New Judas Priest album - "Firepower" (2018)

The songs that I like, I consider classics. The rest? Very "meh".

 

I can agree with that but still find I’m able to listen straight though and rarely skip any songs. Overall though Firepower is a stronger album (which really blows my mind in 2018)!

 

I have a Hi-Res download of this album and it's still among my Top 5 for the year thus far. When I get over to Japan in a couple weeks, I'll pick up the Blu-Spec2 CD that I've been meaning to pick up since the album's release. Better late than never...

 

I suppose you raise a good point about Painkiller being overrated. There is so much stigma around the awesomeness of the title track while introducing Scott Travis to the band and that killer intro, but as a whole now thinking about it?! It was clearly a new direction which I still enjoy though.

And I never realised this until now, but I didn't know that Chris Tsangarides was the producer on the record - and heck, he even worked on Sad Wings of Destiny 14 years earlier. Still a sad loss when he passed away back in January. I never did find out how he died either...

 

I always considered Painkiller one of the best Judas Priest albums next to Stained Class and Killing Machine. I would be interested to know which are the songs from Painkiller that some consider not good enough.

 

Heart failure I read somewhere.

He appeared in the Anvil movie didn't he?

 

Great album ! What a surprise from the JP after so , so many years. It's easily in my Top 5 JP albums and there z' no room for Painkiller anymore, although a good album.

 

I think it's gonna be my album of the year...really great album.

 

I keep a CD of Firepower in my car. Still listening regularly. Actually, I can't think of a recent album that has stayed in rotation longer than Firepower.

 

Priest were in Paris tonight (or last night if you're in Paris) and played Killing Machine. Setlist.fm says it's the first time since November 24 1978 that it's been played live.

Richie said recently on twitter that "we are changing up the set a lot for the next N. American run" so I was curious to see if they've added anything new yet. Killing Machine was the only song unusual in the Firepower tour set list.

Andy played the solo.

Strange that this tune wasn't played for over 40 years given that it's a simple song that would have been easy to whip into shape and it's so short. Oh and it kicks ass!!

 

My cutoff is Defenders.

I appreciate Painkiller because finally Holland was gone, but I'm really not into it.

As for the reunion albums, the insanely loud production values kill it for me. The playing is good but the songwriting just isn't there. IMO its time for the rocking chair.

 

I'm a major Priest fan and still can't really comprehend that this album is being hailed as some sort of second coming...did anyone listen to Redeemer Of Souls? In my mind Redeemer is better than Firepower - don't get me wrong I think Firepower is great but it's not like it's come off the back of Nostradamus which was indeed a steaming pile of...

 

I don't hear anything great or " magical comeback" about Firepower. It's not 13 by any means.

 

The problem with Redeemer is the production. There are some great songs on there, ruined by modern production es. Firepower sonically is way better, although typical of almost everything Andy Sneap works on.

 

Redeemer is great too, having just got it on Vinyl. I can see what you mean. I haven't heard Nostradamus in a long time, but I remember thinking it was good. I think it's been a great reunion, but it's really Priest in name only anymore. I think Halford is great on the records and the music is too. No Tipton or KK makes it kind of hard to say seeing this is seeing Priest. That said, I hope there's more recorded music in the future.

 

Oh, please! Any 'success' for Mr. Halford & co remains a largely organic affair (as much as such things can be in this wretched 'digital age') as opposed to being a relatively mainstream driven affair.

Both Firepower and its predecessor are virtuous slews of broadly unapologetic Metal, typical of a joyous trend in elder statesmen (of The Creed) who seem to be positively refining their wares as frail dotage beckons.

The ubiquitous lad from Sabbat should be kinghted for services to false prophet impalement.

 

13 is weak...the bonus tracks were better!
Firepower is a kick ass JP disc.

 

I am shocked at how good this is compared to every album they’ve done after Painkiller. This is really, really good. I didn’t think they had it in them anymore.

