Heavy Water
Biography Heavy Water
Heavy Water
Lockdown blues? Oh you know it. Slathered in classic Rock ‘n’ Roll soul and soaked in gritty, hard-baked riffs, and topped off with rich, raunchy vocals… Welcome to Heavy Water and their debut album Red Brick City, the lockdown 2020 project between Saxon’s Biff Byford and his son Seb Byford, ten songs which bring you on an irrepressible raw blues-backed journey through influences and invention, a journey which has you hooked from the first note.
The foundations for Heavy Water’s sound are set in both that incredible father/son chemistry and a lifetime of know-how and experiences. Take the title track -and first single- ‘Red Brick City’: all steam and smoulder wrapped around a riff Soundgarden would’ve been proud of, and then there’s the sun-soaked smile of ‘Follow This Moment’ with harmonies evoking the Beach Boys relayed through Led Zeppelin, a gorgeous ‘70s trip right down to the fade out. Indeed, from the taut, elastic swing of the ‘Solution’ riff to the rich, layered balladic strains of ‘Tree in the Wind’, Red Brick City moves with the class and cadence of a cracking journey uniting vintage Rock ‘n’ Roll sensibilities with the crackle and excitement of a fresh, youthful perspective.
Seb Byford recorded and engineered Red Brick City at the Big Silver Barn in York, UK, while the drums were recorded by Ben Hammond at Reel Recording Studio in York. Seb produced the album with Biff, and Jacky Lehmann mastered. Red Brick City sees Seb take the reins on guitar and vocals, with Biff taking up the bass and vocal mantle. Tom Witts plays the drums, while Dave Kemp rounds out the Heavy Water line-up on keyboards and saxophone. A rich, lustrous ride through profoundly rewarding rock waters. To cap off this family affair, the packaging photos were taken by Steph Byford.
