Reviews (page 8 of 12)
It's okay. Not as good as Painkiller. Too clean. Steeler was fun.
This was a bit uninspired for me tbh. Was hoping to like it a bit more than I did!
Guitar hero vibes. Love it
Pretty good, not my favourite album I've heard from them though, less consistent but still got some bangers
3.3 stars rounded down. "Breaking the law", "Living after midnight", and "Steeler" are the standout tracks. Basically the singles are great. The rest is decent metal filler, but filler nonetheless.
What an old din
Not available on Apple Music
This is a very strong 4. I think it's a *bit* overrated in the sense that apart from the "big" songs like Breaking The Law or Living After Midnight, the songs are simply just good and nothing more, but it is still a very fun listen.
Excellent. Top to bottoms
С одной стороны как бы... Ну слушаешь, режет там что-то, вроде бы окей. С другой стороны однообразно по сути и по форме. Вот что я внезапно осознал, слушая этот лист: многие альбомы здесь устарели просто кошмар. Просто когда-то на концерт Джудас Прист или Блэк Саббат приходили 30к фанатов, а сейчас такие аудитории собирает только какой-нибудь Трэвис Скотт или Тэйлор Свифт, - и это ощущается немного странно. Энивэй. Лучшая песня - Breaking The Law.
Not a genre I particularly care for, but I didn't mind this. I didn't pay too much attention but I remember thinking "Steeler" was pretty good. Obviously some talented musicians here.
I've never been a fan of Judas Priest and I'm still not a fan after listening to British Steel from start to finish. I can't stand Rob Halford's singing. I find their themes and their whole attitude annoying.
Good fun album with some classics on it.
Judas Priest’s British Steel is a huge swing album. On some songs, I feel bored, and uninterested in what the band has to offer, like Grinder and United. On others, im dialed in, and absolutely love the guitar and drums, like on You Don’t Have to Be Old to Be Wise. Some more of my favorites are Steeler and Breaking the Law. I just love the background sounds and, yes, maybe a bit of the yelling. All in all, British Steel is an good album. Best Song: You Don’t Have to Be Old to Be Wise Worst Song: Grinder
BREAKING THE LAW BREAKING THE LAW BREAKING THE LAW
This album was badass as hell. Makes me wanna shoot aliens with a machine gun off a motorcycle. Favorite song was Breaking the Law. Added to my Spotify library.
This one just made me want to listen to Thin Lizzy. But it did grow on me as it went. B-side was much better. The lead guitar work was fantastic throughout. Great tone.
Classic hard rock sound. The singer has huge variety in his his voice. From the “grungy” rock sound to operatic in some instances, and the more flat (but still good) sounding in songs like “United”. Nothing stood out a whole lot, but it was all enjoyable.
Enjoyed it. Another one of those old rock albums that blends together for me. Nothing breakout, but I liked it throughout.
Other than knowing of them, my only prior experience with Judas Priest is when my friend Josiah commits minor traffic infractions he sings the chorus from Breaking the Law. And if Ozzy didn’t have such a unique voice I’d probably easily confuse them for Black Sabbath. But being like Black Sabbath definitely isn’t a bad thing, this was a solid listen and I definitely enjoyed it more than I thought I would. I also thought it was interesting to have this album the day after Van Halen to really see the different ends of the spectrum when it comes to the metal genre 40 years ago. Nothing stood out all that much, but it definitely wasn’t bad.
I don't think the term "Grinder. Looking for meat" means today what it meant in the '80s. I've always heard that Judas priest as the Fisher-Price's my first metal band. If that's the case, I think I'm ready to move up to a first grade metal band level. This album is really approachable and a great stepping stone into the genre. I'm going to be saying "breaking the law, breaking the law" for the rest of the day now.
Ended up listening to this on Election Day 2024, and found United and Red, White, and Blue particularly poignant. Really excellent head-banging energy, without too much misanthropy.
Great vibe
badass early 80s metal music. rough, tough, and straight up thrashin'. music to listen to when you're riding your big harley davidson across the highway with a cigar and sunglasses. oh yeah brother.
Excellent album! Nice momentum throughout, amazingly iconic 80's metal vibes. Really good.
Their bio says they were influential on the genre.. they didn’t have to influence it to all sound the same
Breakin the law 🗣️
There were some moments that were a little too repetitive for my taste, and the vocals were hit-or-miss. But overall it was catchy and the guitar work was incredible (I feel like I say that for nearly every metal record haha).
🤘 4
Tough week for me, this ends a full week of albums from 1969-1980. Most metal is a bit hard for me to really dig into, since modern dubstep festival kinda fills a similar role for me. But I super respect this regardless. A little samey all the way through but that’s expected. Super tight arrangements. A neat feature for me was all the drum fills peppered in throughout the album
Love when I get pleasantly surprised by this list! Never really looked into Judas Priest, but I like what I hear.
Kinda interesting I guess. Nothing really stood out.
Generic and same-y hard rock album. Not a huge fan.
Pretty classic/badass feeling overall. Some good ballads/anthems and just solid riffs/grooves. Understandable why these guys are considered some of the best of the best in heavy metal. Breaking the law is great but The Rage, Rapid Fire, Metal Gods and You Don't Have to be Old to be Wise are my standouts
Great album.
Halford said of Living After Midnight, “That’s where the name comes from. It’s a rock ’n’ roll song about a band coming into town and leaving you at dawn. When we play the song live, no matter where we are in the world, the room just lifts up and the fans go wild. It’s like we’re taking you on a time machine back to 1980, and you’re out partying with your friends.” That’s exactly how it feels listening to this album.
all good but nothing really stuck out
my father could sing this in his garage.
