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Avg: 4.0 (268 ratings)
- Date Released: January 1, 1976
- Genre: Rock/Pop
- Style: Metal, Hard Rock
- Label: KOCH Records
A stone-cold heavy metal classic.
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We Say...
After an inauspicious start, Judas Priest took heavy metal to a new level of precision and darkness with Sad Wings of Destiny, an epic album that balanced technical musicianship with take-no-prisoners brutality. The record opened with the textural nuances and complex guitar work of “Victim of Changes” which immediately shattered the stereotype of metal musician as unsophisticated rube. Tracks like “The Ripper” and “Tyrant” proved they could also destroy like unsophisticated rubes. Only Iron Maiden would have equal influence on the next decade of metal.
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They Say...
The groundbreaking Sad Wings of Destiny was the first great Judas Priest album, simultaneously taking the entire heavy metal genre to new depths of darkness and new heights of technical precision and musicality. Sad Wings of Destiny sounded like little else on the metal scene in 1976: it was heavy and chillingly bleak, in an almost unrelenting way that hadn't been seen since Black Sabbath's heyday, but its arrangements were much more intricately crafted, its sonic textures more varied, its grooves tight and menacing, yet tinged with a gothic elegance under the raging torrent of guitar riffs. Just as importantly, the more prog rock-influenced sections of Rocka Rolla have been brought under control, with the extended pieces displaying a newfound focus and direction, as well as complexity. Perhaps the only flaw lies in the album's pacing, which drags down some of the momentum toward the second half by keeping the slower pieces too close together (an effect not helped by the less-than-melodic rocker "Genocide"). However, virtually every other aspect of the album points to a stunning artistic leap forward. The opener, "Victim of Changes," was an instant metal classic, with Rob Halford delivering an electrifying performance; elsewhere, shorter songs like "The Ripper" and "Deceiver" come on like lightning-quick sneak attacks, ending before you know what's hit you. There are also two delicate, prog-style ballads, "Dreamer Deceiver" and the piano-based "Epitaph," demonstrating a compelling emotional range. Although neither as commercially successful nor as technically flashy as subsequent releases, Sad Wings of Destiny was an important milestone in the eventual development of the progressive metal subgenre, and established a standard of excellence to which Judas Priest would adhere through the remainder of the '70s.
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| 01. |  |
Victim of Changes |
7:53 |
|
| 02. | |
Ripper |
2:50 |
|
| 03. | |
Dreamer Deceiver |
5:53 |
|
| 04. | |
Deceiver |
2:42 |
|
| 05. | |
Prelude |
2:01 |
|
| 06. | |
Tyrant |
4:27 |
|
| 07. | |
Genocide |
5:46 |
|
| 08. | |
Epitaph |
3:07 |
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| 09. | |
Island of Domination |
4:23 |
|
09 Total Tracks, 39:02 Total Length
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Credits
- Judas Priest - Producer // Judas Priest - Main Performer // David Charles - Engineer // Dave Charles - Engineer // K.K. Downing - Guitar // K.K. Downing - Producer // Rob Halford - Vocals // Rob Halford - Producer // Ian Hill - Bass // Ian Hill - Guitar (Bass) // Ian Hill - Producer // Ian Hill - Photography // Alan Moore - Drums // Alan Moore - Producer // Alan Moore - Drums (Snare) // Glenn Tipton - Guitar // Glenn Tipton - Piano // Glenn Tipton - Producer // Chris Tsangarides - Engineer // Jeffrey Calvert - Producer // Jeffrey Calvert - Engineer // Max West - Producer // Alan Johnson - Photography // Alan Johnson - Cover Art Concept // Patrick Woodroffe - Illustrations // Patrick Woodroffe - Sleeve Painting // John Pasche - Art Direction // Brad Wrolstad - Graphic Design // Brad Wrolstad - Reissue Package // Dave Nives - Reissue Producer // Krusher - Liner Notes // Dom Lawson - Liner Notes // Neil French - Concept // Neil French - Cover Art Concept // Neil French - Original Concept // Lorentz Gullachsen - Photography
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