 once again returning guest, Biff Bifert all the way in the UK. What's going on Biff? Yeah, good. Good to be there with you on Zoom. Every 19th Silver Lightning Music release of Hellfire and Damnation, 24th album. Yeah. Where does the time go? Some months to this album as well. Yeah, I'm loving it. Me and Alan Hearnett it is and we'll give our review as we go along with this. For me personally, I think it's another consistently strong Saxon album. All right, for a headline, how would you review this album or what would you state about this album in one sentence as a headline? Biff Bifert says, this album is a monster. I mean lyrically, you cover everything on this. There's, you know, Marie Antoinette, the battle of Hastings, Aliens. What got you so inspired lyrically? Just thinking of stores that are interesting really that pop into my crazy head. You know, just things that interest me and obviously interest millions of other people as well. You know, history is interesting and it's forever renewing itself, isn't it? History. Biff, not only do you like history and you're a storyteller, which I love, but you're also a conspiracy, you kind of borderline conspiracy theories like Roswell. How much credence do you put into that? I mean, I like a good conspiracy theory. You know, they're great, aren't they? They're great because you get your thinking and you look at all the facts and you shouldn't make up your own mind, don't you? It's like the grassy knoll. I mean, I'd like to think that there was something in Roswell. I'm more of a believer than a disbeliever, but I'm not totally sold on it, you know what I mean? But I think the interview in America, they interviewed a lot of people on their survey and I think 95% of people thought there was something in Roswell. So, you know, that's where the song comes from. I mean, Congress is opening in the United States. They have Congress questioning, like we want information. Do you have spaceships? Do you have aliens? So, you know, there's something in Roswell, it might be more than just Roswell. So it could be. I mean, Roswell's Ground Zero, isn't it? For most UFO, you know, people that like to talk about it and sort of study it. It all sort of started in Roswell. I think that was the first big moment that people sort of heard about flying saucers and, you know, trashes and aliens and, you know, there's been a lot since. But that's Ground Zero. So I think it's an interesting song, you know. Describe. Me too. Me too. I love that song. Describe the musical direction on this album compared to the last. Well, the musical direction is we're just, we just want to write the perfect rock song. That's our goal, you know, to write the perfect metal song and the perfect album. So that's always our goal. So we're always, we're always trying to write better songs and better sounds. I think this album is probably the best sounding Saxon album ever, hi-fi wise. So, you know, we're just, we're getting closer to perfection every album. Back in August, there was talk about Paul Quinn participating on the album, did that come to fruition? Sorry? Back in August, there was a mention that maybe Paul Quinn would play on this album, but was that, did that come to fruition? Yeah, Paul plays a couple of songs on the album, yeah. Plays solo on a few songs, yeah. So it just, we were making the album so fast and, you know, so, so sort of, you know, inspired by making the album. We did it on the road in Europe on our festival tour. And, you know, Paul wasn't with us because he stopped touring. So it just, I mean, Brian stood up in his place and, you know, he supplied a couple of great riffs actually. So, yeah, we were very lucky. I even noticed, like, at the beginning of Fire and Dunn Nation, it could have been a, the intro could have actually been a Diamondhead song, you know, it just has that vibe and it's, it's cool. Oh, yeah. It's his riff, so, yeah. I mean, he wrote the guitar riff, so yeah. I don't know why he didn't use it with Diamondhead. Maybe, maybe, I don't know, maybe they didn't like it. I don't know the reason why they didn't put it on the album. What's your history, Brian, and how did it come to be the past that he joined Saxon? How did he come to join Saxon? Yeah, what's your history, your past history with him as well? Well, we don't have a massive history with him. I mean, he was around in the, in 1980 when all the bands started getting signed and things, you know, but I think Diamondhead got signed a bit late, like 1982. So I think they probably missed the boat a little bit. I mean, fortunately Metallica picked up on four of their songs. So that gave them some sort of, you know, kudos in the business to carry on, really, I suppose. But yeah, Brian learnt some songs. Paul was ill with COVID and we had a very special festival coming up. We couldn't really cancel. And so Brian sort of learnt the Saxon songs. This was a couple of years ago and Brian learnt the Saxon songs for that set. So he already, he already had a foot in the door really. So yeah, I mean, Brian's been to Paul's a few times and zoomed with Paul. So Paul showed him all his licks and things and, you know, how to play the songs and, you know, so he's been, he's been quite, quite close with Paul learning the Saxon stuff. How's Paul's health? Is it okay? Is it stable? Yeah, I think it's okay. It just, it just got a little bit of, then you've got a bit of rumours in his fingers when he plays a lot. And it just wanted to rest, I think, onto the quiet life. You know, being in