Firepower (2018)
Firepower - Immediately the production punches you in the face as being light years better than
Redeemer of Souls. This song kicks ass from start to finish. It's classic Priest through a modern metal lens. Halford's opening screams, Scott's powerful drumming, those twin guitars riffing and harmonizing...it's all stellar. I adore the chorus and the stomping bridge section. Honestly, I think this song is more fun than Painkiller. It's at least a Top 20 Priest tune and probably the catchiest, most pummeling opener they've ever had. The lyrics seem to condemn the nature of modern warfare, or possibly celebrate heavy metal.
10/10
Lightning Strike - The power does not stop as Priest slams right into this immediate, swinging barnburner. I get shades of a heavy Maiden or thrashier Sabaton here, but without the flashy gleam that those bands have. Lightning Strike still sounds raw and purely metallic. The riffs are great, the harmonized runs are great, Halford's vocal production is great: another killer tune. The lyrics seem to discuss a man on the edge of a terrible decision, or possibly a man celebrating heavy metal.
10/10
Evil Never Dies - A much more classic Priest pedal riff appears for the first time and it's a welcome change of pace from the opening one-two punch. The verses are old school while the chorus is modern to the core, and easily the strongest part of the song. Scott's double bass just crushes as Halford recites the hook. The bridge takes us through a bluesy (Glenn?) solo and a dynamic clean section. Heaviness takes hold of the bridge halfway through and it just works so well (they've used this tactic quite a bit on recent albums and it kills every time). Ritchie gets a quick blistering solo before we enter the chorus repeat, which builds up so damn well it gets this song to another
10/10. The lyrics seem to shriek about the everlasting presence of the devil, or possibly the coolness and evilness of heavy metal.
Never the Heroes - Some late-80's Priest tropes start to emerge with this nice, anthemic throwback tune. It sounds like a darker, modernized version of a song that could have appeared on
Point of Entry or
Turbo. Scott's four-on-the-floor approach works and Rob's got a killer vocal hook, especially the final "at war" that hangs over the main riff. It's a catchy tune with a nice performance, but not a top tier track. The lyrics seem to lament the plight of a soldier cast aside in war, or possibly tell the story of a ragtag group of outsiders who find their army in the legions of heavy metal.
8/10
Necromancer - The opening riff is one of the slinkiest, coolest Priest riffs in recent memory. Travis and Hill fill in perfectly before a gigantic keyboard layer adds a ton of atmospheric depth. The verses are stellar, the chorus less so, but the rest of the music makes up for the relatively average chorus. I love the immediate, Maiden-like kick into the uptempo bridge and the awesome guitar solo duel that follows (even if it's pretty clear that Ritchie can run circles around Glenn at this stage in the game). Rumors abound that Andy Sneap may have tinkered with some vocals, riffs, and lyrics and I can definitely hear that. The sharpness of the lyrics so far on this album just seems a tad beyond what we've heard from Rob and Glenn over the last ten years. The lyrics seem to discuss an evil magician raising bodies from the dead for a nefarious purpose, or possibly a veteran band returning from the "dead" to be the guiding light of heavy metal.
9/10
Children of the Sun - We've got a groove here, but not much. It's a pretty by-the-numbers Priest tune. I'm reminded of something from the latter era Dio albums: BPM just slightly faster than doom metal territory, big gaps in the vocal melody, a moderately sing-a-long chorus. Come to think of it, I'd probably like this song better with Dio's vocals adding that extra weight and grit. It's a fine background track, but I could see this being filler. The lyrics seem to mourn for the death of innocence, or possibly the shrinking fanbase for JUDAS PRIEST HEAVY METAL.
7/10
Guardians/Rising from Ruins - This entire song is absolutely gorgeous. Sweeping, melodic, heavy, powerful, beautiful: it's perfect. A top five Priest tune if ever there was one. I love the eerily haunting intro and the main riffs and harmonies. Ritchie's opening solo is pure fire, especially as it culminates in an elevated groove...only to drop down for a clean, quieter verse. And what a fucking verse it is! Rob's melody and timing here is superb, potentially my favorite Priest verse of all time. We are treated to one of the hookiest, most anthemic and uplifting choruses in the entire catalogue and it's nothing short of joyous. I love the layered clean guitar that throbs throughout the third verse. The main guitar solos and harmonies are sublime. When we get a break to recall the intro in half-time, it is then that I know we have possibly heard the best that Priest can be. Rising From Ruins is a masterpiece. The lyrics seem to describe the ability of mankind to overcome even the darkest of times, or possibly the heights that one can achieve whilst wielding the holy grail of heavy metal.
