SAXON frontman Biff Byford has reflected on nearly 50 years in music, telling Poland's Mystic Festival that the band feels "privileged and lucky" to still be writing new material. He credited the group's longevity to a genuine love of songwriting and staying connected with both longstanding and younger fans, aided in part by social media, and said he sees little real difference between metal audiences today and those from SAXON's early days in 1980.

The interview comes as SAXON prepares to release its new studio album, "Gods Of Thunder", in January 2027, the follow-up to 2024's "Hell, Fire And Damnation". It also follows a difficult period for Byford, who completed chemotherapy last October after being diagnosed with bowel cancer, having earlier undergone surgery and cancelled several 2025 shows; he had also been treated for a heart rhythm condition in 2024 and suffered a heart attack requiring emergency triple bypass surgery in 2019.