Defend an album that get ripped on a lot...

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Judas Priest - Ram It Down

I know many fans consider this to be the pooch of the Priest catalogue, and I didn't even bother to check it out when it was originally released back in '88, but now, I have to say this is a really good cd. Rob Halford turns in a tremendous vocal performance and songs like Love Zone and Hard As Iron really pack a punch come chorus time. Perhaps it was a matter of timing with this cd. A change of the guard was on the horizon with bands like Slayer and Metallica, and Priest didn't sound fresh anymore. I don't know. Maybe if this album had been released in place of Turbo or dare I say Defenders, it would have done very well.

I think Ram It Down gets sucked into the anti-Turbo backlash by most folks. I don't think it's one of their best albums, but you can tell they were moving back to a heavier sound and yet I see a lot of fans not acknowledge that because they're still in such a froth over the accursed synthesizers.

JBall_Z wrote:

Judas Priest - Ram It Down

I know many fans consider this to be the pooch of the Priest catalogue, and I didn't even bother to check it out when it was originally released back in '88, but now, I have to say this is a really good cd. Rob Halford turns in a tremendous vocal performance and songs like Love Zone and Hard As Iron really pack a punch come chorus time. Perhaps it was a matter of timing with this cd. A change of the guard was on the horizon with bands like Slayer and Metallica, and Priest didn't sound fresh anymore. I don't know. Maybe if this album had been released in place of Turbo or dare I say Defenders, it would have done very well.

I LOVE Ram It Down! It's MY fave JP album so far! 10/10

Quote :

I LOVE Ram It Down! It's MY fave JP album so far! 10/10

So far? What other Priest albums have you heard?

Glad to see Priest's RAM IT DOWN getting some love ... I always dug the album. Saw'em on that tour too and it whomped booty!

SpectreFate wrote:

Quote :

I LOVE Ram It Down! It's MY fave JP album so far! 10/10

So far? What other Priest albums have you heard?

Quite a few of them, actually. I also really LOVE Turbo and PAINKILLER! My fave CD of the Ripper years was easily his first album with the band. I thought Demolition was rather weak.

Fat Freddy wrote:

Glad to see Priest's RAM IT DOWN getting some love ... I always dug the album. Saw'em on that tour too and it whomped booty!

I sure wish I could've seen a show on that tour! Who opened?

I'll defend Iron Maiden's "X Factor" CD, but NOT "Virtual XI". Both albums featured Blaze Bayley on vocals.
XF 9/10
VXI 5/10

Ram It Down is good but your favorite? Well, it's your opinion but imho Painkiller guts RID.

I did really like XF, people just need to get over that it's not Bruce.

7thSaviour wrote:

Fat Freddy wrote:

Glad to see Priest's RAM IT DOWN getting some love ... I always dug the album. Saw'em on that tour too and it whomped booty!

I sure wish I could've seen a show on that tour! Who opened?

Cinderella (of all creatures!) opened for Priest on that tour... and the audience was not terribly kind to them, as you might imagine. They were really good too, though! I was probably the only guy in the arena who actually liked both bands. Most of the crowd hammered'em with boo's for the entire set.

Was it the Painkiller tour or Ram It Down tour when Judas Priest toured the States with both Alice Cooper and Motorhead?

manny wrote:

Was it the Painkiller tour or Ram It Down tour when Judas Priest toured the States with both Alice Cooper and Motorhead?

That was the tail end of the PAINKILLER tour, it was part of a package called "Operation Rock N Roll." The full lineup was Priest, Alice Cooper, Motorhead, Dangerous Toys, and Metal Church. Rob Halford announced that he was leaving the band after the last show of that tour.

I saw that tour when it came to Jersey and even with THAT many bands on the bill, the arena was still only about half full. Metal Church came on so early (6:30 PM) that there was hardly anyone in the place! It was becoming quite obvious by this time (summer of '91) that the winds of musical change were a'blowing...

Still a fantastic show by the way. Alice Cooper's stage show was one of the coolest things I've ever seen. The crowd also boo'd the hell out of poor Dangerous Toys, then cheered like crazy when their banner was taken down at the end of their set and replaced by Motorhead's banner.