AMAZINGGGG
Enjoyed the energy even if it's not my type of music Favorite track: Breaking the Law
Hey ja chli langwiilig und repetitiv aber loses trz no gern eig
fangt no powerful undhigh energy ah reeeeecht heavy für 1980. boah de siech cha siiiiinge. metal gods isch meeega 80s gitarre sound, so hend nocher alli gitarre tönt. finds en geile song. breaking the law au cool, anschinend de hit. find metal gods cooler. grinder kiffe moment. united irgendwie patriotismus komiscj mitgröl findi nöd so geil. d strophe isch aber geil. uf the rage siiiingt er wieder hobla. pke red white and blue isch asss und au en bonus track loses nöd wiiter
ahhh der priest des judas sie sind iwie immer chli glich aber schaffeds trz, einzigartig z blibe (ih mine auge) ellei de refrain vo metalgods, wo mier als chind nie mega gfalle het, isch fast scho apathisch gsunge? aber ich liebs soo hahaha RAKING THE LAWN RAKING THE LAWN das riff wird mer würkli no für de rest vom tag nahlaufe au united mega en weirde refrain aber die reduzierti art findi eifach nice LIVIIING AFTER MIDNIIIGHT the rage findi isch e agnehmi abwechslig trotz minere nostalgie gsehni, dass geg de schluss nümme soo vill passiert, aber es git trotzdem es starchs 4i
The production actually amazes me. Was not aware of the natural open sound of the rehearsal studio. If you compare the raw edge of this with today's massively overproduced records, i really enjoy this much more than I did in my youth. No overwrought production, instead very solid songwriting with lots of dynamic space.
Solid in your face, unapologetic classic rock. If that's your jam, this is an album for you. If that's not your jam, you'll likely give this one a pass. I thought it was a solid listen. Nothing overly extraordinary, but a solid classic rock album.
I've never connected with Judas Priest. I respect the band, but their music doesn't really do it for me. There's nothing particularly wrong with it. I just don't care for heavy metal in general so it really needs to transcend the genre for me to love it. (Looking at you Appetite for Destruction) That said, I'm glad I finally sat through a full JP album. Anyone saying this sounds samey clearly stopped listening by Grinder. United, Living After Midnight, The Rage, and Red, White, & Blue are all great change ups. The Rage might be my favorite track though Breaking the Law and Grinder are also hard to beat. All in all, this is a phenomenal album for people who like heavy metal but won't change your opinion if you don't. Love and respect the band and their place in music history. I'll probably add a few tracks to my playlists too.
Solid Rock
Boring.
One of the greatest metal albums of all time. The one “mistake” was placing the song ubited in the middle which destroys the hard metal flow it has until then. Although the song is necessary taking i account the historical context of the moment and its not a bad song its not just metal enogh for this song selection. Love ot thou
I’m going back and editing this review because a year ago, this generator was the catalyst for me listening deeper to Judas Priest. Long time Maiden/Sabbath fan but never quite got into Priest. At the time I gave it 4 stars. Really liked it but it didn’t blow me away. Well, now after countless listens over the past year, plus going deeper into Priest’s catalog, I’m hooked. They deserve their spot on the “God tier” of British heavy metal. This was the catalyst that got me into them. I’d say that’s enough reason to warrant the change to a 5 star rating.
5 stars #57
I have established my distaste for the hyper-machismo, play-acted bravado, and contrived darkness of a lot of metal music. This album contains some of that, although tempers itself at times. Where it is most successful is in its more melodic, poppy songs—like “Living After Midnight,” which almost feels out of place among the chug-chug postulations on the rest of the album. I guess I prefer my heavy metal closer to Def Leppard than Black Sabbath, and this fits somewhere in between.
Rob Halford is such a powerful frontman with such an insane voice! Fantastic 80's heavy metal! Favourite songs: Living After Midnight, Breaking the Law, Grinder, Metal Gods, You Don't Have to Be Old to Be Wise Least favourite songs: United 4/5
Inspired a lot of mediocre bands to try and copy them. 3.3/5
Some good, solid hard rock. Nothing more, nothing less.
Better than I expected. I can hear bits of Guns n Roses, Motley Crue. Sounds like a better produced Motörhead
A couple of hits, but otherwise unpleasant. They have better albums. Saw them live in 79. Head sufficiently banged.
Hell yeah. This is some good stuff right here. Not every album on the list needs to be some emotional masterpiece. Sometimes, it's just nice to do some headbanging to some classic metal, and it's hard for metal to get more classic than Judas Priest. This album's great. The sound is strong, and the songs manage to stand out from each other. I really like Rob Halford's vocals. There's a reason why he's considered to be one of the all time greats of metal vocalists. The energy of the album goes on for the perfect amount of time. Songs like "Breaking the Law" are absolute classics and very good songs. The writing is solid. Overall, I don't really have that much to say. This is just some great early metal. It's awesome, and I want more of it. 4/5.
The opening track "Rapid Fire" reminds me so much of Motörhead. the album also contains one of their most famous tracks "Breaking the Law".
3.1/5 a few bangers. listened 2x
Metal which I dislike with a passion lmao. Not the strongest streak now..
While this is not my favourite Priest album, its still undoubtedly an 80s metal classic
Another unspectacular album.
Not what I'd normally listen to but I got into it at the gym
Some real hard rock bangers in there
I have to admit I wasn't looking forward to this, as I've disliked a lot of metal I've heard here. But this one was great! Window down, driving fast, and this album blasting from the car speakers is the ideal way to listen to it.
