DJMayes
Ancient Mariner
I did say it was a spicy take! I just don't care for the early Priest sound. The only 70s album of theirs I didn't put in my personal bottom 6 (along with the Ripper albums) was Stained Class.
JUDAS PRIEST ALBUM RANKING GAME: #6 REVEALED
- Thread starter Mosh
- Start date
We will get into this more as we go on, but it seems that this forum largely disagrees.
I put Stained Class at the top of my list. What a killer album and truly one of the bedrocks of heavy metal.
MindRuler
Ancient Mariner
It's in my Top 3 Priest albums! I love the sound of Turbo but hey...I´m a sucker for polished 80´s AOR (like Van Zant´s selftitled or Leppard´s Hysteria) too so that must be it
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9: Sin After Sin
10: Killing Machine
11: Turbo
12: Nostradamus
13: Redeemer of Souls
14: Ram It Down
15: Point of Entry
16: Jugulator
17: Demolition
18: Rocka Rolla
Highest Score: 15 (@Mosh)
Lowest Score: 4 (@LooseCannon @The Mercenary)
And we have our first major blasphemy of the game.
I was pretty surprise at this result honestly as I have always seen Sin After Sin as an essential album of the genre, not just Priest, which I wouldn't say for Angel of Retribution or Firepower. I also think this album, while it doesn't have Victim of Changes, is slightly more consistent than Sad Wings of Destiny. I suppose it is a bit of a deep cuts album compared to the other classic Priest albums - Stained Class has Beyond the Realms of Death, Angel of Retribution has Judas Rising, and of course Sad Wings has Victim of Changes and The Ripper which is an iconic album opening. However, I wouldn't say that's for lack of quality. For my money, Sinner is every bit as great of an opener as Victim of Changes. I also always loved the speed metal stylings of Let Us Prey/Call For the Priest. Dissident Aggressor is also probably the heaviest thing to come out of any speakers in 1977. These are songs that are formative to the classic Priest sound and perfectly blend metal with the band's early progressive stylings.
The Mercenary and LooseCannon were not the only members to have blasphemous low rankings. Several members included the album in their bottom 5s and a few lists didn't crack the top 10. In fact six(!) out of the 14 lists placed the album at #10 or lower, which surely contributed to its lower ranking with few exceptionally high scores to balance these out. The album just barely missed out of my top three, personally, although it was close. Only three other members put the album in their top 5s. Needless to say, not a lot of support coming out for Sin After Sin compared to albums still to come. In fact, the album was only two points away from falling to #10 beneath Killing Machine.
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9: Sin After Sin
10: Killing Machine
11: Turbo
12: Nostradamus
13: Redeemer of Souls
14: Ram It Down
15: Point of Entry
16: Jugulator
17: Demolition
18: Rocka Rolla
Highest Score: 15 (@Mosh)
Lowest Score: 4 (@LooseCannon @The Mercenary)
And we have our first major blasphemy of the game.
I was pretty surprise at this result honestly as I have always seen Sin After Sin as an essential album of the genre, not just Priest, which I wouldn't say for Angel of Retribution or Firepower. I also think this album, while it doesn't have Victim of Changes, is slightly more consistent than Sad Wings of Destiny. I suppose it is a bit of a deep cuts album compared to the other classic Priest albums - Stained Class has Beyond the Realms of Death, Angel of Retribution has Judas Rising, and of course Sad Wings has Victim of Changes and The Ripper which is an iconic album opening. However, I wouldn't say that's for lack of quality. For my money, Sinner is every bit as great of an opener as Victim of Changes. I also always loved the speed metal stylings of Let Us Prey/Call For the Priest. Dissident Aggressor is also probably the heaviest thing to come out of any speakers in 1977. These are songs that are formative to the classic Priest sound and perfectly blend metal with the band's early progressive stylings. The Mercenary and LooseCannon were not the only members to have blasphemous low rankings. Several members included the album in their bottom 5s and a few lists didn't crack the top 10. In fact six(!) out of the 14 lists placed the album at #10 or lower, which surely contributed to its lower ranking with few exceptionally high scores to balance these out. The album just barely missed out of my top three, personally, although it was close. Only three other members put the album in their top 5s. Needless to say, not a lot of support coming out for Sin After Sin compared to albums still to come. In fact, the album was only two points away from falling to #10 beneath Killing Machine.
