Painkiller (Judas Priest album)

Painkiller is a 1990 gold-certified album by British heavy metal band Judas Priest, their 12th studio album. The album was recorded at Miraval Studios, Brignoles, France in early 1990, and mixed at Wisseloord Studios, Hilversum, the Netherlands later that year. It was the first album with current drummer Scott Travis, who was recruited from the band Saints Or Sinners. The original LP, cassette and CD versions were released on 3 September 1990. A re-mastered CD was released in May 2001. The album received a Grammy nomination for Best Metal Performance at the 20 February 1991 33rd Annual Grammy Awards.

Following the tour for this album, singer Rob Halford left the band in May 1992 and maintained little contact with his former bandmates throughout the 1990s. The reason for this was the growing tension within the band. Halford wanted to create his new band, Fight, and had to legally leave Judas Priest to allow his creation to be sold. Judas Priest declared that they did not exist anymore after Halford had left. However, the band would re-vamp, record, and tour several years later, with new singer Tim 'Ripper' Owens, on the albums Jugulator and Demolition.

The Painkiller

The Painkiller itself is one of a series of fictional messiahs created by Judas Priest. The Painkiller is described as a metal messiah sent to the world to destroy evil and rescue mankind from destruction. The Painkiller is believed to be inspired by the fallen angel from the Sad Wings of Destiny album cover that Judas Priest recorded early in their musical years. He also makes an appearance along with the Hellion (from Screaming for Vengeance), the goggled face from Killing Machine (Hell Bent for Leather in the US) and the Metallian (from Defenders of the Faith) on the cover of Metal Works '73-'93. A very similar character on the cover of Angel of Retribution, also a metal angel, but with a slightly less smooth appearance and with the Judas Priest cross on his chest rather than on his shoulders.

The most noticeable feature of the Painkiller, besides his metal body is that he 'rides the metal monster'; a motorcycle with a dragon for the chassis and two circular saws for wheels.

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Glenn Tipton, Rob Halford and K. K. Downing, except where noted. 

Personnel

Covers

• The title track was covered by the American death metal band Death on their album The Sound of Perseverance, as well as by Brazilian power metal band Angra, Spanish band Saratoga, and Argentinian band Patán on the Acero Argentino: Tributo a Judas Priest tribute album. In their own Mirada Eléctrica: Tributo a Judas Priest, the band Luzbel covered it too. British metal band Biomechanical covered the song and was included in the Limited Edition of The Empires of the Worlds.
• "Hell Patrol" was covered by Spanish band Avalanch and Argentinian band Mistica Power on the Acero Argentino: Tributo a Judas Priest tribute album.
• "All Guns Blazing" was covered by Argentinian death metal band Serpentor on the Acero Argentino: Tributo a Judas Priest tribute album, as well as by German power metal band Silent Force on the "Infatuator" album.
• "A Touch of Evil" was covered by Lion's Share, the Argentinian band Lörihen on the Acero Argentino: Tributo a Judas Priest tribute album and the Italian band Vision Divine on their 9 Degrees West To The Moon.
• "Night Crawler" was covered by Dementra, Radakka and Cryptic Wintermoon.
• "Metal Meltdown" was covered by death metal band Aurora Borealis and by Maley on the Acero Argentino: Tributo a Judas Priest tribute album. Anorexia Nervosa also did a cover of it.

References