Sad Wings of Destiny

Sad Wings of Destiny is the second album on which Judas Priest first clearly began to draw the outline of heavy metal in its own words. Rob Halford freely uses everything from a high scream to a shadowed low register, and the guitars of Glenn Tipton and K.K. Downing raise tension while intricately crossing riffs and melody. A historically important record that defined the later style of metal. The long development of the opening epic “Victim of Changes,” the sharp “The Ripper” and the lyrical “Dreamer Deceiver” plainly show the band’s expressive breadth, while the aggression of “Tyrant,” the weight of “Genocide” and the speed of “Deceiver” give it varied shading. Keeping a hard-rock foundation, a more dramatic, precise musicality blooms. Its value lies in vividly bringing out, all at once, the playing and the dramatic image that would lead to later heavy metal, while still keeping progressive elements. The constructive beauty of the twin guitars and Halford’s overwhelming vocal ability are already established. It is an extremely important early masterpiece representative of the genre’s dawn.