a sort of touring, touring rock band is not really a quiet life. So how, you know, you're the last man standing. How do you able to do it all these years, Biff? How's what, sorry? You're here the last man standing. How have you been able to do it all these years and continue to do it? I don't know, really. You know, obviously, you know, health takes its toll as you get older. So I just suppose you have to just, you know, try and stay as, you know, as multiverse as you can, really, and keep getting, you know, keep writing albums and touring and getting the juice flowing, really. That's what it's all about, you know. You know, it's amazing your voice. You know, you just, I don't know if you keep getting better. I think he's getting better, like over the years. And I mean, and then I see the younger bands and they're just kind of, you know, they're using voice, you know, in the studio, they're, something tells me you guys are authentic. When you hit the stage, you know, I can't prove it, but it just feels authentic. Like that is the core value of Saxon being authentic. Yeah, it's very authentic. You know, I don't do anything with my voice. It's just, I've learned how to sing over the years and, you know, I just keep it, keep it straight and just, just go for it, really. That's the secret. I think, you know, studio wise, we don't use really any, any sort of, you know, we don't use any computer, you know, generator backup anything. We play live. We don't use click tracks or anything. Everything you get is live. We might have a few noises on Nims' bass pedals, you know, like sirens and jet planes and things, but just a little effect something, but most what you get and what you hear is live. So what do you say to the new bands who are starting off that are already lip syncing, you know, using laptops? I mean, is that the wrong way to start a new band? Well, lip syncing is miming, really, but I think, you know, there's a lot of software you can use now to enhance the sounds and enhance yourself. We don't really bother with that to tell you the truth. I mean, it's a bit, you know, we're a live band, always have been known as a live band, and our albums are an extension of that, really. That's how we work, you know. Yeah, and seeing you guys live, you're an impossible act to follow, just the power, and you've been doing it so long, the professionalism. I mean, I'd hate to follow you guys at any kind of festival, so. Well, you know, we're known to be good live. I mean, obviously, you know, a lot of it depends on the audience being good live, you know, you need a good audience to be able to, you know, capture the energy and turn it into something special. But yeah, we're a pretty good live band, and you know, I mean, as far as bands following us, you know, that's up to them. Salem Witch Trials, getting back to the album. Do you find that topic is kind of similar to today's culture, you know, of sort of shutting people down and cancelling people? Because the Salem Witch Trials was basically shutting down a group of people and just sort of trying them for some ridiculous reason. Is there any reaction? Well, a lot of it's based on revenge and paranoia. You know, I mean, you know, back in those days, I think, you know, if something went wrong, it was always considered to be the devil's work. You know, I mean, some people still think that. But, you know, some revenge, you know, some woman, you know, spurned some guy's advances. So she said she was a witch and, you know, strange looking people that lived on their own, you know, just general paranoia. And I think it's, I think, basically, it got to be a form of entertainment at one point, you know, filling witches or what they thought were witches. But a lot of it's based on, you know, religious beliefs really. And, you know, people were playing on that. And just the paranoia comes along, you know. Pirates are the airwaves. I mean, you know, a lot of your generation in Britain were influenced by the pirate radio station like Radio Caroline. Can you tell us a little bit about the impact of having those pirate radios for yourself? I was about 12 years old in the in the 60s, very early 60s and 12, 13 years old. And there was no, there was no pop or rock music played on radio. You know, you might have got like maybe the Beatles now and again, but you didn't have things like Rolling Stones and pinks and some of the more American bands, you know, they weren't on, they weren't on daytime radio in England. And at night it was mostly orchestras and comedy things. And it used to stop at, you know, 10 o'clock at night, the radio used to stop like the television did. So, you know, we all had to go to bed at 10 o'clock. And, you know, when I was a teenager, you know, we used to listen to these stations that came in at night on these pirate stations and they played all the big songs of the day, you know, all the early Rolling Stones and all those bands from the 60s, they were all on there. And it caused a revolution in the UK. The BBC and the government had to open a station for teenagers. And that's how it all started. The swinging, as they called it. Kubla Khan and the merchants of Venice. All right. This, this is Marco Polo, I'm assuming, right? The merchant of Venice. Yeah, it is Marco Polo. And when he met Kubla Khan in the east in Mongolia, I guess. Yeah, well, China actually was there for China then. Grandfather Genghis Khan was the, was a Mongolian chief. But no, he went there and wrote about China. And nobody had ever gunpowder