Judas Priest's Reviews

Rocka Rolla

(Average Rating: 7.52 out of 10)

A Real Metal Gem

(Rated this album with 8 out of 10)
Reviewed by Eden C. from Jerusalem, Israel.

This is Priest's debut, and it certainly is a solid album. I'm not sure if the word 'metal' fits this correctly, since the meaning of metal was very vague those days, and since this album isn't exactly heavy, but it certainly is classic rock. The production was said by many, including the band itself, to be terrible (Priest themselves said it sounded as if it was recorded in a garbage can), but I would have to disagree: Its not top notch recording, far from that, but its not that bad either.. its pretty decent, a bit of hiss, but you can get over it. The overall sound is a little sad although you have straight rockers like Rocka Rolla, and the slower One For The Road. The masterpiece in this album comes in the name of Run Of The Mill, and in my opinion is one of Priest's best ever songs. Its a huge ballad, about some old man's life. The overall atmosphere is sad, but musically speaking these 8:30 minutes are a masterpieces. The lyrics are excellent as well. The rest of the songs are not that exciting, but not bad on the other hand, just sort of mediocre. Halford's voice is very good, as usual, and the rest of the guys seem to do a fine job as well. This surely sounds different from other Priest albums (Sad Wings is pretty close to it though, obviously), but it doesn't mean its bad. In fact its a very enjoyable album for anyone who likes classic rock or metal.

A must for every Priest fan, and anybody else who could appreciate good music. A worthy buy.

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