Saxon - Leicester Review

Despite the myriad of gigs which I have been to of late, last night's shenanigans at the De Montfort Hall in Leicester were ones that I had been looking forward to for some time. Those who know me will know that I lived in Leicester between 2010 and 2013 whilst I was studying at De Montfort University. Whilst Leicester in recent years has not exactly been a hotbed of regular live music, it was a great base to access Nottingham, Birmingham, and London - and I went to so many shows during my time in the East Midlands. Sadly, though, since 2013 I have had very little cause to return to Leicester. I tend to go back to Nottingham at least a couple of times a year for gigs, but Leicester does not tend to have such a pull - and I do not really have any university friends still living in the area whom I could visit. Prior to yesterday, my last visit to the city was in 2016 - when I saw Heather Findlay at The Musician. Even that had been my first visit in a couple of years, so I had been looking for an excuse to go back to my previous home for some time. I had planned to visit in 2020 around a Status Quo concert - but that ended up being cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It was with excitement to find, then, that when Saxon announced a UK tour to support their excellent latest album Carpe Diem back in January that a show in Leicester fell on a Friday. It was likely that there was a show closer to home, but the opportunity to return to Leicester seemed like one that should not be passed up - so I booked a ticket to see the legendary NWOBHM band at the De Montfort Hall. The De Montfort Hall is one of those venues that every touring band used to play in the 1970s and the 1980s - but in recent years has largely become a home for stand-up comedians and pantomimes. Hard rock and metal is a relatively rarity at the venue these days, and I only visited it three times during my time at university. I visited it a fourth time back in 2014, when I made the trip back to see Yes, so last night was my first show at the De Montfort Hall in eight years. It is a real shame that it is so underused by rock and metal bands these days, as the venue is excellent. It is a good size, without being too big, has a great historical pedigree, and every show that I have seen there has sounded excellent. Saxon used to play the venue regularly, but had not done so for a number of years. Looking at setlist.fm, Saxon had not been to Leicester since I last saw them in the city back in 2011 - when they put on an excellent show at the city's O2 Academy. Many bands like Saxon have undergone something of a resurgence of late, and can play larger venues again - as was apparent back in January when I saw them at a sold-out Eventim Apollo in Hammersmith. The fact that I had already seen the band live once this year did not put me off seeing them again - largely as I knew that the show would be quite different. The show in January was part of of the band's delayed 40th anniversary celebrations, and largely focused on classics from their heyday, whereas last night's show was part of the Carpe Diem tour - which promised a vastly different setlist focusing on the new album.

Prior to Saxon's set, though, the growing crowd where treated to sets from two support acts. The first band, Untamed Silence, only had around 20 minutes to play with - but they delivered an enjoyable, if fairly unremarkable, performance. The melodic rock four-piece generally stuck to a fairly safe, guitar-led sound - but the riffing throughout was fairly expansive and somewhat more atmospheric than would generally be expected. This sound allowed the songs' verses to feel quite smooth - with the choruses generally being a bit heavier. Led by the strong voice of frontwoman Debbie Wade, Untamed Silence only played four or five songs - but they gave a good account of themselves. For me, though, the overall sound started to feel too familiar after a while. Melodic rock often needs more than a single guitar, bass, and drums to make a big enough sound - and this setup limited the band's potential in my opinion. A second guitarist or a keyboard player would have certainly allowed for a more expansive sound - and the choruses definitely needed vocal harmonies. Wade's voice was generally powerful, but this kind of music needs to take off during the choruses. Harmony vocals would have really helped the choruses to shine - as they generally had strong melodies that could have done with having a bit more weight behind them. As such, Untamed Silence came across as a band that very much have the potential to make a strong impression - but perhaps they do not yet have all the ingredients in place. As things stand, the band felt a bit flat for me; although I did still enjoy their set. There was certainly nothing about them to dislike, they just did little to really stand out - but with some tweaking and an expansion of their sound they could very well kick on to achieve bigger and better things.

The main support act for the whole tour, though, was Diamond Head - another legendary NWOBHM band that I have been fortunate to be able to see a handful of times of late. They also opened for Saxon back in January, and last night they put on another excellent performance that was packed full of classic tracks. It has to be said, though, that I was a little disappointed with their setlist compared to some of the others from this tour. Other nights of the tour have featured more newer material and some deeper cuts, like Dead Reckoning, but the seven-song set played in Leicester was very 'safe' - with five songs coming from Lightning to the Nations and only one newer cut. It seems churlish to complain given the band's strong performance, but it seems strange that they reverted to essentially a mini greatest hits set right at the very end of the tour. That being said, though, it was great to hear The Prince again - which had not been played at the other recent shows of theirs which I went to. They opened with the up-tempo track, and it kicked off the set nicely - with frontman Rasmus Bom Andersen running and jumping around the stage. The song's big chorus certainly got the crowd going, too, and the anthemic duo of Lightning to the Nations and It's Electric also saw plenty of singing from the crowd - at least those around me. Given Diamond Head's status, I did think that they would have received a bit of a stronger reaction than they did - but those of us down at the front certainly seemed to appreciate the band's efforts. The more atmospheric and epic In the Heat of the Night did encourage a fair amount of singing during its intro, though. The song always goes down well live - with its creeping riffing bringing the best out of Brian Tatler (guitar) whilst Andersen delivered the big chorus with ease. The only newer song played was the slower-paced Set My Soul on Fire - which continued on the vibe established by In the Heat of the Night nicely. I am surprised that nothing from the band's recent album was played - as they had been consistently playing a couple of its songs on the tour up to this point. It would have been good to hear at least one from that album, but clearly for whatever reason the band wanted to focus on classics this time. It was a couple of classics that brought the set to an end following Set My Soul on Fire, then, with the fast-paced Helpless injecting some thrash into the set - before the all-time classic Am I Evil? brought the set to an end. As expected, Am I Evil? got all of the crowd involved - and it saw plenty of singing as Diamond Head brought their part of the night to a high-energy close. The setlist was:

The Prince

Lightning to the Nations

It's Electric

In the Heat of the Night

Set My Soul on Fire

Helpless

Am I Evil?

