Scorpions-Blackout Review

  Released in 1982, "Blackout" is the eighth studio-album but the Teutonic headbangers. Often considered the last classic album by the Scorps, Blackout was met with relatively healthy sales and critical acclaim. Let's look at this 80s metal classic and see what makes it memorable.

With Uli Jon Roth long out of the picture, the Scorpions lumbered along into the 1980s. After the relatively successful "Animal Magnetism", the band recorded "Blackout" in France and Germany.
The album begins with the NWOBHM sounding "Blackout". With more than a passing similarity to Maiden, the song appears to be riding the NWOBHM wave of success happening at the time. Nevertheless, The Scorpions surely influenced Maiden themselves and have every right to take influence from the next generation of headbangers. I digress, Blackout is a great fist-pounder and one of the best songs released by the band. Next is "Can't Live Without You". The song shows Scorps heading in a more pop-orientated direction, a sappy and soggy ballad without any real edge or spark. More songs like these would dominate later material released by the band later in the decade. Skip it.

Next is my favorite song on the album, " No One Like You" is certainly cheesy and corny. But, like many other ballads from the 1980s, the song is cheesy in the best possible way. A really sweet song about longing and lusting, the Scorpions prove on this track that are one of the best bands at creating ballads that can rock and pile on the cheese at the same time. A great tune and some nice guitar work by lead guitarist Matthias Jabs. "You Give Me All I Need" is another ballad, leaving one to believe at this point if this album was intended to be a concept album. The intro is quite cool, reminding one of the earlier Scorpions acoustic songs off of albums such as "Lonesome Crow" and "Fly to the Rainbow". Not an offensive tune, but the ballads start to tire by this point. Snooze. "Now!" closes out side one.  One of the classics from the album, the song thunders along and Klaus Meine lets loose his classic howl/scream combination from earlier albums. The song is the closest link to early Scorps rockers and is easily the hardest and fastest song on the album. Great song.

Side two amps up the rock kicking off with "Dynamite". Like a brigade of Teutonic metal crusaders, the band fires off salvos of pure metal on this track. Truly one of the last great metal anthems released by Scorpions, the song really shows that the Scorpions of 82 could rock just as hard as the Scorpions of 1976. A true class. Next is "Arizona". About the classic metal story of an "evil woman", the song is about as classic rock as the Scorpions get musically speaking. Fairly generic and slightly bluesy, I prefer the Scorpions when they are throwing salvos of metal brimstone rather than "bluesing it up". Not a band song, but not a Scorps classic. "China White" is obviously a song that concerns drug use and escapism from the world's problems. The song is basically the Scorpions version of "Kashmir", with rising strings and long drawn out passages of solos and orchestration. Not really a big fan of this bloated beast of a song. The albums closes with "When the Smoke Is Going Down", a love-letter to both the fans and fame itself. Klaus is deeply personal, basically telling us what gets him on stage night after night. A sad sounding chiller, but the song is a nice closer.

"Blackout" is not the best Scorpions album (I will review that next week), but is it one of the best and certainly the best of the 1980s. As the Scorpions moved in a very poppy direction, the sales increased but many of the headbangers moved on. But at least in 1982, the Scorpions could rock your f-ing head off. Great album.

Rating-8.5/10

 

Alice Cooper-Pretties for You-Review

 Released in 1969, "Pretties for You" in the first album by the Alice Cooper Band. Released on Frank Zappa's vanity label "Straight Records". Recorded in only two days in L.A., the album was met with everything from mixed reactions to total hostility. The album is a curiosity is Cooper's long discography, and I feel it is a slightly overlooked "near-classic". Let's take a look at "Pretties for You" and what makes it worth spin (if you can find it on vinyl, it's pretty rare).

     The album begins with "Titanic Overture", a short and simple instrumental. The song makes liberal use of what appears to be a Mellotron. The almost baroque-like "tron" soon breaks into a slightly middle-eastern musical tangent, only to finish before anything really happens. Next is "10 Minutes Before the Worm", starting oddly with Zappa-esque tinkering and effect noodling. The song then kicks into a very raw, psychedelic racket. Amid the racket, you can hear slightly poppy musical overtones; however, they sound warped and twisted when compared to the crisp sounds of the Byrds and early Beatles. "10 Minutes" really sets the tone for later songs in the album. Think warped psychedelic-garage-metal-pop...ok?

