Scribed by Sandre the Giant
The first Priest record without founding guitarist K.K. Downing, part of probably the world’s most iconic duel guitar partnerships in metal, if not all of music, was always going to be an interesting record to cover. ‘Redeemer of Souls’ came at an interesting time in the career of Judas Priest, with their ‘farewell’ Epitaph world tour coming to an end in 2011 and the expected retirement of the band (spoiler, they didn’t retire). The band did clarify later that this was not going to be the end of the band, and despite some of the signs, it wasn’t their farewell album either. It is all very confusing, and looking back after a decade, probably explains ‘Redeemer of Souls’ as a record as well.
The addition of Richie Faulkner on guitar gave the writing duo of Halford and Tipton a new focus, a new partner and a rejuvenation of the classic heavy metal power that was the band’s most potent weapon. Faulkner slotted into that dueling guitar duo role perfectly, and ‘Redeemer of Souls’ is a better record for it. ‘Nostradamus’, the band’s previous double concept record, had been a bit of a critical bust. It was overblown and proggy but not in the way that really appealed to Priest fans. Iron Maiden have taken that route over the years and it has worked much better for them. Priest excel at heavy metal bangers like ‘Metalizer’ and ‘Dragonaut’, and when they do give us a little heavy metal theatre, it is always a little more down to earth, like the grand strut of ‘Halls of Valhalla’. ‘Sword of Damocles’ is really Iron Maiden-esque though, which has never been something that Priest have gone for in the past. Despite their obvious similarities, the two titans of British Heavy Metal have always had very distinctive sounds and so it was an interesting nod to their old friends. ‘Down in Flames’ is one of those old rockers that you can imagine playing during a motorbike road trip scene in a movie; a particular staple of great Judas Priest records. ‘Redeemer of Souls’ was an album that felt like a reestablishment of boundaries and parameters, a definition of what Judas Priest are as a unit.
There’s nothing genre defining, there’s nothing as blow away stunning as ‘Painkiller’, but this was a strong return to form after the disappointment of ‘Nostradamus’, and if anything it was a buidling block for what was to be unleashed in the next decade. For Judas Priest have slowly managed to become just as great and relevant as they ever have been with 2018’s ‘Firepower’ and 2024’s ‘Invincible Shield’. Somehow the world’s greatest metal band (yeah, I said it, FIGHT ME METALLICA FANS!) have managed to create two records since that stand as tall in their discography as anything else, and that groundwork began here. ‘Redeemer of Souls’ may have been “just” a good solid metal record, but it steadied the ship and led us to port in paradise.