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Rating: It is a sacrilege that here on DeBaser no one has yet reviewed one of the great classics of Metal, an absolute masterpiece without ifs and buts. One of those albums that is unthinkable not to have for any enthusiast of this genre.
We are in 1984, and two years earlier Judas Priest released the fabulous Screaming For Vengeance, in which they embraced Heavy Metal after having made a fundamental contribution to Hard Rock with previous albums (although the first signs already appeared with British Steel in 1980).
With Defenders Of The Faith the British group delivers the masterpiece, a concentrate of pure power that at the time left even the most frantic headbanger speechless. Judas Priest had never before reached such levels of sonic explosion, but the experiment turns out to be spot-on, such that many tracks contained in this work will become classics both for the band in question and for Heavy Metal in general.
The ride begins with 5 stunning tracks, one of the best side A's (I’m talking about vinyl) I have ever listened to in my life:
Freewheel Burning hits you in the face like a sledgehammer, Downing and Tipton’s guitars churn out riffs and solos as if possessed by the devil, Bob Halford’s voice is an integral part of the Whole, without which the songs would lose meaning.
Jawbreaker is the punishment for having resisted the first track; if you haven’t succumbed before, this is the moment you'll hit the mat... a lethal riff that will floor anyone.
Rock Hard Ride Free is a stadium track, one that is impossible not to sing at Live shows, but it is with The Sentinel that Judas Priest pull out of the hat what is, according to this writer, their best song ever... introduced by a solo that plunges you into the depths, the track continues with a compelling rhythm in which, thanks also to Halford's superb performance, the group offers nothing short of a sublime demonstration; listen to it and you will understand Metal.
Love Bites worthily closes an exhilarating side A.
Side B opens with Eat Me Alive, another classic of the band, and continues with Some Heads Are Gonna Roll and the slow Night Comes Down in an incredible sequence of flawless tracks.
The last two tracks go hand in hand (other stadium anthems) Heavy Duty and Defenders Of The Faith, absolutely connected to each other.
Even if the work loses some steam in the second half (physiologically, given the exaggerated side A), it is absolutely appropriate to judge Defenders Of The Faith as a masterpiece: everything a Metal genre enthusiast seeks can be found in this album, from perfect solos to devastating riffs, from speed to power, all amalgamated by Halford’s voice hitting unattainable peaks. An album that set the standard.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
01 Freewheel Burning (04:23)
Fast and furious
We ride the universe
To carve a road for us
That slices every curve in sight
We accelerate,
No time to hesitate
This load will detonate
Whoever would
Contend it's right
Born to lead
At breakneck speed
With high octane
We're spitting flames
Freewheel burning
Freewheel burning
On we catapult
We're thrusting to the hilt
Unearthing every fault
Go headlong into any dare
We don't accept defeat
We never will retreat
We blaze with scorching heat
Obliterations everywhere
Born to lead
At breakneck speed
with high octane
Let's break these speed
Freewheel burning
Freewheel burning
Look before you leap
Has never been the way we keep
Our road is free
Charging to the top
And never give in never stops
The way to be
Hold on to the lead
With all your will and concede
You'll find there's life
With victory on high
(SOLO)
Look before you leap
Has never been the way we keep
Our road is free
Charging to the top
And never give in never stops
The way to be
Hold on to the lead
With all your will and concede
You'll find there's life
With victory
With victory on high
Freewheel burning
Freewheel burning
Freewheel burning
Freewheel burning
Freewheel burning
Freewheel burning
Freewheel burning
Freewheel burning
02 Jawbreaker (03:27)
Deadly as the viper peering from its coil
The poison there is coming to the boil
Ticking like to time bomb
The fuse is running short
On the verge of snapping if it's caught
And all the pressure that's been building up
For all the years it bore the load
The cracks appear, the frame starts to distort
Ready to explode
Jawbreaker
Crouching in the corner
Wound up as a spring
Piercing eyes that flash are shimmering
Muscles all contorted
Claws dug in the dirt
Every ounce of fibre on alert
04 The Sentinel (05:03)
Along deserted avenues
Steam begins to rise
The figures primed and ready
Prepared for quick surprise
He's watching for a sign
His life is on the line
Dogs whine in the alleys
Smoke is on the wind
From deep inside its empty shell
A cathedral bell begins
Ringing out its toll
A storm begins to grow
Amidst the upturned burned-out cars
The challengers await
And in their fists clutch iron bars
With which to seal his fate
Across his chest in scabbards rest
The rows of throwing knives
Whose razor points in challenged tests
Have finished many lives
Now facing as another
The stand-off eats at time
Then all at once a silence falls
As the bell ceases its chime
Upon this sign the challengers
With shrieks and cries rush forth
The knives fly out like bullets
Upon their deadly course
Screams of pain and agony
Rent the silent air
Amidst the dying bodies
Blood runs everywhere
The figure stands expressionless
Impassive and alone
Unmoved by this victory
And the seeds of death he's sown
Sworn to avenge condemn to hell
Tempt not the blade all fear the Sentinel
05 Love Bites (04:47)
When you feel safe
When you feel warm
That's when I rise
That's when I crawl
Gliding on mist
Hardly a sound
Bringing the kiss
Evils abound
In the dead of night - love bites, love bites
In the dead of night - love bites
Into your room
Where in deep sleep
There you lie still
To you I creep
Then I descend
Close to your lips
Across you I bend
You smile as I sip
Now you are mine
In my control
One taste of your life
And I own your soul
Softly you stir
Gently you moan
Lust's in the air
Wake as I groan
In the dead of night - love bites, love bites
In the dead of night - love bites
In the dead of night - love bites, love bites
In the dead of night - love bites
Love bites you
Invites you
To feast in the night
Excites you
Delights you
It drains you to white
Love bites
You knew at first sight
You'd enjoy my attack
That with my first bite
There'd be no turning back
So come in my arms
I strike any hour
I will return
To trap and devour
In the dead of night - love bites, love bites
In the dead of night - love bites
In the dead of night - love bites, love bites
In the dead of night - love bites
Love bites
Love bites
Love bites
Love bites.......
06 Eat Me Alive (03:35)
Wrapped tight around me
Like a second flesh of skin
Gling to my body
As the ecstasy begins
Your wild vibrations
Got me shooting from the hip
Crazed and insatiable let rip
Eat me alive
Sounds like on animal panting to the beat
Groan in the pleasure zone gasping from the heat
Gut-wrenching frenzy that deranges every joint
I'm gonna force you at gun point
To eat me alive
Bound to deliver as you give and I collect
Squealing in passion as the rod of steel injects
Lunge to the maximum
Spread-eagled to the wall
You're well equipped to take it all
So eat me alive
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