Track Rundown
1. Dragonaut- Starting off with what Guitarist Glenn Tipton describes as a " Fucking Clap of Thunder", The track leads into a cool heavy riff with the whole band firing on all cylinders. When Robs vocals come in singing "Welcome to my world of steel/master of my domain" I cant help but head bang my ass off. the pre chorus and chorus are more than worthy of a Priest opener. Ritchie and Glenn really blend with their tones. Ian Hill is really audible on this album as well which i like it adds more bump to it. Near perfect opener and just makes me go crazy for whats up next.
2. Redeemer Of Souls- The first single off the record, and the one that got me pumped for the album. The pure 80s guitar tone is what makes priest i think and this track has plenty of it and Robs epic vocals make the track even more enjoyable. The chorus is really fist pumping and i even hear faint synthesizers in the song which i feel was a bold move. It is a more simple track but i feel it to be really enjoyable.
3.Halls Of Valhalla- Wow just wow. The epic riffs a just ooze out of this one. i absolutely lose my mind at the beginning when Rob screams "VALHALLLLAAAAAA!!!!" and it kicks into a solo. I believe Ritchie solos here and i think its good i cant tell the solos apart because he meshes so well with a band this far into their career. The chorus is really strong as well and anyone that says Rob cant scream anymore. He does it all through this track and the scream before the main solo is just so amazing. This is like the new Sentinel and my favorite track on the album.
4.Sword of Damocles- An equally epic track, this one has more of a prog feel with it and even i think has a tinge of sad wings era Priest to it. I really think this would work as a live track and Scott Travis' drumming really shines here as well. Another home run for me. Robs lyrical content here is nothing short of an epic feel to them. Pure traditional heavy metal here.
5.March Of The Damned- The new Metal Gods. This song is. Like Redeemer Of Souls, a more simple Priest song but nothing short of being Badass. Rob does peel back a bit here but i think it works for this kind of track. It even has the loud marching sounds like Metal Gods did and even though this song is a bit more of a rip off than original, i still find it enjoyable and fits into what Priest was going for with this album.
6.Down In Flames- this track has a bit more of that "pop" flavor from Priest and honestly without changing anything, i would throw this on Defenders along with songs like Rock Hard, Ride Free and JawBreaker. I find the chorus really infectious too this one is definitely one of my favorites.
7.Hell & Back- This song starts with the first acoustic guitars we hear on the album but quickly turns into another 80s sounding Priest track. I think they really captured their British Steel-Turbo era brilliantly on this record. This is a more mid paced song and not one of my favorites but its still pretty good.
8.Cold Blooded- This sounds like a song that could be on Turbo (an album that i actually didn't mind) or even an album like British Steel with the end being heavy but not too heavy. This song has a more ballad tone to it but its a nice change up but keeps it consistent with some nice riffs and a pretty good solo.
9.Metalizer- Now stepping into Painkiller-esque territory, this song is really reminiscent with Metal Meltdown off that album in which rob sings in a robotic way during the chorus. I really like is kind of laid back scream in the mix in the beginning. It s a pretty good track definitely the most thrashiest so far.
10.Crossfire- This track is very unique as it centers around the blues with more groovy riffs than heaavy riffing. Its another one of my favorites and the beginning reminds me of the intro riff to Black Sabbaths I off of Dehumanizer. It even sounds like it has a Hendrix feel to it. Robs vocals are awesome too and its cool to hear him sing to a more bluesy hard rock song ever since Rocka Rolla came out. I feel they were channeling that album more here. Definitely a stand out track.
11.Secrets of the Dead- I like how this one opens with the echoing guitars it really sets the mood. This one harkens a bit back with Halls of Valhalla with more epic riffs on it however its got more chugging going on than a full blast metal song. It reminds me of something off of Ram It Down like a Blood Red Skies kind of song with less synths laid over it. It's still pretty good. there are some interesting guitar synthesizers over the solo which i thing adds another layer of character to this track.
12.Battle Cry- While its still a good song, It sounds like the most traditional priest song you can get which is never a bad thing. I really like, the intro to this song and it fits the mood very perfectly and the fast riffing is really catchy and the chorus is actually quite strong with Robs vocals escalating to a steady wail at the end. This song would work very well live and is just an anthemic tune for hard rock and heavy metal fans.
13.Beginning of the End- This is a very 70s Priest sounding acoustic song at least to me. It really ends the album on a really beautiful yet very depressing note. Rob voice still is just as powerful as ever especially during the chorus. Its also possibly a telling of the future of one of the greatest heavy metal bands of all time. well...lets hope not.
Normally, i would end here, but im going to include the bonus tracks. why? cause i can!
Bonus Tracks
1.SnakeBite- Right away, this track just sounds like pure 80s Judas Priest. I could throw this on Screaming For Vengeance and couldnt tell that it was from an album 30 years later. I would throw this on the original record because its one of my favorite songs in both discs. I even like the backround vocals which reminds me of Devils Child alot. Also, i shouldve mentioned this before but i can hardly tell that KK is missing even though Ritchie has a more somber guitar tone in his solos he still works very well.
2. Tears Of Blood- Another song you could throw on one their old records and it reminds me alot of the Sentinel again but also with a style all its own. Another pure classic sounding Priest track.
3.Creatures-I like the riff here but it is a bit less developed than their other tracks. it sounds more like a jam they were working on. Its not bad but but again its not the greatest.
4.Bring It On- This starts out really fist pumping and with a pretty good riff and sounds like a more radio friendly song off Defenders which i could do with. I feel alot of Defenders Of The Faith on alot of the songs on these to discs which is a very good thing for me at least
5.Never Forget- This song reminds me alot of a more rare Priest song which is Last Rose Of Summer off of Sin After Sin (Check out that review) and its another beautiful song that i really admire to end both discs. The guitars sound really beautiful here too.
Overall, I give this album a 9.5 of a 10. Hands down this record is my top of the year. Alot of people will probably give me shit about giving not alot of "negative" comments here but listen i review things i either really like or dont understand why people like it. This album just shows Priest going over their whole discography and writing songs from each era. sure they didnt rewrite anything in Metal but they dont need to since they have multiple times. Im also happy they didnt just stick to the Painkiller sound there is much more to them. id even put this in my top 5 Priest albums as well. However, i do think hands down this is their best release since Painkiller and i may not get to see them this year (damn venues 21 and up) but i will bask in this fresh slab of classic heavy metal over and over again.
