One thought on “Judas Priest: Nostradamus-2008.”

1. Sekrys, March 26th, 2018
   Written based on this version: 2008, 2CD, Columbia Records

   Every since they started out as a blues rock band, Judas Priest have always diversified and pushed their sound on almost every album they have released. Even criticized releases like Point Of Entry and Turbo are far different than their predecessors (British Steel and Defenders Of The Faith, respectively.) Even the Tim “The Ripper” Owens releases were in styles new for the band. However, Angel Of Retribution was somewhat stagnant on the level of experimentation. I’m sure to most people at the time, Judas Priest was going to be another nostalgia act in the vein of Saxon or AC/DC, forever making minute changes to their style but not really doing anything to it at the same time.

   However, the Metal Gods would not put up with this silly notion. To put it simply, Judas Priest was not going to be another lethargic mass of sludge. They released Nostradamus. No one was prepared.

   Storytelling and reminiscing aside, Nostradamus sticks out as Judas Priest’s most epic and lengthy studio album, being about an hour and forty minutes. Be forewarned; Lovers of fast and to-the-point speed metal will not be able to comprehend this album and its inner workings. At the same time, this album manages to also feel about half as long as it actually is. The first CD is mostly filled with diverse assortment of tracks, with most being around mid-paced. As noted by other reviewers, the songs do slow down into more steady and slow paced tracks in the second CD; However, don’t let this fool you into thinking the songs are any worse.

   Most of the songs on the album are preceded by a interlude or sort of a beginning piece of music. However, they are done exceptionally well; This album would not be the same without nice intros like “The Four Horsemen” or “Sands of Time”, which bring grandiosity and grandness to their coinciding songs. The actual songs on the album are extremely varied. There are slower, more emotional tunes like “Exiled” or “Alone”, and there also a few speedy thrashers (“Persecution” and “Nostradamus”.) However, most of the tracks are mid-paced often laden with keyboards. For example, “Pestilence And Plague”, “Revelations”, and “Future Of Mankind” fit this criteria. They also manage to be the best picks of the album. All of the songs on this album manage to be epic and rather grand.

   Rob Halford kind of tries something a bit different on Nostradamus. The only ravenous screams on this album are found on the two previously mentioned fast songs. Instead of being aggressive and raspy, he instead opts for a more operatic tone of voice on this record. He manages to do this with flying colors, only sounding a little strained on the ending segment of “Revelations”. Somewhat like Demolition, the guitars on this album play a much more rhythmic role; Mr. Halford is the main centerpiece more so than on any other Priest record. However, unlike Demolition, this album has some truly god level solos. The one on “Revelations” has to be on of the best I’ve heard by any band, period. Scott Travis and Ian Hill are a bit behind in the mix, unfortunately. It doesn’t make a huge difference to the overall quality of the album, but they should have been a bit louder. The production of this album is rather nice and acoustic; It is very much enjoyable.

   The only full length song I have an issue with is “War”. It does feel kind of like an extended interlude in contrast with the whole rest of the other full-length songs. It shows off the orchestra well, but it definitely is the worst track on the album (It still is pretty great, don’t get me wrong.) The most surprising one is “Death”. It’s laden with an epic doom style, and it features a very awesome vocal performance and doomy riffs to boot. I especially like the “Death rides out from the storm…” bit. It is one of the best moments of the record.

   Often, innovation and experimentation tend to lead to two very different outcomes. Some bands fail completely, so they backtrack to their previous album to never again do anything different. Others succeed and chisel out a place for themselves to reside in the great halls of heavy metal. Judas Priest further entrenched their greatness and ingenuity with Nostradamus. Though many disagree with me, I know, I think many of those who do would also like to see them attempt to do something different once again, for the remainder of their existence among in the realm of us mere mortals.

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