Thursday, March 8, 2018
They're Back!
There was a time, a long, long time ago, when you would hear a Little Feat tune followed by a Judas Priest tune on FM radio. Ah yes, I remember it well. It happened one night on WNEW-FM. It was a song called "Beyond The Realms Of Death" from an album called "Stained Class" that started it all for me and my love of Judas Priest, and for a few years, I was a full blown metal head.
The trio of records Judas Priest released between 1978-1980 were as important to me as The Beatles, Bowie and Todd Rundgren were, and their 1980 release, "British Steel" is without question, my choice for not only the greatest heavy metal record of all time, but one of the greatest of any genre.
I don't listen much to Judas Priest these days. I'll be the first to admit that this particular brand of metal does not age well. (Or maybe, I am the one who does not age well.) But "British Steel" remains close to the turntable, it's that good.
"Firepower," the new Priest record drops tomorrow and I am very excited about it. I heard the title track yesterday, and no band 45 years after the fact, should be making music this good.
I know Judas Priest isn't for everyone, but give the two tracks here a spin for your old pal Sal. The track below closes out "British Steel" and the groove the band falls into for the coda, is a motherf**ker!
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9 comments:
I’m in! Both kick ass - and are much more energizing than the black coffee in front of me this morning. Thanks Sal!
Back in the day I thought "Rocka Rolla" had a great cover, but when I heard it thought the production was wimpy and I hated the vocals.
I never gave Judas Priest another thought, and looked down on metal in general.
It's usually the vocals. Slash is great, hate Axl.
Turns out everyone in Foglizard loves Priest and I can totally hear it in these songs.
They kick ass, and Rob's vocals aren't as bad as I remember. They serve the music well.
The songwriting and band are tight as fuck on "Firepower".
NYC voice teacher Claudia Friedlander listened to five heavy metal singers and this is her impression of Rob Halford:
"This singer has a fabulous range of vocal colors and effects to choose from. His diction is easy to understand and his phrasing is lovely throughout. He begins with such a high gorgeous, resonant messa di voce that I was surprised to hear how low his actual full singing voice sits once he moved into it. Clearly he had been singing with a somewhat elevated larynx when he started out so high, and later in the song when he moves into a more shrill, high sneer or a scream you can tell his larynx is in a much higher position once again. The high singing and screaming is still relatively free, but I feel that it would be even more impactful if he would master a vocal technique that would enable him to better integrate all of these different things he does so well, primarily with the goal of incorporating the depth and resonance of his natural low sound into the high stuff. He is the only one of the five who I truly wish would visit my studio some time."
A truly great voice with a crack band. I tolerate the other HM bands...I LISTEN to Priest!
Sorry, here's that post http://www.claudiafriedlander.com/the-liberated-voice/2010/07/vocal-styles-classic-metal-singers.html
"Living After Midnight" was a staple of all the bar bands in Columbus OH. I was especially happy when Z-Rock (RIP) resurrected Priest's cover of "The Green Manalishi" for their playlists.
Honestly, 99% of metal sounds to me like stray cats and scrap iron rolling down a steep hill in a steel drum. Consequently, I'd never given Judas Priest much thought, but that second piece wasn't at all bad. And I do agree with you about that ending.
In the mid-Eighties, a friend of mine had attended a Judas Priest show at the now-defunct Reunion Arena in Dallas. While in the concession line prior to the concert, he remarked to his friend that he was looking forward to hearing the opening act (Dokken) as well. After he made this comment, the stranger in front of him in line turned around, looked straight at my friend and with dead seriousness proclaimed. "When you come to see the Priest, you come to see THE PRIEST."
Years later, when I attended a Priest show (on the Painkiller tour), this line got repeated by me and my fellow concertgoers familiar with the story...though, of course, much less seriously.
That new tune's pretty solid.
You're preaching to the converted, matey. Followed the lads from early on, headbanging stage-front with the best of 'em (neck brace optional), standing firm as the line-up changed due to exploding drummers (some mistake, surely? - Ed) and recent axemen replacements plus Halford leaving to form his own band called, er, Halford, and then returning to the fold. Fully concur "British Steel" is something of a classic of its genre. Still to dip my toes into the new album but, yes, "Firepower" does kick some arse. Cheers!
OUCH! My hiney hurts!
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