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Saxon - Wheels of Steel

If you see me coming get out of my way - 100%

goflotsam, December 22nd, 2019

Saxon is a band that needs little introduction. They are a highly influential band that was part of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWoBHM) movement. They have a trilogy of classic albums that cemented their legacy. I'll be reviewing the first of said trilogy, Wheels of Steel. A huge step up from their self-titled debut, this sophomore album from Saxon is undeniably a classic.

And a classic album with iconic tunes no less. Opening track "Motorcycle Man" lives up to its title, as the punk rock influences literally make it sound like if its made for bikers. "747 (Strangers in the Night)" stands out for having some killer psychedelic guitar tones to it, possibly being influenced by albums like The Doors' self-titled debut. Wheels of Steel's title track has some rather groovy guitar leads which makes it a perfect example of a song that influenced thrash metal. Just go compare the song to Metallica's "Seek & Destroy" and you'll understand my reasoning.

Being a NWoBHM band and having influenced thrash, Saxon is influenced by punk rock. This is perfectly displayed by Paul Quinn and Graham Oliver's guitar play on Wheels of Steel, which blends the punk influence with traditional metal. The solos are quick and the riffs are a strong demonstration of Saxon's genre as seen on tracks like "Machine Gun". Pete Gill's drumming is generally in the mid tempo range, but on songs like "Freeway Mad", he'll play at a more fast paced tempo reminiscent of Black Flag. Biff Byford's vocals on Wheels of Steel are different compared to say, Denim and Leather as his vocals are essentially a cross between a Paul Di'Anno rasp and Bruce Dickinson's soaring vocals. A good example of this comparison is on "Street Fighting Gang" which is also notable for having Oliver Dawson's best bass performance on Wheels of Steel.

Although I'd find a street fighting gang to be dangerous and scary, Wheels of Steel has all of the punches and kicks for a NWoBHM album. Along with Motörhead's Ace of Spades it pretty much served as the basis for a pseudo genre known as "biker metal". But unlike Motörhead, Saxon embraced metal as their genre and ended up becoming one of the biggest bands of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. As the band's breakthrough hit, Wheels of Steel is essential for any metalhead and it does not need a reason for this perfect score. This was a masterpiece since it was released almost forty years ago.

The Biker Side of Saxon - 86%

ballcrushingmetal, April 12th, 2018
Written based on this version: 1980, Cassette, Carrere

Even though the band released a more robust and consistent work six months later, their sophomore effort became the most praised piece within the NWOBHM and an emblematic album for said subgenre. While the fact of featuring radio-friendly stuff could have been coined as the most relevant driver of its success, it is also important to point out the use gave to the biker-related lyrics, which fit the standards of a decade on which being a biker was highly honored, if not a dream.

In terms of musicianship, the band tends to move over and over from the border between hard rock and heavy metal, resulting in a set of songs that could be as romantic and sentimental as "Suzie Hold On" or as epic as "747 (Strangers in the Night)". Such a variety is a point in favor of the album when all is said and done; however, when the band tuned things down, they took certain wrong decisions, as mid-paced numbers like the title song and "Suzie Hold On". Even when both songs are still worthy-listening, they are not able to reach the dynamism that characterizes their trademark sound, making the album a little bit inconsistent. An exception to this issue, is "747 (Strangers in the Night)". That song fucking owns everything in the road, especially the solo played during the intro.

However, when these guys combine speed metal with their lyrics dealing with their stories about owning the highway, they do it astonishingly, giving life to moments in which men and machines lived together to conquer the roads. Is there someone rocking more than that? No, definitely no. These guys are the masters of chains and leather, and did not hesitate at making the Earth shake from the very beginning with the frantic speed metal number "Motorcycle Man". Its interesting riffs and tremendously accelerated drumming are in line with the musical standards established by Motörhead. In few words, it's pure Motörhead worship. Running wild through a similar path, "Freeway Mad" and "Street Fighting Gang" also represent the spirit of the highway that [insert the name of the wildest power trio in the British metal scene] exploited during the previous decade, especially during their earliest years. But if you think insanity stopped here, give yourself some minutes to listen to the craziest track on the album: "Machine Gun". Such hyperactive closing number begins with an intro riff that indeed tries to imitate the speed (if not the sound) of a machine gun. Thereafter, the band plays like Deep Purple on amphetamines, or even worse than that.

