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“Rob Halford rules, man!” is a statement that has been uttered by many a jean vest-wearing metalhead since the mid-seventies, and this one has no hesitation about saying it in 2012. Listening to Screaming For Vengeance, it’s clear that the heavy-level riffage, piercing vocals, and suggestive lyrics wrote the blueprint for virtually all of the 80’s metal that would follow in its path.
The 30th anniversary edition of Screaming for Vengeance will be released on September 3rd, and features not just the remastered original album and bonus tracks, but also a live DVD from the 1983 US Festival concert, filmed in San Bernardino, CA.
To enter to win a copy, tell us in the comments below which classic Judas Priest album is your favorite and why. This contest will end at midnight on September 3rd. You must have a mailing address in the US or Canada to enter.
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PRE-ORDER SCREAMING FOR VENGEANCE
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BRITISH STEEL – Found the band branching out.
Priest… Live. I have some awesome memories of listening to Parental Guidance on my headphones while waiting for the bus to take me to work in sub zero weather in Billings, MT.
Screaming for Vengeance is my favorite Judas Priest album. It’s awesome from start to finish, and I don’t think anyone has done a better album opener (The Hellion) since.
It’s got to be Screaming For Vengeance (with British Steel/Painkiller a close second). That album defines heavy metal, “The Hellion/Electric Eye” is the greatest opening tune for a metal album period. No other Priest album showcases Halfords vocals in such an impressive way. It is one of the albums that got me into metal and to this day cannot be beat.
Sad Wings of Destiny – I actually prefer hippie Priest to studs and leather Priest.
“Stained Class.” I got this used on LP in November, 1983. It was the last title I needed for completest reasons. I just did NOT “get it” at the time. It got spun once or twice and then put away until about ten years ago.
At that time, I’d been revisiting “lost classics” from my youth. For example, I thought Rainbow’s – “Rising” was swell in high school. Liked it just fine. But didn’t listen to it again until 1999 or so. It absolutely blew my mind when I did. I wanted more experiences like that. “Stained Class” was an obvious choice, since many metalheads I’d met over the years swore by it’s brilliance.
At first, it wasn’t doing much for me. Then I put on side two. “Saints In Hell” turned it all around. I far-freaked out. In a day or so, I was completely obsessed.
The album is so much darker, more technical, more forward-thinking than anything before or after. The hyper-dry production makes it sound like the kind of music Tolkien’s elves would play if they were asked to create something similar to the rock music of men.
♥
SAD WINGS OF DESTINY for its philosophical and musical muscle-stretching–plus Mr. Halford is in fine form (think the part where he says “rip-AHH” and the amazing wail at the end of “Island of Domination”).
KILLING MACHINE / HELL BENT FOR LEATHER
it was the first priest album i heard, i still know every word to every song on it. amazing band.
I’m disqualified but I’d say Painkiller, their last album before Rob Halford left the band. That was the Judas Priest album that ventured forward with new sounds.
Some weeks it’s British Steel, some weeks it’s Sin After Sin, some weeks it’s Sad Wings of Destiny, some weeks it’s Screaming for Vengeance (after which my Tuesday night volleyball team is named!), some weeks it’s Killing Machine: there’s a Priest for every week.
I’m gonna go with “Sin After Sin.” Yeah, there’s some hippie shit on there, but any album that starts with “Sinner” and ends with “Dissident Aggressor” is still pretty solid. Always liked the drumming and production on this one too.
Sin After Sin. Bought it on cassette in 1985, my first JP album. Not only does it start off with my fave Priest epic, Sinner, the entire second side flawlessly combines proto-speed metal, a weird funky one, a near doom-like dirge and….Dissident Aggressor! I admit, I don’t care for Last Rose of Summer, but this is the most atmospheric Priest album in their discography (along with Sad Wings). Priest is one of those bands that will always stay with you because the catalogue is so varied, yet always uniquely Priest….I’ll always listen to their pre-’86 albums. Shit, I didn’t even mention Simon Phillips, the best drummer they ever had!
I’ve probably listened to SFV more than any other, but I have a huge soft spot for Stained Class. I prefer Hell Bent for Leather / Killing Machine as a party record, though.
British Steel – cool album art
Point of Entry….track #1 is my ultimate summer driving tune, and everything else rocks just as hard
Painkiller is such a massive kick in the ass…impossible to top. Infectious and headbangable from beggining to end
“Sin After Sin”. It just RULES!
