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JUDAS PRIEST – British Steel [The Re-Masters] (Columbia/Legacy Recordings) |
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Posted: 8/26/04 Category: Heavy Metal Original Release: 4/80 Reissued/Remastered: 5/29/91 Label URL: www.legacyrecordings.com Band URL: www.judaspriest.com
With the Judas Priest reunion in full swing, we thought we’d take a look back at the band’s remastered reissues that came out during 2001 and 2002. Some of these we covered in our Metal Dreams print magazine – MD#6, but many of them were missed when we transitioned to the web.
If ‘heavy metal’ was in the dictionary, Judas Priest’s picture would be next to it. To this day, I use classic Priest as a benchmark when I’m judging other heavy metal bands. Judas Priest is the definitive heavy metal band with their image, anthemic lyrics, double-axe attack, thumping bassline, fist-pounding drumming, and a singer who has the ability to hit a variety of octaves. Their material without Rob Halford is certainly up for debate, but during the early 80s, these guys ruled the metal world.
British Steel was the follow-up studio album to Hell Bent For Leather (1978), and carried on in the tradition of that album. There were fast, in-your-face tracks like “Rapid Fire” and “Steeler,” mid-paced pounders like “Metal Gods,” and anthem styled chorus driven songs like “Breaking The Law” and “Living After Midnight.” There’s even a melodic, audience participation chanter found in “United.” Listening to this album more than two decades after its release, it strikes me that Priest knew how to be heavy without necessarily being all that fast. Dave Holland’s simple, but weighty drumming technique didn’t involve the double bass that became so popular in late 80s thrash, and certainly didn’t include the blastbeats that are so popular in today’s death metal. The chunky riffs of K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton weren’t fast either, and the muddy low-end rhythms of today’s heavy music thankfully didn’t exist back then. Yet, early 80s Priest is heavy!
This reissue has been digitally remastered and also includes two bonus tracks: “Red, White & Blue,” a mellow “United” styled song that’s unfortunately a complete throwaway, and a live version of “Grinder” from Long Beach, California. The booklet includes lyrics, unlike the previous cd issue, and some brief background on “Red White & Blue” and the overall album. My one complaint with all the remastered Priest albums is that the band should have put some effort into writing detailed liner notes.
The Bloody Truth: This is a classic Priest album, as "Breaking The Law" and "Living After Midnight" are staples of 'Heavy Metal 101' and the Priest catalog. It's really difficult to score Priest's recordings because I enjoy them all. But with that said, "United," "You Don't Have To Be Old To Be Wise," and "The Rage" are a tad weaker than the rest of the album (and songs from Screaming, Defenders, and Painkiller), knocking the overall score of British Steel down a bit.
Reviewed by: Dirt |
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Score:
4 out of 5