No matter how great is the next album. The band provided an incredible performance that reaches the levels of speed, savageness, and intensity that best characterize the NWOBHM, mainly, when their front-man is no other than Biff Byford, and their guitarists demonstrated to remain as one with their instrument. Once again, no matter how good is the next album, whether you choose this one or the other, your experience would be somewhat satisfactory.

Wheely Important - 85%

Tanuki, July 12th, 2017

There's a time and place for sickly sweet glam rock like Saxon's 1979 Big Teaser single. The place is the darkest fissures of Tartarus, and the time was certainly not 1980. This is when the true heavy metal arms race began: Every NWOBHM band imaginable began throwing wild haymakers like Angel Witch, Lightning to the Nations, Iron Maiden, and perhaps most relevantly, Ace of Spades. If Saxon wanted to remain competitive in the ensuing British artillery salvo, they'd have to focus. No more bringing a decent potluck like Saxon to the roast; they'd have to decide on their best recipe and perfect it.

And that, my friends, is Wheels of Steel. This is a pot of mouth-watering speed metal chilli con carne, one that you can slap in your freezer and reheat for the next few decades, and it'll be just as filling and satisfying every time. Guitar and drum tone is flawless, the classics are ceaseless, and the line between grizzled, streetwise crunch and broad commercial appeal has never been blurred quite so masterfully. Except Ace of Spades, probably.

As Saxon was consistently touring with Motörhead at the time, picking up some good habits should be considered doubtless. You could make a drinking game out of it, but to honor Saxon, drink a cup of Yorkshire tea every time this album sounds like Motörhead. The fried, overdriven bass passage at the end of 'Street Fighting Gang'? The blues change-up and barking chorus of 'Machine Gun'? The frantic glissando solo in 'Motorcycle Man'? And don't forget the phenomenally controlled shuffle beats that bolster 'Stand Up and Be Counted'. I hope you've brewed a lot of tea.

And speaking of keeping the kettle boiling, Pete Gill isn't the only bafflingly consistent member in Mk I Saxon. Frontman Biff Byford outdoes himself, his insistence on allowing his aggressive snarling delivery still retain melody bearing a cornucopia of fruit in the much celebrated '747 (Strangers in the Night)' power ballad, and the hardboiled ode to the road 'Freeway Mad'. Better still are his soulful, bluesy shouts inspired by and reminiscent of the paragons of 50's and 60's rock. So it looks like Biff got his wish after all: Wheels of Steel is a glorious cocktail of punk, rock 'n' roll, and prog rock, and mixed a lot more equitably than their self-titled debut.

But alas, although this album has every right to be placed on an altar in the NWOBHM pantheon, I would never call it perfect. 'Suzie Hold On' is a misguided harkening back to those dark times of Big Teaser, and similarly doe-eyed pop-rock like Priest's 'Evening Star'. Furthermore, just as any sophisticated Motörhead fan will urge first-time listeners to venture outside the all-devouring realm of Ace of Spades, I'd strongly recommend doing the same for Wheels of Steel. Listen and enjoy, but keep a lookout for other great Saxon albums; there are plenty to come, and in years you'd least expect them.

Creating the vocabulary of NWOBHM - 94%

Drequon, April 12th, 2015

And there it is. Although not a flawless record by any means, "Wheels of Steel" is one of a handful of absolutely essential albums for anyone who wants to have a clear vision of what NWOBHM was all about and to understand how it came to influence almost everything done in heavy metal music ever since.