This sucks.
Although metal is not in my usual cup of tea, I can say without question that this album certainly belongs on this list as a "must listen". Judas Priest is METAL; shocasing hard, but well controlled voices and absolutely stellar guitars. This album, as I suspect theirs typically do, plays very LOUD...I think both figuratively and literally. It's a well rounded album though, with a good mix of heavy that also includes softer anthems. A solid 101 lesson in 80s metal!
Loved it! Listened to it twice!
Priest never disappoints. Consistant true icons of metal
Not bad! I've always avoided JP since I'm not the biggest fan of their hits like Breaking the Law, but this album was pretty killer.
If you were there, you know. I was never a fan but it is classic and liked listening to it again.
Not for me
Even as a metalhead teenager, I had not been interested in Judas Priest for some reason* and never listened to them, or at least never since. And I really only knew Breaking The Law, and likely via Beavis & Butt-Head, when I opened this, expecting boredom and possibly cringe. Huh. This has been the most unadulterated FUN I've had with any of my 66 albums so far!? Fuck yeah 🤘! *Maybe I had filed Judas Priest under that trite Hard Rock of Living After Midnight but the rest - and I'll ignore the 2001 Remaster bonus track addition of Red, White And Blue - is chef's kiss! Halford is fantastic and something about the drums makes me go Wow! Those drums! Extra fun to spot the blueprints of what became circa Metallica. Great, great album!
fantastic album. Rob's falsetto's perfectly match the guitar tone and in some songs the contrast really works. the lyrical content managed to stay relevant more than 50 years later without trying to hard. you can not only relate to the issues being discussed but the issues are still around. especially on songs like breaking the law. the song was true in 1979 when it came out. it was true when I left school in the early 2000's and it is true now. the world is run by people about to retire who make choices based on the world they lived in instead of the world as it works now.
Much imitated. Living after Midnight remains a solid tune. Rapid Fire and Steeler had good energy. Feels repetitive and formulaic now. Bet they were good to see live.
Great stuff. You can really tell Metallica took a lot from this album.
I happy to get a Judas Priest. I knew this would be a fun listen. I liked them well enough back in the day, but when my son was 12 he started to get into them so we took him to see them in concert. Some really solid songs on here, and now I can't get Grinder out of my head.
It's okay but you can tell a homosexual made it. Like how was anyone surprised that Halford was gay, he literally was dressed in all leather. I might have to give it another listen.
Before listening: I have obviously heard of Judas Priest but I have never heard Judas Priest. I believe they're a metal band; a bit like Black Sabbath? I could be totally wrong but I'm looking forward to this album. After listening: Well, they don't sound anything like Sabbath. I read that they're considered a thrash metal band (like early Metallica) but I feel they are more like a hair metal band; akin to Def Leppard or Poison in my opinion. All that being said, I thoroughly enjoyed this album. First two songs I didn't like very much but after Breaking Law it was banger after banger.
In your face guitar. Heavy metal music! Loved it.
This album feels like the definition of old school metal. Not to listen to every day but once in a while it’s pretty good. I enjoyed it.
A good album, started off strong with the first song, Rapid Fire and it stayed strong. I also liked Breaking The Law and The Rage.
Really surprised by this. I'd never bothered listening to them before as I had them down as yet another heavy metal band and if you've grown up on Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin and even Black Sabbath there's no point in listening to any others. I could probably jump up and down to this (even tho I'm 64). Love the fact they are British and the production is not too bad.
Really enjoyable album, amazing for working out to. Some brilliant moments, but not quite 5 stars…close though!
Straight up classic. I actually haven't listened to this much but it's good. I think I still like Screaming for Vengence better but this is a close second. Red, White, and Blue is pretty cringy.
Not my fave metal band but this is a solid album
Not for me. A cross between Queen and 80s hair metal. I prefer the Beavis and Butthead version of Breaking the Law.
epic and fun to listen to, the songs are pretty similar but all are great for any hard rock fans. Livin' After Midnight remains one of the most recognizable songs, United is a bit weak. lyrics aren't the strongest but just awesome guitar and drums throughout
Good. I enjoyed.
Excellent British Heavy Metal, Judas Priest bring not just excellent energy, a charismatic frontman, driving drums and bass and stirring riffs but lyrical content which is genuinely thoughtful and interesting - not the usual nihilistic anti-religion woe-is-me content often found in the genre but a call for understanding and unity against an oppressive establishment whilst respecting non-conformity of the individual. Impressive.
