Aging Together

And so to Basel, Switzerland and a sell-out crowd of over 12000 at the St. Jakobshalle is a healthy early sign that we should expect a good night. So obviously there’s still plenty of demand to see a show by big names like this who helped make our genre what it is.

It has to be said, of course, that it’s not just the bands who are aging, it’s the fans as well. A young crowd this was not, with bald / greying heads and expanding waistlines in every direction. But screw it, a heavy metal gig isn’t meant to be a graceful experience, and these guys still knew how to rock.

First Up – Uriah Heap

It all kicked off early with Uriah Heep, founded way back in 1969. So that’s 55 years and counting, and an average age of over 76. Lead singer Bernie Shaw summed the whole experience up nicely by reminding the crowd that over 150 years of British rock n roll would be represented on the stage tonight, and that’s impressive whichever way you cut it.

Uriah Heap are here to showcase yet another new album, ‘Chaos and Colour’, and start strongly with ‘Save me Tonight’, the album opener. But let’s face it, we’re all here to listen to the oldies, keeping with the overall theme. So things really start to warm up when they roll out ‘Rainbow Demon’ from 1972’s ‘Demons and Wizards’ album. Those psychedelic keyboards and supernatural lyrical themes were all the rage at the time, obviously, but this is a song that has stood the test of time. Here they are playing it at Wacken Open Air last year.

Heavy Metal Folk Song!

Better yet is ‘Gypsy’ from 1970.  It’s only a short set as always for an opener, but finishes with their self-described ‘Heavy Metal Folk Song ‘Lady in Black’, which is another crowd pleaser. Honestly, The Hawk couldn’t have enjoyed it more. Can they still cut it? You betcha. There was high energy, the musicianship was as good as ever, and just as important, they all look like they love being on stage now just as much as back in the good old days.

Some of the, ahem, younger audience members may have ignorantly assumed that Uriah Heep are a 70s soft rock outfit, but not a bit of it. These guys are loud, heavy, and fully deserving of a place on this Metal Masters bill.

Saxon Tradition

Next up are Saxon, the babies of the night, have formed their outfit in only 1975. But lead singer Biff Byford is still 73, so it’s all relative. As you’ll know only too well (and can read about if you’re a regular on this site) Saxon were one of the founder members of the tidal wave that became known as the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM), and appeared at the first ever Monsters of Rock show at Donnington.

Anyone going through their resume would assume Saxon to be traditionalists when it comes to their music, and they would be entirely correct. The band play in front of massive stacks of classic Marshall amplifiers. They lean heavily on the colour black for their stage outfits. They use strobe lighting as though it’s going out of fashion. Byford sounds like he has never set foot outside of Yorkshire in his life, with a proud accent as he yells at us to “Make some fookin’ noise Basel” and “Cum on”. It’s all great.

As with Uriah Heep, they are technically here to promote a new album, ‘Hell, Fire and Damnation’, kicking us off with the title track. Also as with Uriah Heep, most of the crowd want the old favorites. But we don’t have long to wait, with ‘Motorcycle Man’ from the classic ‘Wheels of Steel’ album next up.

Giving ‘Em What They Want

Saxon, to their credit, know fine well what their audience want, and therefore pack all the new or newish material into the first half of their set.

After that, it’s oldies all the way, with the albums ‘Wheels of Steel’ (1980), ‘Strong Arm of the Law’ (1980) and ‘Denim and Leather’ (1981) all getting a good workout. The last 3 tracks, ‘Denim and Leather’, ‘Wheels of Steel’ and ‘Princess of the Night’ all bring the house down, and rightly so.

Saxon have always known how to put on a show. You might say that their song writing lacks the creative edge of galaxy-class NWOBHM peers like Iron Maiden and Def Leppard, and that’s why they never quite made it as big. But you know what you’ll get at a Saxon gig, and nobody would ever begrudge the ticket price.

Wizard of Judas Priest

What about headliners Judas Priest? Technically, Priest are another 55-years-and-counting band, also having first come together in 1969. They have benefitted from injections of younger blood from time to time though. For instance, drummer Scott Travis who joined them in time to record the ‘Painkiller’ album in 1990 is a mere 62. Richie Faulkner came in as a replacement for a departing K.K. Downing in 2011, and he’s still only 44 (which is less than The Hawk, if you must know). And of course for live shows, 54 year old Andy Sneap fills in for the no-longer-touring Glenn Tipton.

So there’s a bit less grey hair on show when Priest hit the stage.  But. But, but, but. Rob Halford (72) looks 100% the part of a cantankerous old bugger – like the grandad who won’t grow old gracefully, spits on the sidewalk, shouts at passers-by and generally doesn’t care what anyone thinks about it all. That white bushy beard is something to behold these days – not quite Gandalf the white, but not far off either.

Comfort Zone At Last

That’s not to say that Halford really is a cantankerous old bugger – The Hawk has no clue on that one way or the other. But one thing for sure is that after all these years as a performer, and with plenty of personal tribulations under his belt, Halford now is very much comfortable in his own skin. He knows how to work a stage and a crowd, and does so with practiced ease.

That extends to the rest of his image as well – those gay-icon leathers are now worn with pride. And the motorcycle entrance (in this show, during one of the encores, ‘Hell Bent for Leather’) is seamless. And the famous Halford scream. That’s still going strong, and gets deployed regularly here.

Working Order

You couldn’t help but notice the contrast with bassist Ian Hill, who spent the whole show standing in one place in the back corner, but who still holds down the rhythm section as well as ever. He has plenty of help from Travis, who has such a languid, relaxed looking style that it seems effortless. But then, at times like the intro to ‘Painkiller’, he can still explode.

The guitars are smooth and professional, with both Faulkner and Sneap showcasing their skills to the max.

The Judas Priest setlist follows a similar pattern to the other 2 bands – there’s a bit from new album ‘Invincible Shield’, but the back catalogue gets a mighty workout. As well as ‘Painkiller’, there’s ‘You’ve Got Another Thing Coming’, ‘Saints in Hell’, and ‘Breaking the Law’. The band have added a guitar solo to that last one for the live performance, which is a nice touch. (They might have been doing that for a long time for all I know, but it’s nice to hear it up close).

Best For Last

As with Saxon, they leave the best until last, finishing off with ‘Electric Eye’ (best Priest guitar solo ever), ‘Hell Bent for Leather’ and ‘Living After Midnight’. And that’s it – 15 songs, over an hour and a half, all played with energy, skill and showmanship.

All in all it was a high quality night, and showed that The Hawk may have been panicking over nothing in that last article about older generation metallers. End of the day – if they still WANT to play it, and they still CAN play it, and the rest of us still WANT to hear it, then what’s not to like. For whatever reason, this gig was The Hawk’s first appearance at a Judas Priest show, and after hearing that, I’ll be hoping that it isn’t the last just yet.