I have no problem if those people disagree based on the merits of the album. I just have a problem with those who pull their “reasons” out of their backside and make statements like this is nothing like anything they have previously released despite the band having many songs which do.

I can agree to respectfully disagree on matters of differing opinion and I try to look at things from the other person’s perspective. If they just like simple songs with catchy simple riffs and pop hooks, cool more power too them. While I like the simple catchy songs also, I like complex instrumentals, epic story telling, opera style vocals, tempo changes, and stuff too. Actually I prefer it. I would rather listen to “Beyond The Realms Of Death” over “Living After Midnight” any day.

I just don’t understand why others can’t respectfully agree to disagree. I also don’t see how a person who doesn’t like this style of metal and presfers the simple catchy tunes to be put in the position to give an honest review of a complex “artsy” album like Nostradamus (especially a person with the “if I don’t like it then it sucks” attitude). That is like having a non-drinker judge the qualities of whiskey then call you out because they don’t agree with your favorite brand.

Good list of songs for an example of teh many facets of Judas Priest btw.

1. Prelude (that you mentioned as well) - Sad Wings of Destiny
2. Dreamer and Deceiver - Sad Wings of Destiny
3. Epitaph - Sad Wings of Destiny
4. Beyond The Realms of Death - Stained Glass
5. Evening Star - Hell Bent for Leather
6. Before the Dawn - Hell Bent for Leather
7. United - British Steel
8. Take These Chains - Screaming For Vengeance
9. Fever - Screaming for Vengeance
10. Prisoner of Your Eyes (bonus unreleased track on remaster) - Screaming for Vengeance
11. Night Comes Down - Defenders of the Faith
12. Out in the Cold - Turbo
13. Turning Circles - Point of Entry
14. Blood Red Skies - Ram It Down
15. Battle Hymn - Painkiller
16. Living Bad Dreams (bonus unreleased track on remaster) - Painkiller
17. Cathedral Spires - Jugulator
18. Angel - Angel of Retribution
19… more songs need adding from Rocka Rolla and Sin after Sin, not to mention the live “reintroduction” of Diamonds and Rust that Ripper Owens sang live on Live in London.

I’d be curious if anybody who listens to the playlist above and then listens to Nostradamus again has a different reaction. Just because these songs are “slow” doesn’t mean they don’t jam. Take the solo for “Beyond the Realms of Death” or “Dreamer Deceiver” which totally jam!

I wasn’t expecting to see the in-depth discussion that is taking place. Interesting points and dialog.

I understand your points. All of them being said, they don’t apply to me. I checked out the art and the lyrics as they were provided in the promo copy I received. And, like I do with every CD I get, I ripped it to my hard drive and dumped the hard copy. Some people, such as yourself, get something out of the aesthetics of the package. I, personally, couldn’t give two shits about it and never have cared about it. I have to read a 48 page book in order to appreciate a CD? Yeah, I’ll pass on that. Take this statement however you want, but I’ll take “stupid” metal like anything from Pantera, Testament, Death Angel, Exodus, etc. over this stuff. Am I jaded? Maybe. Unfortunately, I get about 50 CDs a week and everyone wants an opinion written on all of them. I gave the Priest album 10-15 listens all the way through trying to get it, and don’t feel it. I hate, hate, hate the second disc. And there’s too much with all the mood setters in between the actual songs, and built into the actual songs themselves.

Oh, and to be honest, as far as music goes to me generally, lyrics are just words. I like songs like “Livin’ After Midnight” or “Private Property” far better than most of this cerebral lyricism that engulfs this dog of an album. And I think you will give me that those songs are not exactly triumphs of lyrical mastery. The best record out today, in my opinion, is Volbeat’s ROCK THE REBEL/METAL THE DEVIL. It’s cool, different, fun, has great old-school sounding Metallica-like riffs, and cool melodies. All that being said, I have no f*cking idea what they are talking about. I guess for me, I think enough doing my day job. When I put on my music, I don’t need a history lesson, and I’m not likely to prepare for a book report prior to listening to any album. F*ck the challenge - just rock me Priest!

Guess I compare this to seeing the first 15 minutes of a movie and walking out. You don’t seem to care that much about music storytelling with comments like this: “If I want to see a play, I’ll go see one.”

