Saxon
Sacrifice
UDR Music
2013
Barnsley’s own, Saxon, have managed to reach more or less album no 20! Wow! No small task for a band soon to celebrate its 40th anniversary and one that apparently is showing no sign of slowing down or turning the volume down really… which is quite commendable!
Saxon, remains just like you know them, like good old wine, like the old lady, with maybe a couple of more wrinkles but, still achingly hot and as alluring as the first time as you saw her and still able to use all the tricks in the book to turn you on. Oh and they all still work like a charm!
With virtually no changes from 2011’s rather well received “Call To Arms” in terms of band membership, the band hasn’t really changed in any way, they still pretty much churn out, exactly the same old school epic heavy metal they have been known and loved for. Pounding drums and thumbing bass, stainless steel riffs and to the point solos here and there and Biff, proud as ever, defies all these “preconceptions” about how metal singers having to be high pitched – tenors that reach notes that only dogs can hear by coming up with some vocals that just sound as if they were forged out of Iron.
“Procession” is a short intro that precedes “Sacrifice” the album’s namesake and centerpiece a sturdy mid pace heavy metal anthem, like you’d expect from Saxon to deliver. Great stuff really!
“Made in Belfast” has this mandolin or whatever the funk it might be intro, and that same strum repeats throughout its duration. It’s all about the ships that were built in Belfast’s shipyards, being some of the best that the world had seen at the time etc… certainly a bit of a bizarre theme, but then again it’s the same band that popularized a song about a locomotive that delivered the mail! And what a song that was! C’mon – we’re all working class people – so nothing wrong with celebrating that – if they were celebrating bankers, now that might have been a bit – suspect… haha! Awesome song!
“Warriors of the Road” attempts to be a modern day “Motorcycle Man” but I suppose it has to do with cars and it comes complete with such racing effects as screaming tires and a speedy as hell rhythm section and Biff shouting out an awesome chorus on top of it all! Mega-Awesome!
“Guardians of the Tomb” is a bit more progressive, well as progressive – as Saxon can be – think something similar as “Conquistador” from – was it “Metalhead”?! I think it was actually!? It’s pretty similar actually. Great solo, around the third minute too.
“Stand Up and Fight” could easily win a gold medal for having the most cliché title, it could... I mean, it could even win it blind folded and with its hands tied. But it’s a good song, it’s just happens to have such a cliché title, as cliché as they come.
“Walking the Steel” had me worried for a second, that maybe I was listening to a Manowar album, and – fact of the matter, Manowar, would have liked to have such a nice riff in their new album, but much of the song other than the riff and a sort of slower section in the middle that also includes a couple of solos, isn’t much to write home about... the chorus, sort of could go somewhere, but it doesn’t quite land home.
“Night of the Wolf” begins in the most promising way, with a barraging riff that smashes all resistance and a very commanding Biff just erupting into a rather irresistible chorus. There’s also a very nice and slightly threatening epic “atmosphere” building at the background, through some sparse orchestrations, the solo around the second minute is short but sweet, all in all, one of the better songs of the album!
And after “Wheels of Steel”, we now have “Wheels of Terror” Arrrgh! This one is a guitar, heavy number that mostly explores mid tempo territory, based on a typical Saxon riff, but suddenly decides, to go a little “Maiden” or modern day-Saxon, around the 2:30 mark with a rather blazing fast solo, before it sort of resumes its crushing mid paced riffery.
“Standing in a Queue”?! Now if “Stand up and Fight” would win a typical “metal” title contest – this one – would win – a lame title contest…?!?! C’mon the lyrics here borderline on WTF?!?! Seriously… hahahaha it must be a bit of a joke, or some of a protest about standing in queues! Hahahahahaa! It’s a typical rock ‘n roller/Saxon type of song… a bit silly – but kinda alright!
Them Barnsley boys have done it again! One can rely on them to deliver time and again and once again they have not failed to deliver! Such a safe bet! Can’t really go wrong with them! Guaranteed to satisfy, add at least 2-3 classics per album and to at least, be able to listen to all the rest of the songs in most of them albums without skipping. On certain albums – it might even be all killer, no filler! “Sacrifice” is well above average I’d say, at least a notch above the last few ones I’d say...
