PIG IRON will be back on the radio, with a distinctly foxy theme. In August Neil and I will be making our debut on Rocking Fox Radio and in October we`ll back on The Fox`s Den for another live session.
Our recent conversation with Mr Neil Saint will be going out globally (in the second hour of the programme, following his conversation with The Boomtown Rat`s bassist, Pete Briquette) from Rocking Fox Radio on Monday the 24th August at 8pm and Wednesday the 26th August from midnight.
In June we spoke to Neil Saint about the creation of our first ever album of original songs, the now infamous Roc na Seann Sgoile. You can listen to this interview via https://www.rockingfoxradio.co.uk/
What better way to spend a pre-bank holiday Monday evening! Let`s rock... or should that be roc?
Kickin` The Sunbeams was released in mid-January and has created a lot of interest, in particular rock and metal websites in Mexico. It`s great to reach a brand new audience.
To support that song a new video will be released on Friday 27th February, created by Neil (the writer of Sunbeams) using a great online tool called Rotor. It really emphasises the feel good factor of the song, with a cameo from one of our most dedicated supporters.
As we head into spring our next weather-themed track will be released, but be warned the music is taking a darker and heavier turn again. Also written by Neil, Cyclone is a powerful song with hints of Black Sabbath and Faith No More. It blends a wall of guitar with thunderous drums and bass, and a highly charged vocal performance.
Cyclone is due for release on Friday 20th March, a week after Neil and I make a return appearance on The Fox`s Den (Vixen 101) for a live set which will include these two songs, a few cover versions and some old favourites from Roc na Seann Sgoile. Friday 13th - what could possible go wrong!
It has been a busy year for us, celebrating our 25th anniversary with some new songs, a cover of War Pigs and two more appearances on The Fox`s Den radio show.
What are we looking forward to in 2026? In the spring we (myself, Neil and the Pete Box) will be returning to The Fox`s Den for another session, which is always good fun and I get to stay up way past my bed-time!
There are also more new songs in the pipeline, with Kickin` The Sunbeams due for release in mid-January and Cyclone due for release in February or March. Further down the line expect songs about eagles, Merlin, and modern technology.
We are planning to support the release of each new track with a video, in fact Neil is currently putting together a very uplifting, sunny video for the new song. Hopefully it will add a dash of cheer during the cold dark weeks of January.
On that note I shall wish you a happy new year and may 2026 rock your socks off.
Only a few shopping days until Christmas, then we can all relax for another year. Well, not us, we shall be working on our next couple of recordings, ready to spring upon the world in early 2026.
The next scheduled release is Friday 16th January, and a new song written by Neil called Kikin` The Sunbeams. It is an up-beat, feel-good song to get you through the dark depths of winter. It may well have a debut on The Fox`s Den on Vixen 101 on Boxing Day, so tune and support all the wonderful new music that Bill will be playing.
We wish you all a relaxing break and all the very best for 2026. As always we really appreciate your support.
Keep rocking it old school.
Friday was another exciting day for us at PIG IRON HQ as our new track hit the streaming sites. The Illuminati is our first full band collaboration since 2021`s "One Song". It tells the story of that mysterious group who are still talked of in hushed tones around the world. It is already getting rave reviews including, "Sounds like the bastard offspring of Sabbath and Hawkwind!"
Last week was our debut on CMRS Radio One and Voodoo Radio courtesy of Bamlett and the Spark. We had a really good interview with presenter Paul, who asked about the origins of the band, the recording of our original material, influences and future plans. Hopefully that has sent a few old school metal fans our way, hello to you if you are one of them.
Talking of radio Neil, Rich and the Pete-box will be back on the Fox`s Den on Vixen 101 on the evening of Friday 24th October. Very much looking forward to playing some new tunes, some old favourites and a couple of significant cover versions.
Finally, Halloween will see the release of the video to accompany The Illuminati, produced by our very own Madbad Macnab. It is suitably dark and trippy, I think he had a lot of fun putting that together.
It is almost upon us – after a frantic few weeks of recording, mixing, mastering and preparing for release – our cover of Black Sabbath`s War Pigs will hit the streaming and download sites on Friday 5th September.
It has been a great experience to record this classic metal song, and we are very grateful to the publishers for giving us the go-head so quickly.
Ozzy and Sabbath were a very important influence on our band, and it has been fantastic to see how many people across the world were inspired by what they did. The love shown for Ozzy is incredible, long may it continue.
We will be making a return appearance on The Fox`s Den Show on Vixen 101 at the end of October, so no doubt we shall play War Pigs along with our own songs – perhaps one or two brand new ones.
Only two weeks after he took to the stage for the final time with Black Sabbath, Ozzy has departed this world . Only now are we realising the amazing effort and determination it took him to do that last show. Ozzy, we salute you and along with Tony, Geezer and Bill we thank you for changing the sound of rock and roll music forever.
I was reminded of local rock drummer and good friend of PIG IRON, Tivvy Stealer Gomersall. Despite being diagnosed with mesothelioma (as a result of the York carriage works failing to protect workers from asbestos in the 60s) he was behind his drum kit until a few weeks before he left us, over thirteen years ago. Like Ozzy, he left a big gap in the local music world and is still sorely missed.
We look forward to playing some of those great Sabbath songs again, and keeping the flame burning. There are plans being hatched for an Ozzy/Sabbath tribute gig in York next summer, and we have already put ourselves forward to play two or three tunes, watch this space for more on that.
In the mean time we hope, publishers permitting, to release our version of War Pigs as a small tribute to Ozzy and the rest of Black Sabbath. We shall continue to celebrate the best of British, old school rock and metal by keeping it at eleven.
So dig out your old Sabbath vinyls and turn it up, alright now!
It has been a busy month for the band - Rich, Neil and the Pete Box returned to Vixen FM (Fox's Den) to play a live session on Friday 16th May and the following Thursday night the full band hosted the Edinburgh Arms Jam Night in York.
We marked our 25th anniversary back in November with a special on Vixen FM, Rich chatted with presenter Bill Horncastle about the history of the band, the recording of Roc na Seann Sgoile and future plans.
The Jam Night saw the full band take to the stage for the first time in over a year, as Pete was making a rare visit to York for a reunion of his other band, Lost effect.
There are lots of new songs in the pipeline and we hope to make a start on recording them this summer. While we probably won't put them together as an album, they will be available on all our usual streaming platforms, so look out for news here.