Judas Priest Album: “Angel of Retribution [Slipcase]”

ANGEL OF RETRIBUTION opens with a crescendoing, swirling guitar riff which explodes into the welcome return of the classic Halford scream. "Judas is Rising," the first track exclaims. Indeed. They has risen and continue to stand tall and rock throughout all ten tracks on this, their overdue and welcome reunion album.

Priest do not reinvent their sound on this LP. Instead, much like Maiden's BRAVE NEW WORLD, they simply give us a molten slab of the rock we banged our heads against back in the days of BRITISH STEEL, SCREAMING FOR VENGEANCE and PAINKILLER. Each track begs for the volume to be turned just a little more to the right and the momentum builds through the album's epic closer duo of "Eulogy" and "Lochness," the latter of which may be derided as a bit over the top in terms of Dio-esque hokiness, but when did these guys ever take themselves too seriously? Of the entire album, only the non-screaming vocals of "Worth Fighting For" leave the listener wanting. Regardless, ANGEL OF RETRIBUTION picks up exactly where PAINKILLER left off and this listener in particular hopes it's the first of another run of at least another dozen or so records by Halford & Co.

Break out the black - both t-shirts and lightbulbs. If you thought Priest of the past was only a memory, you've got another thing comin'.

The first new album from Judas Priest since the Ripper Owens days and the first with Rob Halford since Painkiller (over ten years ago) tries to reclaim the ground it has "lent" to today's metal acts, with generally nice results. From the first (the opener "Judas Rising"), the trademark Priest grinding guitars and hypnotic riffs light up the album, and generally keep a high level of energy throughout. Rob Halford's voice is nothing less than fantastic; even his screams (at least on record) are still amazing, though his voice certainly stretches out with lower range and volume changes as well this time around, again with masterful results.

Two things that make "Angel Of Retribution" sound a bit different from what people see as the typical "Priest sound," however, are the greater presence of the bass in songs and the nature of a few of the songs themselves. First, Ian Hill's bass plays a much more central role in some songs (certainly on the album's first single, "Revolution", but on others like the finale "Lochness" as well), and helps to spread out the demands on screaming guitar solos (which I think are just a little toned down for this release) and Scott Travis' drums (but still a lot of the double bass drum beats throughout). Hopefully this helps the band more easily capture the sound of these songs live and maybe even surpass them in their concert versions. The second difference is that Priest (unlike many other bands of the genre) always have tweaked their sound a little to accomodate changes in their interests, and here is no different. There's a full fledged ballad "Angel" which is not fair to simply refer to as a "power ballad," as it deals with an interesting topic (asking for relief in the form of death at the end of the character's life) and is carried more by Halford's wonderful lower and mid range voice than the inevitable crashing guitar chorus. "Eulogy" is another change of pace, kind of a view from outside the body of a group of mourners with a heavy piano (maybe from Glenn Tipton?) base; mournful and an interesting segue into the album's last song, "Lochness," an extended "trudge" through one of the more interesting myths of Scotland (Halford referred to it as their "Lord Of The Rings" moment).

There are still plenty of high-octane songs on the album to rock to (my favorites are "Deal With The Devil" and "Demonizer" with it's "Out, Demon, Out" line in the chorus) and even though the second half sags a bit in my opinion, the Priest machine has definitely retooled itself successfully for the forseeable future. Recommended!

I've never been a devoted Judas Priest fan. I bought "Angel of Retribution" just because I was curious as to what this bunch of 50-yr-olds would sound like in this day and age.

And I have to say that "Angel of Retribution" offers some amazing heavy metal material to satisfy any Heavy Metal fan out there. I've been playing the CD nonstop since I got it and it really gets better with every spin.

There is heavy stuff like `Judas Rising', `Demonizer' and the amazing `Hellrider'. There is some good' ole classic metal like `Deal w/ the Devil' and `Wheels on Fire'. Experimental metal like `Revolution', `Worth Fighting For' and a beautiful ballad called `Angel'. And then the CD ends with a classic metal 13-minute operatic (either you'll like it or you don't) song called `Loch ness'.

Some may not like this CD but consider this, for ANY band that has survived 30+ years and still sound this fresh, powerful and energetic, "Angel of Retribution" deserves a buy.

I am eighteen years old and have been listening to Heavy Metal ever since I was eleven. After hearing about this album from my friends and the Internet, I decided to buy it out of curiosity. Was I ever suprised when I put this in my cd player, I couldn't believe I was missing out on such a great band. I like the whole album, but my favourite songs are: "Judas Is Rising", "Deal With The Devil", "Worth Fighting For", "Angel", and "Hellrider". I also like the dvd that comes with the album. It really gave me a good idea on what the band is all about. All in all, this is a great album for hardcore Priest fans, or a good starting point for new fans such as myself.

A pulverizing bolt of electricity and `nervous system energizing' that rivet to the core. It's hard to believe that so many years after they unleashed the wonderful Painkiller upon this planet, they are resurrected to haunt and stimulate again. The majesty of Priest - dead earnest camp and leather still intact - with all its glorious mythology that leaves you guessing whether salvation or destruction is more appealing, delivers the infinite metal mayhem you have been patiently awaiting. All your senses will be heightened with this masterful metal display. This extraordinary album blends a special concoction of mysterious, epic ballads and powerful, skull crushingly savory cacophonies and fugues of rock. What's new with this one? How about gorgeous displays of psychedelia and blues to go with heavy doses of mind melting metal? What is it that's so soothing about those familiar, though strangely always advancing, screeching vocals and the blasting guitar symphonies, not to mention the thunderous drums - that bring one into higher states of Zen? What is this special magic that arose from industrial England to explode with furious beauty and audible ambrosia all over the world for many decades? The artwork is stunning and the legacy continues into delightful new aural addictions.

God bless this angel of retribution. All sins are absolved.