Judas Priest
British Steel

After the spectacular live "Unleashed In The East", what could one expect better from the "metal gods", the Judas Priest? Well, in 1980, they certainly didn't betray expectations with what we can now venerate as a cornerstone of the genre: "British Steel". It must be stated first of all that it is still a transitional album, transition from the original more epic sounds (to be clear, the atmospheres that can be found in "Sad Wings Of Destiny" and "Sin After Sin") to the more "hard" ones that will find consecration in their greatest masterpiece, "Screaming For Vengeance".

"British Steel" is all about the alternation of hard-rock and metal characteristics, which has always been the hallmark of Judas Priest, and right from the first song this is noticeable: indeed, the album is opened by the devastating riff of "Breakin' The Law", an autobiographical song written by the singer, Rob Halford, about his past. It should be noted that the guitarists (obviously Glen Tipton and K.K. Downing) don't do solos to not diminish the tension.
"Rapid Fire" is fast and indeed passes quickly, while the third track is another classic: "Metal Gods", slower but enormously engaging, one of those pieces always performed live (indeed!), which is also the origin of the group's nickname and especially Halford. After this there's "Grinder", where something of the band's old epic sounds reemerges, while in the next "United", a real stadium anthem, it's easy to see a certain influence of Queen (but this is just an opinion). Then comes "Livin' After Midnight", one of Judas Priest's greatest masterpieces, and without a doubt the most representative track of the album; it seems to me that this piece really cites AC/DC's hard rock, with the choral refrain and the groove that permeates it.
Another masterpiece, "You Don't Have To Be Old To Be Wise", continues along the same line as all the others, that is, more distorted and very energetic hard rock, while the following "The Rage" passes without almost leaving a trace and the concluding "Steeler" is the most metal track of the entire album, beautiful but not particularly engaging.

Although Judas Priest has always been defined as a metal band, let's be honest, only "Painkiller" (and the following... for what they are worth) is a metal album, while the rest is energetic and distorted hard rock, but probably this is exactly the strength of the Priest: this blend of genres, this mix of influences, and "British Steel" is the most representative work of this. While the following "Point Of Entry" in my opinion is significantly inferior and "Screaming For Vengeance" is the absolute masterpiece, it is in this album that the sound takes shape on which the entire history of the band for the '80s and '90s will be built.

In short, a must-hear.