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
When I submitted my list, I placed Sin After Sin at #5. After relistening a few times, it's still a pretty good Priest album but far from the best.
The opening 1-2 punch of the top tier Sinner and Diamonds and Rust (the best cover Priest ever did) is amazing. Killer way to open an album. Dissident Aggressor is also phenomenal. The biggest strength of Sin After Sin is that it opens and closes exceedingly well. Let Us Prey/Call For The Priest is a really cool song that really only feels a bit wonky due to the production available (and also it's too long). Absolutely killer unison guitar work, though!
All of this said, it's still in the upper tier of the Judas Priest discography and really cemented their style. If Sad Wings was where they started to find their sound, this is where they solidified it. Every album from here builds on this sound more than anything that came before. It's definitely an important record. Gotta give a lot of credit to Simon Phillips' double bass kick drum work here, as it's one of the earliest instances of "running double bass" in metal.
This one dropped a half point, landing at 7.5/10.
The opening 1-2 punch of the top tier Sinner and Diamonds and Rust (the best cover Priest ever did) is amazing. Killer way to open an album. Dissident Aggressor is also phenomenal. The biggest strength of Sin After Sin is that it opens and closes exceedingly well. Let Us Prey/Call For The Priest is a really cool song that really only feels a bit wonky due to the production available (and also it's too long). Absolutely killer unison guitar work, though!
- Starbreaker should be at the same level, but something about it just never really works as well as it should. It's got that classic Priest boom-bap, a solid enough chorus, a really cool harmonized guitar part in the bridge...but it just feels a bit lame (the hand claps certainly don't help). The section that sounds like Rush really doesn't work for a band like Priest. The song needed to be either 20% heavier or 20% lighter. It's caught in a weird in-between. Also, like many songs here, it just goes on and on and on and on until a fade out. Certainly not a bad song, but one that could have been much better.
- Last Rose of Summer is not good. There's nothing to hate about it, it's more competent than far lesser songs in the Priest catalogue, but it mostly just feels like a bad Elton John song. Also, it's ridiculously overlong and annoying. The outro is 2 and a half minutes long and Halford trying to sound like Robert Plant is lame.
- Raw Deal harkens back a bit too much to the days of Rocka Rolla and Halford's more piercing "metal" tone doesn't really work on it. It's nice when the tempo picks up for the dramatic ending, but the previous section was about 3 minutes too long.
- Here Come the Tears has marvelous atmosphere, but Halford's warbling is painful to listen to (despite that probably being the intent). And, once again, we get a 1 minute and 30 second repetitive phrase at the end.
All of this said, it's still in the upper tier of the Judas Priest discography and really cemented their style. If Sad Wings was where they started to find their sound, this is where they solidified it. Every album from here builds on this sound more than anything that came before. It's definitely an important record. Gotta give a lot of credit to Simon Phillips' double bass kick drum work here, as it's one of the earliest instances of "running double bass" in metal.
This one dropped a half point, landing at 7.5/10.
Siddharth
Long Distance Trooper
My review on Sin After Sin, if you are interested 
Judas Priest Discography Discussion (part 2 starting page 20)
For me from Nostradamus, the best songs were never played live: Persecution, title track, Future of Mankind, and Revelations (also Alone)
forum.maidenfans.com
Kalata
Out of the Silent Planet
Sin After Sin, the only Priest album with 8 songs. It's probably my favorite one of their 70's output. Although it does contain 2 of my least favorite songs of theirs - Raw Deal and Here Come The Tears. The former is too ''early Priest style'' for me and I'm not a fan of their early ballads.
This is their first successful album and I think it marked a change in their writing style (which continued with the next album). Apart from a couple of songs, the style evolved from the previous album. An important album for the band. The material started to get catchier.
The production is an improvement and I've always liked the raw sound of this album. Idk why. It suits the songs.
Rob's vocals are so good, his younger vocals shine here and in the albums between this one. Simon's drumming must be noted (double kicks! sign of the times). Glenn and KK created some great riffs (influential), solos and melodies. The ones to note are in Sinner (KK continued his Victim Of Changes solo; live is better), Starbreaker, Call For The Priest and Dissident Aggressor(!).
Sinner is a classic and a great way to open the album with it's driving beat and vocals (and especially the chorus).
