The
Wörld of
The Concept
Roxxcalibur is a NWOBHM-Tribute Band (New Wave of
British Heavy Metal, see
Wikipedia
), focussing on the "lost gems" and
unknown bands/songs of that era. Most of these tunes never had a chance to be
recognized by a wider audience because
of several reasons, like poor distribution or being just "local heroes". In some
cases the original version was poorly produced
and the fans had no interest in looking behind that bad sound. Many of the
tracks covered by Roxxcalibur were called
"rough diamonds". That´s why the press called Roxxcalibur "gold diggers" and
"guardians of the NWOBHM".
Even though Roxxcalibur keep the original arrangements of the songs. When doing
headlining shows or gigs in front of
a regular metal audience, the band also adds some better-known songs (f.e. Iron
Maiden, Saxon, Diamond Head).
To most metalfans Roxxcalibur (on CD or live) appear as
an oldschool-sounding metalact and not like a coverband. Like Manfred Mann´s
Earth Band
or Vanilla Fudge for the rock/pop-genre, Roxxcalibur simply is an act who plays
songs written by other people. Just some NWOBHM-collectors
are able to see Roxxcalibur as a coverband. Nevertheless, the band is not hiding
the fact that their songs are covers from the NWOBHM era! It is
their aim to offer great unknown songs to a wider audience - to give them a
second chance!
Because of this unique concept Roxxcalibur got a worldwide record deal and have released two CDs. Unlike any other metal-tribute-band...
Philosophy & Studio Recordings
The term "you can´t beat the originals" may be right to those
few fans who know the songs but it is absurd
when you never had and never have the chance
to own the original LPs or 7" singles. Roxxcalibur handle all these songs with
care though. No modern influences are added to the songs and the recent
digital studiotechnic is only used as a tool but not as a part of the sound.
Both CDs were recording partially live, which means that drums, one guitar and
the bassguitar were recorded live in the studio as a basic for the additional
overdubs (second guitar, lead guitars and vocals). Clicktrack is only used
in some of the songs or on several parts of some songs. The overall performance
is more important than perfection. Most recent metalbands use programs
like Pro Tools to correct any mistakes. Roxxcalibur never did and will never do
that. Same with triggered drums or amp-simulations. The equipment
used by Roxxcalibur live and in the studio is not that different from what the
NWOBHM-bands used back in the days. No need to say that samples are
also not a part of the world of Roxxcalibur!
Singer Alexx Stahl has to deal with all the voices on the original songs. Same
with the personal styles of each musician appearing on the original
records. It would make no sense to "cover" all these details, so Roxxcalibur
play and sing each song in their own personality, while keeping
the original arrangements and necessary song details. The results are updated
versions of the original songs with a similar feeling and attitude.
Roxxcalibur - The Liveband
Each member is playing or has played in other bands that have required a
high dose of skills on each instrument. Maybe this is one of the causes
why Roxxcalibur called a great liveband. There are enough reserves left for
stage action and -sometimes- improvisations. The audience gets infected
by the fun Roxxcalibur have on stage, no matter if they play a large festival
venue or a club.
The setlist is a mix of both CDs and some additional NWOBHM-classics. Due to the
wide range of substyles within the NWOBHM, from hardrock
to speed/thrash metal, Roxxcalibur are able to fit the setlist to each gig.
Savage Grace, Griffin, Thunder Rider
Roxxcalibur are NOT a rentable backing band! In case of Savage Grace
(USA), Griffin (USA) and Thunder Rider (Can) Kalli, Roger, Mario
and Neudi were/are the band of the original singer who is the only member left
from the old days. Due to the big success of these shows
it is possible that they will go on with similar projects, but the main focus
will remain on Roxxcalibur. Also the band will only accept
offers of bands/singers they personally like!
The
Impact of Roxxcalibur
Most of the songs that appear on the CDs were unknown before Roxxcalibur
offered them to a bigger audience. This lead to a new interest
in those bands and in the NWOBHM in general. Since "NWOBHM For Muthas" was
released in 2009, the following bands/records saw
official re-releases:
Jameson Raid - Just as the Dust has settled (Roxxcalibur did their
song "7 Days of Splendour")
Bleak House - LP with both EPs and bonus (Roxxcalibur did their song "Rainbow
Warrior")
Dark Star - same title (Roxxcalibur did their song "Lady of Mars")
Savage - Loose and Lethal (Roxxcalibur did their song "Let it Loose")
.
