Judas Priest

Sin After Sin (1977)

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After a bunch of listens, I think I slightly prefer this to Sad Wings, but only because it's more consistent. The high points on the previous album are higher, but overall this album manages to stay at a relatively solid level throughout. After listening to these 3 albums I've come to a conclusion that I hope will get proved wrong as I keep listening: Judas Priest simply does not have the same grasp on melody as Iron Maiden. Deep down, this may be why it's taken me so long to give them a fair shot. They often have the same amount of power, of force, or heaviness, but the pure instinct for melody is not there in either the riffs or the melodies and it takes me a lot longer to appreciate each song because of that fact.

Something I immediately noticed and loved about this album: double bass! Holy crap, this is 1977 and there's double bass! Nice work, Priest.

Sinner - 7/10
It's got a nice drive to kick things off. The chorus is really unique and the post-chorus riff is powerful as hell! The very first riff section in the bridge is awesome, I love it. That said, the dated production and tight playing on this song really fight against Halford trying to be epic, he sounds like he's forcing it. I'll bet this one comes off better with a post-70's, heaver live production. Sinner definitely overstays its welcome, mostly in the long whammy bar section where Halford's voice is pretty annoying. This song could have been much better if it shot straight to an upbeat solo and cut at least a minute off the run time.

Diamonds & Rust - 9/10
I know it's a cover, but I really like when this band plays a straightforward driving song. The melodies are catchy, the drive is there, it sounds like a metal band playing a folky pop tune and I dig it. Also, double bass!

Starbreaker - 6/10
This song is lame. It's not terrible, but it just reeks of cheese. There's a nice drive to it and it adds to the pantheon of Judas Priest "-er" titled songs (how many do they have?!), but again it's too long and could have lost a minute for sure. The claps during the chorus are simply too much. The dual guitar bridge, however, is awesome!

Last Rose of Summer - 3/10
Boring track. I've heard better metal ballads (there's one on this album) and I've heard far, far better 70's pop/rock songs. It's too long, it's unremarkable. There's really nothing to talk about here.

Let Us Prey/Call for the Priest - 9/10
Here we go! Slow, Super Mario Bros. buildup with lots of drama, badass second half. I'm in! Love the double bass throughout and I really like the structure of "verse/whooooooooooaaaaa" instead of really having a chorus. This tune has a lot of get up and go. The major guitar and vocal part in the bridge is really cool, but definitely odd. It fits the theme, though, and recalls the intro, so it works. I still think this song doesn't have enough variation to justify its length, but I enjoy it. Easily the best song yet. Which guitarist is abusing the whammy bar like Janick in this band? Cause I prefer the other one. Also, I know Halford loves innuendo...is this song about priests diddling kids?

Raw Deal - 8/10
Great groove, cool riffs. I can definitely see where younger metal bands took inspiration for groovier tracks like this, especially guys like Armored Saint and Clutch. The verses are bluesy and slinky, with a lot of attitude. Halford is positively evil on those pre-chorus sections, but he gets a little insufferable when he does those rushed, "performance" vocals in the second verse. The chorus is strange and kind of sucks some energy out of the song. The chorus and the unnecessary track length (again) drop a point off this song for me.

Here Come the Tears - 7/10
I like this song, even though it doesn't do anything new in the realm of power ballads. The beginning sounds like a clear inspiration for most Steve Harris' Maiden ballads (Remember Tomorrow, Afraid to Shoot Strangers). The dramatic build of this tune is nice, I just wish the lyrics were less pedestrian. Tears, sad, alone, crying, blah blah blah...it's all too simplistic for me. Sure, there's something to be said for raw emotion with raw lyrics, but I'd like a little more. The solo is epic, the chanting is epic, Halford sounds great in his normal range, but the shrieking is a bit...shrieky. For the only time on this album, however, a song is the exact length it should be.

Dissident Aggressor - 9/10
I assume this is a fan favorite? The main riff is crushing and Halford is in full Halford mode. It's certainly heavier than anything had the right to be in 1977 and I definitely love it, but I simply cannot get over those horribly lame pre-chorus lines: "Stab! Punch!" It's just so cheesy. Everything else is pure greatness.

Album rating - 7.3/10
 
Another great read Knick.
Among the fan base, Sad Wings generally ranks third behind Sad Wings and Stained Class among the “gothic” albums.
My initial overall take was much like yours, but over the years it has become my favourite of the three, and I know Foro agrees with me.
 
