THE Judas Priest thread - v. new album and tour in 2024

[abydos]

Picked up the current Rolling Stone issue while waiting in the checkout line while grocery shopping today.
That "Redeemer" song got a 4/5 stars 

Did they also say Halford sounds the best he's done since Painkiller too?

[Zook]

That "Redeemer" song got a 4/5 stars 

 

I can't help but think that some of these tunes that we have heard already would be much better with Owens.

Or anyone with actual power in their voice.

[jammindude]

That "Redeemer" song got a 4/5 stars 

 

I can't help but think that some of these tunes that we have heard already would be much better with Owens.

"WHAT'S...MY...NAME?" 

Seriously...as blasphemous as it may sound...I think Live Meltdown may be the ultimate JP live album.

[abydos]

Abductors \m/

[jjrock88]

That "Redeemer" song got a 4/5 stars 

 

I can't help but think that some of these tunes that we have heard already would be much better with Owens.

"WHAT'S...MY...NAME?" 

Seriously...as blasphemous as it may sound...I think Live Meltdown may be the ultimate JP live album.

It's my favorite live album by any band

[wolfking]

That "Redeemer" song got a 4/5 stars 

 

I can't help but think that some of these tunes that we have heard already would be much better with Owens.

Or anyone with actual power in their voice.

Touche.

That "Redeemer" song got a 4/5 stars 

 

I can't help but think that some of these tunes that we have heard already would be much better with Owens.

"WHAT'S...MY...NAME?" 

Seriously...as blasphemous as it may sound...I think Live Meltdown may be the ultimate JP live album.

I'd probably agree.  Live in London is prety solid as well, my fav Priest DVD.

[Lowdz]

So, played Jugulator today. Wow, its pretty crap. Vocal melodies are non-existent - is that what they were going for? I will just never be a Ripper guy. Even Cathedral Spires wasn't great and I was expecting more after the build up by other people.

So I'll take Rob on autopilot over Ripper's banal melodies.

[Zook]

So, played Jugulator today. Wow, its pretty crap. Vocal melodies are non-existent - is that what they were going for? I will just never be a Ripper guy. Even Cathedral Spires wasn't great and I was expecting more after the build up by other people.

So I'll take Rob on autopilot over Ripper's banal melodies.

He's great in Iced Earth.

[wolfking]

So, played Jugulator today. Wow, its pretty crap. Vocal melodies are non-existent - is that what they were going for? I will just never be a Ripper guy. Even Cathedral Spires wasn't great and I was expecting more after the build up by other people.

So I'll take Rob on autopilot over Ripper's banal melodies.

Tim had nothing to do with the writing of both the albums he sang on.  As Zook he, he's fabulous in IE.

[jjrock88]

I think Jugulator was just too much of a change for Priest.  This might sound strange, but it may just be too heavy/brutal for a Priest release.  It took me by surprise the first time I heard it, and took awhile to warm up to it. 

[wolfking]

Even though I love the album, I gotta say while I was blown away when I heard it, I was also a bit shocked, especially by the lyrical content.  I think my love for the album was stemmed from me being a 13 year old kid who just got into metal and was learning the guitar.  I loved what I had heard of their older material but hearing Priest do Jugulator was just getting the immature 13 year old metal head excited.

I can fully understand how you older Priest fans would't really have appreciated the album.

[jammindude]

The only thing wrong with that album, was not sticking to the original cover.     That blown up, pixelated to crap, zoomed in face just looks terrible.   The original artwork is one of the best JP album covers ever.    I guess I heard that someone at the record company felt that the cover was "too graphic" and they didn't have time to fix it.    So they just zoomed in on the face and called it good.   

[wolfking]

I never quite understood that either.



BADASS!!

[Evermind]

Anyone knows if the deluxe version of Redeemer of Souls is a digipack/digibook of some sorts? Can't find in on their official site and on Amazon as well, and it's nice to know such things beforehand.

Also, I agree with you guys about the cover, the change was ridiculous, really.

[wolfking]

No info has been released.  Glenn did say the bonus tracks will be on a seperate cd, so that's all we know at this stage.

[Zook]

They couldn't blow that up without pixelating it? How small was the picture to begin with?

[jammindude]

They couldn't blow that up without pixelating it? How small was the picture to begin with?

