Judas Priest - Live in London - DVD
Steamhammer
Heavy Metal

Release year: 2002
Judas Priest, Steamhammer
Reviewed by Ben

This week I'm doing Judas Priest's Live in London DVD. The concert contained within it is ninety minutes (they played over two hours, the extra tracks are available on the two disc live album) of classic Priest alongside a smattering of new material. Unlike alot of people I enjoyed Jugulator and to a certain extent, Demolition so I of course, highly enjoyed this DVD.

The openers that kick off the show are the classic Metal Gods followed by A Touch of Evil. There's a small problem with this to me, as both are strong but midtempo songs. I prefer fast, punchy tracks to start a show, it gets me more energized and excited. Personal opinion aside, both tracks are executed flawlessly and sound incredibly crisp and concise. After Evil, the band then proceeds to play one of the best tracks off of Jugulator , Bloodstained. With its pounding riffs this definitely picks up the pace and gets the crowd moving, but not nearly as much as the next track the almighty Victim of Changes. Fists begin to pump and the crowd roars when Glenn Tipton plays the unforgettable intro lick. Also included is a brief solo spot by Glenn before the climax of the song. After a few more tracks the band quiets things down a bit with an acoustic version of Diamonds and Rust. With just an acoustic guitar and Rippers singing Diamonds takes on a whole new feel from the hard edged rock tune that it orignally was. Feed on Me is next, Id have preferred if they had played Bloodsuckers instead, followed by Burn in Hell. Burn in Hell is one of my favorite Priest songs but they almost ruin it live by cutting out almost a minute in the intro. By cutting out that second verse and bypassing the "buildup" feel of the song it just loses alot of its impact, the original version is full of hate and loathing and this live edit is lacking that feeling of pure hatred, and becomes just another heavy crunchy track which is still very much enjoyable though, it just doesnt feel the same. Later in the set two rarely played songs make an appearance Desert Plains and Turbo Lover. While its good to hear these songs live if the band was going to play some material that isnt often aired live I would rather have heard Ram it Down or Leather Rebel over Desert Plains and especially over Turbo Lover. Another classic is unearthed with United before the closers the anthemic Living After Midnight and the frantic Hell Bent for Leather.

There's several extra features here that are well done and get viewed quite often, instead of just once and then never again like other music DVD extras. Theres a lengthy soundcheck with the songs Desert Plains, The Sentinel, Machine Man, Lost and Found (these last three are not included in the concert) Running Wild and Turbo Lover. Filmed in black and white this feature works if I need a Priest fix and want to hear the songs that didn't make it to the final cut of the DVD. Also included is a short documentary on the band and their touring which is a nice view as well. The 5.1 surround sound absolutely kills I felt like I was seeing them live again when I popped this in at a friends house who has an awesome sound system. Speaking of seeing them live, the band is in tight form for the duration of the DVD. They dont run around alot but as the documentary explains they had nonstop trips from Australia to Japan to England where this was filmed. Ripper is a fine frontman as well as a singer. He keeps the crowd going, especially in United and Living After Midnight with extended singalong breaks, and goes off on "Ripperisms" every now and then, such as a part in Burn in Hell where he starts punching the air and to introduce Painkiller he rides out on a motorcycle painted to look like a replica of the same named album cover with sawlike wheels as well. Nitpickings aside, this is a great DVD. If you like Judas Priest at all you will love this DVD. If you dont like the Priest then this DVD isn't gonna convert you so you'd do wise to invest elsewhere.

Killing Songs :
Bloodstained, Burn in Hell, Breaking the Law, Living After Midnight
Ben quoted no quote
Other albums by Judas Priest that we have reviewed:
Judas Priest - Firepower reviewed by Goat and quoted 90 / 100
Judas Priest - Redeemer of Souls reviewed by Thomas and quoted 70 / 100
Judas Priest - Killing Machine / Hell Bent for Leather reviewed by Goat and quoted CLASSIC
Judas Priest - Screaming For Vengeance reviewed by Goat and quoted CLASSIC
Judas Priest - Stained Class reviewed by Goat and quoted CLASSIC
To see all 21 reviews click here
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