Legendary Saxon head to Leamington

The Barnsley-based rockers, who already have 19 albums to their name and have sold more than 13 million records worldwide, will play at the Assembly in Spencer Street on Thursday April 18.

Their latest release marks a reinvigorated approach to the music which made them famous in the 1980s and led to them inspiring bands such as Metallica and Megadeath.

Frontman and founding father Biff Byford said: ““my brief to the band was to be raw, be real and not be afraid to look back at the old classic material for inspiration.”

The album was recorded at LS Studios in Yorkshire and was produced by Biff.

It bristles with muscular metallic intent, Paul Quinn and Doug Scarratt’s guitar work the best it’s ever been, while Byford’s vocals sound fresher and livelier.

The songwriting harks back to a classic era in Saxon’s history with tracks such as Warriors Of The Road, Wheels Of Terror and Stand Up And Fight.

“It’s certainly been done from a more early 1980s-thrashier perspective,” said Biff.

“It’s not just guitars bashing away willy-nilly, they’ve got a fresh drive, purpose and perspective.”

Saxon will also be adding some unique recordings of revisited classics to certain formats of the release, including an orchestral version of Crusader and an acoustic version of Frozen Rainbow.

Biff said: “From the songs to the production, I wanted to focus on the raw aspects which made us great In the first place.”

“Living in that rawness, combined with some great classic Saxon-songwriting, has made Saxon fresher than ever.”

For tickets call 0844 854 1358 or visit www.leamingtonassembly.com