before. Nobody had ever, nobody had ever known silk and ceramics that they used to make. So yeah, you wrote about it. And it was the first guy to to write about it. It's an interesting story. And the word Kubla Khan is a great word to sing, you know, good story. That's a first. We've ever heard Kubla Khan in a song maybe. I heard Zana doing there too. You know, a little, a nod to Russian Olivia Newton-John. Well, Zanadu was one of the cities that he built, actually. So that was, you know, in the poem, you know, Rush used it into the poem, but he mentions it as a hidden, hidden city of Utopia. But Zanadu was one of his cities. I mean, you listened to the intro of the prophecy. I hear Brian bless his voice. It takes you right back to that first Black Adder series. How'd you get him on board? Well, he's a friend of ours. We've known him for some time. He's introduced us on stage a couple of times. Yeah, he's a big fan. He's from York, you know, out part of the world. And he loves the band. And yeah, I just asked him if he did the talking for me. And he said, yeah. I mean, he's, you know, his big, his big break was in Flash Gordon, you know. Gordon is delighted with all that sort of thing. What a voice. What a voice. So I wanted to bring a bit of it just to the album. So I thought it might be cool to, you know, to have him tell people what the song is about, you know, Hell, Fire and Damnation, the prophecy and the Bible. Yeah. Yeah. You know, I got to tell you, this is my personal like 10 second review of the album. It's it's got that Saxon stamp, but you guys are going out of the box a little bit. And I love that. And the sound, like you mentioned, the sound is excellent. The production is really good on this one. And the energy. Yeah, it's done a great job. Andy Sneep is, you know, he worked, he worked really hard and fast on this. I think he did it in just over a week, which is quite, which is quite fast these days. You know, I mean, people are really, a lot of bands are really fastidious about the attention to detail, you know, going back in and listening, changing and fiddling. Well, we just basically, you know, did this, like I say, very quick, a lot of passion involved with it. You know, we had a deadline to keep. So yeah. Any tours planned? What's what's next for Saxon? Well, we're going out with you to spend your I keep in March in Europe. And then we come to America in April. I think the first show in America is the 23rd of April in Fort Lauderdale. You know, don't don't hold me on that. But I think that's 23rd of April, Fort Lauderdale. Then it goes up the East Coast and across across into the Midwest. So yeah, we are coming to America. Then we'll go back to some festivals in Europe. And, you know, an old year. I think all year we'll be touring on this album. Pardon? No Canadian dates so far. Not so far. No, no. But that doesn't mean to say we won't do any. We're going to do part one and part two. You know what I mean? So I don't know. I haven't seen any Canadian dates on this tour, but that doesn't mean to say they're on 10. What are your favorite favorite songs on this album? We'll just kind of go around the room here. Favorite tracks off the new album? Me first. Yes, sir. Yes, sir. You first. I think the moment, Madam Gillettine. Yeah, please don't lose your head. I have to say, Biff, that is the one where that's a song that kind of goes off into outside of the box of typical Saxon. And you're right. That is very melodic and it's very different. Still metal, but different. Yeah, definitely. Alan? No, great. I mean, you know, Hellfire in Damnation is such a majestic song. It goes with the Saxon tradition for those eponymous titled songs. Just a great album, Battle of Hastings. And hey, I learned something new. That's always fun. You hear music, you learn about history. So for me, I take away, not only have Nigel's great drumming as usual, but the guitar solos are so tasteful and just, you know, just so well placed and not complicated. You can really feel the emotion in the guitar solos. That's what I took away from this album. Yeah, definitely. The Brian and Duke have done a great job on the guitars. Definitely. And I love 1066, which we didn't talk about. I think that's one of my favorite songs. I don't know, 20,000 feet, 747, 1066. I just love the way you put it together. Yeah, it's a good song. It's like poetry. I wrote the lyrics as poetry without the music first. So it's always good when it fits together with a great guitar riff. Yeah. All right. And I think that's pretty much it. You know what? Everybody goes, you know what? I'm really excited that cover is this perfect tone for the music on the album. So everybody out there who's going to be watching this, pick up the album, pre-order it. It's a great Christmas gift. And the tour is going to be announced, I think, the complete tour in January. It is, yeah. Yeah, yeah. Which is good. But it's nice to know that maybe there's a possibility or come to Canada. So that's cool. Maybe there's a possibility. We like coming to Canada. You know, we've been many times before. So, you know, we'll just keep our fingers crossed. I've told the manager, you know, I want to go everywhere, Canada. You know, we've done South America just so there's no reason why we shouldn't do Canada. But Merry Christmas to you and your family and all the best for 2024. Yeah, we'll see you in maybe the new year. That would be great. Okay. That would be great. All right, Beth, thank you for your time. Thank you. See you there, guys. Bye.