siLLy puPPy
And then on the eighth day, God created SAXON, the legendary heavy metal band that transcends all time in order to insure that the universe perpetually rocks. At least so it seems! This band goes waaaaaay back to the very beginning of the NWOBHM scene having formed in 1976! In its four decade plus rampage through time, SAXON has released a whopping 27 studio albums, 14 live albums and a smattering of singles to back em all up.
While many following in SAXON’s wake have long crashed and burned, this English band still has the chops to carry on well into the 21st century and while the band doesn’t seem particularly interested in experimentations or reinventing its classic style, one thing is for sure and that is that this aging band shows no signs of losing their ability to crank out the most authentic classic heavy metal of the ages.
CARPE DIEM is the latest chapter of the SAXON saga and delivers exactly what any 80s heavy metal fan would expect, namely tight-knit melodic twin guitar riffs and solos along with classic metal bass and drum rhythmic chops. Vocalist Biff Byford may have reached his 70s but still has the vox box to unleash those classic heavy metal wails. Perhaps creativity is not SAXON’s strongest suit but longevity sure is as these guys literally sound as good as they always have while other bands their age sound tired.
While musically speaking these guys never left the 80s, on the production side of things Andy Sneap of Sabbat, Hell, Godsend and Fozzy has carved out a secondary career as a producer and has fully adopted all the advantages of modern day recording methods thus making SAXON sound somewhat of a living fossil in the digital age but when you latch onto a formula that works so extremely well that stands the test of time then why bother risking your reputation on some silly experiments that may unleash a fan backlash.
SAXON has never been a favorite band of mine as i much prefer Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Dio, Mercyful Fate and a gazillion other 80s heavy metal bands but there is no denying that these guys deliver a satisfying product time and time again with no signs of their final chapter coming soon. While CARPE DIEM will not dethrone the band’s classic albums as their most popular, SAXON surprises by delivering a kickass slice of heavy metal in the expansive metal universe that we find ourselves in the current calendar year of 2022.