SAXON's BRIAN TATLER Talks About His Contributions To Upcoming 'Gods Of Thunder' Album, BIFF BYFORD's Health
In a new interview with Chas Byrne of Express FM, SAXON guitarist Brian Tatler spoke about the band's upcoming studio album, "Gods Of Thunder", which is tentatively due in early 2027 via Silver Lining Music. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH. NET): "It's all done. It's been mixed by [longtime. . .
In a new interview withChas ByrneofExpress FM,SAXONguitaristBrian Tatlerspoke about the band's upcoming studio album,"Gods Of Thunder", which is tentatively due in early 2027 via Silver Lining Music. He said (as transcribed byBLABBERMOUTH. NET): "It's all done. It's been mixed by [longtime producer andJUDAS PRIESTguitarist]Andy Sneap. It's in the can. It was sent off to the record label. So that's coming in January. "Regarding his songwriting contributions to"Gods Of Thunder"and the band's last album,"Hell, Fire And Damnation", which came out in January 2024,Tatler— who is one of the founding members of fellow New Wave Of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) legendsDIAMOND HEAD— said: "I think I probably try and write in a style that might work forSAXON. There's probably a few ideas I've had that I've thought, 'Mm, this doesn't really soundSAXON-ish, esque. ' But I have had this conversation withBiff[Byford,SAXONsinger], and he said, 'Well, it's no good trying to second-guess what I like. Just send me everything you've got, and I'll decide. ' And a couple of times I've done that and thought, 'Oh, he probably won't like that one. ' And then he does. He goes, 'Oh, I like that one. That's great. ' So I've learned not to worry about that too much. And I think everybody writes at home, and then we pool the ideas, andBiffgoes through it, 'cause, of course, he's gotta sing on it. He's gotta write lyrics. So he gets the final say as to which ones are gonna make the cut. And then we get together. This last year, we got together in Brighton and rehearsed the material before actually recording the drums and the bass and guitars and stuff. So that seems to be the process. And, of course, they've got it down to a fine art because, as you rightly say, [SAXONhas] done 25 albums. That's a lot of work. "Asked if there are any of his riff ideas which would possibly work for eitherSAXONorDIAMOND HEAD,Briansaid: "Maybe. I do think there's a style, there's aDIAMOND HEADsort of style. I sometimes think, 'That soundsDIAMOND HEAD-ish,' and I think the same withSAXON. But, as I say, I don't like to second-guess Biff too much because he can surprise. And I think he's probably looking for something that maybe they haven't done before, something new, something original. He is a big fan of rock and metal, and he doesn't take it lightly. He's very intense. He thinks about it a lot and puts a lot of time and thought into the songs. "Asked ifBiff's recent health issues have slowedSAXONdown in terms of touring,Briansaid: "It doesn't appear to. The only thing was — I mean, he had a triple bypass in possibly 2019. I, of course, wasn't in band at that point. Then he's had a cancer problem, and we had to cancel a bunch of dates last summer. So some of these dates got rescheduled for this year. But I think everybody was a little concerned as to how he would perform and how he would be. And when we just started rehearsing, he was, like, back to normal, back to six months ago. His voice sounded really strong, and I think we were all pleasantly surprised. And he's been great. These gigs have been fantastic. "I get to observeBifffrom just behind, and I'm amazed at his confidence and his charisma,"Tatleradded. "He handles the crowd, and how good he is at involving the crowd and talking to them and making the whole thing work. He's very good at that. I mean, he's had a lot of practice, but not everybody can do that. "This past June,SAXONannounced the first U. K. and Ireland leg of their"Gods Of Thunder"world tour, with further international dates set to be revealed in the coming months. Adding to the excitement, the band will revive its legendary 30-foot mechanized Eagle for all U. K. and Ireland shows, with the exception of Cardiff due to venue restrictions. Fans can also expect the return ofSAXON's celebrated "Castles & Eagles" stage production, promising one of the most spectacular live presentations in the band's history. Originally constructed in the early 1980s asSAXONprepared to tour their seminal album"Denim And Leather", the iconic Eagle was built by Midlands-based companyLSDusing airport runway landing lights. It made its first appearance during a pre-tour rehearsal in London before becoming an enduring symbol of the band. Towering above audiences duringSAXON's massive arena tours, the emblematic Eagle quickly becameSAXON's mascot and inspired the title of their acclaimed 1982 U. K. Top 5 live album,"The Eagle Has Landed", leading to fans requesting its presence ever since. Byfordcommented: "We wanted to make the'Gods Of Thunder'U. K. and Ireland tour extra special. And what better way than to fly our belovedSAXONEagle again. . . Get ready for take-off!"In a recent interview with France'sLast Ridepodcast,Biffspoke about the status ofSAXON's recently completed 25th studio album. He said: "I can't tell you anything about that. What we can tell you, though, is — [and this is an] exclusive — we can tell you that the album is coming out on [Friday] the 22 of January [of 2027]. Nobody knows that. You're the first person [we've told]. And you're gonna be able to order the album early September. And the first single — video and single — I think it's gonna be a seven-inch vinyl as well of the single, in September. "Last October,Byfordshared a video update in which he said he had completed the final round of chemotherapy in his fight against bowel cancer. AlthoughBiffreleased a video message in August 2025 in which he implied that he underwent an operation to remove "a small tumor" from his "prostate gland", he later clarified that he was actually diagnosed with bowel cancer, which is cancer that is found anywhere in the large bowel, including the colon and rectum. Byfordwas later treated with chemotherapy for "a short period", resulting in the cancelation of a couple of shows and the postponement of several others. Earlier in 2025,SAXONannounced the cancelation of 10 summer shows and festival appearances whileByfordwas recovering from the cancer surgery. In August 2024,Biffunderwent a "procedure" to treat atrial flutter, a type of heart rhythm abnormality, or arrhythmia, that causes the heart's upper chambers (atria) to beat too quickly. In September 2019,Biffsuffered a heart attack and underwent an emergency triple bypass surgery. "Hell, Fire And Damnation"was produced byAndy Sneap(JUDAS PRIEST,EXODUS,ACCEPT) andByford, withSneapmixing and mastering. In early 2023,SAXONguitaristPaul Quinnannounced that he was stepping back from touring with the band. As a result of his decision,SAXONcanceled its April 2023 South American tour as well as the appearance at theMonsters Of Rockcruise. Quinnhas since been replaced on the road and in the studio byTatler. Brianhas been touring withDoug,Nigel,NibbsandBiffsince mid-2023, but continues to be a member ofDIAMOND HEAD. ByfordandQuinnare the sole remaining original members inSAXON's current lineup. Originally from South Yorkshire, England,SAXONhas gone on to sell about 23 million albums and has produced such classic songs as"Denim And Leather","Princess Of The Night","Wheels Of Steel"and"Power And Glory".