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KK’S PRIEST
The Sinner Rides Again

Napalm (2023)
Rating: 8/10

Arriving like a sudden clap of thunder, KK’s Priest – spearheaded by former Judas Priest guitarist K.K. Downing – embarks on another furious foray. With its fiery artwork and sizzling riffs, The Sinner Rides Again is proof that there is always room for more metal in our lives.

As expected, this opus roars, billows, rattles, screams and gallops, but then again, any band with Tim “Ripper” Owens at the helm is going to smoke. I guess my only issue with Owens is that he remains on overdrive a little too often and such warbling can become a tad distracting. However, it doesn’t prevent this outing from being a full blown fire hazard.

The Sinner Rides Again leaks several modern day classics in the form of ‘One More Shot At Glory’ and heavyweights ‘Reap The Whirlwind’ and ‘Keeper Of The Graves’. In fact, I dare anyone to seek out a more heavy metal record than this as Sean Elg’s drums pound like the heartbeat of a million warriors clashing on the bloody battlefield.

The album brings evocative acoustic passages alongside speed metal flurries and the more formulaic traditional metal segments, but the result is a rich and molten experience even if one feels that K.K. Downing’s main focus is to simply outdo his old band, Judas Priest. Even so, his axework alongside A.J. Mills is often staggering; the epic ‘Pledge Your Souls’ and the scorching ‘Strike Of The Viper’ are prime examples.

If you like Manowar, Acceot and of course Judas Priest then you’ll wade through the sweaty tides of this with glee. Sure, it’s a bit predictable in its robust rollicking – hell, it’s even a tad one dimensional with some of its torrents – but KK’s Priest are not out to reinvent the wheel or the steel but simply add extra armour to such reliable structures.

Neil Arnold

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