- Bin großer Priest Fan, sehe aber persönlich 3-4 Alben vor British Steel: Defenders Of The Faith, Painkiller, Screaming for Vengeance und ggf. auch Point Of Entry. - Trotzdem ist British Steel natürlich ein absoluter Heavy Metal Klassiker - „Breaking The Law“ und „Living After Midnight“ sind zurecht absolute Megahits - Auf der anderen Seite hast du aber auch so unsägliche Mitgröhlhymnen wie „United“, oder einige andere langweilige Songs, mit denen ich nichts anfangen kann - Mit dem Album hat Judas Priest angefangen Heavy Metal eine ganz bestimmte Esthetik zu geben: Schwarzes Leder und Nieten verbindet man seit British Steel mit härterer Rockmusik - Alles in Allem viel gutes, einiges langweiliges aber ikonisch und ein paar große hits - Ich hör’s mir immer mal wieder gerne an, auch wenn ich der Meinung bin, dass die anderen genannten Alben hörenswerter sind Rating: 3,75
- Legenden und so, aber sorry, einfach nicht meine Mucke. JP haben sich für mich leider die unattraktiven Elemente vom sogenannten New Wave of British Heavy Metal genommen und "weiterentwickelt". - British Steel ist mit Abstand das bekannteste Album der Band und hat ein paar ikonische Songs, not gonna lie. - Ich komme beim fühlen nicht drum herum zu denken, alles was die tun, haben andere vor und nach ihnen irgendwie besser gemacht. Seien es Saxon, Iron Maiden, Def Leppard, Venom. Es fällt mir tatsächlich einfach schwer zu verstehen, warum die jetzt im Gesamtwerk sooo eine unfassbare Rolle spielen, aber vielleicht muss ich mich damit einfach nochmal proaktiver auseinandersetzen. - Bis dahin kann ich leider nicht anders als meinen gelangweilte Eindruck auch in meine Bewertung einfließen zu lassen 2,5/5
Meh.
Judas H. Priest. Breaking the law en United
Con un par de canciones interesantes y un arranque espectacular, es un disco que se va desinflando. La cara A es espectacular, la b es un poco meh. Y mira, lo digo, el rock duro no me gusta y de este álbum sacó un par de canciones.
Good
5/5
this was full of bangers, it was really heavy and i enjoyed it all the way through, i would listen to this again and it makes me want to listen to more fros the band.
Classic metal album from one of the greats. Such an iconic album cover!
Awesome album, but also a little corny
I'm sure that I had a Judas Priest album when I was a kind, but for the life of me I have no idea which one it was. Not this, that's for sure. I grew up listening to the NWOBHM bands that followed Priest. They were always there in the background but I never really got in to them. The cassette I must have had just never really fitted with the sort of stuff I enjoyed and for some reason Priest always seemed a bit corny. Listening to this now, 40 years later, I was clearly wrong. The influence of touring with AC/DC is clear, and I can hear how this must have impacted the sound of bands like Saxon. I really enjoyed it and will (and have) listen again. Multiple times. It's not quite up there with the absolute drive that bands like Motorhead added to this sort of sound, but it's pretty darned good.
An undeniable classic
Living after midnight is one of the best driving songs out there. full of energy. easy to sing along to. Just a really solid album. Rob Halford spawned a new generation of metal... or is at least one of the best examples. Just a great album.
This is solid gold. Rob Halford's voice is just perfect for this style of music... and the tracks are the equivalent of pop masterpieces of this style. The chunky driving guitars, memorable riffs, measurable and meaningful solos, with a guitar raft of home run tracks: rapid fire, metal gods, breaking the law, grinder, united, living after midnight and the rage. Plus the cover art is fire.
I love this album was very happy when this came as my second option. United is the best song on here.
I like it. Good summer driving music. I wish more bands were still making music like this.
"Living after Midnight" ist so das einzige Lied, dass ich von Judas Priest kannte und war umso gespannter auf das gesamte Album. Es ist ein wunderbares, eingängiges HardRock-Album mit tollen Guitarren-Soli. Sehr gut produziert und tolle Nummern. Unbedingt anhören!
The album opens strong with Rapid Fire. Metal Gods was fun, and Breaking the Law remains a banger! Grinder was sort of silly and reminded me of a theme song for a schlocky 80s style horror movie. That’s not a bad thing. Living After Midnight is probably my favorite on the album. Rage was also fantastic; love its instrumentals! United, Steeler and Red White and Blue were ok - the instrumentals stood out above the lyrics for me on these. You Don’t Have to Be Old to Be Wise was the weakest track for me. Overall, great album. Very much the kind of music you throw on and drive! Straight 5
Not crazy about most of this album, it mostly has a vibe of pretty straightforward sounds. But I enjoyed jamming out to The Rage.
Interesting
Much better than I expected.
Great record from start to finish.
Album Already Known: N # Songs Already Known: 0 # Songs Saved: 0 Notes: not a big heavy metal fan lol, it's so goofy
80s Brit metal. Not the worst thing I’ve heard but not my thing. 2.5
Never really into Judas Priest....and still am not. Respect them, just doesn't do it for me.
"Maiden and Priest were the gods that we praised." Hard rock with driving rhythms - this is heavy metal.
It's OK, I have no real intention of listening to again, nothing inspiring
Rapid Fire - 8/10 Metal Gods - 8/10 Breaking the Law - 10/10 Grinder - 8/10 United - 9/10 You Don’t Have To Be Old To Be Wise - 9/10 Living After Midnight - 9/10 The Rage - 8/10 Steeler - 7.5/10 Red, White & Blue - 7.5/10 TOTAL - 84/100
A first for me. Almost everything i could ever ask for in some BHM. Is it Maiden? nope. But it's bloody great
I listen to no heavy metal but I found this album much friendlier than what I normally think of when I think heavy metal. Has that 80s rock sound to it. It's a tight album, and Rob Halford has the kind of voice any band, not just a heavy metal one, would kill for. But, there's something about it that feels repetitive to my ears - might just be my lack of exposure to the genre.
My expectation having never really listed or was a fan was that this album would be a struggle. It’s amazing. Not one bad song, variety. Add me to the JP fam club.
Cannot go wrong with Judas Priest
Not bad for heavy metal of the era
rocky
This is heavy metal at some of its finest and Judas Priest nails the guitar effects to solidify an album full of certified head bangers. Pair that with Halford's vocals that are gritty yet powerful and you got yourself a heavy metal all-time classic album.
