WHAT YOU MAY NOT KNOW ABOUT BIFF BYFORD

singer of Saxon

Saxon was there when New Wave Of British Heavy Metal rose up from the underground in 1980 led by the strikingly tall singer Biff Byford. That year Saxon released `Wheels Of Steel’ almost directly followed by `Strong Arm Of The Law’ and contributed in their own way to the success of heavy metal. Although these albums are still considered as their ultimate classics, Saxon produced more good albums over the following years. Of course these British rockers also made some creative, image and business mistakes, but bottom line is Saxon has never left the building. Indeed they just presented their latest metal masterpiece: `Battering Ram’, studio album number twenty-one! A great one, which Biff Byford and his boys are justifiably very proud of. We know making music and touring is what Biff loves to do, but what other interests does this great metal veteran actually have? Let’s find out!

First thing you do in the morning?
,,Drink a cup of tea or coffee, depending on the day.’’

Do you have a guilty pleasure?
,,I suppose I have to be decent on this don’t I? (Laughing) It’s cake! Carrot cake actually. I can’t keep away from that. That is the devil’s food!’’

Best song on your new album `Battering Ram’?
,,That changes from week to week really but at this moment it is ,,Queen Of Hearts’’. It has a lot of textures and it is a nice listening song.’’

What do you sing when you take a shower?
,,I don’t sing in the shower. You know I hammer my voice a lot during touring so when I am not with the band I give my voice a full rest. But I hum a bit, something that pops in my head. Actually the song ,,Battering Ram’’ is good to hum.’’

Are you a big fan of something?
,,Progressive rock, old bands like Yes and Genesis. And I read random books really. If someone tells me it’s a good book I read it. I have read all the Harry Potter books but also all the parts of The Fifty Shades Of Grey. I am also a big fan of action movies. I have just seen `Mission: Impossible – Rogue Nation’ with Tom Cruise and `Terminator Genisys’.’’

What is your greatest challenge in life?
,,Obvious to stay alive (laughing). And to keep my family happy and keep on doing what I am good at. That is the only thing you can do.’’


Photo by Kai Swillus

Is there anything you collect?
,,I do collect but I am not phobic and I don’t have twenty of something, or sixty-eight pairs of shoes. Just little things I see around that I really like. For instance I have a really nice guitar and a huge Spanish galleon in the window. Actually, I do collect fridge magnets from all over the world and I just bought one in Memphis the other day.’’

What really pisses you off and makes you cranky?
,,Waiting for people that aren’t together. Unprofessional people, like in a hotel.’’

If you could switch bodies for one day who would you like to be?
,,Jimi Hendrix.’’

What would you do if you win a million euro’s in the lottery?
,,Spend it! On anything! On good stuff.’’
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Check out the official video for title song ,,Battering Ram” here

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