British steel (1980)
I guess you could say this might be where the tide begins to turn, certainly in my case anyway. This is only one of two Priest albums I had heard before beginning this discography, and I reviewed it in my journal “Classic Albums I have never heard”, where I was very impressed with it. That was a short review though, so here we'll be going into it in some more detail. The first of their albums to give them a high placing in the UK (number four) and a decent enough showing in the US (38), it also features three of their biggest hit singles.
“Rapid fire” is a song I first heard on the compilation album “Killer Watts”, which I featured in last year's Metal Month presentation. I wasn't impressed at it then, but on listening to the album I like it a lot better. It really grinds along on the twin guitars, driven on the galloping percussion of new drummer Dave Holland, and Halford is by now established in his characteristic growl. The songs have got progressively (!) shorter and snappier, with nothing on this album over five minutes, bar one which just overshoots by four seconds. It's no real wonder that there were singles from this; much of Priest's former output was too long and rambling to lend itself well to radio airplay. There's great aggression in this opener, and it continues into “Metal gods” (what a great title!) as the song is taken by a great thumping, marching beat and reminds me of Saxon at their height. Great guitar work too. The chorus could have a bit more life in it though, I have to say.
OK, who doesn't know “Breaking the law”? Even I, with my minimal experience of Priest, knew that song when I were a lad. It's just one of those songs, and even got parodied recently on
The Simpsons when the band played it as “Respectin' the law --- copyright law!” even if they mistakenly called Priest a Death Metal band!
It just gets the blood flowing, trundling along like an unstoppable thing that can't be stopped, and the chorus, though simple, is perfectly suited to the song. Of course, I guess there would be controversy around the sort of “teaching our kids bad lessons”, but then, that's metal, and people's perception of it outside the genre. Good use of the guitars as police sirens. It's a great example of how a song can be such a classic and yet so short: it only runs to just over two and a half minutes.
“Grinder” does what it says on the tin, snarling and snapping though it's not as slow as the title would suggest. The next single I've never liked; I find “United” a real dirge, always have and always will. The sentiment is fine, but it just lacks any energy, anger or sincerity, not to mention the lyric is bargain-basement beginner songwriter. Well, that's just me. It did well as a single so what do I know? I must admit, I find the title of the next one a bit odd: “You don't have to be old to be wise”? I'm not sure “the kids” want to be seen to be wise, and aren't Judas Priest all about havin' a good time? Still, it rocks well, kind of harks back a little to the Plant-influenced first two albums to a degree, but doesn't seem too much out of context musicwise.
Again, most of us would know “Living after midnight” as it was another successful single, quite a bit of the old seventies rock/southern boogie in it I feel, but you probably are familiar with it so I don't need to describe it. Great rocker. Things slow down then as we near the end of the album and head into “The rage”, with a big growling guitar intro and a slouching, staggering rhythm with a powerful vocal from Halford. Killer guitar solo. We end then on “Steeler” (I believe that was also the name of one of the bands we featured earlier?) which kicks out the stays and brings everything to a frenetic close. Fantastic choppy guitar ending, just love that, then the single chord finishes it off perfectly.
TRACKLISTING
1. Rapid fire
2. Metal gods
3. Breaking the law
4. Grinder
5. United
6. You don't have to be old to be wise
7. Living after midnight
8. The rage
9. Steeler
The feeling I got when I short-reviewed this for CAIHNH remains: so far my favourite JP album by a long shot, and I hope that's not just because there are three singles on it that I know. It's punchier overall than the albums that have gone before, there's little of the darker imagery that hung around them like a pall in some cases, and the band sound like they're really having fun. Whether or not this would last we'll see when we review their next album.