This is the type of music that comes to mind when I think of "Rock". All of these songs are decent, but none of them are particularly memorable aside from Breaking The Law. The Old to be Wise song is pretty good too. I think it's funny how the album started out talking about breaking the law and then ends with patriotic praise of the thing that makes the law.
Boring heavy metal. Not the genre for me.
In eerste instantie heb ik hier echt 0 zin in. Een hardrock album, verdomme... Maaaaarrr, ik probeer er toch eenbeetje blanco in te gaan en moet toegeven dat ik dit nog best ok vind. Metal Gods bijvoorbeeld klinkt best lekker, zolang je het niet te serieus neemt zeg maar. Ok, je moet dit gewoon niet serieus nemen, wat is Breaking the law een hilarisch nummer zeg. Elk nummer waar ik hardop om moet lachen is een goed nummer. Red, White & Blue is hilarisch. Ik weet niet of het zo bedoeld is, maar kom op. Continue scheurende gitaren en dan ga je een of ander patriotisch nummer doen als afsluiter? Op een album waar ook Breaking the law op staat?? God Ik hoop dat dit ironisch gedaan is. FAVO: Breaking the law
It's not that its not my thing, I just don't like it. Mostly I don't like the structure of the songs, the production, the drumming. First album with dave Holland on drums, should have gave it a go without him The iron maiden album I listened to last week was so much better than this. Its so short and overstays it's welcome. After Two listens today, I can guarantee I will never listen to this again United is the highlight, finally a song with a bit of melody, I'd add this to a playlist and forget the rest. There is also a song a little later with a reggae beat that is fine, but overall, i just didn't like it at all. Maybe a 1 would be too harsh, but that was my thought when it started, when it ended and during. Towards the end of the second listen i was really not enjoying it
Not a work sound track. It really made me feel agitated. I had to turn off. I think in another setting would be good album.
Really enjoyed this album! Recognized a few songs and overall this is just great old school rock.
Gear: Focal Clear Mix: Drums immer tight. Vocals angemessen überdramatisch und überlebensgroß. Grooviger Basslauf bei "The Rage" einfach perfekt. Musik: zu Recht British Heavy Metal Klassiker 🤟 Wertung: 🦾🦾🦾🦾/5
This was one of the first albums I ever bought, which is odd as I was never really a massive fan of Judas Priest back in the day. I distinctly remember them performing Living After Midnight on Top of the Pops with lots of dry ice. That single got to number 12 in the UK top 40 and so did Breaking the Law. I doubt the same would happen if those singles were to be released any time after the 1980s. It's a technically competent album, without being overly flashy. I've heard many covers of Judas Priest songs by bands with more skilful musicians and to be honest, it's not always a good thing. These are pretty basic songs, more rock and roll than heavy metal in places. I'm not giving this 5 stars, as I've always found this album lacking something that I can't quite put my finger on. There's other Judas Priest albums that I would definitely give 5 stars to though, so I hope they're on the list.
Heavy metal is really not my thing.
Tru heavy Metal. Slightly monotonous but good heavy riffs
Heavy metal is not really my thing but this was actually more enjoyable that what I thought it would be.
Classic Metal. Good listen.
As a metal head I do enjoy some Judas Priest. I think the highlight of this album has to be Breaking The Law, by far their biggest hit. There are some other good songs in there too. I particularly like the ones with extended guitar solos like Grinder. There is something about Judas Priest that just falls a bit short though. While I think they emulate all of the elements that make up classic 80s metal, they aren't particularly strong in any areas. The vocals are good but don't hold up to the likes of Dio (one of the closest band comparisons imo). The guitar riffs throughout most songs are pretty basic and forgettable. The solos are good but they're too few and far between. I feel like Judas Priest never really found an identity beyond the typical metal tropes and that's why their best album here caps out at a 4 for me.
Was anyone like "I had no idea that leather clad man with the beautiful operatic vocals was gay" when Halford came out in 1998? I was too young to remember but it seems pretty obvious when we look back on it. All in all a badass classic album that was pretty revolutionary for its time and influenced tons of great metal and probably non-metal bands.
Maybe I've heard one or two tracks all the way through by Judas Priest, but I've seen a lot of T-shirts with the band’s name on it. I've heard at least portions of "Breaking the Law" and "Living After Midnight" from this album. There is a certain amount of play acting that seems to come with heavy metal that keeps me from investing much in this genre of music. Not that old school heavy metal shouldn't resonate with me, but it just doesn't. A few tracks felt a little bit like a caricature of hard rock - two steps away from Spinal Tap. Other tracks seemed like you could ask AI to put together some heavy metal, and the combination of vocals, drums and guitars comes out as Judas Priest. For my first real listen to Judas Priest, British Steel was a good experience. I enjoyed the run of tracks from "United", "Living After Midnight", to "You Don't Have to Be Old to Be Wise" (and "Breaking the Law") was okay too. One of the things that made me enjoy this album more than I thought I would is that several tracks on British Steel reminded me of Rata Blanca's Magos, Espadas y Rosas (1990). I am sure that Rata Blanca were inspired by Judas Priest and other bands contemporary with Judas Priest. But my true introduction to this subset of heavy metal was through a good friend who introduced Rata Blanca to me in the early 90s. I felt a little nostalgia listening to British Steel. I don’t think I could listen to the album again as a whole, but I could listen to a track or two again here and there.
så corny at den looper rundt og bliver fed igen. Jeg elsker Rob Halfords stemme
Fed tråd igen i dag, hvad har vi dog gjorn at vi skal ha det så godt
Fed fredag på en onsdag! Et par bangers og resten ret høj kvalitet!