The psychedelic sounds of Alice Cooper continue with "Swing Low, Sweet Cheerio". Very reminiscent of Brit-Invasion bands such the Yardbirds and Zombies, the song  is fairly standard-sounding when considering the oddball songs on the album. The song breaks into a very jazzy jam at the halfway mark, with a very cool harmonica solo rounding out this lost "nugget". Classic early Alice. "Today Mueller" is probably the most Beatles-influenced song on the album. The song would not sound totally out of place on the White Album. But the song retains Cooper's surrealist trademarks, off-key piano playing, slashing guitar jabs, and creepy harmonies.An interesting experiment, but the song does not really develop, coming in at less than two minutes.

"Living" is one of my favorite songs on the album. This very Who and Beatles influenced track sounds like the closest thing to an "American Beatles" there every could be. Slightly rawer than the Fab Four, the song also bears the influence of the rising Doors. More psychedelic and muscular than the Beatles, the song makes quite a bit of noise. The genius of the late "Glen Buxton" is very apparent in this track, and shows that Alice Cooper was originally a fully-functional band with many stars rather than just Vincent Furnier himself at centre-stage. "Fields of Regret" is one of the heaviest songs on the album. Sounding almost like Steppenwolf and Iron Butterfly, the riff-rocker shows early signs of the heavier direction that Alice would soon take. The songs lingers a bit with bloated guitar solos spoken-word musings from Alice, but is a clear indication of the era of heavy rock from Alice was soon to come.

"No Longer Umpire" is another short, sketch of a song. The influence of Zappa can certainly be heard on this track. Oddly catchy, the song fades away before it can flesh itself out. Another "could have been" song on an album full of musical sketches. "Levity Ball" has never been one of my favorite songs, and nothing will change my mind. The song is catchy at first, but then the real weirdness of early Cooper becomes apparent. Odd descending guitar lines ride along what seems like endless drum crashes and pounding, before slowing down to a crawl.The psychedelic ending redeems the song somewhat, but it lacks a sense of musical direction and drive.

The very Zappa-sounding "B.B. on Mars" is another oddball song. Syncopated bass and guitar nearly drives the listening over the edge, and really shows that this material is even challenging today. Not one of my favorites. The true highlight of the album comes next, "Reflected" is pure garage awesomeness. Later known as "Elected" off of "Billion Dollar Babies", I prefer this original version of the song to the later version. There is something rawer about "Reflected", something innocent that reflects the nativity of the early days of Alice Cooper. Great tune. 

"Apple Bush" reminds me of the more jazzy English bands such as the Zombies and the Animals. The song is quite light compared to the racket on most of the album, and feels light and jazzy. White not a big fan of jazz in general, I did enjoy this song. Playing it for a friend, he could not guess that it was Alice Cooper at all. While most known for hard-rock and metal anthems, Alice could and can still write songs that reflect his diversity of musical influences. "Earwigs To Eternity" is an obvious reference to the early moniker of the band, the "Earwigs". The song is another sketch, barely over a minute long. Another song of ascending and descending scales atop out-of-tune vocals, the song slightly irritates. However, the album closes with a bang. "Changing Arranging" is a fan favorite, and my personal pick for the best song on the album. One can hear heavy metal being forged during this song, very heavy for 1969. Much rawer than even early Sabbath, waves of macabre harmonies, screeching feedback, and jazzy drum improvisation come together is a harmonious blend of proto-metal magic. Fantastic.

"Pretties for You" is an interesting album in Cooper's long discography. Overlooked in favor of his 1970's work, the album is an interesting time capsule of the transition between psych and metal that was happening around 1969-1970. Although not a classic album, there is enough here to grab the ear of even a casual Cooper fan. Pretty indeed.

Review-7/10

UFO-No Place to Run Review

   UFO is one of the most criminally-underrated bands in the history of rock. Although certainly known among those who eat, live, and sleep hard-rock, the band has been largely ignored in the mainstream media. "No Place to Run" is the band's eighth album, represents the beginnings of a major shift for the band in terms of musical direction. The album is generally ignored in favour of earlier offerings such as "Phenomenon" and "Force It", but I believe that this album holds up just as well as those earlier classics. Let's take a look at "No Place to Run" and why it is surprisingly good despite not having Micheal Schenker playing a note on it. 

