Would have gotten five stars with better melodies & lyrics
(Rated this album with 8 out of 10) Reviewed by
Thomas Nystrand
from Helsinki,Finland
Well, here it is. Judas Priest with a new singer! Rob Halford is considered THE METAL VOICE and therefore very hard if not impossible to beat at his own game. I think Tim " Ripper " Owens was confident he could do it once he got to join Priest. He impressed me. Overall the Jugulator album is heavier than any Priest album so far. Sadly also a lack of creativity is evident once you consider the lyrics. I actually laughed when I checked the track listing... The sound on the album is very good: rough guitars, some of the best drum work in metal, a solid base line and last but not least, the vocals....: Owens doesn't sound THAT much like Halford, ok, there are similarities and I think maybe Owens tries to sound like the old frontman too much. As for vocal range, Owens can hit those falsetto notes almost like Halford himself, but I think his strenght lies in what I consider "normal " singing, as for example in the beginning of " Cathedral Spires ", which also includes falsettos, of course...those first two minutes of that song is what impressed me most about Owens. Owens' voice is not as high as Halford's, but it doesn't necessarily mean it isn't as good. I think he sounds great. Album highlights: " Burn in hell ", " Bullet train ", " Cathedral spires "