I remember the tour and I didnot go, which I regret, and that is iincredible with two platinum selling acts like Alice and the Priest headlining that the arena was only half filled, that is a sin.

manny wrote:

I remember the tour and I didnot go, which I regret, and that is iincredible with two platinum selling acts like Alice and the Priest headlining that the arena was only half filled, that is a sin.

Yea, I was kinda surprised, but on the other hand my friends and I got our tickets for that concert only a week or so before the show and we still ended up with 7th row center (best seats I'd ever had for an arena gig up to that time), so I wasn't complaining too much.

Judas Priest had already been thru the area about six months prior on the initial PAINKILLER run (with Megadeth & Testament opening - and yes, I was at that show too), which also might have something to do with the lack of attendance at Operation RNR. People were probably like, "What, them AGAIN?"

TheNazgul wrote:

Ram It Down is good but your favorite? Well, it's your opinion but imho Painkiller guts RID.

I did really like XF, people just need to get over that it's not Bruce.

Mostly agreed! RID 10/10 and PK 9.5/10 .

I'd have loved to have seen both tours indeed! I've since seen JP, Cinderella, and AC, albeit separately.

Hot In The Shade by KISS - now there's a kick....... ahhh, never mind!!!

thejokeriv wrote:

Hot In The Shade by KISS - now there's a kick....... ahhh, never mind!!!

Ugh! The Desmond Child influenced Kiss album.

Definitely the nadir of their career in my book. This makes Dynasty look like a masterpiece.

thejokeriv wrote:

Hot In The Shade by KISS - now there's a kick....... ahhh, never mind!!!

Hot In The Shade has some decent songs... Rise To It, Silver Spoon, Betrayed etc. I really liked this album when it was released. I saw them play in Long Beach on this tour. Slaughter and Winger opened up for them.

Accept Eat The Heat: That album got heavily ridiculed and obviously I can see why. The fans would not except Reece and also how pop oriented the music is. this is like the album Bangalore Choir never had. I agree what ultmetal said about it that Accept can't cut the mustard without Udo. The biggest difference between Reece and Dirkschneider is that Reece is a beautiful singer and is more suited to hair/pop metal bands like Bangalore Choir. Udo Dirkcheinder is the total opposite he doesn't have a "radio friendly voice" but he has got a hell of alot of charisma, aggression, fire, etc which explains why is more suited to accept than Reece (listen to that balls to the wall video I uploaded and Reece can't cut the mustard with that song https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Al8xHBm25qQ) and also in my opinion Udo is one of the best singers in metal. With the album they are actually some smokin tracks like XTC which is one of the best 80s pop metal I have ever heard, Generation Clash, Chain Reaction and of course Hellhammer.
This is obviously the album for those who don't like accept and I guess should of been under the Bagalore Choir name instead.

I love Crazy Nights by KISS! Hot In The Shade rules, too! Don't forget about "Love Is For Suckers" by TS, either!

ultmetal wrote:

Stryper - Against the Law
People didn't like it because the band had become "rebellious" or whatever. The pretty boys in the bumble bee suits were wearing beards and looking "tough". Who the heck cares. The music is what's important. This one had some smoking songs and a great guitar tone. Micheal Sweet lets out some blood curdling screams. Oz Fox really stepped up his lead work as well. Favorite tracks, Rock the Hell Out of You, Against the Law, Caught in the Middle, Lady and Shining Star.

I LOVE ATL! 9.5/10

JBall_Z wrote:

thejokeriv wrote:

Hot In The Shade by KISS - now there's a kick....... ahhh, never mind!!!

Hot In The Shade has some decent songs... Rise To It, Silver Spoon, Betrayed etc. I really liked this album when it was released. I saw them play in Long Beach on this tour. Slaughter and Winger opened up for them.

I like some songs on Hot in the Shade as well.

jstate wrote:

Bruce Dickinson - Tattooed Milionaire

I've loved this album from the day it came out. I like that it wasn't Bruce trying to do a Maiden record. To me it was everything a solo record should be. Sure not all of it worked - but for me that was part of what I liked about it. I also think some of the bonus tracks that were on the reissue should have made it onto the album.

Great album indeed! 9.5/10