Judas Priest's 'Invincible Shield' - Album Review

All things considered, it is surprising how many veteran bands are still putting out new material. In an era where it is, often wrongly, assumed that nostalgia and short attention spans mean that new material from classic bands is redundant - there are plenty of bands out there bucking the trend. Already this year I have reviewed new albums from Magnum, Saxon, and Bruce Dickinson - all of whom can trace their careers back to the 1970s. Recent years have also seen albums from the likes of Uriah Heep, Deep Purple, and Yes, too, which shows that plenty of classic bands are still feeling creative and wanting to deliver new experiences for their fans. It is true that some fans only want to hear the same few hits over and over, but those of us who live and breathe these bands' catalogues love to see them added to - and I will continue to celebrate new music from old bands. Whilst the British heavy metal legends Judas Priest have not been as prolific in recent years as some of those bands mentioned earlier, they have nevertheless remained busy. Since reuniting with their classic frontman Rob Halford in 2003, the band have now released five studio albums - and have filled the years between each release with plenty of touring. Until earlier this month, the band's last album was released in 2018. Firepower (which I reviewed here) was well-received when it was released and it has, generally, since been considered something of a late career highlight for the band. It made it into my Albums of the Year list in 2018 and it is one that I have listened to a lot over the years. For me, it was easily the band's best album since 1990's Painkiller - and maybe even since 1984's Defenders of the Faith. I like most of what followed Painkiller, but I think that it is fair to say that there were some missteps on the nu metal inspired Demolition from 2001 and the sprawling concept album Nostradamus from 2008. 2005's Angel of Retribution and 2014's Redeemer of Souls (which I also reviewed here) were some of the hight points, though, but, for me, Firepower beat them all. Bringing producer Andy Sneap on board certainly helped the band to sound truly metallic again. Some criticise his homogeneous sound, but given how great Firepower, all of Saxon's recent albums, and many other modern metal releases which Sneap has been involved in sound, I do not mind such uniformity. Six years on from Firepower, then, Judas Priest are back with Invincible Shield - their nineteenth studio album. With Sneap fully ensconced in the band's live activity in recent years filling in for ailing guitarist Glenn Tipton, he returns here again as the album's producer. As such, Invincible Shield sounds similar overall to Firepower - but I think that the songwriting here is a bit more adventurous, and there are a few nods to the bands 1970s output alongside the expected more metallic sound developed from the 1980s onward. It features the same line-up as the previous album, but I do wonder how much input Tipton actually had given his worsening Parkinson's disease. He looks very frail these days, so I would not be surprised if Richie Faulkner was responsible for most, if not all, of the album's guitar playing. Either way, though, the classic Judas Priest twin guitar approach is well represented - alongside another excellent performance from Halford, who often puts singers half his age to shame.

Despite there perhaps being a bit more variety here, I still think that Firepower is a touch stronger. That being said, though, the first half of this album is really strong. It does tail off a little towards the end for me, but there is still a lot of quality material here which is up there with the best of Firepower. The album kicks off with one of its most in-your-face metal cuts: Panic Attack. The song is very reminiscent of the band's post-Painkiller sound, but the opening guitar and synth melodies do feel a bit more classic and progressive rock in tone - albeit with the rest of the song being much heavier. These snaking melodies set the tone nicely, though, and when the song's main guitar crunch kicks in the Sneap sound is fully realised and the band break into a full-tilt metal assault. The guitar riffing throughout the track is fast, but this is not a thrash track. There is plenty of groove throughout, and Halford sounds gritty during the crunchy verses - with the occasional higher note accenting some of lyrics. It is a proper headbanging piece, then, but the pace is upped for the snappy chorus which features machine gun vocal rhythms from Halford and some extremely fast double bass drum patterns from long-time drummer Scott Travis. The track is more varied than it initially seems, too, with breakdown sections including some slower riffing and snarling vocals - before a repetitive guitar melody returns to the slight prog edge of the song's opening. A lengthy solo section includes plenty of melodic shredding - and with the song also closing out on another solo, Panic Attack is certainly one for the guitar lovers. The Serpent and the King opens with a riff and guitar tone which could have easily sat on 1982's Screaming for Vengeance - but the track overall is much heavier than that album ever was, and it potentially contains Halford's best vocals on the album. I feel like he would struggle to sing this song live these days, but his high-pitched delivery throughout the fast-paced verses does not sound like it comes from a man who started his singing career in the 1970s - proving that he can still very much deliver in the studio. Structure-wise, this song is the opposite of the previous one - with faster verses featuring shrieked, rhythmic vocals whilst the chorus is more epic - with a slower pace and Halford singing in his lower register. Both main sections are very hooky and the track is one of the album's best as a result of Halford's excellent performance. It is perhaps less dynamic than the opener, but it is full of crunch and classic heavy metal flair - which is all we really want from Judas Priest.

