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.
Judas Priest missed the mark, big-time, with Point of Entry. That album took the commercial sound of British Steel and stripped away most of the heavy metal elements that made it a perfect album. The band was gobsmacked by the reaction to it. After some time, though, the reports of CBS Records intervention and pressure came out. That album spawned some classics but failed to live up to the lofty expectations. Luckily for Judas Priest, they had another gear to hit with Screaming For Vengeance.
Background On Screaming For Vengeance
To start off, Point of Entry is a terrible name for an album. It sounds like the worst of the KISS 80’s albums to me. So to go from that, to Screaming For Vengeance is like a breath of fresh air. The album was recorded in the same studio as Point Of Entry, Ibiza Studios. The mixing and overdubs were recorded at Beejay Studios in Miami, Florida. Like I’ve said previously, the band had one of it’s most stable lineups during this time period. Also the songwriting process for Screaming For Vengeance was changed back to the normal agenda for the band. The spontaneous writing for Point Of Entry didn’t work.
The album was produced with Tom Allom again, who continued the band’s streak of at least selling Gold in the United States. Screaming For Vengeance would blast sales records out of the sky. Going double-Platinum and selling over five million copies around the world. It was safe to say that Judas Priest were on the map for the entire world now. The album was recorded from January to May of 1982 and released July 17th, 1982 around the world.
As for the album cover it would start a new trend for the band, having drawn covers that better reflected their heavy metal tendencies. The cover art was done by John Berg. It was based on a idea from the band and it shows the Hellion from the first song on the album. It’s one of the most iconic heavy metal covers ever. It accurately describes the feeling and power of the album perfectly.
1. The Hellion/Electric Eye
To get a bit personal here, Screaming For Vengeance was the first Judas Priest album I (illegally) downloaded when I got into the band. I saw them on the Metal Masters Tour in 2008 and was hooked. So naturally the album cover with the heavy metal bird and bright yellow background caught my attention. After all this time, Screaming For Vengeance, like British Steel, has it all. If has a song for every range of emotion out there. Judas Priest is firing on all cylinders by this point in their career. They owe their longevity and success back to this album. It was what allowed them to break through in the US and around the world.
The title of the album is apt. It’s Judas Priest breaking out and Screaming For Vengeance among their peers in the heavy metal world. The next couple years would see the rise of heavy metal music around the world. Judas Priest led the way among these bands alongside Iron Maiden, Metallica, Motley Crue, Def Leppard, and countless other bands. For everything with Judas Priest, it always comes back to this album for me. It never gets old and it’s probably the album by them that I’ve listened to the most. Before I knew what a Painkiller was, I knew about The Hellion.
So for a score, anything other than a perfect 10/10 would be a joke. Screaming For Vengeance is a landmark achievement for the band. It’s one of the most influential heavy metal albums of all-time. The band would ride this tide of popularity with the World Vengeance Tour that started in the United States and continued into Europe. As with British Steel, would the band be able to follow-up on this classic? You’re going to have to check back next time to hear about Defenders of the Faith.
For more on Judas Priest, heavy metal, or any other general pop culture, check back to That Hashtag Show.
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