Defenders of the Faith

Judas Priest - Defenders of the Faith

Day number two. The other band that delivered me towards Heavy Metal Salvation. And it's the mightiest band of them all: Judas Priest. They are without a doubt my favorite band of all time. Even the stuff that's "bad" is still pretty good. Tim "Ripper" Owens is pretty damned good, and the stuff with him at the helm isn't too bad.... but Rob Halford is the Metal God Incarnate. He is the greatest singer of all time. And I just think it's hilarious how his ultra-Homo-Erotic leather outfits and super gay BDSM sexual fantasies is forever associated with heavy metal machoness. Oh, the irony.

Anyways, I'd rank Defenders of the Faith as either the third or fourth best Priest album. It competes against Painkiller for third regularly. It's actually difficult to rank these albums and it usually depends on my mood.

I first heard Freewheel Burning at my friend's house. By the time the song finished, my face was completely melted off. I had to duct tape it back together and let it heal. True story. What particularly caught my attention was the section when Halford screeches "Look before you leap has never been the way we keep, our road is free!" at 534 miles per hour. That's ridiculous. And the entire album is filled with moments like that.

The reason I would rank this album higher than, say, Screaming for Vengeance, is because it kind of hearkens back to the time when Judas Priest where at the absolute peak of their powers in the 70's. That time period was raw, heavy, fast, menacing, and poetic. DOTF sees Priest attempting to captivate that old energy again, and they do it successfully. They also take the time to churn out stadium anthems such as "Rock Hard, Rock Free" and the closing tracks. And they pull it off convincingly. Those songs are a blast to sing along to.

My only complaints about this album would be Dave Holland's basic drumming. Yeah, people talk trash about his drumming all the time, but he kind of deserves it. He doesn't do any fills to spice things up. But to his credit, he keeps a strong and steady rhythm and allows Rob and the twin guitar attack of Tipton and Downing. He just sounds like a drum machine. Also, the ballad "Night Comes Down" is basic. Not the worst thing I've heard, but it seems out of place on album that's basically all fireworks. BUY OR DIE!