 

I can find some good in any Judas Priest album. Now when you separate the chaff from the wheat, you can toss out 3-5 albums as less worthy than the rest. Firepower does not fall into that group, not even close.

 

Excellent observation, W. K. Tyr; this was something I'd been meaning to mention on here for a while but 'Melodic Death Metal' kept pulling me back in...

I'm finding with some of my beloved, still functioning 'classic' acts, that often when digesting a new release, the filler quotient is remarkably low, not uncommonly less so than with extracts from an individual band's celebrated, halcyon period material and 'Priest is a very good example, although I still find SWOD perfect from start to finish.

 

Okay, so after a more thorough listen, I’m still very impressed. However, I’m not wholly uncritical. For one thing, this album could have easily been called “Painkiller 2: Painkillerer”. There’s nothing wrong with the band returning to that album, as it was the last time they were firing on all cylinders, but it does give the album a bit of a “been there, done that feel.” That being said, given the abysmal quality of their other reunion albums, this is a major breath of fresh air, and if the price we have to pay for that is a bit of deja vu, then so be it.

Compared to Painkiller, this one falls just a tiny bit behind, both for having less immediate impact than the throttling shock that was Painkiller on release, but also because some of the vocal melodies are a bit weaker than the uniformly strong Painkiller. To me, there’s not a single musical stumble on Painkiller, whereas Firepower has a few points here and there where I wish they had finessed the material a little more. This is a minor thing overall, and if I were rating the two albums on a 10 point scale, Firepower would only lose at most half a point compared to Painkiller.

The major thing keeping this out of my list of top Priest albums, and the same is true of Painkiller, are the cookie cutter generic metal lyrics. I never understood how the band that covered Joan Baez and wrote albums with heavy, mature lyrical themes descended into the immature, banal, and forgettable lyrics on Painkiller. Even the simpler lyrics of British Steel/Point of Entry/Screaming for Vengeance didn’t feel like dumb pandering. Does the band just not care about lyrics, or do they think their fans only want to hear puerile adolescent fantasies, or do they actually think their lyrics are still on par with their classics?

All that being said, this is easily JP’s best album since 1990. The playing is tight, the riffing is rock solid, the energy is there. Halford sounds great and sounds like he’s having fun. “Rising From The Ruins” may well end up in my list of top JP songs. It’s an exceptionally listenable album that, given the quality of their other reunion albums, shouldn’t exist. It’s a return to form for a band that I thought was so far over the hill that I would never care about new music from them again. I’m doubtful they’ll be able to keep up this level of quality on future albums (although I’d love to be pleasantly surprised), which makes this album all the more special if I’m right.

Just for reference, my favorite two Priest albums are Stained Class then Sad Wings of Destiny, and other than Painkiller (and now Firepower), I stop listening after Defenders of the Faith.

 

You do love that popcorn emoji, don't you......it "pops" up a lot on your posts!!.

However as a very casual Priest fan I have always found the songs on their albums very hit or miss.....Firepower is no different, albeit considerably more consistent than others.

...but rocking chair? c'mon...heading into slightly silly comment territory there....need to make it slightly less obvious that your just looking for a reaction in your posts.

Whilst Slayer have chosen to bow out, it is great to see where metal bands can go in old age, pushing the boundaries.....and remember the next generation...Metallica, Megadeth etc are no spring chickens now either.

 

The band descended into lyrical abyss only for business reasons assuming its audience is dumb and needs to be fed with cliches. SFV was the burgeoning of cartoon Judas Priest and it got really bad from then on. Halford is an intelligent and articulate character capable of much much deeper writing . Firepower is as dumb as everything they have been releasing for 35 years.

 

I know with the popcorn and all it seems like I am just trying to get a reaction, but that's not it. I'm new to here and it just means although what I'm saying might sound harsh, its all in good fun with no harm intended. I know diehards may get all pissed so thus the popcorn.

 

Cool.....well if your new....Welcome!!

I've spotted you on a recent Whitesnake thread also so hopefully we will continue to have some good banter in the future.