MrKnickerbocker said:
Here Come the Tears - 7/10
I like this song, even though it doesn't do anything new in the realm of power ballads. The beginning sounds like a clear inspiration for most Steve Harris' Maiden ballads (Remember Tomorrow, Afraid to Shoot Strangers). The dramatic build of this tune is nice, I just wish the lyrics were less pedestrian. Tears, sad, alone, crying, blah blah blah...it's all too simplistic for me. Sure, there's something to be said for raw emotion with raw lyrics, but I'd like a little more. The solo is epic, the chanting is epic, Halford sounds great in his normal range, but the shrieking is a bit...shrieky. For the only time on this album, however, a song is the exact length it should be.
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Did you hear how he uses very low vocals? On one side: "Here, they come, here come the tears" And as soon as he says "...tears" in a very low manner, another "Here... " appears on the other side. Headphones recommended. Super doomy, melancholic track. No other band sounded like this. These guys were masters in playing towards a climax, and once again: youngster Simon Phillips was vital in all of this.

In Sinner: In think that the part you complain the most about, is in generally seen as the highlight of the album. Listen how the drums develop. The repetitive two chord bass/rhythm guitar part is threatening. I love how different this section is from the rest of the song. For me it's really the "Alright, yeah, here we go!"-moment in the song. The whammy solo creates (sinning) chaos, and I love the vocals. Perhaps the song is a bit tame when you know the Unleashed in the East version earlier (like me for instance), but the drumming sure makes up for it. I also like some harmonic parts in one or two guitar lines that aren't there in live versions.
 
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Truth:
* KK does love his whammy. Sinner is meatier (and the atmosphere of extended solo grows on you) live. Personally, think it’s a better song than you credit it for, and it is considered a band classic.
* Diamonds & Rust really is a metalized folk song and a great one at that. Given your takes in general, I’m thinking British Steel will be your album.
* I adore Starbreaker and Dissident Aggressor. Sure, they’re cheesy. You gotta revel in it.
* My favourite part of your review was Raw Deal. Very low-ranked Priest song in general but I love it and you nailed why. I will add the outro section is among my favourite Priest moments.
* I’ve come to slowly appreciate the ballads over the years. Last Rose has a beautiful, insidious melody. Tears is too doomy to be in my wheelhouse, but it does what it sets out to do well.
* Let Us Prey is one of the most over-looked important tracks in metal. It took the bite, melody and proto-thrash of Tyrant and took it up a notch. May be the first true thrash song.
 
Forostar said:
Did you hear how he uses very low vocals? On one side: "Here, they come, here come the tears" And as soon as he says "...tears" in a very low manner, another "Here... " appears on the other side. Headphones recommended. Super doomy, melancholic track. No other band sounded like this. These guys were masters in playing towards a climax, and once again: youngster Simon Phillips was vital in all of this.

In Sinner: In think that the part you complain the most about, is in generally seen as the highlight of the album. Listen how the drums develop. The repetitive two chord bass/rhythm guitar part is threatening. I love how different this section is from the rest of the song. For me it's really the "Alright, yeah, here we go!"-moment in the song. The whammy solo creates (sinning) chaos, and I love the vocals. Perhaps the song is a bit tame when you know the Unleashed in the East version earlier (like me for instance), but the drumming sure makes up for it. I also like some harmonic parts in one or two guitar lines that aren't there in live versions.
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I agree, I do love that low vocal/doomy part. Of all the songs on this album, those last two tracks are the ones that I feel could grow the most on me (the latter because I'll eventually give into the cheese and Tears because it is pretty powerful).

As for Sinner, I don't have an issue with the rhythms during that part, just that the whammy stuff is too long and I don't particularly care for Rob's vocals underneath it. I think it would sound better with a more melodic vocal and a more melodic guitar line instead of whammy theatrics. Can't wait to hear the live versions, though!

mckindog said:
Truth:
* KK does love his whammy. Sinner is meatier (and the atmosphere of extended solo grows on you) live. Personally, think it’s a better song than you credit it for, and it is considered a band classic.
* Diamonds & Rust really is a metalized folk song and a great one at that. Given your takes in general, I’m thinking British Steel will be your album.
* My favourite part of your review was Raw Deal. Very low-ranked Priest song in general but I love it and you nailed why. I will add the outro section is among my favourite Priest moments.
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- I figured it was KK. Something tells me I'm gonna end up preferring Glenn to KK when this is all done.
- I've actually listened to (and reviewed) all of British Steel before, but it's been 3 years and I had no context at the time! Excited to get back to it.
- Raw Deal is cool. I like when this band gets groovy, as it sometimes forces Halford to sing in that groove instead of wailing over it all. Same reason I dug Never Satisfied.
 