Diamonds & Rust is very nice as the 2nd song on the album and it's the best Priest cover for me. Dissident Aggressor is so groundbreaking for 1977 (that scream, heavy riff and chorus!). Elsewhere, Starbreaker continues the anthemic flavor of the album with its verses and chorus (I hate the claps), while Call For The Priest is a (hidden) gem for me - the intro is so atmospheric, the fast verses are vintage Priest and the melodies are pure gold. The odd and different chorus works well for the variety of the album. Last Rose Of Summer is a calm slow song with nice guitar touches that adds dynamics to the album. Nothing more to say about it.
Overall, this is a very 70's album full of atmospheric pieces. A very nice and memorable listen. As a whole album is rough, but it can shine in the band's discography on its own.
This is their first successful album and I think it marked a change in their writing style (which continued with the next album). Apart from a couple of songs, the style evolved from the previous album. An important album for the band. The material started to get catchier.
The production is an improvement and I've always liked the raw sound of this album. Idk why. It suits the songs.
Rob's vocals are so good, his younger vocals shine here and in the albums between this one. Simon's drumming must be noted (double kicks! sign of the times). Glenn and KK created some great riffs (influential), solos and melodies. The ones to note are in Sinner (KK continued his Victim Of Changes solo; live is better), Starbreaker, Call For The Priest and Dissident Aggressor(!).
Sinner is a classic and a great way to open the album with it's driving beat and vocals (and especially the chorus).
Diamonds & Rust is very nice as the 2nd song on the album and it's the best Priest cover for me. Dissident Aggressor is so groundbreaking for 1977 (that scream, heavy riff and chorus!). Elsewhere, Starbreaker continues the anthemic flavor of the album with its verses and chorus (I hate the claps), while Call For The Priest is a (hidden) gem for me - the intro is so atmospheric, the fast verses are vintage Priest and the melodies are pure gold. The odd and different chorus works well for the variety of the album. Last Rose Of Summer is a calm slow song with nice guitar touches that adds dynamics to the album. Nothing more to say about it.
Overall, this is a very 70's album full of atmospheric pieces. A very nice and memorable listen. As a whole album is rough, but it can shine in the band's discography on its own.
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8: Angel of Retribution
9: Sin After Sin
10: Killing Machine
11: Turbo
12: Nostradamus
13: Redeemer of Souls
14: Ram It Down
15: Point of Entry
16: Jugulator
17: Demolition
18: Rocka Rolla
Highest Score: 16 (@TheMercenary)
Lowest Score: 3 (@Siddharth)
Judas Priest's big reunion album had a very impressive showing in this ranking game, landing a fairly high placement and beating out several classic albums in the process. Overall this album probably had the most consistent ratings since the lower third of the discography. Other than @Siddharth's outlier low score, most people put Angel of Retribution somewhere between #5 and #12. So most fans seem to like the album, and some really like it.
Listening to Angel of Retribution it's clear that Priest set out to make a classic sounding Priest album. There are pretty much no hints of the sound they pursued with Ripper and while it has a modern production and generally heavy sound, it's also not relentlessly Metal the way Painkiller is. There are some groovier tracks, some songs with catchy choruses and overall it's closer to British Steel/Screaming For Vengeance's aesthetic of mixing heaviness with accessibility. The lyrics, while somewhat contrived with many references to older Priest songs and albums, are exactly what you would expect from Halford. Yet, unlike many other albums in their discography (most of them in the bottom half of our rankings), it doesn't sound like Priest forcing something. They sound naturally in their element.
With all these things in mind, the ranking mostly makes sense. It's a very recognizably Priest album that sort of acts as a compilation of their finest moments but with a nice modern Roy Z production sheen. As I mentioned before, it sounds undeniably like Priest, which actually gives it a leg up on quite a few of their albums. Personally, I think AoR's greatest strength is also its downfall. It is competently written and performed, but I can't help but feel there's a bit of a generic quality to it. This is a problem for me with all of their 21st century albums (besides Nostradamus). They're doing everything right, but I find that a lot of the songs lack identifiable qualities aside from being rehashes of classic Priest. It's a tricky call for me. I see Angel of Retribution/Firepower/Invincible Shield as having similar strengths and weaknesses. Firepower and Invincible Shield each probably have better songs, although AOR sounds more authentically Priest to me, particularly in the guitar work and instrumental sections. The latest two Priest albums get so technical in their instrumental sections that it sounds more like a neo-classical shred or prog metal band than Priest.