Saxon, remains just like you know them, like good old wine, like the old lady, with maybe a couple of more wrinkles but, still achingly hot and as alluring as the first time as you saw her and still able to use all the tricks in the book to turn you on. Oh and they all still work like a charm!
With virtually no changes from 2011’s rather well received “Call To Arms” in terms of band membership, the band hasn’t really changed in any way, they still pretty much churn out, exactly the same old school epic heavy metal they have been known and loved for. Pounding drums and thumbing bass, stainless steel riffs and to the point solos here and there and Biff, proud as ever, defies all these “preconceptions” about how metal singers having to be high pitched – tenors that reach notes that only dogs can hear by coming up with some vocals that just sound as if they were forged out of Iron.
“Procession” is a short intro that precedes “Sacrifice” the album’s namesake and centerpiece a sturdy mid pace heavy metal anthem, like you’d expect from Saxon to deliver. Great stuff really!
“Made in Belfast” has this mandolin or whatever the funk it might be intro, and that same strum repeats throughout its duration. It’s all about the ships that were built in Belfast’s shipyards, being some of the best that the world had seen at the time etc… certainly a bit of a bizarre theme, but then again it’s the same band that popularized a song about a locomotive that delivered the mail! And what a song that was! C’mon – we’re all working class people – so nothing wrong with celebrating that – if they were celebrating bankers, now that might have been a bit – suspect… haha! Awesome song!
“Warriors of the Road” attempts to be a modern day “Motorcycle Man” but I suppose it has to do with cars and it comes complete with such racing effects as screaming tires and a speedy as hell rhythm section and Biff shouting out an awesome chorus on top of it all! Mega-Awesome!
“Guardians of the Tomb” is a bit more progressive, well as progressive – as Saxon can be – think something similar as “Conquistador” from – was it “Metalhead”?! I think it was actually!? It’s pretty similar actually. Great solo, around the third minute too.
“Stand Up and Fight” could easily win a gold medal for having the most cliché title, it could... I mean, it could even win it blind folded and with its hands tied. But it’s a good song, it’s just happens to have such a cliché title, as cliché as they come.
“Walking the Steel” had me worried for a second, that maybe I was listening to a Manowar album, and – fact of the matter, Manowar, would have liked to have such a nice riff in their new album, but much of the song other than the riff and a sort of slower section in the middle that also includes a couple of solos, isn’t much to write home about... the chorus, sort of could go somewhere, but it doesn’t quite land home.
“Night of the Wolf” begins in the most promising way, with a barraging riff that smashes all resistance and a very commanding Biff just erupting into a rather irresistible chorus. There’s also a very nice and slightly threatening epic “atmosphere” building at the background, through some sparse orchestrations, the solo around the second minute is short but sweet, all in all, one of the better songs of the album!
And after “Wheels of Steel”, we now have “Wheels of Terror” Arrrgh! This one is a guitar, heavy number that mostly explores mid tempo territory, based on a typical Saxon riff, but suddenly decides, to go a little “Maiden” or modern day-Saxon, around the 2:30 mark with a rather blazing fast solo, before it sort of resumes its crushing mid paced riffery.
“Standing in a Queue”?! Now if “Stand up and Fight” would win a typical “metal” title contest – this one – would win – a lame title contest…?!?! C’mon the lyrics here borderline on WTF?!?! Seriously… hahahaha it must be a bit of a joke, or some of a protest about standing in queues! Hahahahahaa! It’s a typical rock ‘n roller/Saxon type of song… a bit silly – but kinda alright!
Them Barnsley boys have done it again! One can rely on them to deliver time and again and once again they have not failed to deliver! Such a safe bet! Can’t really go wrong with them! Guaranteed to satisfy, add at least 2-3 classics per album and to at least, be able to listen to all the rest of the songs in most of them albums without skipping. On certain albums – it might even be all killer, no filler! “Sacrifice” is well above average I’d say, at least a notch above the last few ones I’d say...