Like the long-lost and thought-dead hero who turns up at the season finale of a TV show, the creator and driving force behind Judas Priest made his triumphant return fifteen years after he parted company with the band, and coincidentally, to record their fifteenth album. Priest had been slipping over the time with replacement vocalist Tim “Ripper” Owens, and neither
Jugulator nor
Demolition had really cut it in the eyes of fans, and I can see why. Would this be the shot in the arm the band needed? Would this help them reclaim their throne and scale to the summit of the metal mountain, assuage the fans's fears and begin a whole new chapter in the life of the band?
Angel of retribution (2005)
They certainly set out their stall in no uncertain terms with the opening track, as “Judas rising” punches its way out of the grooves on the twin guitars of Downing and Tipton, with a climbing guitar line that eventually explodes as Halford lets out a scream, sounding glad to be back, and eager to reclaim his place as the only Judas Priest vocalist, the original and best. There's really little time to take that in though, as you're battered over the head with a heavy, crunching riff and drumbeat and a snarling, menacing vocal from the returning prodigal son. Go for the throat early, seems to be the idea, and don't let go. Jugulator? What fu
cking jugulator? Demolition? I'll show you f
ucking demolition!
There's a sense of joy and abandonment in the guitar work too, and you really get the feeling that a machine which has been faltering and stuttering of late has been given a complete overhaul and is working better than ever. You can't get over the idea though that Halford is announcing his return and letting everyone know he is back. Judas rising indeed! “Deal with the devil” speeds things up as the boys catalogue their rise to fame and glory from the early days playing around the local clubs and pubs, while there's more of a boogie feel to “Revolution”, where I think but can't be sure the guys nod to T-Rex in the chorus. “Worth fighting for” sounds familiar, the basic melody, and there's quite a lot of AOR about it. Very catchy tune. Really dials back the metal here to go quite radio-friendly. It's back for “Demonizer” though, grinding along at a fine pace and with a lot of menace.
“Wheels of fire” burns up the road as the cops try in vain to catch the guys, who just laugh and flip the finger as they disappear into the distance to the sounds of searing guitar solos, then everything slows right down for the first (only?) ballad, the lovely “Angel”, on which Halford shows he doesn't just have to live in the very highest or lowest registers, that he can sing with a lot of tenderness too. Super Spanish guitar from Tipton and some atmospheric keys from Don Airey really make the song. Some of the guitar work here really evokes the late Gary Moore at his emotional best. It's guitars too that slowly drag in the anthemic “Hellrider”, with a sort of operatic backing vocal that would carry through into their next album. Halford's voice is at its highest here, could almost be mistaken for that of a female, and contrasts well with the backing vox, which are very deep and dramatic. There's also an absolutely blazing guitar solo, followed by, well, another one in quick succession, almost neo-classical. Takes up about the last two minutes of the song actually, which then goes into a sort of arabic style, kind of reminds me in places of Maiden's “The Nomad”.
Perhaps it's a tribute to his departed predecessor, though probably not; either way, “Eulogy” is a lovely little acoustic ballad with a gorgeous and yet dark guitar line, rising moody synth and piano from Airey, a very bleak, dramatic piece that would have been an anticlimactic closer, but Judas Priest are not ready to go out on such a sour note. “Lochness”, their longest composition to date at just short of thirteen and a half minutes, also starts acoustically and dramatically before rising on sharp guitar which is shortly joined by deep percussion, the whole thing giving off a slow, grindy, almost “Iron Man” kind of vibe. In form and lyrical content, and indeed structure, it's paying tribute back to their earlier progressive rock roots, though certainly with a hell of a bite.
There are even elements of power and folk metal in this masterpiece, with a killer chorus. A totally progressive guitar solo halfway through shows you in no uncertain terms that the boys are back in town, and it's a fantastic closer, setting the seal on an album that confirms the return to grace of a band who had perhaps been slipping of late, and who had certainly been missing their talismanic frontman. But that seemed like it was all in the past now: the boss was back, sounding better than ever, and it was back to business as usual.
TRACKLISTING
1. Judas rising
2. Deal with the devil
3. Revolution
4. Worth fighting for
5. Demonizer
6. Wheels of fire
7. Angel
8. Hellrider
9. Eulogy
10. Lochness
For the first time in decades, this album piqued the interest of America as it took Priest back into the outer reaches of the top ten, while paradoxically in their home country they could only manage to scrape into the top forty. Nevertheless, it was clear from this point that the pussyfooting and uncertainty was over, and that Judas Priest were back, better than ever. If it wasn't, then the next album would leave no room for doubt.