The title track follows and it is the longest here. Most of the songs here are between four and five minutes long, but Invincible Shield is over six minutes long - and it feels like the album's anthem. Travis lays into his double bass drums throughout, propelling the song from the off, and the piece is very much rooted in the sound of Painkiller. The pace never really lets up throughout and the track is a pure slab of classic heavy metal. Halford again utilises lots of higher notes during the verses, and plenty of guitar leads are also thrown in as punctuation between the lyrics. As such, this is one the pieces here with the most lead guitar moments - and it is great to hear Faulkner letting rip a bit more here. His guitar playing throughout is excellent, but he feels a bit more off the leash here - and the big centrepiece solo is another excellent one with some harmonised leads and lots of memorable runs. Throw in another big chorus with some call-and-response style vocals - and the track is another excellent modern cut from the band. Whilst Devil in Disguise is a slight step down in quality from the opening trio, it is still a strong track. In reins in the pace somewhat and goes for much more of a crunching, mid-paced sound packed full of groove. The riffing here is less sharp in tone, instead going for something more weighty - whilst Travis pulls back to deliver a looser drum performance. This grinding riff allows Halford to take a bit of a different approach vocally. He rarely goes for a higher note here and sings instead in a bluesier way during the crunchy verses - before going for more of a stadium rock approach during the chorus with some subtle harmonies and echo effects. Despite the more primal approach overall, there are still some knotty guitar moments - but this is generally a track which focuses more on groove. A riff-led section before the guitar solo exhibits a more classic rock approach, too, and the aforementioned solo is also less busy - with a bluesier tone overall. This is one song that harks back somewhat to the band's 1970s sound, but there is still a toughness throughout which keeps it at home on the album. Despite the album's singles and live cuts all being great, for me the real sleeper on the album is Gates of Hell. It could well be my favourite thing here as it is the sort of track which just goes all out hook-wise. It reminds me of the sound which the band pursued on 1986's Turbo - but without all of the synths which some felt held it back. This track sounds heavy and metallic, but it is filled with memorable guitar hooks throughout, which are often harmonised, and some of Halford's most strident vocals. There is plenty of groove throughout the mid-paced verses, which also feature Ian Hill's bass playing a bit more than is typical, but everything builds towards what is easily my favourite chorus here. It is the album's most stadium-ready moment and it is crammed with hooky melodies - but without any unnecessary sheen. There is a bigger backing vocal approach taken than is typical, and some subtle synths add depth, but generally it is just Halford's vocal hooks and an accompanying guitar melody which make the chorus sing. It is a very uncomplicated song, but it does everything that I want it to - with another lengthy guitar solo section seeing Faulkner let rip.

