Yeah, I saw JP in the summer of 2008, not long after Nostradomus came out. The concert was pretty damn good. I'm one of Halford's biggest fans and to be honest, yeah, he's lost some off his voice, but he's still good enough to pull it off and still better than most of the guys out there howling today.
Next in line, is 1986's controversial album, "Turbo". Looking to change things up Priest incorporated synthesizer's and a much more polished sound on this record, which along with the "Softer" song writing approach didn't sit well with their hard core fans at all. Personally I like it when a band takes risks to stretch out, even if it's for commercial success as well as musical experimentation. Whatever the reasons, "Turbo" was not that well received by Priest's old die hard fans, or the new audience they were trying to reach. I like this album, it has enough going for it for me to enjoy playing it once in a while. I'll post my favorite song.
I love Turbo. Granted, it wasn't the best album they put out, but it certainly isn't bad. The band attempted/incorporated new technology in using Midi guitars during recording. As LG pointed out, some of the quote/unquote "die hard fans" shunned the band and the album after hearing it. Its too bad in some ways because this is a very enjoyable album, although not as hard rocking through and through as their previous few albums. The live album that followed is also very good and in my opinion, might showcase Halford's vocals at the prime of his career. he's spot on on that album (but will wait for later to discuss that one).
Here are a couple of my favorites off of Turbo:
Reckless
Out in the Cold(features the midi guitars right off the bat, before cranking it up a bit)
By the way, RECKLESS is best played with the bass and the volume cranked up!!!!
You know how dedicated metal fans can be Lynch, whenever "Their" band tries something new they feel betrayed for some reason. Thanks for the midi-guitars explanation, it also is funny that Maiden got away with "Softening" their sound much easier than Priest did. I think that is because Priest to me is a "Heavier" band, and always has been. That's no criticism of Maiden I love them both, but when Priest lays it down, they are just...harder for lack of a better term.
Personally, I agree with JP being "harder" than IM. Now, that's not saying they are "better" (even though i personally like JP more than IM), but I think their sound and roots were harder than IM. however, in technical proficiency, I'd give the nod to IM in that category.
And yeah, I always found it odd in that they both did a midi-sampled album and JP got a lot more flack than IM ever did. Personally, I love every single album JP did in the 80's. Each album is a bit different than the one before it and the one after it, so they are all unique in their own right.
I think that comes from the DUAL stereo type guitar playing of Glen and KK. They play "together" so well it's sometimes hard to tell who's playing lead, while Maiden is just ,,,,,well MAIDEN ! couldn't be a rocker w/out either...
Back in the day when JP was being sued for causing a teen suicide, my son and I explored every LP we could find. I managed to buy their catalog. We played that stuff over and over and of course learned to appreciate their work. I love the Judas Priest Live, recorded in Dallas, Tx (1985?) which I have on VHS and cd. They can play so well and their live performances proved their chops. Every now and then I have to hear Green Manalishi With The 2-Pronged Crown, Parental Guidance, Heads Are Gonna Roll and on and on. I was never a fan of this before I listened to them and realize their are many others out there. I admire them greatly.
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