Angel of Retribution album starts off with an all time great Priest track, Judas Rising, but I feel the album never quite reaches that high again. There are some very good songs - Deal With the Devil is a great mid tempo rocker and Demonizer is a cool Painkiller-y metal track, but there's a lot of blandness in there as well. Revolution and Worth Fighting For are both fine but never songs I'm going to go out of my way for. Wheels of Fire and Hellrider are fine. I can do without both Angel and Eulogy. Angel is OK but again it just feels like a very bland ballad. I would've liked to hear them write a psychedelic proggy ballad in the vein of Dreamer Deceiver or Beyond the Realms of Death, but the cowboy chord strumming Angel isn't it. The album's ultimate sin is the Spinal Tap disaster that is Lochness. Kinda embodies Priest really. You have a tightly focused classic sounding album in Angel of Retribution, but then it closes on one of the most ploddingly boring songs in the whole catalog, which unfortunately it feels like they went on to make Lochness into an entire album with Nostradamus. I guess it's laughably in character for a band that has been known to followup greatness with some real career missteps.
So overall I can't argue with the placement too much although I think it's absolutely nuts that it scored higher than Killing Machine and Sin After Sin, which I consider to be infinitely supreme albums. Angel of Retribution may be more consistent, but it's more consistently mid. It doesn't have a Hell Bent For Leather or a Sinner. It has a lot of Starbreakers though. Which isn't a bad thing, but I miss those impossibly high highs.
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5:
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8: Angel of Retribution
9: Sin After Sin
10: Killing Machine
11: Turbo
12: Nostradamus
13: Redeemer of Souls
14: Ram It Down
15: Point of Entry
16: Jugulator
17: Demolition
18: Rocka Rolla
Highest Score: 16 (@TheMercenary)
Lowest Score: 3 (@Siddharth)
Judas Priest's big reunion album had a very impressive showing in this ranking game, landing a fairly high placement and beating out several classic albums in the process. Overall this album probably had the most consistent ratings since the lower third of the discography. Other than @Siddharth's outlier low score, most people put Angel of Retribution somewhere between #5 and #12. So most fans seem to like the album, and some really like it.
Listening to Angel of Retribution it's clear that Priest set out to make a classic sounding Priest album. There are pretty much no hints of the sound they pursued with Ripper and while it has a modern production and generally heavy sound, it's also not relentlessly Metal the way Painkiller is. There are some groovier tracks, some songs with catchy choruses and overall it's closer to British Steel/Screaming For Vengeance's aesthetic of mixing heaviness with accessibility. The lyrics, while somewhat contrived with many references to older Priest songs and albums, are exactly what you would expect from Halford. Yet, unlike many other albums in their discography (most of them in the bottom half of our rankings), it doesn't sound like Priest forcing something. They sound naturally in their element.
With all these things in mind, the ranking mostly makes sense. It's a very recognizably Priest album that sort of acts as a compilation of their finest moments but with a nice modern Roy Z production sheen. As I mentioned before, it sounds undeniably like Priest, which actually gives it a leg up on quite a few of their albums. Personally, I think AoR's greatest strength is also its downfall. It is competently written and performed, but I can't help but feel there's a bit of a generic quality to it. This is a problem for me with all of their 21st century albums (besides Nostradamus). They're doing everything right, but I find that a lot of the songs lack identifiable qualities aside from being rehashes of classic Priest. It's a tricky call for me. I see Angel of Retribution/Firepower/Invincible Shield as having similar strengths and weaknesses. Firepower and Invincible Shield each probably have better songs, although AOR sounds more authentically Priest to me, particularly in the guitar work and instrumental sections. The latest two Priest albums get so technical in their instrumental sections that it sounds more like a neo-classical shred or prog metal band than Priest.
