Nostradamus (album)

Nostradamus
Studio album by Judas Priest
Released 17 June 2008
Recorded 2006 –2007 at The Old Smithy Studio, Kempsey, Worcester, UK
Genre Heavy metal[1][2]
Length 102:48
Label Epic
Producer Glenn Tipton and K. K. Downing
Judas Priest chronology
Angel of Retribution
(2005)Angel of Retribution2005		 Nostradamus
(2008)		 Redeemer of Souls
(2014)Redeemer of Souls2014
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Blabbermouth5/10[3]
PopMatters5/10[4]
Rock Hard (de)6/10[5]

Nostradamus is the sixteenth studio album by English heavy metal band Judas Priest, focusing on the 16th-century writer Nostradamus.[6] It is a double album. The band's first concept album with Rob Halford,[7] it was originally intended to be released in late 2006 before being pushed back to a 2007 release,[8] and was finally released in June 2008 on Epic Records. It is the band's final album to feature K. K. Downing, before his retirement.[9]

Judas Priest toured with Motörhead, Heaven & Hell, and Testament on the Metal Masters Tour to promote Nostradamus. The band also performed a world tour in 2008 and 2009 in support of the album.

Development

The Nostradamus concept idea originated from manager Bill Curbishley[10] and was pitched to the band while on tour in Estonia in 2005. Guitarist K. K. Downing revealed in a February 2007 interview with Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles that 18 tracks had been recorded with a total length of more than 90 minutes and that there was not much he would like to cut down. Musically, the album contains symphonic orchestrations, including the use of keyboards and choirs, which is unlike anything the band has previously attempted.[8] In November 2007, the band began mixing the album.[11]

Release

In November 2007, singer Rob Halford indicated that it was still undecided whether it would be a double-disc set or not. In April 2008, it was confirmed that the album would be released as a double-CD/triple vinyl LP.[12]

"Nostradamus" sold 42,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 11 on The Billboard 200 chart. This was the band's highest-ever chart position in the US before being surpassed by Redeemer of Souls in 2014, when it took the No. 6 position. According to Billboard.com, the album was released in Europe on 16 June 2008 and 17 June in United States. Three configurations of Nostradamus have been issued. The most common is a regular jewel-cased double CD, but there is also a "CD deluxe hardbound version", which features a 48-page booklet, while a "super deluxe version" includes three vinyl records (in addition to the CD deluxe packaging, plus a poster).[13]

The title track was released on 12 April 2008 as a free download on Judas Priest's website through Epic Records.[14] The second single "Visions" was released on 4 May 2008.

The title track was nominated for Best Metal Performance at the 51st Grammy Awards.[15] The song "Visions" was also nominated for a Grammy in the category Best Hard Rock Performance.[15]

The band has repeatedly made mention of a desire to perform the album in full, as part of a theatrical production, but the idea was scrapped, possibly due to the album's lukewarm reception by fans.[16]

Reception

Sputnik Music said that with Nostradamus the band "has cast away both speed metal and hard rock in favour of a more symphonic metal approach", with the album having a "greater emphasis" on synthesizers, but not in the unsatisfying manner of their 1986 album Turbo. The reviewer said he thought it was "painfully obvious" that the band had been struggling to work in an unfamiliar style.[17] Allmusic said that the album represented "epic metal" of the sort previously produced by Iron Maiden in 1988's Seventh Son of a Seventh Son. The album was seen to contain Spinal Tap-style clichés such as "melodramatic spoken interludes". "Dated" synthesizer string sounds added to the sense that the band was seeking filler material to make a double album, which "should have been" trimmed down to a single album.[1]

Story line

Nostradamus centres on the life and times of the seer. The first disc details various forecasts he has about the future and the end of the world.

Track listing

All tracks written by K. K. Downing, Glenn Tipton and Rob Halford.