MrKnickerbocker said:
Something tells me I'm gonna end up preferring Glenn to KK when this is all done.
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Big chance. But K.K. might surprise you a few times when he adds more melody in his solos. That happens a few times in the eighties (e.g. on the Defenders of the Faith album) and on the Painkiller album he has some of my favourite solos as well.
 
Not sure if this has been posted before, but here is Priest at the Reading Festival, UK, prior to Sad Wings of Destiny.

From the uploaders description:
This never-before-seen video is easily the most historically important, and also the earliest known, Judas Priest concert footage to ever surface yet. It is from their legendary performance at the 1975 Reading and Leeds Festival, and was shot on a Super 8 camera. Seeing as how this remarkable live footage is unavailable anywhere on YouTube or the whole Internet for that matter, I decided to share it with all my fellow metal maniacs who also love classic old school metal in general and Judas Priest in particular. You can clearly see how it was at this stage that the Judas Priest earnestly began moving away from the psychedelic boogie/blues rock of Rocka Rolla and pushing towards the true pure heavy metal sound that they'd go on to develop on Sad Wings of Destiny and Sin After Sin. Enjoy!!! =)

 
Yes Welsh, less than a year ago. Although, strangely enough the vid in that post does not work anymore(?) Got to be the same one.
Forostar said:
Reading Festival, August 22 1975 (Ultra-Rare 8mm Footage)
-
This never-before-seen video is easily the most historically important, and also the earliest known, Judas Priest concert footage to ever surface yet. It is from their legendary performance at the 1975 Reading and Leeds Festival, and was shot on a Super 8 camera.

https://www.facebook.com/video.php?v=1811421599120452
Click to expand...
 
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Check this as well:

1975.08.22. Reading, UK Setlist:

1. Victim of Changes
2. Dreamer Deceiver
3. Deciever
4. The Ripper
5. Mother Sun
6. Island of Domination
7. Rocka Rolla

This is the very first known recording of Judas Priest playing their own songs. (The first recording of Priest playing was an other band's song called Budgie - the song is Running from my Soul, and the date is 1974.02.11.) Unusual impovisations, never heard sounds in classic songs. A must for every Priest maniac!

-Before their set, John Hinch remembers how the band were very nervous to leave their dressing room and go on stage. No, it wasn't a case of stage-fright, but actually fear for their own safety - for you see, a band called Stella opened the three-day event, with Judas Priest following next, and the audience responded to Stella by throwing so many cans, bottles and other things at them that they had to quickly exit the stage! Fortunately the members of Judas Priest overcame their apprehension to this hostile crowd and took the stage, opening with "Victim Of Changes" - this time to rapturous applause!

- "Last night, it seemed for a while that the only highlight was going to be a young lady in crutch throttling shorts, who flitted about the press arena. Stella, the first act to tread the virgin stage flopped. A three-piece from Durham, they produced a string of monotonous songs about nightmares, a lad who got his thrills wearing concrete boots, and a lunatic on holiday by the seaside. Adding to the atmosphere, the singer did chilling impersonations of Frankenstein's monster. The lead guitarist, who looked as if he had been involved in an argument with a lawn mower, plunked merrily away. "You get that crazy feeling you don't want to be a rock star", droned the singer during one number. Stella are certainly going the right way not to hit the lofty heights of stardom.