I always just imagined that it was the smaller record label (they were on CMC and no longer with Columbia/Sony), and the timing.   It was 1997...Hi Def was not "the norm" (though among professionals, you would think it would have been) and art had long since stopped being done for large LP covers.

I actually have no idea, I'm just guessing.   But I do remember distinctly that the change was *very* last minute.   As in...hours before pressing.    Still, a really terrible move.   

[wolfking]

I wonder why. It's not a violent or offensive cover or anything.

[jammindude]

I wonder why. It's not a violent or offensive cover or anything.

New label.   It only takes one sensitive person to say "it's too scary"...and if that person has enough authority...it happens.  No matter how dumb it is. 

[Zook]

Big scary metal man.

[jammindude]

I was working in a CD shop at the time, and what I was told by the local rep (which remember, is 3rd hand at this point I think?  Combined with being over 15 years ago) was that the fact that he was ascending from a fiery abyss gave the wrong person at the record company the idea that it was supposed to be the devil... 

In any event...I'm thinking they thought they could get more stores to carry it (i.e. Walmart) if they didn't have *THE DEVIL* on the cover, and instead just had the face of a metal monster. 

[wolfking]

Man some people are just downright stupid.

[jjrock88]

I think that full version would have been the coolest album cover of all time.  Terrible decision to zoom in.

[jammindude]

Man some people are just downright stupid.

Well...to be fair...Walmart is stupid.    If you were in the business of keeping stupid and very powerful people happy...you might be surprised at the decisions you would be forced to make.

[Lowdz]

I think that full version would have been the coolest album cover of all time.  Terrible decision to zoom in.

The full cover is awesome. Doesn't improve the album any 
Hate it when bands cave in to outside pressure. They are supposed to be metal and to give the finger to The Man. They all just talk the talk when it comes to the money.

[Jaq]

I was working in a CD shop at the time, and what I was told by the local rep (which remember, is 3rd hand at this point I think?  Combined with being over 15 years ago) was that the fact that he was ascending from a fiery abyss gave the wrong person at the record company the idea that it was supposed to be the devil... 

In any event...I'm thinking they thought they could get more stores to carry it (i.e. Walmart) if they didn't have *THE DEVIL* on the cover, and instead just had the face of a metal monster.

Like Wal-Mart would have carried it anyway. Back in the 90s they were removing metal magazines and refusing to stock some albums because they were offensive. Maybe if Priest was still on Columbia, but CMC? No way.

[Zook]

Back in 2007 Walmart actually carried Iced Earth. And before I officially became a Dream Theater fan in 2006, they had a bunch of their albums. Now they don't have shit. They did finally get rid of all those damn AC/DC CDs, but they still have all the Eagles CDs for some reason still taking up a huge chunk of space. Walmart's CD selection is actually worse than Target's, but Target sells unedited still.

[jjrock88]

Really digging Dragonaut!!  Easily the best of the songs they've released so far

[Nel]

Wasn't the Eagles' 2007 album exclusively available at Walmart for an extended period of time? I think that's why their shelves were stock full of Eagles albums for the longest time.

Kind of like when Best Buy had entire shelves of GnR's Chinese Democracy littering the CD racks for almost two and a half years. 

[Zook]

Wasn't the Eagles' 2007 album exclusively available at Walmart for an extended period of time? I think that's why their shelves were stock full of Eagles albums for the longest time.

Kind of like when Best Buy had entire shelves of GnR's Chinese Democracy littering the CD racks for almost two and a half years. 

Maybe, but it's been 7 years. No one is going to buy that shit.

[jammindude]

For the record, I kinda picked Walmart out of a hat myself.    My real point (and my understanding of the situation) was that the label feared that some stores would not stock the full cover, and felt that they could get more stores to carry the album if they changed it. 

I'm not saying it still wasn't really stupid...but I wanted to clarify because I felt like what I said had been misconstrued. 

[Zook]

I think Walmart would be the only store to have that kind of thinking anyway.

Walmart: praise Jesus and Mexico
Target: only the main main mainstream
Kmart: We have some CDs, please shop here
Zia Records: 

[Zydar]

Dragonaut in full:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shwOv_J7QGo

[emtee]

Classic Priest. I'm diggin' it. Sonic quality may be a little suspect though but I'll reserve judgment until I have the physical copy.

[abydos]

Well that was boring. And what's up with the guitar sound? Ugh.