Not my kind of music.
Pretty dope, especially for 84. 3.2
interesting heavy metal sound, better than I thought. I liked Grinder and living after midnight
It's a bit cheesy and of its time, but it's also glamorous, bombastic, full of energy, and just fuckin rips. This is peak 80s heavy metal (with a strong punk core) and something we all could use a refresher of every now and then.
One of the strongest, most enduring exports forged during the almighty New Wave of British Heavy Metal in the late 70s/early 80s.
Loved it right until the bonus material kicked in
Metal is not my thing, but I can tell this is good.
I normally am not a huge fan of classic metal, but this album surprised me. I usually associate that scene with bands like Motley Crüe and Aerosmith, which to be honest I can't stand. But this album definitely felt ahead of its time for the early 80s. The riffs are really good, and the vocals especially were the part I was pleasantly surprised with the most.
A core new wave of British heavy metal album, poised to influence 80s thrash from top to bottom.
Another fun listen. Wouldn’t go back and listen to it again, though.
\m/
Breaking the law
Ayyy that was a blast! Solid early metal music. Full of energy and grit, this is top tier leather jacket metal. Would listen again
I always forget what genre Judas Priest are and am surprised when it is rock. Not unpleasant but not the music for my soul.
This felt close to something I'd really enjoy but was missing something.
Hm. Gut. Bekomme die ACDC vibes, also nur noch live alben für mich pls, danke.
old school metal
Very classic rock!
Solid metal album, and a fantastic drummer on this record! The songs are very catchy and Halford sounds great. Standout tracks: Rapid Fire, Breaking The Law, Grinder, United, Living After Midnight, The Rage, Steeler 8 out of 10
Kind of amazing that an album could be so prescient about the pull of the cultural tides. It’s like they had a fever dream of what the 80s had in store, then brought it into being. It kind of sucks for them that this sound has become a caricature of the indulgences of the 80s, but isn’t mockery the highest form of flattery or something like that? And I should have put it together a long time ago, but I never realized this is where Beavis and Butthead got their tag line from. It’s the opportunity to weave the threads of my life together like this that keeps me coming back for an album a day.
IMO, this is the second best Judas Priest album behind Screaming For Vengeance. But it's still a bloody good album by one of the bands that defines Heavy Metal. Great stuff, love it.
The first two songs had me thinking this was Spinal Tap. I loves me some punk, but metal can often fall flat on me. This album did just that.
Un versant pop du métal, aux refrains accrocheurs et guitares effilées
just good old fashioned metal. great listen from front to back.
It’s so nice to hear an album where the singles aren’t the best songs on it (looking at you Rio by Duran Duran). Never heard this album before and absolutely loved it top to bottom. I’m not even a big metal fan but something about this album did it for me. I was hooked by that high note Rob Halford hits at the end of the first song. Can’t wait to kill myself and join Satans army!
Fantastic album, fun listen. 5/5
first listen classic heavy metal man, tho to my modern ears its kinda dad rock now
Heeel nice! Lekker ruig, maar niet té en ook af en toe rust momentjes. Loopt goed in elkaar over Would buy! (aan m'n lijstje toegevoegd hehe)
Sehr klassischer Hard Rock. Live wahrscheinlich noch besser
I appreciate the fact that these fellas have no interest in dicking around, even on the (many) accessible tunes.
Judas F. Priest - Enough F. Said. ⭐⭐
Abwechslungsreiches Rock-Album
This is dated but still a lot of fun. More refined and less bombastic than the bands that would follow in their footsteps. Interestingly the lyrics have more in common with punk than with metal. Best listened to loud.
Surprised!
the united song and red white and blue are both actually really good songs, i like them a lot, and i would rate them highly if i could, but i can’t and i didn’t care for the rest of the album tbh, so sadly even though those songs are a 4/5 the album can’t be… cool that they are british though, so many metal bands like that are assumed to be american.
Pretty fun album, has a more mellow feeling compared to other metal stuff from the 80s. Cool guitar parts throughout. Nothing really stuck out to me though, a lot of it felt uninteresting. some of it just blended together for me. No truly great songs or bad songs tbh, pretty even in quality throughout favorite was probably the rage, loved the guitar 3.5/10
This album is more than a pure heavy metal album. It’s mostly a metal album, but it shows some rock chops extending beyond the pigeonhole of “heavy metal”. Don’t get me wrong - there’s plenty of metal coming through with the dual guitars and driving rhythm section, but a song like “United” gives more of the anthemic Queen vibes than metal. The songwriting was surprisingly tight for me; some great pop sensibilities hidden amongst distorted guitars. The production is very clean, allowing the listener to appreciate the vocals, the guitars, bass, and drums, together and separately. A lot of metal production can get muddy with all of the distortion, but here everything is balanced so you can easily pick out the individual components.
Style que j'aime !
Heavy metal is not my taste.
I quite like this, but it's not one I'll revisit. Breaking the Law is a real head-banging tune.
Had 3 or 4 songs which were good, which puts it above most albums on this list. Would listen to more Priest.
Sorry haters, this is great! Over the top, motorcycle riding, leather pants, screaming British Metal... or NWOBHM (New wave of British heavy metal). Though I am not the biggest Judas fan I love listening to some of their classics from time to time. One of my favorite things when going to classic rock/metal bars younger was seeing the pseudo-macho-sexist metalheads finding out that one of their biggest idols was gay, Rob Halford was always super proud and had some pretty explicit lyrics (ie. Turbo Lover), \o/
My favorite part of this album was when it ended.