Learning from the problems faced while recording their first LP, Saxon found a good producer (Pete Hinton, a man whose role in forging the NWOBHM archetypal sound is never properly acknowledged, IMO) and captured in the studio the sheer intensity that was so evident in their live performances. Conjuring the biker spirit that lived in rock music since Steppenwolf's "Born To Be Wild", mixing it with the obligatory influences of '70s metal (most of all Judas Priest) and adding loads of youthful energy, Saxon forged its own interpretation of what heavy metal should be to survive the '80s and created something that now is almost synonymous with heavy metal, period.

"Motorcycle Man" is almost an epiphany, a near-revelation of what early '80s heavy music should strive to achieve. The simple-but-strong riffs, the intense pace, the unique vocals of Biff Byford...it's exactly what the potentially huge fanbase of long-haired metalheads wanted to hear - unashamedly upbeat heavy music played with unbridled enthusiasm. And it was so groundbreaking that I'm sure nobody even knew at first that this was the new metal they were looking for. Listening to it 35 years into the future, the crudeness of the whole thing is too loud to be ignored, and I'm sure dozens of bands have done it even better in subsequent years. But it sure gets easier when the vocabulary is already at hand, and that's what Saxon did with this single tune: they created a landmark, an example to be followed. That's quite something, if you ask me.

As above stated, "Motorcycle Man" was an instant classic, but some other songs deserve the same accolades such as "Freeway Mad", "See the Light Shining" (with a not-really-complex but extremely effective tempo change that grabs you by the neck and just won't let go), the nice semi-ballad "Suzie Hold On", and the slightly less upbeat (but equally intense) title track, among others. Personally speaking though, I consider "747 (Strangers in the Night)" to be not only the best song on here, but perhaps the finest song Saxon ever recorded. It unites a dramatic feeling (the suspense building of the lyrics about two airplanes with difficulties to land is near perfect) with a main riff that is pure genius, an opening solo to die for, and a driving rhythm that will make you bang your head without even noticing. What a classic metal tune, my friends.

I don't think that "Street Fighting Gang" is in the same league that the other songs are in here, and "Stand Up and Be Counted" is perhaps slightly inferior to the others, too. But make no mistake, "Wheels of Steel" is an album you just have to add to your collection in case you still don't have a copy. This record resumes Saxon and also a fair bit of what NWOBHM was, is, and forever shall be. No less. And oh yeah, it also rocks like a monster, so you won't be disappointed with that, either. Believe the hype and go get it straight away.

Talking 'bout my wheels of steel - 80%

Mikesn, December 22nd, 2006

At the end of the 1970's, heavy metal was still in its fledgling years. For the most part, it was spearheaded by to Birmingham bands, Black Sabbath and Judas Priest. But as the 70's became the 80's, metal would have its first breakthrough in Britain. This new wave of British heavy metal bands practicing their trade (creatively titled NWOBHM – or – New Wave of British Heavy Metal) combined the British metal of the 70's and the punk rock or the time which controlled the UK's music scene at the time. It was here that metal would truly take off, as hundreds of bands popped out of seemingly anywhere. Of the hundreds of bands that gave the industry a shot, four of them gained a major foothold in the scene. Those four bands were Angel Witch, Def Leppard, Saxon, and of course Iron Maiden. Though each of the four bands would take a different career path, they all recorded albums in 1980 (being Iron Maiden, Wheels of Steel, Angel Witch, On Through the Night) which today are considered to not only be important to the development of heavy metal, but also some of NWOBHM's top works. Wheels of Steel was Saxon's second full length album, and is seen as one of the band's strongest efforts.

