Average user rating:  |
| Priest go speed metal |
| Judas Priest's Painkiller, released in 1990, was one of the greatest Priest albums I ever heard next to Screaming for Vengeance, Stained Class and British Steel. When I first heard the title cut on the radio in late 1990, I thought I was listening to an album by Slayer but it was Priest. Scott Travis' drumming breathed new life into a band that were heading for mediocrity, Priest were never known for lightning double-bass drumming. Scott's drumming on songs like the title cut, Hell Patrol, A Touch of Evil, Between the Hammer and the Anvil and A Shot at Glory showed Priest were back. Unfortunately, the record buying public disagreed and this album flopped when it first came out because of stuff like Poison and Vanilla Ice. I guess for some people, hearing a whole album of Rob Halford singing in falsetto got on their nerves rather quickly. I say tough! On the older albums, he sang normal and would have maybe a song or two in a high octave. Unfortunately, Rob Halford left in 1993 after this classic. I hope the new Priest album is just as good if not better! Highly recommended! |
| Over the Top Metal Fest |
| This album got me from the first drum beats of the title track and quickly became one of my favorite albums. It's so over the top you can't help but love it. Pretty much all the tracks are winners. I love it when Rob Halford uses his high pitch voice for the whole song and he rips on Painkiller, one of his all-time best tracks, and does a lot on Metal Meltdown also. Scott Travis is a lot better than Dave Holland, who was good. The solos are very inventive. I've never noticed problems with the lyrics but I've heard about them. This started way back with British Steel when Priest streamlined their sound and image for mass audinces. THis sounds the least dated of any of the Judas Priest albums. It's as great today as when it was first released. |
| Greatest Speed Metal Album Ever |
| I like to think of Judas Priest's 1990 metal masterpiece Painkiller as a speed metal Exile On Main Street. Both albums are examples of stunning perfection in thier respective genre's from start to finish. I've always noticed that Judas Priest's role in heavy metal is similar to the Rolling Stones in rock n roll ( The Stones combined the best elements of r&r, r&b, blues, etc. perfected it into thier own definitive style, in every conceivable way became the epitome of rock n roll music and would be the reference point for all real rock n roll music that followed. Judas Priest did the exact same thing for heavy metal.) so I couldn't resist the Exile/Painkiller comparison. Painkiller is the band's fastest and heaviest album to date and easily one of their best. The sound is simply classic Priest fueled by the influence of 80's speed metal bands such as Metallica and Megadeth. Basically, if you like speed metal at all, Painkiller is essential. Everyone in the band is in top form and each gives an inspiring, breathtaking 110% over-the-top performance, especially noteworthy is drummer Scott Travis since Painkiller is his first Priest album and his ferocious double-bass technique gives the band's sound a new power. Every song on Painkiller is a classic beginning with the ferocious beast of a title track on which Rob Halford screams and wails at the top of his lungs for the entire song and Scott Travis unleashes his immortal drum intro and ending with the majestic, epic battle anthem One Shot At Glory featuring one of Glenn Tipton and KK Downing's best ever guitar soloing duels. Also notable is A Touch Of Evil which is the one non-speed-metal song on here; its a heavy, midpaced, atmospheric ballad, of sorts, which sounds not quite like anything else they've ever done and has one of Tipton's greatest guitar solos ever to boot. In my opinion, Judas Priest are the greatest metal band of all time and Painkiller is one of their best albums. You will love it. |
![Ram It Down [Bonus Tracks]](http://shop0nline.com/image/B0000630BW.S.jpg)
![Turbo [Bonus Tracks]](http://shop0nline.com/image/B0000630DK.S.jpg)
![Hell Bent for Leather [Expanded Edition]](http://shop0nline.com/image/B00005R62M.S.jpg)
