Columbia Vinyl & CDs

Review: Following on from the riff-heavy, machine gun directness of 2018's Firepower, Birmingham born metallic legends Judas Priest return with their 19th overall full-length Invincible Shield. Channelling the more complex, prog-leaning style of 1970s output like the iconic 'Sinner', yet avoiding a full pivot into the symphonic grandiosity found on later material such as 2008's Nostradamus; the seasoned veterans have struck a precarious balance that sonically draws on all of their differing musical guises to date. Hindered by delays stemming from the pandemic, which then threw touring conflicts into the mix, the over half-decade gap has ironically benefited and contributed to the astute and well crafted finished project, resulting in easily one of the icons' best albums of the 21st century. Yes, we said it.

Review: A mere 19 albums, not out. It's almost unfathomable how long Judas Priest have been making noise, with their first steps into heavy metal megastardom taken in the late-1960s, a time when the genre was really just a glint in the eye of hopeful upstarts, including this troupe. More than 50million LP unit sales later, and it's safe to say their legacy is more than written, yet the most defining aspect of their tenure - unstoppable, unflappable - is only really apparent in their continued output. Well, OK, this is the first we've heard from them since 2018's Firepower, but nevertheless, across five decades they've barely taken more than four years off before coming back with new material. In this case it's been six, but there was a 24 month pandemic in and among, meaning you can let them off. So, what does it sound like, this long-awaited 19th long form from the deities of power riffs and juggernaut rhythms? Well, Judas Priest, of course - as if there was ever going to be another answer.