Disc one
No.TitleLength
1."Dawn of Creation"2:32
2."Prophecy"5:27
3."Awakening"0:53
4."Revelations"7:05
5."The Four Horsemen"1:35
6."War"5:05
7."Sands of Time"2:37
8."Pestilence and Plague"5:09
9."Death"7:34
10."Peace"2:22
11."Conquest"4:42
12."Lost Love"4:28
13."Persecution"6:34
Disc two
No.TitleLength
1."Solitude"1:23
2."Exiled"6:33
3."Alone"7:50
4."Shadows in the Flame"1:10
5."Visions"5:24
6."Hope"2:10
7."New Beginnings"4:57
8."Calm Before the Storm"2:05
9."Nostradamus"6:43
10."Future of Mankind"8:30

[18]

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes:[18]

Judas Priest
Additional musicians
Production

Charts

Chart (2008) Peak
position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[19] 17
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[20] 13
Canadian Albums Chart[21] 9
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[22] 79
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[23] 50
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[24] 17
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[25] 38
French Albums (SNEP)[26] 38
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[27] 3
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[28] 5
Italian Albums (FIMI)[29] 26
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[30] 31
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[31] 12
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[32] 26
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[33] 5
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[34] 12
UK Albums (OCC)[35] 30
US Billboard 200[36] 11

Release history

Country Date
Germany 13 June 2008
Australia 14 June 2008
United Kingdom 16 June 2008
Canada 17 June 2008
United States
Japan 25 June 2008

References

  1. 1 2 3 James Christopher Monger (2008-06-17). "Nostradamus - Judas Priest | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  2. ↑ Wiederhorn, Jon (29 June 2006). "Judas Priest’s Nostradamus Concept LP: A Heavy-Metal ‘Phantom Of The Opera’". MTV News. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
  3. ↑ Bergman, Keith. "Review: Nostradamus". Blabbermouth.net. Retrieved 16 March 2010.
  4. ↑ Begrand, Adrien. "Judas Priest: Nostradamus". PopMatters. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  5. ↑ Kaiser, Boris. "Rock Hard review". issue 255. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  6. ↑ "Judas Priest Confirmed For Denmark's Roskilde Festival", blabbermouth.net, 10 March 2008.
  7. ↑ "Judas Priest Meets Nostradamus On New CD", Greg Prato, Billboard, 12 April 2006.
  8. 1 2 Archived 13 March 2008 at the Wayback Machine.
  9. ↑ "News - Judas Priest announce farewell EPITAPH World Tour!!". JudasPriest.com. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  10. ↑ http://www.mtv.com/news/1535473/judas-priests-nostradamus-concept-lp-a-heavy-metal-phantom-of-the-opera/
  11. ↑ "Judas Priest Mixing 'Nostradamus'". Ultimate-Guitar.com. 19 November 2007. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  12. ↑ "Judas Priest Begins Mixing 'Nostradamus' - Blabbermouth.net". Roadrunnerrecords.com. 2007-11-18. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  13. ↑ "Judas Priest Finally Takes On 'Nostradamus'". Billboard. 2008-04-16. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  14. ↑ Archived 22 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine.
  15. 1 2 "Grammy 2009 Winners List". MTV. 8 February 2009. Retrieved 6 February 2012.
  16. ↑ Saulnier, Jason (16 April 2011). "Rob Halford Interview, Judas Priest Singer talks Rare Recordings". Music Legends. Retrieved 3 May 2013.
  17. ↑ Stagno, Mike (14 June 2008). "Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Sputnik Music. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
  18. 1 2 Nostradamus Liner notes. Epic Records. 2008. pp. 3, 23.
  19. ↑ "Australiancharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  20. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Judas Priest – Nostradamus" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  21. ↑ "Judas Priest's 'Nostradamus' Is Band's Highest Charting U.S. Album To Date". Blabbermouth.net. 2008-06-25. Retrieved 2014-05-19.
  22. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Judas Priest – Nostradamus" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  23. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Judas Priest – Nostradamus" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  24. ↑ "Danishcharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  25. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Judas Priest – Nostradamus" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  26. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  27. ↑ "Judas Priest: Nostradamus" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  28. ↑ "Officialcharts.de – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  29. ↑ "Italiancharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  30. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  31. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  32. ↑ "Spanishcharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  33. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  34. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  35. ↑ "Judas Priest | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  36. ↑ "Judas Priest – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Judas Priest. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
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