I knew the two most well-known songs: Breaking the Law and Living After Midnight. Rapid Fire and Metal Gods were an adrenaline fueled start to a spicy album. I really liked the song United and have added it to my growing playlist. Obviously these guys are known as heavy metal influencers, but it's the type of heavy metal that can be enjoyted by both metalheads and modern rock fans. I really enjoyed me some Judas, and I didn't even need 80s cocaine!
Enjoyed it
Schon wieder metal.
Classic and great heavy metal
Breakin the Law and Livin after Midnight alone make this a four star effort
Not a fan of heavy metal. Some songs better than others-those were not too bad. Definitely has that driving beat to most songs.
Not for me
I can see the impact the album had, and while the songs are generally fun, they're also quite similar and bland. In the context of the 1001 albums you must hear before you die, I'd argue this is one of the lesser 'important' ones.
Pretty fun. Pretty rock and roll. "Breaking the Law" rules.
Can’t do the metal.
Forgot how good this album is. Need to buy it on vinyl for the collection. A good one.
Bit of heavy metal. Feels very old compared to some other metal albums, but I guess it is pretty old. Like it a lot though. Love the album cover.
•Not owned: Streaming •Never has an album cover matched the musical content so perfectly. Great use of industrial sounds to bring the metal imagery to life. Great cuts: “United,” “Living After Midnight,” and “Metal Gods.” Check the dub influence on “The Rage.” •4/5
There are obviously some metal (NWOBHM) classics such as “Metal Gods” and “Breaking the Law” on here, but so much of the rest of the album is just middling butt-rock. If you’re only going to have one Priest album in the book, that album should be Painkiller.
i guess i just really don't like british heavy metal. way too happy and energetic. plus quite repetitive, it felt like listening to the same song for 45 minutes. will definitely not listen to it again
too much screaming rock
i enjoyed Breaking the Law. Would be a good song to break the law to.
I can see why people like it it’s a solid album just not my cup o tea
Don't like metal
Loved it, reminded me of my teenage days and threw me back into a whole day of metal history :) Still a pretty great album with a lot of classics.
I must have heard this first before I'd learned English. So it's kinda hard to listen to this as music and not as hazy memories. Three stars?
Thought this was great throughout. Fun tracks, great style. Perfect example of the metal movement from it's era. 8
Compared to Sabbath, Zep and Queen. I'm a big fan of the latter two and do not agree.
Classic heavy metal, good slbum.
Dit is zo'n facking gruwelijk album. Sowieso Breaking the law natuurlijk, maar die overgang tussen dat nummer en Grinder is insane. Daarna dat random 'United' nummer. Het gaat echt alle kanten op. Ik ga toch streng zijn en vier sterren geven maar 80s heavy metal is DIK!!
Minder slecht dan verwacht. Kon bijna van wat nummers genieten
This is Judas Priest's first solid metal album. A very enjoyable listen.
Not all the songs are really hardcore, living after midnight has bruce Springsteen vibes
Rock on dudes
Living after Midnight and Breaking the law are classics.
liked it more than I thought I would. Would listen again.
Not a super fan of British metal but has some serious bangers on it!
hell yeah
I thought this album would be "harder"
Not bad - I won't seek it out again though.
Living After Midnight rocks, the rest was just OK.
I dunno, something about this one just didn't stand up to time liked I hoped it would. 3/5
Judas Priest has a classic British heavy metal sound (they were one of the originators of it, to be fair) -- they sound a bit like Black Sabbath on speed. Heavy, driving drumbeat with very fast, technical guitar licks. I give these guys credit for helping define the sound, and it has a lot of fans -- I'm just not one of them. The songs are repetitive without a ton of variety from track to track. I'll leave this one to the headbangers.
Gran álbum de Judas, con condimentos extra al género que los hacen sobresalir y diferenciarse del resto.
C'est beau comme du Johnny Halliday.
Not a heavy metal guy, but found this album quite listenable. Catchy tunes and not too overboard, like Metallica.
Set the tone for 80's Heavy Metal. A classic.
Fav: Breaking the law
I listened to it yesterday and I barely remember, I don't think it really hooked me.
Rating a one, rating a one Rating a one, rating a one Rating a one, rating a one Rating a one, rating a one
I'm intrigued. I've heard of Judas Priest, of course, but I don't know if I've ever actually listened to any of their songs. Okay, this is kind of what I thought I would be getting. 80's heavy metal. I like it so far. Oooooh I really like "United". The vocals are really nice on this song. I'm on track 7 of 11 and I'm surprised to realize that there hasn't been a song on here that I didn't like. They've all been pretty good so far. Track 10 is pretty cool. Seems like they were going for a National Anthem vibe here. 3/5 Not a genre I typically gravitate towards, but I did enjoy it.
Pretty good
Metal is not really my thing, but I remember when this was popular
Not my style of music, but I can appreciate why Judas Priest was as big as they were.
This was one the first metal LPs I ever heard. Solid as anything you will ever hear in the genre
Ok. Two songs I’ve heard before, only one of which I liked.
This album set the tone for a lot of albums to come. Very happy to have been able to enjoy this record.
This album makes KISS completely unnecessary. One of the best album covers ever.
Fanatastic thrash metal. Favourite track: Breaking the Law Rob Halford | Metal God : Responsible for the leather look in metal.
nista wow ali solidno
Nope. Nope. Nope.
I'm sure it's a good album if you like metal. It all just kind of went in one ear and out the other for me.
