It’s been a decade since we did “The Eagle Has Landed Part 2”, so we thought it was the right time to record some new live tracks. We wanted to include some of the tracks we never played before and the newer stuff from “Lionheart” (2004), so that’s a good time.
The album contains tracks from different shows recorded in 2004 and 2005. How did you decide what track to use and from which show? Was it because of sound quality, or were there some memorable moments that you wanted to immortalize?
We chose the old tracks, because we didn’t put a lot of them on a live album before. Songs like “To Hell And Back Again” and “Stallions Of The Highway” had never been on a live album before. We asked the fans on the Internet what they would like to hear. And that basically was what we played. And the second CD was recorded during the “Lionheart” tour, so that was pretty much what we did on that.
The eagle was a very important part of your shows in the 1980s. Who originally designed this bird? And how did it happen that you resurrected it for the show at Wacken in 2001?
I think our lighting company designed it for us. Originally it was from the second album “Wheels Of Steel” (1980). To resurrect it was the idea of Thomas Jensen, the promoter of Wacken. He wanted us to have the eagle back, while Motorhead had the “bomber” back for this festival. The eagle was in a warehouse somewhere in Germany, and they found it and fixed it for us. We’re using it next week as well, we use it quite a lot now when we’re headlining festivals. We’re headlining a festival in France next week, so the eagle is there, and we’re headlining Graspop with Motorhead, so the eagle is there as well.
Saxon and the Wacken festival have a special relationship, and in 2004 you said onstage that Wacken was the best metal festival in the world…
I think it is. There’s a good feeling, a happy f
amily feeling at Wacken. How were you first introduced to Wacken? How has the festival developed, in your opinion?
I think we played the first Wacken in 1991 or 1994 (in fact, it was the third Wacken in 2002 – ed.), so that’s where it basically comes from. It’s grown from quite a small festival in a field to a really massive event, 60 to 70 bands over four days.
Saxon now are a bigger band in Europe than in your home country. Are you comfortable with this situation? Do you believe it can be changed somehow?
Yeah, we like it. We’re quite big in England, but not as big as we are in the continent. We spend a lot of time in the continent though, playing Wacken and places like this.
You started in the late 1970s when the punk movement was very big in Britain. What was your attitude to punk back in those days? And what do you think of it now?
We loved and we hated it. I liked some things and hated others. We sincerely liked Sex Pistols, but we didn’t like Siouxsie and the Banshees, for instance.
And what is your opinion about the latest metal genres – nu metal or gothic metal?
I like it, I like some of the gothic bands, some of the gothic bands are friends of ours and Saxon fans.
Can you mention a few names?
We like Children Of Bodom, we like Linkin Park, Rammstein… Well, lots of bands.
On the “Killing Ground” album (2001) you covered the song “In The Court Of The Crimson King” by King Crimson. Why such an interesting choice? Are you interested in art rock or progressive rock?
Our guitarist Paul Quinn used to play quite progressive music in the 1970s, and it’s always been a favorite of mine. So I suggested to the band that we should try it, and it sounded great. I think it’s a good version.
Another song that is very interesting for me is “We Will Remember” from the album “Solid Ball Of Rock” (1991). Is this song dedicated to somebody in particular? And what inspired you to write ab
out the musicians whom we lost?At that particular time there were quite a lot of people dying who we knew – Phil Lynott and people like this. I just thought I needed to write a song in the memory of rock musicians.
What were the wildest years in the history of Saxon? Have you ever felt you were putting your life at risk because of the rock’n’roll lifestyle?
The wildest years were probably from 1980 to 1983. As to putting our lives at risk, it happens every time you get on a plane or in a car or on a train. (laughs) No, we haven’t really. We’re not heavy on drugs or anything. But still I think it’s quite a dangerous occupation sometimes.
Yeah, you have a song “Flying On The Edge”, which tells the story of how you played two festivals in two different countries in just one day. But why did you agree to such a tough concert schedule?
Mmm, for the hell of it! (cracks)
Was it fun?
Not really, it was fucking hard work. That’s what legends are made of.
Yet another question about concerts – your recent live appearance at the United Arab Emirates was cancelled because some reporter wrote very crazy things about Saxon in a local newspaper. Can you tell us more details about the incident?
