#207
by George Chastain
May 3 1980
Saxon
Wheels of Steel
Genre: Generic Heavy Metal
Allen’s Rating: 4 out of 5
George’s Rating: 1 out of 5
George’s Highlights: Suzie Hold On
By George Chastain Jr.
I think I should start off this review by saying I know very little about music or music history. As I read other reviews, I realized that I am unaware of a lot of artists, the tools of their trade and their music. When my brother, Sheff, told me about the listening post, I thought it was a great opportunity to become educated…and then I got Saxon. If I may, a brief story. In 1983, my brother, our friend Steve, and I went to US Festival. It was a 3 Day musical event where up to 10 bands played each day. Day One – New Wave, Day Two – Heavy Metal, and Day 3 – Rock Day (Think U2, David Bowie). Steve and my brother went all three days. I skipped Day 2 and went and visited friends at UCLA. I was not going to Day 2. The point of this story….I got SAXON! Ok, well, I consider myself to be musically eclectic, so who knows, I’ll give it a shot. Plus, my motto has always been every good band has some bad songs, and every bad band has some good songs. Maybe I’ll find a song or two to put on my playlist. I have always disliked Heavy Metal for two reasons. One, no one would ever call me a good singer. I would not be confused with Pavarotti or Frank Sinatra, so when I feel I could sing a song as well as the lead singer of the band I am listening to, I have little or no use for the band. Now, I do like the music of singers who are not terribly good vocalists, but in those cases, they are typically doing something very interesting with their music, their voice is unique, their lyrics overcompensate, or other musical elements rise to overshadow the vocals. I do not find this the case in heavy metal. Second, the heavy metal guitar sound to me is typically self-indulgent and done for the sake of a screeching guitar and not to propel the song forward. Just an opinion. So, to the review. I loved Saxon’s drums and rhythm guitar section, and when Motorcycle Man started, I thought, “Hmmm, maybe this will be ok.” Then, Peter Byford opened his mouth, and all hope was lost. I could have been the lead singer of Saxon, and I CAN’T SING. I truly hate his vocals – very whiny and with limited range. The lead guitar was fine, but nothing special and pretty generic. The standout throughout the album was the drums and rhythm guitars. Several songs reminded me of Sammy Hagar’s Standing Hampton, just not as a good and with far worse vocals. While I like the rhythm guitars and drums, all but 2 of the songs were interchangeable. There was not a lot of musical variety. The biggest change up was "Suzie Hold On," which is why I guess it is a highlight for me. Did I mention yet that the lyrics lacked complexity? Here are some examples: “Ya gotta stand up, stand up for your rights,” “We can make it, you can break it, stand up, stand up be counted,” and “She’s got wheels, wheels of steel, She’s got wheels of steel, Wheels of steel, My my my my wheels of steel.” If they say, “Strangers in the Night” one more time, I’m going to hurt someone. I had a headache after listening to this album. It’s sad, though, because I believe if the band had a better lead singer and some creativity with lyrics, song variety, and lead guitar, this band would have been fun because the drums and rhythm guitars were so kicking.
https://open.spotify.com/album/6EGEGr4oY0PsV6yGBxeQ8J?
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