Tie between Sad Wings of Destiny and Screaming for Vengeance.
Tyrant might be my favorite Priest song ever.
Unleashed in the East. It’s like a dream setlist from my favorite era of Priest. One of the best live records ever (and no I don’t care out the overdubs).
Stained Class. I agree with Dalton up there, except on that elfy stuff, which is all his. “Beyond the Realms of Death” has two amazing solos. My favorite Priest song, maybe. It’s hard to pick. “Turbo Lover” also rulz. Actually, I love Priest so much I pretty much un-ironically enjoy Turbo.
SAD WINGS OF DESTINY. A perfect bridge between psychedelics and the NWOBHM.
Turbo because heavy metal rules, all that punk shit sucks. And Madonna, she’s a dick.
Turbo – because the hand grabbing that gearshift on the cover makes me want to put a needle down on that.
Stained Class hands down. I mean, their “better by you, better than me” cover, supposedly with the words “do it” that caused all the flap? They fuckin invented NWOBHM right here. I could go on, fuckers.
The one that tells you to worship Satan and kill people when played backwards.
You’re so stupid that it actually complicated the definition of the word now.
Wow, do you feel better about yourself now? It’s called a sense of humor. You might want to look up THAT definition.
Anyway, Sad Wings is my favorite, because it’s the album that first got me into Priest. Plus Tyrant is one of my favorite Priest tracks ever!
That’s a really hard call. While I think _Stained Class_ and _Sad Wings of Destiny_ are better albums, I probably listen to _Sin After Sin_ the most. I used to think it was uneven, but now I think of it more as eclectic. There’s their cover of Joan Baez’s “Diamonds and Rust,” maybe my favorite metal ballad; the vaguely “Led Zeppelinish “Last Rose of Summer”; the doom-before-doom-metal-was-a-thing of “Here Come the Tears”; and of course “Dissident Aggressor,” which, at the time, had the be one of the heaviest songs ever written and recorded. And that riff in the end part of “Raw Deal” is one of my all-time favorite heavy metal riffs, and one of the first I learned how to play on guitar.
“Killing Machine” is the the tightest manifestation of the qualities that made Priest so innovative and influential. By the time British Steel and and Screaming For Vengeance dropped, the band was already repeating itself. “Killing Machine” has speed, heaviness, and catchiness, and nothing as heinous as “Last Rose of Summer” and such tracks that bring the other 70s Priest records to a dead stop.
Unleashed in the East was the first album I heard by Judas Priest, and remains my favorite. Band is on fire, they came out with that leather/biker look, and The Green Manalishi is one of the most absolutely smoking remakes of a Fleetwood Mac song ever done.
I bet that DVD us Judas 83′ is killer too.
Regards,
David
No kidding about “The Green Manalishi.” When the Melvins covered it, they were really covering Priest’s cover, not the Fleetwood Mac original.
Speaking of the Melvins and Priest, did anyone else notice that Buzzo cribs the riff from “Breaking the Law” on _The Bride Screamed Murder_? (can’t remember which track, as I usually don’t bother to learn the names of individual Melvins songs, but it’s early on the album) If you’re going to steal, steal something worth stealing.
I now realize I should have made a “British Steal” joke there. What a missed opportunity.
D.O.T.F. Freewheel Burning is the jam. Plus I saw the Priest for the first time during this tour. Kick Axe opened the show. Best part is was the first encore when all you heard was a Harley firing up back stage, a “claw” rose up, and Halford came out on it. You know what was next? That’s right, Hell Bent for Leather!
Painkiller. It rocks; the drumming is excellent; it’s very balanced in that it is harsh and heavy, but still has some pop elements.
Now I will want to hear “Saints in Hell” for the rest of the day…
Sin After Sin, because the original “Dissident Aggressor” makes Slayer sound like a bunch of pussies.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nHdwuaaPkVw
The Turbo promos are amazing.
That was awesome … LOL
Sad Wings of Destiny if for nothing else than Dreamer/Deceiver. Just epic and a shame it hasn’t received the attention it deserves. Before Priest evolved into what they are now – which isn’t a bad thing – but a Priest I like the best anyhow.
Was going to say Stained Class but for me it doesn’t have that standout track like Victim of Changes. Beyond the Realms of Death is pretty solid however.
If I said Screaming for Vengeance is my favorite, but I don’t have a copy on CD, would it be enough to convince you to give me one?
