SAXON – Solid Ball Of Rock [Remastered CD digipak +2] (2023) *HQ*

320_1 /// 320_2 /// HQ 1 /// HQ 2

As requested and continuing with British metal institution SAXON, here’s the recent remastered reissue of their 1990’s album ”Solid Ball Of Rock”, including bonus tracks.
”Solid Ball Of Rock” is the tenth studio album from SAXON, seen as a return to their British metal roots with a heavier, uptempo sound, revitalized by new bassist Nibbs Carter, who not only wrote five of it’s eleven tracks and co-wrote another three, but also brought a fat bass-driven punch – he even does a solo on ‘Bavarian Beaver’. Biff’s trademark rock howl is back in action, with his intrepid exploration of higher registers sounding so much more natural than the tremulous glam crooning he’d been employing previously.
Yeah, the title track is a catchy, commercial melodic hard rocker and ‘Requiem (We Will Remember)’ is not far from Def Leppard (and a very good one), but most the rest of the album is a biting mix of classic metal and groovy trad hard rock. And that bass… huge.

Hard-charging tracks like the edgy ‘Crash Dive’ and the blistering fast metal of ‘Baptism of Fire’ had been well in order after all the anthemic molasses that oozed from Power and the Glory and Crusader. In addition, sudden firestorms like ‘Altar of the Gods’ allows for a dazzling array of drum fills and polyrhythms – something that previous LP Destiny was sorely lacking.
‘Overture in B-Minor / Refugee’ is a great midtempo rocker, akin to something like Krokus‘ “Screaming In The Night”. Love it.
The rest of the way, Saxon fire up the engines changing gears between straight up hard rock tracks like ‘I Just Can’t Get Enough’ and ‘I’m On Fire’, and the galloping classic metal of ‘Lights In The Sky’. Biff and the band chose to deliver their Krokus / AC/DC influenced side with cool bits like the rock anthem, fat groove of “Ain’t Gonna Take It.”

Making his first studio album appearance since joining the band in 1989, it could be argued that bassist Nibbs Carter added a lot of youthful fuel to the band. With a hand in on a majority of the tracks, including a handful solely written by him, Carter is the major difference in the band over the previous few albums.
Not only does ”Solid Ball Of Rock’ deliver more like a Saxon album for the first time in a minute, it also finds the band returning with a fatter sound especially on the low end. It’s thicker and more aggressive.
Going forward, they released material for the most part that stands up to everything in their catalog outside of the trio of albums they’re released in 1980/81. It’s surely more than just a coincidence that Nibbs has stuck around this whole time.

Assisted greatly by the vibrant, lethal bass-oriented production, ”Solid Ball Of Rock” arguably sits at the tail end of the top better half of the band’s releases. Mixing classic metal with groovy hard rock, it’s not only a Saxon album worth having in the collection, but one certainly deserving of regular loud play.
Highly Recommended

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01 – Solid Ball of Rock
02 – Altar of the Gods
03 – Requiem (We Will Remember)
04 – Lights in the Sky
05 – I Just Can’t Get Enough
06 – Baptism of Fire
07 – Ain’t Gonna Take It
08 – I’m On Fire
09 – Overture in B-Minor / Refugee
10 – Bavarian Beaver
11 – Crash Dive
BONUS TRACKS:
12 – Requiem (We Will Remember) [Single Version]
13 – Reeperbahn Stomp [Original Bonus Track for Japan]

Biff Byford – lead vocals
Graham Oliver – guitar
Paul Quinn – guitar
Nibbs Carter – bass
Nigel Glockler – drums

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amazon.com/Solid-Ball-Rock-Saxon/dp/B0CB782YQ3