KK’S PRIEST – Sermons of the Sinner (2021 EX1 Records)

You can hear from the sound of this album, KK Downing is pissed off.  He wants to prove himself.  He wants to out-Priest Judas Priest.  To that end, he’s recruited former Priest singer Tim “Ripper” Owens for this metal feast, with the emphasis on “metal”.  Everything about this album is about competing with Judas Priest, from getting their younger singer, to initially recruiting Les Binks on drums (replaced by Sean Elg), to song titles, and musical throwbacks.  The end result verges on the territory of “heavy metal bullshit”:  music contrived to sound a certain way, evoking a certain image from a certain time, resulting in generic songs.

Right from the opening “Incarnation”, KK is doing those noisy guitar roars from Priest’s “Sinner”, his trademark solo.  Then we get Elg doing similar double bass work as Scott Travis, and Ripper Owens with a big Priestly scream.  Enter:  “Hellfire Thunderbolt”!  To his credit, Ripper is singing more to the Priest vibe here than he did on either of his actual Judas Priest albums.  “Hellfire Thunderbolt” is equivalent to much of Priest’s current catalogue, and it sure is nice hearing KK wail.  We did miss KK’s sound, no matter how good his replacement is.  It’s not just a single guitar band, with AJ Mills joining KK in a dual solo.  “Hellfire Thunderbolt” is a pretty good, very Priest-like song (right now to the thunder-cracks, very similar to Ram It Down) though not as memorable.

The title track “Sermons of the Sinner” has a title that recalls KK’s signature song, and opens with an impressive drum flurry and a really good riff.  Ripper takes the screaming to the nth degree, and the guitars absolutely shred.  Unfortunately the song is a little faceless, with the focus on speed and not much else.  There’s a great middle section where things slow down, allowing the guitar melody to breathe, but it’s over quickly and then we’re back into a chaotic metal hailstorm, shards of steel hitting your ears in unpleasant ways.

“Sacerdote y Diablo” keeps the pedal to the metal, but does not satisfy the craving for memorable riffing or hooks.  KK’s soloing is starting to sound like razorblades, as he just keeps going for it, and going for it, proving he’s more “metal” than Priest, or something.  “Raise Your Fists” is more like it.  Mid-tempo with melodies you can sing along to, bringing some needed variety to the album.  It’s not a classic, but it could be given time and reception.  Some of the guitar melodies are almost Maiden-y.  The lyrics are just an ode to the experience of a heavy metal concert, a tired concept.  “Brothers of the Road” is another good tune, this time with more groove and chug.  This album is better when KK allows variety to creep into the songwriting.  “Brothers of the Road” isn’t packed to the gills with hooks, but it’s definitely an album highlight.  As great as Ripper is at screaming, this allows him to sing more melodically.

Though the music that opens “Metal Through and Through” is delicate and cool, the title is tiresome.  Perhaps Rob Halford wrote too many epics about metal over the years, and this is just a redundant theme now.  Lyrically, it’s KK paying tribute to the fans, and frankly, to himself.  “And our legacy will prevail”.  Unfortunately the song sounds like a bunch is disjointed bits mashed together, including one that sounds like Accept.  It’s an attempt at an epic, short of the mark by a fair margin.  Considering that all songs are solely credited to KK, this is where we start to really miss the songwriting input of Glenn and Rob.  An unnecessary eight minutes, with an out-of-place fade-out.

“Wild and Free” is back to breakneck.  “We’re rule breakers! We’re hell raisers!” announces Ripper.  Great for headbanging or driving real fast, with some rhythmic recollections back to “Freewheel Burning” right before the chorus.  Intentional?  Probably.  “Freewheel” is a far better song, and there are times when Ripper’s vocals get to be a bit much.

“Hail For the Priest” (this is getting tiresome) opens with a melody aped from “Sign of the Cross” by Iron Maiden.  Though almost certainly a coincidence, the similarity is unmistakable.  Some of  Halfords lyrics are cribbed (“terrifying scream” from “Painkiller”), but once the riff kicks in, we’re off the races.  Nice bass work here from Tony Newton.  The drum pattern is a little less busy, and leaves a little bit of space on the verses.  These factors help make it one of the better songs on the album.

The final track is nine minutes of metal “Return of the Sentinel”.  How do you out-do Priest?  Write the sequel to one of their best tunes, I suppose.  There are references to “Tyrants” and appropriate musical recollections directly lifted from the original “Sentinel”.  Some cool dual guitar work ensues, and an acoustic guitar break brings texture.  Unfortunately there is no proper ending, just a fade out that leaves it feeling unfinished.  Still a pretty good song, though like many sequels, it is more more indulgent, yet still a shadow of the original…and unnecessary.

On his debut, KK stakes out his territory, claiming his slice of the pie.   It is a strong and bold statement, but without the songwriting that we have grown to expect from this heavy metal pioneer.

3/5 stars