Bloodstained--RealAudio  Cathedral Spires--RealAudio

After a seven year wait, the metal world is finally graced with a new album from the metal gods--and what an album it is: heavy, brutal, no-frills destruction. Initial public response to the release was mixed, but amongst the true metal fans is it agreed that the Priest have once again delivered in the true sense of its art---and has actually gotten heavier, instead of letting down the longtime fans (ala Metallica, Queensryche, Megadeth, Dokken, etc.). Some feel it is a bit simplistic, but perhaps it's simply the sound of seven years of built-up aggression.
The title tracks breaks forth as an over-the-top burner, and the wails of new singer Tim Owens immediately impress. Formerly of the band Winters Bane, Owens fits the bill perfectly...
The guitar-and-double-bass roll of "Bloodstained" is brutal, and "Death Row" is another flowing, heavy track.
Several songs check in with 'solid' status, including "Dead Meat," "Abductors," "Bullet Train," and "Brain Dead."
The album closes with the chilling "Cathedral Spires". While some of the other songs have a shot, this is probably the only one that there is no doubt will become a Priest classic. It starts out with acoustic guitars and emotional singing ala "Fever" or "Beyond the Realms of Death," and then commences to bulldoze through nine minutes of pure fantasy metal. A tremendous song, and the most like the '80s version of Priest of any track here.

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Final words:
--Yes, Tim Owens can sing the hell out of the songs; and yes, he is a suitable replacement for Halford. His regular singing voice is different from Rob's, but the screams are the same. In fact, he's hitting the notes Rob stopped being able to hit several years ago.
While the music is not quite as intricate as in the past (especially on the first few listens, and to the non-guitar oriented ear), it gets more in-depth with each spin.
Probably the most commendable facet about this release is that Glenn, K.K., and crew did not bow down to commercialism and the masses and release a lighter, more commercially acceptable disc (Um... Load, anyone?). They stuck to their guns and released an album that should influence a whole new generation of Priest maniacs. It's been seven years... so all things considered, it's hard to have really asked for more. The Priest is back...

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TRACK LIST: Jugulator/Bloodstained/Dead Meat/Death Row/Decapitate/Burn In Hell/Brain Dead/Abductors/Bullet Train/ Cathedral Spires

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