What happened was some Muslim journalist translated the lyrics of “Crusader”, and very badly. A lot of people got upset about these lyrics, and the government asked us not to play. There was not much we could do really. They could have probably us not to play the song, that would probably have been better. But we still play this song elsewhere.
Yeah, it’s one of my favorites.
Oh yeah, it’s one of everybody’s favorites. (laughs)
Speaking about other Saxon classics - a few years ago you re-recorded a lot of old songs for the album “Heavy Metal Thunder” (2002). Does it mean that you were dissatisfied with the original versions?
The original idea was to give it away with the first 30,000 or 5
0,000 copies of “Killing Ground”. But it went through so well that the record company released it as an album. It was just a bit of fun really, but I think it sounds good. This album covers the early period of your career, but have you considered re-recording some stuff from the second half of the 1980s, from the albums like “Rock The Nations” (1986) or “Innocence Is No Excuse” (1985)? I know that some fans have problems with the sound of those releases…
We thought about it, and we might do it, but let’s see.
In your opinion, who are the people who listen to Saxon nowadays? How do you imagine a typical Saxon fan?
We have a very mixed fan-base now. We have quite a lot of younger fans, and obviously we have fans from the 1980s and 1990s as well, so we’re very lucky, I think. Our music is both traditional and modern, we have a good mixture of different styles.
Can you recall your own first experience in heavy music? How were you first exposed to hard rock or heavy metal?
I think it was through the 1960s bands like the Kinks and through the American bands like Mountain. That was my first introduction into rock music.
How old were you back in those days?
Well, I don’t know… Probably between 10 and 15.
Would you like your children to become musicians as well? Especially given all the excesses of the rock’n’roll lifestyle…
They are musicians already. One of my sons is learning to play the drums, and my daughter is learning to play bass guitar.
The Saxon line-up has been stable for quite a few years except for the place behind the drums. What happened to Fritz Randow and Jorg Michael? Why didn’t they continue with Saxon?
Fritz went off to do other things. And Jorg went back to Stratovarius, he wanted to give it another try. I don’t know what he is doing now though. At the same time Nigel Glockler wanted to re-join Saxon, so we asked him to join again.
People may change in Saxon, and the sound may change, but your voice always remains the same. What do you do to keep your voice in good condition?
Nothing! I’m just lucky.
What are your favorite singers in metal?
Well, they are the same as everybody else’s – Dio, Bruce Dickinson…
Do you have a lot of friends in the music scene, or do the people you communicate with are mostly people with totally different dayjobs?
We have a lot of friends in the scene, for instance, Motorhead. But we don’t hang out with them obviously, we’re too busy.
You mentioned several times that you would like to write or perform something together with Lemmy. What are the chances of seeing these plans become reality?
Did I really say that? Well, probably. That would be a lot of fun.
You have already announced tour dates for 2007, but when can we expect a new studio album from you? How much new material do you already have?
Expect it in 2007. We’re writing it, that’s where we are. I’m in a studio in England right now making the record.
You are scheduled to play in St. Petersburg next year. Can you tell us about your impressions from your previous visit to Russia in 2004? How did you like the country and the gig?
Eeh… We liked Russia. It was good fun actually. Our road crew was totally pissed on vodka, and we missed our plane. So we had to fly to Gothenburg and then catch a train, it was total chaos. But we liked the Russian people, they are very nice.
Did you like the Russian audience?
Yeah, it was good. Not as many young people as we have in the rest of Europe, but maybe a lot of the younger Russian fans hadn’t gotten into Saxon at that point.
You have played in many countries over the years. What country or city has been the biggest culture shock for you?
I think it was Mexico and Iceland, and obviously Japan is quite different.
And the final question – Saxon’s first album was released more than 25 years ago. How did you imagine the future of the band back then? How much did your career live up to your expectations?
I don’t think when you first start you imagined anything like lasting a long time. You’re just basically making music and having fun. And I think that’s what we are still today. (laughs)
Special thanks to Maxim Bylkin (Soyuz Music) for arranging this interview
Roman “Maniac” Patrashov
June 12, 2006
3 àâã 2006
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