Like many of their NWOBHM counterparts, Saxon's efforts on Wheels of Steel are raw, fist pumping offerings. Energy is the name of Saxon's game, and they make use of this valuable asset quite well. Numbers such as 747 (Strangers in the Night) and the title track use this to their advantage, creating a mid to fast paced adventure for fans of the band to immerse themselves in. There's a very good reason for why Saxon garnered so much acclaim with their sophomore effort, and the solid, consistent rhythms that produce the riffy, yet accessible tunes can be considered one of the major catalysts. Virtually every song contains at least one moment where the Quinn/Oliver guitar tandem shows off their rhythmic talents. Indeed, the riffs create one of the more memorable aspects of the band's music; will be remembered days after listening to the album. For the most part, the different instrumental aspects of the album are quite simple, as is the standard of NWOBHM music, but this does not take away from the music at all, really. Saxon isn't the most impressive band musically, but they're a helluva lot of fun to blare through a stereo.

But the most impressive part of Saxon's attack is by far vocalist Bliff Byford. This powerful singing often sets the tone of the music, whether it be through a strong, proud chorus or a melodic effort in the verses. By far my favourite performance by Byford on Wheels of Steel occurs during the chorus of 747. Very calm concentrated, yet energetic and determined at the same time, Bliff steals the spotlight from the guitarists not only as he sings " We were strangers in the night / Both on separate flights / Strangers in the night (x2) / Lost on separate flights / Going nowhere", but also on tracks such as Suzie Hold On or the title track, Wheels of Steel. Yes, the melodic, yet raw, clean yet rough style of Bliff Byford is most definitely Saxon's greatest strength, and most impressive member.

Though perhaps not one of metal's best albums, Wheels of Steel is still a very worthwhile album. Through driving rhythms, impressive vocal deliveries, and infectious leads, Saxon has succeeded in creating an 39 minute album full of early metal anthems that metal and hard rock fans alike can rock out to. Wheels of Steel was Saxon's breakthrough album and assured that like some of their counterparts, Iron Maiden, Diamond Head, or Angel Witch for instance, they would be remembered years down the road. Unlike today, where the majority of bands attempt live off of the successes of their latest albums for a few years, Saxon did not sit back. Instead they headed right back to the studio to record their third album in to years, Strong Arm of the Law, which was greeted with similar praise as Wheels of Steel. This is a great album, and I would definitely recommend it to fans of rock and metal.

Originally written for Sputnikmusic

Best Saxon album ever - 100%

Harry_gr, May 25th, 2005

Wheels Of Steel might sound somewhat dated and simplistic by today’s standards, but remains an example of what traditional heavy metal is all about. It’s direct, raw, melodic, loud and proud! Much more mature than the band’s debut, it made Saxon really popular at the time and earned them a top 5 position in the UK charts.
Wheels Os Steel is the best Saxon album to this day and their heaviest of the 80s. Its sound was much harder and heavier than anyone at the time. Well except for Motorhead perhaps. Remember, it was February 1980 when it was released. At the same time it manages to be melodic, although driven by heavy guitar riffs.
What puts Saxon aside is that they are unique. Even though they play traditional heavy metal they are pretty diverse lyrically. They don’t sing about evil, witches, death and all that stuff. They are much more direct and closer to the listener, talking about motorcycles, street fighting gangs, an air-flight and much more, which makes them at least interesting. Someone might say that they are silly. I’d say they are sincere and don’t try to write ‘thoughtful’ lyrics because they are a heavy metal band and play simple, though inspired music.
So, what about the songs themselves? They are all really good, some of them standing out. The first track Motorcycle Man is a very aggressive and fast song. Pretty melodic, with nice solos. A suitable opener for the album. Street Fighting Gang and Stand Up And Be Counted are both fast and very melodic with great refrains and cool lyrics. Machine Gun has some excellent rhythms throughout (check out at 1:40) and good solos which make really interesting. 747 is the most melodic song and probably the best Saxon song. A live favorite, 747 features outstanding guitar work at the beginning followed by a great bridge/refrain, with very good lyrics and vocals. The album has no fillers and all the other tracks are perfect early 80s metal.
Saxon’s sound is very unique as I said (even Biff Byford’s voice) and can’t be compared to another band. You have to hear it yourself to decide. Saxon may not be the best players. They can’t play very technical solos but they have the most powerful riffs. Biff may not be the best singer, but he sings his heart and lungs out. Just as the rest of the band, they give it all. And that’s what heavy metal is all about, at least for me.