Angel of Retribution album starts off with an all time great Priest track, Judas Rising, but I feel the album never quite reaches that high again. There are some very good songs - Deal With the Devil is a great mid tempo rocker and Demonizer is a cool Painkiller-y metal track, but there's a lot of blandness in there as well. Revolution and Worth Fighting For are both fine but never songs I'm going to go out of my way for. Wheels of Fire and Hellrider are fine. I can do without both Angel and Eulogy. Angel is OK but again it just feels like a very bland ballad. I would've liked to hear them write a psychedelic proggy ballad in the vein of Dreamer Deceiver or Beyond the Realms of Death, but the cowboy chord strumming Angel isn't it. The album's ultimate sin is the Spinal Tap disaster that is Lochness. Kinda embodies Priest really. You have a tightly focused classic sounding album in Angel of Retribution, but then it closes on one of the most ploddingly boring songs in the whole catalog, which unfortunately it feels like they went on to make Lochness into an entire album with Nostradamus. I guess it's laughably in character for a band that has been known to followup greatness with some real career missteps.
So overall I can't argue with the placement too much although I think it's absolutely nuts that it scored higher than Killing Machine and Sin After Sin, which I consider to be infinitely supreme albums. Angel of Retribution may be more consistent, but it's more consistently mid. It doesn't have a Hell Bent For Leather or a Sinner. It has a lot of Starbreakers though. Which isn't a bad thing, but I miss those impossibly high highs.
MrKnickerbocker
clap hands
Count me in the half that ranked Angel of Retribution very highly (number 4!). No way was that accurate after this relisten, but it is an incredibly consistent album and I find it more memorable than Mosh.
One thing of note, besides the production being pretty solid, is that the guitar leads on this album are absolutely vibrant! Tipton and Downing win MVPs for sure, as each instrumental section features some really nice (and shockingly clean) playing. Even some of the cool yet more "mid" songs, like Demonizer and Hellrider, have absolutely cracking solos.
I agree with Mosh that the album peaks at its opener, with Judas Rising being an absolute powerhouse of a track and a great comment on the reunion. I also rank Deal With The Devil and Lochness (yes, I know) very, very highly. The rest runs through the high-mid range of 7-8/10's, which the notable exception of Wheels of Fire (inoffensive but boring) and Eulogy (legitimately not worth including, but not musically annoying or anything). Revolution is also not great and feels a bit like a holdover from The Ripper Years.
This one dropped almost a full point for me, landing at a 7.3/10. Definitely not a top five Priest record, but still in the higher end of the top ten.
One thing of note, besides the production being pretty solid, is that the guitar leads on this album are absolutely vibrant! Tipton and Downing win MVPs for sure, as each instrumental section features some really nice (and shockingly clean) playing. Even some of the cool yet more "mid" songs, like Demonizer and Hellrider, have absolutely cracking solos.
I agree with Mosh that the album peaks at its opener, with Judas Rising being an absolute powerhouse of a track and a great comment on the reunion. I also rank Deal With The Devil and Lochness (yes, I know) very, very highly. The rest runs through the high-mid range of 7-8/10's, which the notable exception of Wheels of Fire (inoffensive but boring) and Eulogy (legitimately not worth including, but not musically annoying or anything). Revolution is also not great and feels a bit like a holdover from The Ripper Years.
This one dropped almost a full point for me, landing at a 7.3/10. Definitely not a top five Priest record, but still in the higher end of the top ten.
TheMercenary
Ancient Mariner
@Mosh : thanks you for quoting me in your post.
Well, it's amusing because I find 'Sin After Sin' really boring. And even 'Killing Machine' has some great songs ("Hell Bent For Leather", "Delivering The Goods", "Evening Star" or "The Green Manalishi (With A Two-Pronged Crown)" - this one being a cover of Fleetwood Mac's song), it never reaches the energy the band is giving into 'Angel Of Retribution'. And the songs are really more interesting and far more catchy than on 'Sin After Sin' and 'Killing Machine'. Added to the fact that 'Lochness' is almost one of the first "proggy" songs from Judas Priest, which I love a lot, because it's proggy, epic and very dark.
'Angel Of Retribution' is also the great return of the "classic" line-up of the band : Rob, Glenn, KK, Ian and Scott. And that makes a huge difference, because as Maiden with 'Brave New World', it was the beginning of a new era for the band that led to 'Firepower' and 'Invincible Shield'. So, I'm proud to love 'Angel Of Retribution' as I do. 
And I'm a big fan of Nessie.
