As overblown press releases go (and as a proud Northerner) I love this quote that came with Biff’s first ever solo album “The English North is everything you saw in Game of Thrones and more. It is the true heart of England, the region where its soul resides.” Now how true is that!
OK so it might not be all deep crisp snow, dire wolves and white walkers these days but I’ve always felt a special connection with the North of England and the Midlands and its beauty and history that I never felt in the more genteel South. And whilst it might be stretching a point to call Biff England’s ‘Heavy Metal Bard’ it’s not as far as you might think from the album you have in front of you which “takes on not just tales and stories from his heart and soul, but also investigates the Middle Ages and Medieval history“.
With a solo album though as you might expect it’s not something that’s straight Heavy Metal or Hard Rock, and whilst the subject matter delves into history the album cover chooses a Lowry-esque image of more recent times and seems therefore more personal. )Though why a man from Yorkshire’s West Riding would feature an image on his solo album that looks like the work of a Lancashire man is intriguing in itself).
That is perhaps best explained by Biff himself – “I’m singing about my past of course and about things I like, but mostly I wanted it to reflect me, my personality and my life,” says Biff. “Song-wise it’s more diverse and not just focused on heavy metal. I wanted it to be a slice of the music I like, from metal, to rock ‘n’ roll. I’m a guy who’s just as happy listening to Metallica or Judy Garland, because as long as it’s great and entertains me, then what more do I need?”
Well aside from the Judy Garland (thankfully not a hint of that here) there is a lot in here to digest and it all makes up what is really a great and very English hard rock album with a few diversions along the way.
Things start safely though, the album opens up with the “familiar ground” of ‘Welcome to the Show’ which sees Biff treading surely and safely with a blast of that vintage Saxon sound, with Biff in full flight and guitars wailing. It’ a great way to open the account.
And both that opener and the equally rocking title track that follows have autobiographical elements that start the journey wonderfully well. Its a story you’re just getting into when ‘Inquisitor’ hits. It’s quite jarring to be transported from the backstreets of Yorkshire and plunged into a Spanish-guitar backed treatise on the Spanish Inquisition, and whilst its a nice spoken-word piece it does set you o edge wondering what on earth comes next both for Biff autobiographically and sonically.
The answer comes in the shape of ‘The Pit and the Pendulum – a sprawling Metal epic that has more than a hint of contemporaries Iron Maiden about it. It’s a great song, and ‘World’s Collide’ that follows might even be the heaviest thing here.
And then comes the chaser, another two songs in the Hard Rock and Metal vein are again broken up by the unexpected – this time in the form of a cover of ‘Scarborough Fair’ the traditional English Folk song that some argue has its roots further North. It’s a nice arrangement and one that has a little heaviness and builds on the Simon and Garfunkel version as they did the earlier works (the melody they used dates back to 1891 so it’s an old song).
Of course next there’s more rock next up with the rip-roaring ‘Pedal to the Metal’ and the thrusting ‘Hearts of Steel’ before another highlight comes in the form of another cover – this time a rather great one of Wishbone Ash’s ‘Throw Down the Sword’ the epic closing track to their 1972 classic ‘Argus’.
The album closes with two more surprises – the laid back love song ‘Me and You’ and the inspiring ‘Black and White’ which may not be the hardest rocking on the album but which show another side of Biff entirely and leave you wondering “What if the next had more like this?”- let’s hope we find out.
It might have taken Biff 40 odd years to put out a solo album, but it’s a bloody good one.