NWOBHFuckingM - 93%

Nightcrawler, October 17th, 2004

The second studio release from Saxon is every bit as legendary as it possibly gets. A milestone among the NWOBHM scene and metal in general, and standing as the superior album of 1980, above albums such as "British Steel" and "Iron Maiden". With raging riffs often nodding to the fury of total speed metal, incredible solo sections of truest heavy metal style, and the soaring vocals of frontman Biff Byford, this goes in to kick your ass and doesn't fail in the least.

The sound is rawer than on most Saxon albums, and doesn't sound as refined as their masterpiece "Denim And Leather", which here works really fucking well. Songs like "Stand Up Be Counted" and "Street Fighting Gang" start out with furious main riffs with an absolutely fucking vicious sound and guitar tone. These two songs are not often mentioned when talking about this album, but I fucking love em!
"Stand Up And Be Counted" is standard upbeat early 80s Saxon which means total ownage. A very catchy main riff and inspiring vocals, and it peaks at a vicious chorus - a superb guitar melody duals with Biff's excellent vocal work.
"Street Fighting Gang" is more aggressive, with lyrics that basically say "fuck school, let's go kick someone's ass!" Hell yeah. This band in their early 80s defined what Heavy Metal is all a bout.


This album just never lets up, and is a nonstop ride to metal heaven showing no speed limits. This has more classics than any other Saxon album, pretty much. Opening track "Motorcycle Man" is definitely among Saxon's top 10 material. Just kickass, catchy speed metal with tons of attitude. Same with the short but sweet "Freeway Mad" and monstrously insane closing track "Machine Gun". Like Boris said, this is fucking crazy for it's time.
And of course, "747". We all know this one - the huge mood changes and atmosphere it creates while rocking hard at the same time. An undeniable classic, and one of the band's most well known tracks, although it's ten times better live. And then we mustn't forget the title track. "Wheels of Steel" is about cruising down the freeway, ignoring the speed limits and taking no shit. It rides pretty much two riffs for about five minutes, but somehow manages not to get boring - only Saxon and Priest could pull something like that off.

I can't go without mentioning the remaining two songs as well - "See The Light Shining" brings some more catchy fast riffage but is a bit more melodic and laid-back than the rest. It also features a very nice breakdown towards the middle. Then we have "Suzie Hold On", definitely the best Saxon ballad I've heard. It's a ballad, but still has some damn nice riffs and a brilliant lead section in the middle.


Should you get this? I don't know, are you metal? If so, you already own it. "Wheels of Steel", while not quite the catchy heavy metal monster that is "Denim And Leather", is a metal record with punch, and is a hard kick in the nuts to all poseurs out there. Long live heavy fucking metal!

Wheels Of Steel - 90%

Condor_Lord, May 12th, 2004

Note: This is my first review on this site. Not that anyone cares, but it is.

After the release of their self titled album, Saxon recorded an album that certainly established many NWOBHM standards and contained many classics that still remain as mandatory live pieces. After an overview of the album and a couple of listens, you will conclude that this is the purest traditional heavy metal album ever: mid-tempo songs with crunchy riffs, faster pieces with repetitive high standards, a high pitched vocalist, lead guitar duels in all songs, a pounding and slow bass and a big variety in the lyrics.

Let's go from the beginning, cover art. As the album, simple and classic: for the first time the almighty Steel Eagle shows it's shiny face to light grabbing a wheel with a very sober background. Not pretentious at all, just raw but yet very formal, like the music of the album.

The album starts with Motorcycle Men, slightly faster than classic mid tempo songs, with a standard riff going and going, some decent solos and outstanding drumming -for the time-. Biff's voice is at one of it's highest stages, including several high pitches and vibratos. Bass is almost unhearable and, as expected from the title, very cheesy lyrics.