Well, it's amusing because I find 'Sin After Sin' really boring. And even 'Killing Machine' has some great songs ("Hell Bent For Leather", "Delivering The Goods", "Evening Star" or "The Green Manalishi (With A Two-Pronged Crown)" - this one being a cover of Fleetwood Mac's song), it never reaches the energy the band is giving into 'Angel Of Retribution'. And the songs are really more interesting and far more catchy than on 'Sin After Sin' and 'Killing Machine'. Added to the fact that 'Lochness' is almost one of the first "proggy" songs from Judas Priest, which I love a lot, because it's proggy, epic and very dark.
'Angel Of Retribution' is also the great return of the "classic" line-up of the band : Rob, Glenn, KK, Ian and Scott. And that makes a huge difference, because as Maiden with 'Brave New World', it was the beginning of a new era for the band that led to 'Firepower' and 'Invincible Shield'. So, I'm proud to love 'Angel Of Retribution' as I do. And I'm a big fan of Nessie.
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Diesel 11
As you scream into the web of silence...
Yes, 100%. Alongside “Judas Rising” they are the three moments where the record really delivers what they’re trying to sell you. There are good moments on that album but they don’t often knock it out of the part. These three definitely do.
KidInTheDark666
What's yours is mine and what's mine is mine too
I would put AOR in my top 3 without Eulogy and Lochness. Those two really drag an otherwise amazing album down.
KidInTheDark666
What's yours is mine and what's mine is mine too
I always loved Angel. A top 20 Priest track for me with a prime Halford performance. It's a bit of an oddity, acoustic stuff usually doesn't do it for me.
Kalata
Out of the Silent Planet
Angel Of Retribution. I think this is a fair ranking for the album considering some of the other albums and for me the album is better than almost all previous albums in the ranking (and two others). I don't think it's one of their best albums as a whole piece, but the quality is there.
It was the right album for the band, a Reunion album that combined their classic 80's style, Painkiller's style and some ''experimentation'' for that era (or Halford solo vibes). I've always viewed it as a natural follow up to Painkiller, although it's not as relentless as it. And it doesn't have to. It's very and typical Priest. That's why it works for the most part.
Roy's production is solid, modern, rougher, busy in sound (polished but not quite, if that makes sense), louder but with dynamics and I think it's very suitable exactly for this album. The solos sound and the heavier approach to the sound (idk how to describe it) are great. I really like the early 2000's sound.
Rob's vocals here are great. He sounds like his solo material, and he will return to that expected vocal approach of his a few albums later. Some cool lyrics.
If the album has something to be praised for - it's the work of Glenn and KK. Leads, riffs, solos, they make an impression. Classic Priest. I miss those things in their recent albums. Highlights are: Judas Rising, Deal With The Devil and Hellrider (that instrumental section!).
The album is a very good listen, but its ''weakness'' is that it is not consistent.
The modern classics are: Judas Rising (one of their best openers, very memorable (verses, intro, solos, chorus) with vintage playing) and Hellrider (Top 10 song material, literally every part is gold; one of their best choruses imo). But there's more good stuff -> Deal With The Devil is a very good rocker (love the bridge and the Maiden-esque melody; the song was co-written with Roy), Revolution is another anthemic piece, Worth Fighting For is a typical ballad-y song from that era with very effective vibe, chorus, riff and melody, while Angel (the title track) is a very nice and noticeable ballad with beautiful vocals and playing. The best qualities of these songs is that they are memorable.
Lochness is a Ripper-esque era dark and proggy song (proto-Nostradamus) and it has some nice parts (calm part, outro, melody and maybe the chorus), but it doesn't work for 13 minutes for me. The structure of the song is good and I appreciate that they did something different. If it wasn't for the next album, this song would have shined more. I don't like the rest of the songs and they are like fillers. They carry more of the Screaming For Vengeance/British Steel/Painkiller style.
A very good and needed album for the band. Quality stuff for sure. It's like Maiden's DOD (but not better). What I like the most is that the album is varied.
It was the right album for the band, a Reunion album that combined their classic 80's style, Painkiller's style and some ''experimentation'' for that era (or Halford solo vibes). I've always viewed it as a natural follow up to Painkiller, although it's not as relentless as it. And it doesn't have to. It's very and typical Priest. That's why it works for the most part.