Half an hour or so following Diamond Head's set, the lights went down and Saxon took to the stage - launching immediately into Carpe Diem (Seize the Day). The title track from the band's latest album was the first of six new songs played as part of a two-hour set which was also packed with classic tracks and a handful of deeper cuts. Saxon are a band that many older bands could take lessons from when it comes to setlist construction. They always manage to perfectly balance fan-favourites with promoting their latest album - and the fact that they have always done this means that the fans expect to hear and enjoy hearing the new material live. They have also lost none of their energy, either. Frontman Biff Byford is 71 now, but his voice remains powerful - and the rest of the band always bring the energy, with Nibbs Carter (bass guitar/vocals) in particular helping to whip the crowd up. Many of the Saxon shows that I have been to have had fantastic atmospheres - and last night in Leicester was no different. I was down at the front, and everyone around me was singing along to every song - with newer tracks like Sacrifice and older classics like Never Surrender whipping the crowd up early on. The 20-song set was packed full of highlights, and there were no moments that felt flat. The anthemic I've Got to Rock (To Stay Alive) rocked with the crowd with its AC/DC-esque groove, whilst thrashier songs like Dambusters showcased that Saxon can still write songs more ferocious than bands half their age. It was also a great song to highlight the playing of the evergreen Nigel Glockler (drums), who can lay into his double bass drums as fast as anyone. Alongside the six new songs, a handful of deeper cuts helped to keep things interesting. The Thin Red Line from the late 1990s was wheeled out for a rare outing, and the atmospheric song showcased the power metal-esque sound that Saxon channelled around 20 years ago - before the new, snappy Living on the Limit proved that their updated take on their classic sound still feels fresh. With the exception of Never Surrender, it took until the ninth song in the set for a bona fide classic to be played - but the large crowd really did not seem to care. Each song was welcomed, but when Carter started playing the bass intro for Dallas 1pm the place went wild. The mid-paced song was one of the evening's best-received songs - with both Paul Quinn (guitar) and Doug Scarratt (guitar) soloing throughout.

"Do you want a fast one?" Byford soon shouted, and this led into Heavy Metal Thunder - which was a highlight as it always is. The song is pretty much ever-present in the band's set, but it always goes down a treat - and is one of those songs that showcases the influence that the NWOBHM movement had on the later thrash scene. The pace was then slowed for the creeping, bludgeoning Metalhead - another deeper cut from the power metal era of the band's output. It was another rare outing for the song, and it was another highlight as a result - with Carter adding some harsh-type vocals to the headbanging and riff-driven chorus. A couple of new songs were left to play, but in truth most of what was left at this point were classics. The crowd were given a choice between Broken Heroes and The Eagle Has Landed, and chose the latter - with the epic, atmospheric track eliciting plenty of headbanging once the main riff kicked in. The meat and potatoes heavy metal of Black is the Night was the final new cut in the main set, before two more classics rounded it out. And the Bands Played On has always been one of my very favourite Saxon songs, and it was great to hear it live again - before a lengthy version of Wheels of Steel brought the main set to a close. There was some audience participation in the middle of the song, and the De Montfort Hall was filled with noise as a result. There was still time for quite a bit more, though, and a five-song encore followed. It opened with one last new track, the grand and chiming The Pilgrimage - which featured some excellent vocals from Byford. Everything else left were real classics, though. Carter then got Strong Arm of the Law underway, which was actually part of a medley with Solid Ball of Rock. The two songs made for a fun medley, during which a couple of members of the crowd threw their denim jackets onto the stage. Byford and Carter donned them for the next song, but not before conducting a sing-a-long during Solid Ball of Rock. 747 (Strangers in the Night) then raised the energy levels even further, and contained lots more excellent lead work and soloing from Quinn and Scarratt. They rarely get brought up when great guitar duos are mentioned, but they work together so well - and where I was stood I got a great view on Quinn's playing in particular all night. Byford then signed the two jackets and passed them back in time for Denim and Leather which was the last big sing-song of the night - before the faster paced Princess of the Night brought the curtain down on what was another fantastic night of heavy metal. The setlist was:

Carpe Diem (Seize the Day)

Sacrifice

Age of Steam

Never Surrender

I've Got to Rock (To Stay Alive)

Dambusters

The Thin Red Line

Living on the Limit

Dallas 1pm

Heavy Metal Thunder

Metalhead

The Eagle Has Landed

Black is the Night

And the Bands Played On

Wheels of Steel

-

The Pilgrimage

Strong Arm of the Law/Solid Ball of Rock

747 (Strangers in the Night)

Denim and Leather

Princess of the Night

Saxon never disappoint live, and last night at the De Montfort Hall could well have been the best that I have seen them. In truth I tend to think that after each of their shows, but they are one of those bands that just continue to deliver night after night. It has been great seeing them a couple of times this year, and I will certainly get a ticket to see them again next time they tour the UK. They are one of my favourite bands to see live at this point, and it was great seeing them at a busy De Montfort Hall - so much so that it seemed like the clock had been turned back to the mid-1980s.