Stand Up And Be Counted goes next, nice tune, a little slower, yet, nothing special, besides the chorus guitar harmonies that would have been better with some studio work; bass guitar here plays an essential role with pounding long notes in the background and drumming, again, for NWOBHM standards ranks very high.

Then comes 747 (Strangers In The Night) one of the best metal songs ever recorded. Cool lyrics (quite unexpected at this point after the cheese of previous songs), nice intro solos and, better than all, the fucking chorus: while the drums and bass go on with a mid tempo pseudo aggressive line, some electric and melancholic arpeggios break into scene while Biff's voice recreates all the solitude of the song's character… just fucking classic.

The album's title track is another highlight, Wheels Of Steel. This song is certainly the heaviest of the album, a crunchy riff -somehow very Diamond Headesque- that goes on and on all over the song with some good solos and a regular vocal line, with the pounding bass that by now you know I love. Again, the drums make the song here -Pete Gill was certainly an awesome drummer-, without being too brilliant, but it's the only instrument that actually provides changes to the song; lyrics are as cheesy as it gets.

Freeway Mad is the lowest spot on the album nothing, it's like taking an Elvis LP and speeding the LP player to make it sound fast and high pitched -I did that, and believe me, it sounds similar-.

See The Light Shining, dedicated to ex-Motörhead's Fast Eddie, is a cool track but it could have been named Stand Up And Be Counted revisited; the chorus harmonies are outstanding and the slow part of the end is a tempo change very unsusual for Saxon; best solos on the album.

Another cool track is Street Fighting Gang, with a nice guitar duel at the intro and some cool solos -besides Biff's siblings and Dawson's "solo"-,cool for headbanging and getting in a metal mood; cheesiest than cheese.

Suzie Hold On is just the bad song of the album, forget about it.

The album ends with Machine Gun, faster song on the album, the standard fast NWOBHM track, it does not sound very good on the record but in live versions -The Eagle Has Landed pt. 1, with Fire In The Sky- it's way better; maybe it is too long for being that way; vocals sound a little out of place on some parts.

Production is essentially poor, particularly guitar distortion and bass sound -almost unhearable-, but, nevertheless, the album rocks and is certainly a NWOBHM classic with a big influence in many future bands and in Saxon itself.

(Originally written for Raging-Metal.com - http://www.raging-metal.com/reviews/r0526.html)

A bit boring at times, occasionally spectacular - 78%

UltraBoris, August 25th, 2002

This is pretty much a staple of the NWOBHM - at times, it's a bit rockish and silly, but some of the tracks here are pure fucking metal that deserve to be paid immediate attention to.

"Motorcycle Man" starts off the album in great speed-metal fashion. Nice headbanging anthem to be had here. "Stand Up and Be Counted" is a bit slower, and kinda rock-and-roll-ish, which Saxon also was known for at the time.

"747" is just a downright cool power metal song. It's not quite as heavy as some of the other tracks here but the riffs are complete metal. Nice lead guitar to be found in here too. The title track, it's just a bit boring. Okay, it's very boring. But hey, we've got "Freeway Mad Next", which comes roaring back to kick our faces in. Yes, when they sing about owning the highway, they suddenly get very very good.

"See the Light Shining" is also pretty silly, and "Street Fighting Gang" is a step up with some cool riffs. "Suzie Hold On" is pretty damn crappy. It's a stupid ballad. Again, sometimes they just wanna play nice happy rock 'n roll...

at other times, they fucking own us all with their monstrous speed metal riffs, like the last song!! Machine Gun!!!!! This thing nearly would give fucking Blitzkrieg a fright - for February, 1980 - read, before Rapid Fire, this is really fucking insane. We have to sit through the rest of the album for quite a while, but when we get here... PREPARE... TO... DIE!!!!!

Fuck yeah!! The album begins great, ends great... in the middle, kinda goes through the motions a bit. Get it, though - just for the last track!!!

MACHINE GUN!!! MACHINE GUN!!!