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Album Details

• Artist: Judas Priest
• Album: Painkiller
• Label: Columbia
• Year of Release: 1990
• ME Rating:
• Reviewed by: gwhill on 2012-11-06

While I consider Ram it Down to be the real return of the more metallic Priest, others might point to this disc. It’s clearly a much stronger (or at the very least more consistent) album than Ram It Down. In some ways, this is the quintessential Judas Priest album, but it doesn’t really include a balladic cut, and that’s sort of a trademark of the band because they’ve always understood the value of contrasting heavy with mellow for effect.

The title track here screams out with a fury that is really pretty much thrash metal, although Halford’s screams don’t fit with that label. From that point, it never really gets mellow, the group preferring to keep things in the harder edged range throughout. Surely there is more strong material without any letting than on anything they released in the past. There are a couple cuts that shift things a bit, though. “A Touch of Evil” is slower and more plodding, but it’s still dark and heavy. “Battle Hymn” is a short instrumental that brings an almost symphonic nature, while still remaining metal.

If one is tied more to the heavy metal side of Judas Priest’s output, then Pain Killer might be the ultimate Judas Priest album. It’s got a lot more of the heavy intensity and fire than any previous release had. It’s the most consistent in terms of maintaining a musical texture throughout. However you fall in terms of particular tastes, there’s no question that Pain Killer is one of Judas Priest’s best albums. It's also, arguably, a disc that fits into any essential metal collection. It would make a good first introduction to the band, although it might also leave the listener open to some disappointment as subsequent discs don’t deliver on the promises made here. The title track is arguably the finest song in terms of the aggressive side of the Priest, the band ever did.

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