“Screaming for Vengeance” – Judas Priest “Screaming for Vengeance” – 1982 Vivid memory of standing in the record aisle of K-mart with my Dad (a minister,) in the early 1980s— Dad: “I’m not buying you a record called, ‘Screaming for Vengeance!’ You can spend your OWN money if you want that garbage…” The first song on Side 2, the Title track is nothing less than the sonic equivalent of a subway mugging. From the initial impact of the opening chord, the listener is battered by a series of disjointed guitar chords, cymbal crashes and Rob Halford’s Banshee wail—then immediately shoved into Tipton and Downing’s climbing, dizzying, and disorienting unison guitar riff, followed by 5 or 6 well-placed kicks to the musical ribs in a 5-second span (0:16-0:23) before being unceremoniously dumped on the tracks to stagger to your feet just in time to run for your life from the oncoming train of the first verse at 0:25. Foreshadowing 1990s “Painkiller,” Halford’s high-pitched snarl is frantically advising the listener—as though if were a voice from behind random cell bars, while you’re being lead down some prison corridor… “Hey, listen! Don’t you let ‘em get your mind! For your brain’s being poisoned, and that’s not right! Playing in a game that draws you closer—‘til you’re living in a world that’s ruled by fear…” “Screaming…” I think, is one of those examples where the music outpaced the technology of the time, in that, the tones of the music equipment of 1982 just weren’t suited to the task. By Priest’s next album, “Defenders of the Faith,” released on January 4th, 1984, and it’s opening track, “Freewheel Burning,” musical gear had evolved enough to capture the energy of these faster, heavier performances—like Metallica’s “Ride The Lightning” album that was released later, in July of 1984. (note: Priest had been one of the early groups pushing faster tempos and more aggressive drum and guitar work since the mid 1970s—“Dissident Aggressor” from 1977’s “Sin After Sin” album, and “Rapid Fire” from 1980’s “British Steel,” being some notable examples.) Here, in typical Priest fashion, the mix is a bit lacking bass-wise, and the guitar tones are heavy on the midrange, making the overall mix sound just a bit cardboard-ish, unfortunately. (this time period was RIGHT in the middle of one of the big waves of electric guitar evolution, with players seeking high-output pickups and aftermarket modifications to their amplifiers, along with any other mystical piece of gear to achieve a more overdriven sound…) Nonetheless, the performance is intense, full of energy, and the timing is clean. As their previous album, 1981’s “Point of Entry” was generally panned by critics and fans alike as a softer, more radio-friendly sell-out of a release, Priest was looking to re-set the bar for Heavy Metal, “Screaming…” was meant to conquer… youtube/watch?v=G6gI2MBRmzw
Posted on: Mon, 24 Jun 2013 02:44:21 +0000
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