What is it you wanted out of this album, really? What did you expect? 23 songs that they’ve already done with different names and slightly different riffs (a la AC/DC)?

Like it or not, music is art. Some like art that they can look at once and immediately understand and appreciate. Some people like short stories where it’s get in and out quickly for the cheap thrills. Other people enjoy novels and/or deep thinking art where the more they look at it, the more doors it opens in the mind. Still other people prefer movies as their avenue of storytelling rather than in music or books.

Judas Priest clearly didn’t make a simple man’s metal album with Nostradamus. They could have gone that route and if they had, I’d have listened to it a few times like you did (10-15 actually is a pretty decent number of listens though, it’s not like you just listed a few times and gave up, you did give some effort, I’ll credit you for that) and then shelved it like I did their last album. I had to struggle to enjoy albums 12-15 in the list above as a whole.

You haven’t indicated if you’ve even read through the Nostradamus lyrics from beginning to end. Did you? If you didn’t then I think as a fellow music reviewer that’s not a very thorough job. When I read reviews I’m looking for the point of view of someone who sampled everything important, including the packaging and puts their personal biases in clear sight. I’m curious, did you check out the artwork or packaging? There are some fantastic drawings in there (see updated pictures above). When I originally wrote the review I only had the DRM-free AmazonMP3 experience and I felt like I was missing something. After buying the deluxe version at BB and updating the review, I feel it’s much more complete now.

Now, will your comeback be: “So what. I don’t care about the artwork or lyrics.” ??? An album to me as a package artistically includes the cover artwork, interior artwork and lyrics and unfortunately the AmazonMP3 package, although the least expensive, doesn’t do Nostradamus the justice of buying the full package.

Are the lyrics just words that rhyme or do they actually mean something? Do they go with the music or detract from it (as in what I alluded to with Rush above). Yes, if I don’t like the music, then great artwork and awesome lyrical content aren’t going to sell me on giving the album a good review, but it is an important part of the overall composition, not something to just shrug off as a reviewer and say that doesn’t matter.

Give up on Nostradamus if you want, personally, that’s totally your call. But I’d at least try to dig deeper within yourself and see if you are missing something the artist is trying convey. Interesting seeing that as time goes on Nostradamus is getting BETTER reviews at Amazon (saw it at 3 out of 5 stars at one point, now it’s up to 4/5 on the deluxe version and 3.5/5 for the audio CD). The first batch had quite a few “i don’t get it” type reviews. What are more and more reviewers saying? You have to give this one time to gel. And I think the 48-page book with artwork is vital.

That’s all I’ve been saying from the beginning, Chris. Everything is too new right now. Come back to this thread in a couple months and update me on how the album has settled with you. Who knows, maybe I won’t feel as positively about it as I do now. I said in the review, again, that it needs more time.

No, that’s not what I’m saying. I’m saying exactly what is written there. Reading the statement, it’s pointed at ME, not you. It states that “I” am not in the business of forcing myself to like anything even if I’m a fan of the band. The point of that was somehow missed, but I’ll clarify. I listened. I didn’t like it. I’m not going to give it more and more listens to try to make myself like it eventually. Again, I put that statement out there as a reference to me, not you. What you do, how you evaluate music, what you decide is good or not - your business. I don’t agree with your opinion of this record…period. I’m sure you don’t agree with me. Fine. As someone that’s written thousands of reviews, I know the deal. I certainly know that having a strong opinion simply means that people will question it.

The real bottom line here - Nostradamus is probably the most controversial release in the band’s history. It’s certainly the one where fans have the widest range of opinions. BRITISH STEEL was a masterpiece. SCREAMING and DEFENDERS were pretty close to that one as well. While there are a couple songs I do like on Nostradamus (”Persecution”, “Death”, maybe the title track), most of it doesn’t work at all for me. My whole point here was that I’m not going to reach to find a reason to like it. Listened multiple times - didn’t like - end. Analyzing the story won’t make it any better a listen to me. If I want to see a play, I’ll go see one.

Someone indicated about Nostradamus would be cool to see live. While I disagree, KK told me a month ago that is the probable course of action following the Metal Masters tour. I’m sure it’ll be every bit as entertaining as the Iron Maiden tour of A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH.