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Track Listing: The Hellion Electric Eye Riding on the Wind Bloodstone (Take These) Chains Pain and Pleasure Screaming for Vengeance You've Got Another Thing Comin' Fever Devil's Child

28 years ago on this very day, Judas Priest's eighth studio album 'Screaming For Vengeance' came pounding down upon the heavy metal world like a battering ram. I feel honored to have a chance to express my thoughts on it and provide you with a retrospective look.

The album starts with the most memorable and instantly identifiable one-two punch in the history of metal, 'The Hellion' and 'Electric Eye'. They are inseparable and one can't be mentioned without the other. No amount of words can describe the excitement that runs through one's mind and body every time that moment arrives, when the Hellion transforms into Electric Eye. The mind explodes and the body starts pumping ridiculous amounts of adrenaline. After this truly overwhelming amount of epic, the KK- Glen Tipton duo settle you down with simple yet incredibly powerful riffs, twin melodies and solos. The main riff in 'Riding On The Wind' makes you pump your fists and bang your head while Halford's crisp, penetrating and in short Godly vocals continue to leave you awe-struck.

Although somewhat underrated, 'Bloodstone' and '(Take These) Chains' are very enjoyable songs. It's my dream to some day see the band play them live. While Bloodstone stands out for Halford's vocals that keep echoing around in your mind long after the song finishes, the latter is a very 'feel good' sort of tune and isn't a characteristic Priest song by any means. 'Pain And Pleasure' is just about the only track on this album that isn't un-fucking-believably amazing, and it's the only thing that prevents this from being a 'perfect 10' album.

There's much more to this album than just Hellion/Electric Eye. I feel the other songs aren't given due credit, the title song being a prime example. The twin guitar harmony about half way through the song is enough to make me lose my mind. On the contrary, 'You've Got Another Thing Comin' gives me a more relaxed enjoyment with probably the easiest of lyrics. As soon as the song starts, I can picture a Harley Davidson. This has to be the most ultimate biker rock song ever. The least known song 'Fever' is musically every bit amazing as any other track. The album comes to a truly rocking end with 'Devil's Child' and in terms of its general feel, it's more along the lines of Another Thing Comin'.

In short, Priest came up with what I think is the best album they ever did and it ranks up there among the most legendary metal albums ever made. Very, very few albums match up to this and very few ever will. If you want to define to someone the term 'timeless classic', send a copy of 'Screaming For Vengeance'.