBS CARTER – Bass

Produced by Andy Sneap and Biff ByfordAlbum mixed and mastered by Andy Sneap

 Guitars recorded by Andy Sneap at Backstage Recording Studios, Derbyshire (UK); Vocals recorded by Seb Byford at Big Silver Barn, York (UK); Drums recorded by Jacky Lehmann (Audiosound) at Velbyproductions, Grünenplan (Germany).

 All lyrics by Biff Byford. Backing vocals by Seb Byford

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