When Judas Priest appeared, things looked up. Lesson number one at a festival is to get the audience on their feet and clapping. Judas Priest have a commanding, self assured air. Lead singer Bob Halford, resplendent in medieval style jacket, had the audience in the palm of his hand. Following in the footsteps of Black Sabbath and Budgie, Judas Priest's music is as heavy as a ton of lead. Guitarists K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton set up a relentless assault - cutting across one another and then spiraling off individually. At one point K.K. launched off into a Hendrix style solo, sounds catapulting across from one set of speakers to the other. Strangely, the rhythm section seems to be lacking in the band. Bass and drums were drowned out, as Tipton and Downing thrashed away." - Reading Evening Post, August 23, 1975

Yes, they wrote Bob Halford... there were a lot of jokes about that, you can imagine :D
 
Forostar said:
Check this as well:

1975.08.22. Reading, UK Setlist:

1. Victim of Changes
2. Dreamer Deceiver
3. Deciever
4. The Ripper
5. Mother Sun
6. Island of Domination
7. Rocka Rolla

This is the very first known recording of Judas Priest playing their own songs. (The first recording of Priest playing was an other band's song called Budgie - the song is Running from my Soul, and the date is 1974.02.11.) Unusual impovisations, never heard sounds in classic songs. A must for every Priest maniac!

-Before their set, John Hinch remembers how the band were very nervous to leave their dressing room and go on stage. No, it wasn't a case of stage-fright, but actually fear for their own safety - for you see, a band called Stella opened the three-day event, with Judas Priest following next, and the audience responded to Stella by throwing so many cans, bottles and other things at them that they had to quickly exit the stage! Fortunately the members of Judas Priest overcame their apprehension to this hostile crowd and took the stage, opening with "Victim Of Changes" - this time to rapturous applause!

- "Last night, it seemed for a while that the only highlight was going to be a young lady in crutch throttling shorts, who flitted about the press arena. Stella, the first act to tread the virgin stage flopped. A three-piece from Durham, they produced a string of monotonous songs about nightmares, a lad who got his thrills wearing concrete boots, and a lunatic on holiday by the seaside. Adding to the atmosphere, the singer did chilling impersonations of Frankenstein's monster. The lead guitarist, who looked as if he had been involved in an argument with a lawn mower, plunked merrily away. "You get that crazy feeling you don't want to be a rock star", droned the singer during one number. Stella are certainly going the right way not to hit the lofty heights of stardom.

When Judas Priest appeared, things looked up. Lesson number one at a festival is to get the audience on their feet and clapping. Judas Priest have a commanding, self assured air. Lead singer Bob Halford, resplendent in medieval style jacket, had the audience in the palm of his hand. Following in the footsteps of Black Sabbath and Budgie, Judas Priest's music is as heavy as a ton of lead. Guitarists K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton set up a relentless assault - cutting across one another and then spiraling off individually. At one point K.K. launched off into a Hendrix style solo, sounds catapulting across from one set of speakers to the other. Strangely, the rhythm section seems to be lacking in the band. Bass and drums were drowned out, as Tipton and Downing thrashed away." - Reading Evening Post, August 23, 1975

Yes, they wrote Bob Halford... there were a lot of jokes about that, you can imagine :D
Click to expand...

Surprisingly good sound! :)
 
That's silly. He spent the last years explaining why Priest was dead and stuff. AND if he rejoined, he wouldn't be playing Glenn's part, so would they ask Ritchie to switch to doing Glenn's stuff instead? How is that fair?

If you quit the band, you quit the fucking band.
 
He makes some very nasty assumptions:

"However, I know now more clearly than ever that I did the right thing by leaving the band when I did — as it seems that my time spent in the band, and my value in terms of crafting its huge legacy, was and is unappreciated by more than one member. I sincerely hope, for the fans' sake, that the decision not to approach me was not a financial one."

These (parts from) reactions I read on facebook sound like very good replies:

"Since you're still as you say a member of the band and you were so eager to return why didn't you call them yourself or your ego was too big? Also since as you say they didn't approach you it's very dirty of you to make assumptions about financial issues, you could say that only if they had ask you back and the money they were offering were not satisfying for you, right now you just want to create false impressions! On one hand you try to play it cool and say that fans should go enjoy the band and on the other hand you throw hollow and baseless accusations in the air to try to hurt them just days before their tour is about to start."

&

"Maybe he wasn't asked simply cause they thought there was no way he would be interested. I dont imagine for a minute the band wanted to deliberately upset KK but just respected his decision not to play with the band anymore. And now KK is upset and disappointed and instead of telling the right people (ie the band) he's doing it on Facebook. Why don't people talk to each other anymore? A couple of proper conversations between the band members could have solved a lot of upset. I feel sad."


Makes me sad as well.

Still this: Rob quit the band, came back and no one said a word. K.K. quit and is thrashed for thinking he could/should return.
 
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