I haven't listened to too much Priest. I'v listened to Painkiller, Jugulator, and i think that it other then the radio hits. I loved Jugulator, and when i went back and heard Painkiller i realized that Jugulator wasn't as big a change as people seem to say.
I'm wondering, how do AoR and Nostradomus compare to Painkiller? Do they have any of the hard, speed metal-ish elements of Painkiller, and Jugulator?
I also want to add that I think Ripper waa a fantastic replacement. He sounds a lot like Halford and has a very similar range. People seem to blame him for Jugulator and Demolition, but the thing is he didn't write them. Jugulator was written entirely by the 2 guitarists, even the lyrics. Jugulator seems like a kinda natural progression from Painkiller, and Demolition could be considered a step back to earlier stuff.