The Sheffield Scenester

I’ll never know what it is that keeps the old-school rock and metal bands going but Saxon must have a pretty large supply of it. Almost at the end of a mammoth world tour, it’s hard to believe that the band has been going for thirty years and even harder to work out how they sustain the pace from one show to the next because they always give it their all, but more on that later.

Sheffield band, Crimes of Passion had the honour of opening the show. Returning home after touring Europe with Saxon, being championed by Biff Byford himself, this is a band on a roll and it was clear to see that they were very happy to be there and their enthusiasm certainly influenced their short but impressive set. The riffs are full of power, the chorus's are big and catchy and they certainly won over a room of neutral listeners. With a new album due for release in early 2012, this is a band worth listening to. Check them out!

Cranking things up a notch were Sweden’s, Hammerfall. The audience seemed to be an equal mix of Saxon and Hammerfall supporters and everyone was behind the band from the opening bars of ‘Any Means Necessary’. New tracks like ‘Bang Your Head’ fit in well with older material, the speed of the guitars and drums encouraging everyone to indeed bang their heads in unison. Joacim Can’s vocals on ‘Renegade’ were fierce and precise, the front man revelling in the energy of the crowd and inviting them to sing back.

All the songs were peppered with impressive guitar parts from Oscar and Pontus, both sustaining the trademark pace of their power metal style, barely breaking a sweat in the process.

Crowd favourites, ‘Let the Hammer Fall’ and ‘One More Time’ had everyone in the room singing along and it was impressive to think that within the space of just six or seven songs, Hammerfall had even those who were unfamiliar with their music in the palm of the hands.

Closing with one of their most popular songs, ‘Hearts on Fire’, every band member and the audience sang the chorus together. As someone who hadn’t heard this material before, it felt familiar to me. I suppose when you have all the hallmarks of classic metal and catchy power chorus’s to go with it, it soon becomes pretty accessible. Hammerfall did themselves proud and I have a feeling this performance will have gained them a lot of new fans.

Saxon exploded onto the stage a short time later with ‘Heavy Metal Thunder’, essentially a mission statement and a sign of things to come.

With new album, ‘Call to Arms’ becoming the best-selling album Saxon have had for a few years, they’ve been keen to play several songs each night on the tour. The first of which, ‘Hammer of the Gods’ is trademark Saxon with Biff’s voice in fine form.

Mixing perfectly between old and new, they launched straight into the classic, ‘Never Surrender’. With everyone singing their hearts out, the entire place hit the ground running and the atmosphere was nothing short of electric within the space of three songs, perfectly illustrating why Saxon have succeeded as they have for so many years, returning the loyalty of their fans by giving nothing short of one hundred per cent.

‘Motorcycle Man’, ‘Power and the Glory’ and the epic ‘Denim and Leather’ kept the old guard deliriously happy, whilst new tracks ‘Chasing the Bullet’, ‘Back in 79’ and ‘Call to Arms’ kept things fresh and current.

With the content of the set pretty much forming a retrospective of one of England’s most respected metal bands, the pride on Biff’s face was clearly visible, returning home to Yorkshire, recalling the adventures of this current world tour and reflecting on three decades on the road. The band matched that pride with limitless energy.

Bassist Nibbs barely stood still all night, Nigel put on a drumming master class, and Doug and Paul were both entertaining in their interaction with the crowd and also impressive in their abilities to show exactly what it means to be part of a well-rehearsed and tightknit live act.

Bringing the main set to an end with ‘Wheels of Steel’, Biff let the crowd sing the chorus as he pretty much worked the entire room into a frenzy.

A four-song encore of ‘Crusader’, ‘And the Bands Played on’, ‘747’ and the ever-reliable closer, ‘Princess of the Night’, this was Saxon at its best and the mutual appreciation between the band on stage and the faithful in the audience was something to be embraced and admired.

As the final power chords of a near-two-hour set began to fade, Saxon had shown with ease that thirty years on the road has done nothing to decrease their energy or curb their enthusiasm for a music genre which undoubtedly means the world to them.

Words and photos by Paul Handley