…seriously though. Sad Wings of Destiny, with Stained Class and Painkiller nipping at it’s heels.
My favorite? Rock a rolla…”Where would you be without music?” How can this not be the world’s most favorite album, it’s fucking Heavy Metal being born for fuck sake’s.
But the first 4 Priest albums are mind blowing…Favorite song would be Victim of Changes off of Sad Wings of Destiny. I was five years old when I first heard Victim of Changes. I don’t know but I either came or had a seizure at the end of it…
I’ll say the favorite is album being given away; Screaming for Vengeance, just because of what the album meant for me personally. It was literally the first metal album I bought with my own allowance/summer-time job money as 12 year old. I bought cassette the same time as Sammy Hagar ‘Three Lock Box’. Well, guess which one has stood the test of time better.
I was into AC/DC, Sammy Hagar, Van Halen, but JP kicked it to another level. “Heavy Metal”. The launching pad into Iron Maiden, Scorpions, Dio-Sabbath then Metallica, Anthrax, Motorhead a couple years down the road. A huge album for me as a life-long culture. 43 years old now and my highlights for the impending holiday weekend is not travelling, camping or barbequeing but instead seeing EYEHATEGOD and YOB in separate shows, none which might not have happened if not for Screaming for Vengeance.
‘Unleashed in the East’ would be my desert island disc and as artist statements, I concede that ‘Sad Wings of Destiny’ and ‘Stained Class’ are better, but none of them hold the personal distinction SfV does with me.
Your story is not dissimilar to mine. I remember buying “For Those About to Rock…” and Aldo Nova with my own money on the last day of 8th grade in 1982. I was a on massive AC/DC kick for the next six months. For Christmas of 1982, my parents got me “If You Want Blood…” and “Screaming for Vengeance.” A few days later, a friend let me hear “The Number of the Beast” on his Walkman after I proclaimed there wasn’t anything “harder” than Judas Priest. It was all over from that point, with me saving my allowance and spending school lunch money on all the Priest and Maiden albums available at the time, a subsequent dive into the NWOBHM then discovering the underground via The End of the Rainbow at the end of 1983. And, yes, here I am today. Cheers!
I had tickets to see JP in Illinois during this tour. Was really looking forward to it for weeks. I was also stealing my parents 4×4 truck after school to go off roading. I didn’t have a liscence yet, was just about to pass drivers ed. Well the last day I took it out I had the back filled with friends and bikes going to the local convienence store for some refreshements. Well I made a stupid move and nicked a car in the parking lot on my way out ( not bad just grased the fender with the bumper). Split the scene and thought I was scott free after two weeks. Well somone got the plate number and local sherrif contacted my father. I didn’t remove the pant transfer when I cleaned it (dumb kid). Anyhow I had never seen my father so pissed off. Lost my chance use my tickets I was house bound for about two months. What a waste.
Unleashed in the East. First album of theirs that I bought. The enrrgy of every song is unbelievable.
I’m ineleigible, but I need to say how much i love Defenders of the Faith. It may ahve the worst album art… ever. But from Freewheel Burning to the title track at the end, it gets me heated every time.
That said, almost all of their records are sweet. Even Ram it Down has its moments.
Uh, what? The cover art of _Defenders_ is awesome. Sure, it’s obviously an attempt to do a giant cat version of the _Screaming_ eagle (just like “Some Heads Are Gonna Roll” is an atempt to re-write “You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’”) but it’s still fucking awesome. Maybe you need glasses or something.
“The opinions of the above IO writer do not necessarily reflect those of Invisible Oranges or any other members of its staff and should be taken with a boulder of salt.”
No offense, Joseph. Defenders has fucking sweet artwork.
I think “Screaming For Vengeance” is Priest’s best album, but “Painkiller” and “Jugulator” are close second/third due to their heaviness and melody. Alternatively, I’d back PKNY about the 3 early “hippie” albums including “Sad Wings Of Destiny”; some great music there.
British Steel – almost entirely because Breaking the Law is so damn awesome
Hell bent for leather!
I remember being 13 and stealing this from my dad’s collection. In the early 2000’s at time when hip pop and “nu-metal” were the thing, I was an outcast. ha ha ha. After listening to this I was never the same.
Screaming for Vengeance. Devil’s Child and You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’ best songs they ever wrote!!!
My first Priest album I ever heard was, Defender’s, but it was, Screaming, did for me. There’s not a track on that record I don’t like.
^^^ Ditto ^^^