It is very hard and heavy. I like it.
Rock dudes
Great album, enjoyed listening to this Top tracks: Breaking the Law, Living After Midnight
I just don’t like late 70s/80s metal.
Breaking the law
Heavy hitting and a lot of fun.
i didnt expect to like this album but i have to tip my cap. this is a heavy metal classic.
This album is a 4, minus a full point for that Red White and Blue song, but that was a bonus track maybe? So back up to 3.5. And rounding up bc BREAKING THE LAW BREAKING THE LAW
Probably the third best Priest album. I remain shocked this was picked as their appearance over others. If I ever run into Rob Halford in San Diego again I will ask him about it.
Better than I was expecting! I’m not a huge heavy metal fan, but most of these songs were pretty good. “Breaking the Law” was actually one of the weaker songs on the album, I thought, but god is it catchy.
BREAKIN THE LAW BREAKIN THE LAW
I'll give it this: it did grow on me. I still didn't love it though
no notes except that patriotic song was weird
When I think about Judas Priest, this is the record I remember. Lyrics that can be understood with the music that is Judas Priest.
Hard rock, not bad
Bloody rocking good fun. 4 stars.
1/1/24. Happy new year! Decent hard hitting metal album, somewhat melodic.
Nah
Classic 80’s metal, I love it
Good old Classic Metal Songs Cool
Great album, listened to it a bunch. Breaking the Law is stuck in my head all the time
It was surprisingly good. I enjoyed it. Made me think of Jack Black doing a Dio impersonation.
Classic metal and very enjoyable.
Absolut okay! Harter Rock, aber auch eingängige Titel.
Well, Judas Priest. The typical sound, and the unique voice. Some of their more famous titles like "Breaking the Law", "United" or "Living After Midnight". It's not one of my favorite bands, but not bad.
Not for me. But giving an extra star for Halford.
Punk version of AC/DC
Finest stuff ... sometimes I regret not to be born earlier to listen to this music straight from its beginning.
BREAKIN THE LAW BREAKIN THE LAW
\m/ \m/
This is fine, if this is your genre. Not my personal favorite, but I can appreciate it.
Nicht mein Geschmack
Even with 'United' in the mix, this is still a five star experience. 'Rapid Fire', 'Metal Gods', 'Grinder', 'The Rage' and of course, the mighty 'Breaking the Law' are all solid gold, absolutely essential listening for any heavy metal maniac. If you've ever owned an Ibanez you've riffed along to at least eighty percent of this album.
United, united, united we stand! For the longest time my only thought regarding Judas Priest is that they were music for rednecks. When I started getting properly back into metal in the mid-aughts I bought a copy of this album in the used cd section and (finally) realized young me was a big dummy. This thing sounds great, doesn’t overstay its welcome, has the radio hits AND has a bunch of gems I’d never heard but now hold in high regard. Why didn’t they play “Metal Gods” on the classic rock station? That song rips and gets to the point right there in the title. “The Rage” is a mid-tempo stomper and “United” is a sing-a-long song from a guy nobody can really sing like. If I liked “Breaking the Law” better this would be a 5 star banger for me, but… that song is still kinda for rednecks. Which is fine! Just not my favorite.
Dad rock. Not bad tho. enjoyed it overall, but i didn't really fuck with any particular song super heavy. Feeling a strong 3 on this one
Rapid Fire // Breaking the Law // United // 3.5/5
A really enjoyable album. Surprisingly modern sounding with seemignly heavy influence from Sabbath, Iron Maiden (or maybe it's the other way around). Regardless, I enjoyed this album, its high energy and raw rock power.
I can see how influential this album was to the metal bands that followed, although on today’s standards this isn’t anything unusual
Some awesome rock songs, some of the songs have a similar rythm which makes them feel a bit samey but enoy it, plus Living AfterMidnight and Breaking the law are classics
Not so good
Different than what I expected, a lot milder.
Judas Priest rock harder than most. Loud, aggressive, epitome of early metal. Love it.
Solid old school metal album. It's a bit front loaded as the final third fades a bit. Metal Gods is an all time banger. This is the best Priest album as the rest of their catalogue is a tad inconsistent so credit Robert Dimery for nailing this one.
I like it. Love the lead singer’s voice
Of the early Judas Priest albums i've heard, this is probably the most basic of them, but that's not exactly a bad thing. Most of the songs here are just straight forward bangers, especially 'Breaking the Law', not hard to see why that continues to be probably their biggest song. I think 'United' was the only stinker on here, the chorus and lack of energy really drags it out. Outside of that though, this is a super consistent and easy to listen to metal album, the sort you'd recommend to someone trying to get into the genre.
Fun! Not a bad album to rock out to
Nice, classic metal. These albums have had not much to talk about for me.
Not a preferred genre, but I liked this album quite a bit and will probably revisit it again in the future.
Shocking in all its metal edges! Fun, triumphant, ecstatic, a hell of a good time. I forgot how good this really is. Classic!
Nope.
Beavis & Butt-head “breakin the law, breakin the law!”
Classic metal album but I’m not a fan.
Very good album. 4/5 stars.
Really liked the guitars on this album. Only realised they were British halfway through the album. Something I might go back to maybe every few months
I already suspected this but it really seems like metal is not for me. Love hard rock, love punk, but metal just..... comes off as silly, sorry.
This album is a metal classic. This was the band's sixth album, and by this time, the band had matured and found their sound. Their sound inspired much of metal music - power chord riffs, driving drums, and a scream/ falsetto lead singer