If Black Sabbath are the grandfathers of heavy metal, then Judas Priest is the father that outdid them in almost every way. If you ask me to show someone what heavy metal is, I won’t hand them a copy of Paranoid or Master of Reality. I’ll instead hand them a copy of Screaming For Vengeance, British Steel, or Painkiller. That’s what Judas Priest means to the heavy metal community. Without them we wouldn’t have a classic look for heavy metal with studs and leather.
Thin Lizzy and Wishbone Ash might have been the first to use the twin-guitar attack, but Judas Priest was the one that solidified it in the heavy metal sphere. K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton were and still are probably the best twin guitarists for any band. It was set to be the 50th anniversary celebration for Judas Priest this year. To make up for those shows being postponed, it’s high time for Judas Priest-A-Thon. The brother to the album by album reviews, Iron Maiden-A-Thon and the cousin to our series of Rush album reviews. You’re going to be getting a Judas Priest album review, every business day, until we’re all through.
Rob Halford picked the absolute highest point to leave Judas Priest. Painkiller is their (I would say unquestioned, but fans of Stained Class have made themselves known) masterpiece. Today’s review is uncharted territory for Judas Priest. They had to move on with a new singer, and a new era of music. Would it work? Let’s find out if Jugulator is up to snuff for the band.
Background On Jugulator
The biggest thing about Jugulator and the elephant in the room, is that Rob Halford isn’t singing on it. Judas Priest went four years without a peep. They released the Metal Works 73-93 in 1993, which had some help from Rob Halford. That release would be the last thing we’d see from the band. Without word on a new singer or any releases, Judas Priest sort of just floated in space. Fans of the band wanted some news, any news. In 1996, Judas Priest fans would get news that would change the course of the band.
A former lead singer for a Judas Priest cover band, named Tim Owens was their new lead singer. For the first time in seven years, the band would have a new release. Unlike Iron Maiden who waited no time in replacing a godly figure at lead singer, Judas Priest took forever. The band went into the studio in 1996 to record the new album, Jugulator. It was recorded at Silvermere Studios in Surrey, England.
This album, would divide fans. There were those who just wanted some new Judas Priest, and also like Iron Maiden, the other half, would be dickheads who couldn’t accept that the band was making new music without their long-time singer. As you can probably tell, I’m in the first camp. I’d rather see new music from one of my favorite bands, than see them die out without a fight.
More Background On Jugulator
Jugulator wouldn’t sell as well as the previous Judas Priest albums. Heavy metal and CD sales were down across the board in the 1990’s. The titans of the 80’s were blindsided by a multitude of factors in regards to sales. Grunge changed how popular metal was seen. Napster and other programs like that curtailed CD sales. The landscape of culture was just much different in 1996 than it was in 1986. It peaked at Number 82 on the US charts. And it didn’t go Gold, breaking the streak set by Sad Wings of Destiny.
Musically, Jugulator was much different than previous albums. It retained the heavy tone of Painkiller but it was much more influenced by the groove metal of Pantera and other bands popular at the time. In addition to this, the band’s guitars were tuned down to C or C# for the first time. These changes help set Jugulator apart from it’s previous brothers in Priest, but would it make for a good album? Let’s find out.
1. Jugulator
Jugulator is a mixed bag of an album to me. It has three really solid songs in: “Blood Stained”, “Burn In Hell”, and the mighty “Cathedral Spires”. The rest of the songs on the album all sort of blend together and don’t stand out. I’m also not a fan of the groove metal genre in general. I think the 90’s were a cesspool of bad bands that got big in metal. I’m not a fan of the later 90’s albums from Pantera that inspired this release. Give me Cowboys From Hell and even the Power Metal stuff over any of the crap they released in the mid 90’s.
In addition to the new lead singer, the classic Judas Priest font was changed for the first time in ages. I know it was a new era for the band, but that’s like Iron Maiden fundamentally changing the font for their albums. It’s a change that I don’t agree with. The album art for Jugulator does look a bit silly now also. Instead of the badass apocalyptic landscape of Painkiller we get a sort of demonic looking Muppet. I would rather have seen the Jugulator in action ripping someone apart or something like that.
So while this album has some good songs, it doesn’t live up to any lofty expectations that people might have had for it. Ripper Owens performs admirably, and his performances with the band are great. He sings like Rob Halford and also found a way to be his own person on this album. It’s just held down by the musical trends of the time. Coming after a four year hiatus and the release of Painkiller doesn’t do this album any favors.
The Score
Because of this, I can’t give the album any higher than a 6/10. It’s just too generic, the musical stylings and tone are too dark, and it suffers from the music of the time. Besides those tracks mentioned above, after listening to it for the first time, you can skip most of them. “Cathedral Spires” is a true Judas Priest classic, so it holds this album’s score up more. I also can appreciate the job and how difficult it must’ve been for Ripper Owens and the rest of the band to follow-up Rob Halford.
The band would tour in support of Jugulator in 1998, but would go on another hiatus until 2001. It was a lull period for the band where sales and concert tickets were down. You’ll have to find out about 2001’s Demolition tomorrow. That album might be the most notorious in the Judas Priest catalog.
For more on Judas Priest, heavy metal, or any other general pop culture, make sure to check back to That Hashtag Show.
All images and music are courtesy of Judas Priest.
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