Haven't been on here in a loooooooooong time, here are a few general Priest opinions I have on my mind (they still remain my fave metal band):
- Sad Wings of Destiny is far and away the best album Priest ever made (it's one of my favourite albums ever, even). Victim of Changes is incredible; Dreamer Deceiver-Deceiver is an absolute gem (if they played that live ever on a modern tour I think I'd spontaneously combust with happiness); there's a beautiful, haunting loneliness to Epitaph; The Ripper is one of the best short songs Priest ever did (and also earned Tim Owens his nickname); and Tyrant contains a killer duel guitar solo and some of my favourite Priest lyrics ever (Rob and Glenn's harmony on the pre-verse).
- Les Binks is the best drummer Priest ever had. He did drums on Stained Class, Hell Bent for Leather (AKA Killing Machine) and Unleashed in the Studio; but some of his techniques were out of this world, for example Exciter:
Judas Priest - Exciter - YouTube
Shame he never fitted the mold they sought for the 1980s (too complex; hence Mr Holland arrived), I genuinely believed he could have gone down as one of the best metal drummers of all time. Travis is very good, but I don't really like the way he overcomplicates the beats to a lot of their 80s hits (AKA the Holland era). Binks also came up with the guitar rhythm for Beyond the Realms of Death
- Ian Hill doesn't get half the credit he deserves. He's now the only constant there has ever been in Priest and has changed his playing so many times to fit in with the various different drummers and styles they've employed over the years. It's a bit sad I suppose how guitar-orientated Priest became, because it led to him becoming a very unnoticeable bassist IMO, look back to 70s Priest and he had some absolutely brilliant bass lines.
- Richie Faulkner is one of the best 'young' guitar players I've ever seen in my life. He was an absolute tank during the Epitaph concert and I can't wait to see what impact he's had on Priest's new album (should be out around summer I believe). He gets a bit too preoccupied with the crowd at times, but Christ can he play guitar.