Artist: Judas Priest
Label: Atlantic Records
Release Date: 7/31/01
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Title: Demolition Artist: Judas Priest Label: Atlantic Records Release Date: 7/31/01 |
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Abyss's Review:
Hey! It's the new Jurassic - I mean Judas Priest album! Well the Ripper-isn't-Halford argument is long over, so if you want a recap, you'll have to wait for the upcoming Mark Wahlberg vehicle, Rock Star. And if you're really going to look forward to that movie, you might want to consider suicide, because it's going to suck. How do I know it's going to suck without having seen it, you ask? Because it's got Marky-Mark in it, for christ's sake! Enough said.
"I have to be the first to admit that the idea of a new Priest album isn't a wordly event to me." So can we please get back to the new Priest album? Thank you. You guys and your damn tangents. Anyway, I have to be the first to admit that the idea of a new Priest album isn't a wordly event to me. I don't even think the diehard fans are expecting this album to eclipse Screaming for Vengeance, but hey, you never know. You should've heard from all the Megadeth fans that thought their latest album was a masterpiece. Of course, they probably think the same of a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.
Demolition is not a bad album. In fact, if you can get by some of the cheesy lyrics, it can be quite enjoyable. The meat and potatoes guitar riffs are what carry the album, and they are above average throughout almost the entire disc. They are catchy, but not commercial; simple, but not tedious. In fact, they have a lot in common with the more popular classic Priest songs. The problem is that they don't hit as hard in today's metal world as they did back then. If this album had come out in the early eighties, I think it would be highly regarded. But the best I can do in the present is say that the true Judas Priest fans should be satisfied. Let's face it, this pisses all over Ram It Down, but we've already grown accustomed to this sort of thing.
"If you can get by some of the cheesy lyrics, it can be quite enjoyable." And that's the bottom line. This album is good, but not great. It is better than I expected it to be, however. Oh, and if you're a super crazy Priest fan who's going to e-mail me and tell me how wrong I've got it, then I have one question before you do: Why the hell are you reading a review to an album you already own?
Death's Review:
I was psyched. Judas Priest signed to a major label in 2001? Atlantic Records no less? A big fucking heavy metal day.
"To quote Bart Simpson, it both sucks and blows." But now I'm pissed, and I wish this record had come out on an indie or not at all. Why? 'Cause, to quote Bart Simpson, it both sucks and blows, to be honest with you (would you have it any other way?). Well, let me be fair--it isn't so much bad as it is, for the most part, out of touch, cliche-ridden and uninspired. Nowhere do I hear the classic Priest sound. You know, the catchy riffs and searing vocals. These songs are flat-out boring, for the msot part. Even worse--they're smothered in nu-metal production and largely without the trademark Halford-style, high-pitched scream vocals (notable exceptions? Parts of the unforntunately-titled tracks, "Hell is Home" and "Cyberface") which partially redeemed Jugulator, Owens' previous debut with Priest.
Instead we get by-the-numbers, low-brow headbanging fare like "Machine Man" and "One on One," which unfortunately open the album with the exact opposite of what you might call a "one-two" punch. And now, because this is on Atlantic, it will get attention. And coverage. Like reviews in mainstream magazines, reports on MTV and large-scale headlining tours. The mainstream media will now think that this is the best that modern metal has to offer, when nothing could be further from the truth.
"Thanks Priest: not only have you delivered a mediocre record, you may have fucked things up with the major labels for other acts." But metalheads aren't that stupid. The record debuted in the bottom-half of the Billboard charts, not even close to the showing had by recent releases by Iron Maiden or Megadeth. But even this creates a problem: now Atlantic will think that their grand experiment in the revival of metal has failed, and will therefore conclude that there is simply no market for this stuff. Thanks Priest: not only have you delivered a mediocre record, you may have fucked things up with the major labels for other acts.
Admittedly, not all of Demolition is as grim as I'm painting it here. There are some moments. I put on this album for Solomon at this past weekend's Thrash of the Titans, and he remarked that it wasn't as bad as he had been expecting. Rest assured, ye faithful, this isn't Limp Bizkit or Korn, this is metal. There are crunchy riffs, etc. This is a metal album, just not a particularly good one. "Bloodsuckers," the radio single, is unfortunately one of the album's better tracks. I do like "Close to You," a trippy ballad-like showcase for Ripper's voice.
"This record simply makes no statement, other than for Priest to immediately bring the Metal God back. Ripper is a good singer, but this is not Priest." But in the end, the album just does not do it for me. It is weak, far weaker than Halford's Resurrection and clearly outclassed by Iron Maiden's Brave New World. I definitely also like Megadeth's so-so The World Needs a Hero. This record simply makes no statement, other than for Priest to immediately bring the Metal God back. Ripper is a good singer, but this is not Priest.
Hel's Review:
Worst tracks: "Close to You" and "Hell is Home"
I have one hard and fast rule when it comes to reviewing albums - I insist that I listen to an album three times before I review it. Demolition is so bad, this is the first time I have ever tossed my review rule out the window. Maybe "bad" might not be the most appropriate word for the entire album, but it is certainly the most appropriate adjective which comes to mind for the vocal performance turned in by Ripper Owens.
"The only thing more painful than Ripper's voice, are the words he's singing." Let's consider for a moment that this singer was brought in for the very reason that he sounded just like Rob Halford. Now consider that, for the majority of Demolition, he tries as hard as he possibly can to not sound like Halford. You're starting to see my point now, aren't you? Trying to re-invent his vocal style is a neat concept, but a terrible reality is what we have.
The rest of the music on the album is adequate, even quite good at times, but overall the record struggles with its identity, and this is evident in every digitized note. The songwriting is generally simplistic, and the lyrics are downright simple-minded. In fact, the only thing more painful than Ripper's voice, are the words he's singing. The rule of thumb here seems to be: as long as it rhymes…
"Re-form with Rob or not, that's your choice guys, but please don't make drivel like this again." Now, I imagine that with the success Rob has recently achieved with his tour and album, coupled with the growing trend of original line-ups reforming, Priest probably wanted to distance themselves and create something uniquely theirs. Again, a nice concept in theory, and one that I can fully respect, but the end result is something that I really, really just want to drop from the rooftop of my 36-story high-rise apartment building. Re-form with Rob or not, that's your choice guys, but please don't make drivel like this again.
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