Roy's production is solid, modern, rougher, busy in sound (polished but not quite, if that makes sense), louder but with dynamics and I think it's very suitable exactly for this album. The solos sound and the heavier approach to the sound (idk how to describe it) are great. I really like the early 2000's sound.
Rob's vocals here are great. He sounds like his solo material, and he will return to that expected vocal approach of his a few albums later. Some cool lyrics.
If the album has something to be praised for - it's the work of Glenn and KK. Leads, riffs, solos, they make an impression. Classic Priest. I miss those things in their recent albums. Highlights are: Judas Rising, Deal With The Devil and Hellrider (that instrumental section!).
The album is a very good listen, but its ''weakness'' is that it is not consistent.
The modern classics are: Judas Rising (one of their best openers, very memorable (verses, intro, solos, chorus) with vintage playing) and Hellrider (Top 10 song material, literally every part is gold; one of their best choruses imo). But there's more good stuff -> Deal With The Devil is a very good rocker (love the bridge and the Maiden-esque melody; the song was co-written with Roy), Revolution is another anthemic piece, Worth Fighting For is a typical ballad-y song from that era with very effective vibe, chorus, riff and melody, while Angel (the title track) is a very nice and noticeable ballad with beautiful vocals and playing. The best qualities of these songs is that they are memorable.
Lochness is a Ripper-esque era dark and proggy song (proto-Nostradamus) and it has some nice parts (calm part, outro, melody and maybe the chorus), but it doesn't work for 13 minutes for me. The structure of the song is good and I appreciate that they did something different. If it wasn't for the next album, this song would have shined more. I don't like the rest of the songs and they are like fillers. They carry more of the Screaming For Vengeance/British Steel/Painkiller style.
A very good and needed album for the band. Quality stuff for sure. It's like Maiden's DOD (but not better). What I like the most is that the album is varied.
Sin After Sin at 9 is probably the biggest outlier for me so far in this countdown.
It's a complete album, with continuity, originality, variety, pacing, performances and depth.
Let Us Prey is a massively underappreciated track, a template really for what became speed metal with cool riffing, panicky rhythms and multiple twists, all capped with that impeccable Halford vocal phrasing.
Here Come the Tears is probably my least favourite track, but that's mostly because doom is not one of favourite metal flavours. When I put on my critic's cap and rate it for what it is, I see a textbook piece of doom songwriting. Plodding sure, but the intensity and sorrow just layers and layers. Halford alternating between some of his highest and lowest registers is a nice touch.
Dissident Aggressor is a flat-out bludgeon. I don't know that it was template for anything, but it is so goddam unheard-of heavy and intense for its time.
And I've always thought Raw Deal got a raw deal. That's one nasty riff over some trippy rhythms and the vocal parts drip with percussive sweat. And just when it threatens to get too samey, it shifts into the final 2 minutes, which might be my favourite moments of the album.
And that's the second-best side. The first three tracks are just classic metal excellence: energy, power and melody (I don't think I need to explain in more depth, but indulge me the bridge and lead break on Starbreaker) and Last Rose is a deceptively soft, bittersweet change of pace.
It's a must-have. I have it at 5th on my list and very solidly.
It's a complete album, with continuity, originality, variety, pacing, performances and depth.
Let Us Prey is a massively underappreciated track, a template really for what became speed metal with cool riffing, panicky rhythms and multiple twists, all capped with that impeccable Halford vocal phrasing.
Here Come the Tears is probably my least favourite track, but that's mostly because doom is not one of favourite metal flavours. When I put on my critic's cap and rate it for what it is, I see a textbook piece of doom songwriting. Plodding sure, but the intensity and sorrow just layers and layers. Halford alternating between some of his highest and lowest registers is a nice touch.
Dissident Aggressor is a flat-out bludgeon. I don't know that it was template for anything, but it is so goddam unheard-of heavy and intense for its time.
And I've always thought Raw Deal got a raw deal. That's one nasty riff over some trippy rhythms and the vocal parts drip with percussive sweat. And just when it threatens to get too samey, it shifts into the final 2 minutes, which might be my favourite moments of the album.
And that's the second-best side. The first three tracks are just classic metal excellence: energy, power and melody (I don't think I need to explain in more depth, but indulge me the bridge and lead break on Starbreaker) and Last Rose is a deceptively soft, bittersweet change of pace.
It's a must-have. I have it at 5th on my list and very solidly.