10/10
Flame Thrower - Well, I guess there had to be one bad song. Nothing about this track works for me. The riffs are pedestrian, the lyrics are boring, the music reminds me of the worst of 80s Priest while some of the vocal melodies recall the Ripper era. The chorus is actually off-putting. This track should have easily been cut from the album. The lyrics seem to shout the dangers of playing with fire, or possibly giving a blowjob while listening to heavy metal.
3/10
Spectre - I love the serpentine riffing and groove of this song. The dynamics are top notch, none better than the complete sonic vacuum that follows the chorus. Every time I listen to this song I adore the chorus more and more. "Trapped inside the miiiiiiiiiii-iiiind of the spectre" is just so catchy. We transition from snaking riffs to a spider riff just in time for Rob to do a mild Dave Mustaine impression. The lameness is gagging, but I love it. Ritchie and Glenn hit a killer harmony right before a blistering solo and then return for another, much creepier harmony before we hit the final chorus. This one started as an 8/10 the first time I heard it, but after many listens has grown to another
10/10. The lyrics seem to spin a tale of a deadly, ghostlike killer, or possibly the hulking, secretive nature of the true believers of heavy metal.
Traitors Gate - The intro is nice and the main riff swings away like a ship lumbering towards a village that just
begs to be pillaged. I really love the back-and-forth between the vocals and the instruments during the first half of the chorus, I'll bet that kills at a show. The music is so driving and pummeling throughout that I think it feels a little more interesting than it actually is. None of the riffs are particularly catchy, even if the overall piece is solid. There's also something about Rob's placement of that final "traitors gate" in each chorus that sounds awkward. Why couldn't he carry the words over the first pause? It just sounds odd. It's a really good song, but not perfect. The lyrics seem to tell the tale of a Ned Stark martyr type trapped in Beckett's Hallowed Be Thy Name, or possibly what happens to those who betray the beliefs and practices of trve heavy metal.
9/10
No Surrender - Here's that arena-ready song we've been waiting for! There's not much to be said, it's just perfectly classic Priest. The riffs are good and have silky leads underneath them, the start-stop verses work wonders, the chorus is a giant wiggly ear worm, the bridge comes out of nowhere, the solos are subtle and smooth; it's a slick as hell tune that even has a brief beat-the-drum-and-sing-along section. Nice job, Priest. It's awesome to know that at this stage in the game they can still write killer thrashy metal tunes and killer pop metal tunes. The lyrics seem to extoll the virtues of doing whatever you believe is right despite the consequences, especially if what you believe in is heavy metal.
10/10
Lone Wolf - A little taste of the blues is certainly welcome, even if the album is getting a little long. I like this callback to their earlier, bluesier years, even if the production and melodic choices sound like something that would have been much better suited to Metallica's
Load or
ReLoad. For the second time on this album I'd rather hear someone else singing (Hetfield). It's nice to have some pure blues shredding and we even get an unexpected guitar harmony. I bet I give this song a higher mark than most Priest fans, but I'm a sucker for a blues groove. The lyrics seem to praise the strong leaders who forge their own path, or possibly discuss a bad ass wolf that somehow learns English and sings heavy metal.
8/10
Sea of Red - Ending with a ballad is a strange choice for a record that has primarily been all about kicking ass and taking names. The acoustics sound gorgeous and I think the song is powerful, but I wish this and Rising from Ruins had switched places in the tracklist. It would have given the listener a break in the middle of the album and provided the best closer in their career. Regardless, Rob sounds great here and I think the melodies are quite catchy. The latter half does get truly epic with a slamming riff, choir-patched keyboards, and a big arena rock solo section. I like it. The lyrics seem to strive for the remembrance of those we have lost along the way, but only if those people came from the flock of heavy metal.
8/10
Album rating - 8.7/10
Judas Priest deliver an album that far exceeds expectations with
Firepower. It defies age and logic that they could put out something this good, this well-crafted and tightly-performed, this late in their career. If you dropped Children of the Sun and Flame Thrower this album would easily eclipse the quality of
Painkiller. As it stands,
Firepower is a contender for my favorite Priest record of all time.
