The new album from Saxon, “Hell, Fire and Damnation” drops on January 19th, and frontman Biff Byford was nice enough to join me to discuss it, and lots more.
“It’s a monster title, isn’t it?” Biff asked when I brought up the title. That it is! He told me what the title meant, it goes back a long way. “I don’t know why we didn’t use it before”. He spoke about bringing back the 80s on some aspects of the album, even going back to the beginning of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal.
Biff talked about how fast this album came together and why they’re releasing it to start the new year, as opposed to releasing it near the end of 2024. There’s a reason they decided to get it out earlier, as Biff explained. “It all came together pretty quickly” as far as the album is concerned. Biff said “The Metal Gods were looking down on us” He spoke about the process of writing and recording the album.
This album is also mixed and produced by Andy Sneap, who has worked with the band several times. “It’s everything, new music. It’s lifeblood.” is how he responded to the question of what new music means to Saxon. He said they’re always on a quest to write the perfect song/album.
He always told me about the song he did with Amon Amarth, “Saxons and Vikings”. He talked about meeting the guys and becoming friends with them. “I do like the song, actually…it’s a great song”. The style of his voice along with Johan Hegg’s makes for an interesting sound.
Always fun talking with Biff, a great way to close out the year!