Crown of Horns slows things down somewhat and it is the closest thing on the album to a ballad - but in truth the track is just a 1970s-style hard rocker with a more organic overall sound. There is still plenty of bite here despite the restraint exhibited and there are lots of excellent guitar moments. The opening guitar lead perfectly sets the tone, whilst the harmony guitar melodies which form the basis of the chorus have a Thin Lizzy-esque charm. The song certainly harks back to the sound of albums like 1977's Sin After Sin - albeit with a chorus that sounds later. The bass is a bit more prominent again here, particularly during the verses, and the guitars are more overdriven than metallic - which suits the 1970s vibe. With the exception of a couple of moments the album does not reach such heights again - but there is still plenty to enjoy. After a few mid-paced tracks, the band's thrashier sound is brought back with As God Is My Witness. It is a very energetic piece which packs a punch, but not as much thought seems to have been put into the hooks this time. I do not find the chorus to be as enjoyable overall - but the riffing and overall energy of the track still helps it to be somewhat infectious. The buzzing of Hill's bass keeps the verses moving, but the dual guitar riffing and relentless double bass drumming are what sets the piece's character from the off. The chorus is not bad, but is certainly lacks the pull of many of the others here. It is a shame that it does not quite hit home, as otherwise the piece would be another winner, but as it stands the song is very much an enjoyable one - even if there are better examples of this sound here. Trial by Fire ups the overall quality again, and the mid-paced single comes close to some of the earlier heights. This is another track which could have sat quite nicely on Screaming for Vengeance with its muscular mid-paced groove - but there are a few twists and turns which help to keep things interesting. I like the verse riff and drum pattern, which are a little different from the norm. The occasional off-kilter drum inclusion helps to keep it interesting - whilst there are short moments which make use of clean guitars to add depth. These little additions stop the track from feeling like everything else on the album - and it helps the track to stand out during the album's back half. It helps that the chorus is very much an epic one. The lack of any real pace allows Halford to stretch out his notes a bit more - and the chorus here is one that stood out from the off with its mix of a more epic approach and the way it crashes into the song's main riff at the end of each rendition.

Escape from Reality is relatively slower track, but it goes for a much doomier sound. Judas Priest have done doomy songs occasionally in their career, but it is not a sound for which they are especially known - and there certainly feels like a bit of an influence from Black Sabbath at times. The vocal effects in the chorus certainly have shades of Ozzy Osbourne's trademark feel at times, but the razor-sharp guitar tones root the song is Judas Priest's sound. No-one is going to mistake this song for Black Sabbath, but there is certainly more of a weight to the riffing - and the mixture of heavier riffing and melancholic clean guitar melodies only adds to the doomy sound. The song does not grab me as much as some of the others here - but it has grown on me quite a bit. I did not like it all that much at first, but the chorus has stuck with me more on each listen - and I like the fact that the band have gone for something heavier here. The album's shortest piece, Sons of Thunder, returns to the album's core sound - and at just a shade under three minutes the compact track exhibits plenty of classic Judas Priestisms throughout. It is not as fast or furious as some of the others here, but the main riff is weighty and Halford goes for a pretty gritty vocal performance throughout - between which Faulkner really shreds. One thing that stands out for me about the track is the gang vocals during the simple chorus. Judas Priest have not often been a gang vocal band, but the shout-along chorus works well given the song's short length and simple arrangement. It is an injection of primal energy on an album which is generally more complex - and such is welcome. The album then comes to a close with Giants in the Sky, a mid-paced song which goes for more of a groove-based approach - and some riffing which feels more rooted in classic rock than metal. There is plenty of metallic bite, but the song overall feels like a bit of a throwback to the band's earlier work - even if Halford does use some higher notes during the chorus. Overall, though, the drums just feel more booming than usual and the guitar tone is a little more organic. Some of the leads have more of a bluesy twang, too, and Halford's vocal performance is more grounded aside from the aforementioned higher harmonies. The guitar solo is bluesier, too, and I also like the classic guitar melodies throw in a bit later on - as the song deviates into a slightly Queen-esque section. It may have been better to end the album with something more up-tempo, but the song is another pretty strong cut - and Halford ends the song with a lengthy scream as the albums comes to a close. Whilst there are a couple of dips in quality, there is nothing here that is poor - and the album overall is an excellent one. Whilst I might prefer Firepower overall, this album feels more diverse and more concise at the same time - so in time it may overtake Firepower, particularly given how strong the first half is. Whether there is more to come from Judas Priest in the future remains to be seen, but it is great that Invincible Shield exists - and it is likely to be high up on many Albums of the Year lists come December.

The album was released on 8th March 2024 via Columbia Records. Below is the band's promotional video for Panic Attack.