(Rated this album with 4 out of 10) Reviewed by
bigsteve2197
from Norristown, PA USA
It is no secret among Priest fans that Glenn Tipton(their main songwriter) no longer sets the trends, but now follows them. This album is the moment that this heinous act occurred. J.P. was one of the premier bands of the NWOBHM movement. They were one of the bands being imitated by any newcomers who came along. Turbo changed that forever. On Turbo, Priest transformed before our very eyes from heavy metal innovators to hair-metal imitators. Many fans blamed their use of guitar synthesisers for this album being so bad. It wasn't the instruments, it was the songs. New equipment is constantly being introduced. Good bands mold these instruments to their sound. Priest failed on this occasion. They molded their sound to the pop-music these new instruments were currently being used for. Then there is the image factor. A previous reviewer stated how silly Dave Holland looked at this time, and he did. However Glenn Tipton looked even worse. That haircut was beyond ridiculous. To their credit, Rob Halford, KK Downing, and Ian Hill did not cave to the new style. They just continued to dress as they always had. But this is about music, not image. It took them 4 years and 2 albums to make up for this atrocity(Ram it Down was no better, see previous reviews as to why). Painkiller is one of the best albums they've ever done. It is obvious, in my opinion that Halford took charge of that one, resulting in the power struggle with Tipton resulting in Rob leaving the band. Even the new Priest albums sound like any of the other new metal bands around. Glenn Tipton is still a follower. It is time for him to start leading again. One listen to Halford's new material shows that he still gets it( I forgive him for the TWO album. He had just made a major life decision, we know which one) Maybe Rob should have stayed in Priest, and kicked Glenn out.
