Demolition (2001)
Machine Men – Shades of attempting to recapture the glory of the
Painkiller drum intro as this song kicks off…but luckily the riffing, production, and vocals are all better than the majority of
Jugulator. The verses are solid, the pre-chorus…less so. The swearing ruins the song, of course, and sounds like it’s coming from some lame teenagers instead of a veteran band with nothing to prove. Decent solo break, with Tipton turning in a tasty lead. This song is fine. In the realms of Priest, it’s middling, but compared to the previous album it’s good. 6/10
One on One – Some more lame sound effects here, but at least they go away quickly. The riffing is standard, stock Priest, but it’s pretty groovy. The vocals (and even the solos) do their best to sound like Metallica (or Dave Mustaine in that weird talking part), but it doesn’t work. Overall, I find Ripper’s thin-toned “tuff guy” performance to be really lacking here. It’s not a terrible song thanks to the groove, but it’s too long, too repetitive, and ultimately fails to capture the ears. 4/10
Hell is Home – This one…I can’t tell if I love it because it’s terrible or hate it for how terrible it is. The vocal melody, lyrics, and Ripper’s performance are so petulant and sophomoric it actually makes me laugh. Like, I’m laughing more than I laugh at “Sweating Bullets”. “Cause dowahn hey-re in hell everyone knee-oh’s MAH naaahhh-yame!” The attempt at a chanting, catchy chorus doesn’t work. The whole thing just feels like it’s written and recorded by a snotty teenager. The phasers on the guitars during the solos are annoying. Why is this belligerent, bullied kid running Hell now? I don’t get it. Not even Ripper’s shriek towards the end is good. A swing, and a miss. 2/10
Jekyll and Hyde – Finally, a song that kicks ass from the start. I think the string layers might be a little overkill, and poorly produced, but the creepiness of this song is effective. Once again, the vocal melodies are not good. Verses are solid, but the pre-chorus, chorus, and bridge melodies are just weird, sliding, 90s-style metal lines that are off-putting. Glenn’s guitar synth effect on the solo is also meh. Ripper’s grunts are stupid. Still, something about this song is interesting. 5/10
Close to You – I appreciate the mood of this song. It’s melodic and approachable (despite the weird orb effect during the verses). The lyrics are still mostly shit, but at least it sounds good and sounds like classic Priest. Glenn’s solo is fantastic. I’m not sure why Ripper’s voice is not being used for what it does best – shrieking highs. The man sounds so thin on ballads, I’m getting shades of “When The Eagle Cries” here, but overall this song works. 7/10
Devil Digger – We start with a pretty typical 90’s-style, generic metal riff and some bad wah-wah’ing. Ripper sounds like he’s doing an impersonation of Marilyn Manson having a blood orgasm. The chorus is bland and boring, even moreso than the verses. KK’s lead is fine but it can’t make this song any better. This is the first song that should have been cut from this album. It’s fat that needs to be trimmed. It’s not as aggressively stupid or silly as “Hell is Home”, which I think actually makes it worse. 1/10
Bloodsuckers – Now this song I remember hearing way back when this first album came out and really liking it (I was also 14 and had no prior knowledge of Priest). The intro is overlong, but once the song starts it’s actually pretty ripping. The band feels energized and it sounds like a combination of classic Priest riffs and modern Priest production. I love the vocal melodies in the verse and Ripper absolutely shreds that chorus – he should be singing like this on the whole album! The melody gets lost in the second verse/bridge, unfortunately, and the vaguely acoustic part sounds clunky. Ripper’s voice acting is poor as always. Overall, however, I do quite like this song. I’d wager the verses and chorus are possibly Ripper’s best studio recordings with Priest. 8/10
In Between – More nü-metal, more lack of vocal melodies. The lyrics wreak of faux-poeticism; juxtaposition of simple concepts and listing antonyms does not make you intelligent. The riffs are incredibly boring. I’ll give it an extra point just for a couple halfway decent Ripper wails. 2/10
Feed on Me – I like the syncopated chug riffs in this one and the verses are really solid. It almost sounds like a 90s-era Dio song. Other than the layered “I got what you need!” layers during the post-chorus, this song is great. It really could be a Priest song from any era with different production. Good verses, good chorus, sexual innuendo lyrics…until that lame, corpse-wailing take on the verse that comes in after the solo. Damnit, Ripper. You lose a point for that. You can’t put a tambourine in a song with corpse-wailing! Anyway, this is a good tune. 9/10
Subterfuge – Another very promising start with some unfortunate cheese-grater guitars. The groove is killer and the verses are catchy. The pre-chorus and the shitty attempt at KoRn guitars nearly pull me out of it, but the creepiness eventually works in the songs favor. Thank Dio that the chorus is pretty catchy. Bass fill! The little bluesy solo and Ripper’s wail are awesome, and the vocal bridge is a nice touch. The production flourishes used here sound like the culmination of the experimentation of the last couple albums – merging the Priest sound with modern layers and industrial soundscapes. I don’t love all of the choices, but they're interesting. 9/10
Lost and Found – Is this “Mama Said”? Is that a steel guitar?! Ripper sounds like one of Zakk Wylde's acoustic albums. I wish this guy could just sing a fucking melody without wheezing. The major key chorus is hilariously lame. Honestly, I feel like I’m listening to someone pitch a song for Ozzy that even Ozzy would turn down. It’s a shame that the guitar solos are recorded through cheese graters, because that harmonized section is really beautiful. This ballad is a damn mess, but I’ll still take it over some of the other poor material on this album. The final rising key and “I’m found” sound like the template that Petrucci and Rudess used for the entirety of
The Astonishing. 3/10
Cyberface – Another near seven-minute track with an overlong intro of sound FX? At least we’re almost done with this phase of Priest’s career. The riffs are pummeling, especially that oddly atonal layer. Speaking of atonal: fucking sing a melody Ripper! Stop sliding around in your “creepy mode!” I don’t care that you’ll stare through my window at night with your guyliner and single dangly earring and jean jacket vest and pre-mature baldness…it’s not scary it just sounds fucking lame! “Beware his megabyte”…fuck me running. Dear Mr. Travis, please stay away from the songwriting room forever (unless you only contributed the rhythms that inspired the guitar riffs and had nothing to do with the garbage words). 2/10
Metal Messiah – Here’s the thing about this song: the chorus is really great. It’s catchy, it’s anthemic without trying too hard, it’s genuinely melodic…but the rest…holy shit, why?!????! Why is Ripper rapping? The verses are actually offensive to my ears as a Judas Priest fan. The verses sound like Psychostick. If you don’t know Psychostick, look them up. My buddies play in Psychostick and they’re cool. The thing is: they make comedy metal. These verses sound like a joke. Not like, “Oh that’s bad, let’s make fun of it!”, but “This song is actually written to make people laugh.” Go home, Ripper, you're drunk. 3/10
Album rating – 4.6/10