Throughout the 1970s, former Scorpions guitarist Michael Schenker was absolutely the "wunderkind" of European rock. But after a string of highly successful albums, Schenker left the band in 1978. This left UFO without what many considered to be their  not-so secret weapon. Most consider the post-Schenker era to be utter crap, but I beg to disagree. Recorded in 1979 by the George Martin (do I really need to tell you what he did?), the album has many highs and a few lows. Opening "Alpha Centauri" shows off the skills of relatively new guitarist/keyboardist Paul Raymond. The instrumental track harkens back to the "space rock" days of early UFO. Fun and cheesy. Next is "Letting Go", a tale of trying to overcome the many vices of the rock n roll lifestyle as well as the toll that playing rock music can have on a person. Anyone familiar with the lifestyle of bassist/"mascot" "Pete Way" knows that this is definitely a very personal song for him. A great rollicking song and one of UFO's more famous tunes. Next is the blues cover, "Mystery Train". Originally written by "Junior Parker" and "Sam Phillips", the song updates the blues classic by adding some heavy riffing and some great bluesy vocals by Phil Mogg. Cool. Next is "This Fire Burns Tonight". The songs reminds one of "Bad Company" and shows why UFO are often lumped into the same category of "boogie/dad rock" as Bad Company and Foghat, despite being quite progressive and heavy at times. "Gone In The Night" closes "Side 1" and shows the direction that the new partnership of Phil Mogg and new guitarist Paul Chapman would take later in the 80s.  A little too poppy for me, reminds me of a British "Springsteen", lacking the tough grit of the New Jersey native. Not a bad song, but way too "AOR" for me from UFO.

Side 2 begins with the end of 1970's UFO. "Young Blood" is an almost Cheap Trick-esque "cock-rocker", with a great deal of bravado and peacock-swagger. Chapman may not be Schenker, but his solos and leads in the song are quite raw and metallic, reminding one of both Schenker and Cheap Trick axeman "Rick Nielsen" at the same time. A great late 70's rocker. The title-track "No Place to Run" shows the beginnings of the "power-ballads" that would overtake UFO on its next albums. The song did not stand out to me, far too generic among very similar songs by contemporaries of that time. The story had been heard a thousand times before, a man caught on the "wrong side of the tracks" struggles to survive. Next. "Take It Or Leave It" again shows the influence of Springsteen permeating UFO. Honky-tonk piano and gentle acoustics sound odd against Chapman's distorted guitar. One would expect better production from George Martin, and I would argue that this is one the worst sounding albums that he has produced (but even bad George Martin is basically good). "Money Money" is one of the highlights of the album, and the Iron Maiden connection between the two bands can really be heard in the galloping rhythm. The song is somewhat restrained in terms of heaviness, but it does not detract from the impact of the song. A great UFO classic. The last song is one of my favorite UFO songs and my personal pick for the best song on the album. "Anyways" shows that Pete Way was more than just a pretty face/drunk, he is quite a talented bassist. The song only features Mogg and Way's bass as an introduction, only to kick into a heavy riff from Chapman. The solos blister white hot, the bass thunders, and Mogg screams. Easily one of the best UFO songs ever written. Great.

"No Place to Run" represents the end of classic UFO. Although some gems can certainly be found among later albums such as "The Wild, the Willing and the Innocent, Mechanix, and even Making Contact, this is the band's last truly great album. For fans of hard-rock, "No Place to Run" will surely satisfy most of your rock and roll needs.

Rating-8/10

Deep Purple-Burn Review

Released in 1974, “Burn” was the first album by the mostly new "Mark III" lineup of Deep Purple. The album sold considerably well and has gained strong critical acclaim throughout the years. Let’s take a look at “Burn” and see what makes this classic work so well. 

                The first difference you will surely notice with the “Mark III” lineup is vocalist David Coverdale, latter of Whitesnake fame. I have always enjoyed Coverdale’s vocals, and they often surpass Ian Gillian in terms of bluesy swagger and cocky sexual bravado. Additionally, lead and backup vocals are provided by Glenn Hughes of Trapeze fame. The power of two lead vocalists is quite interesting, and makes Burn quite a unique album. Title track “Burn” is a fairly standard Ritchie Blackmore composition, revealing the sound that would arrive very shortly with Blackmore’s next project “Rainbow”. The song does not really deviate from any other Deep Purple/Rainbow rockers, but does contain quite strong vocals and a lengthy organ and guitar solo respectively. The classic elements are nothing out of the ordinary, but Blackmore and Jon Lord really make the most of elements of classical music during their solos, it is quite interesting. Next, Deep Purple step fully into blues and soul mode with “Might Just Take Your Life. The swirling organ of Jon Lord drives the song along, and the Hammond playing on this album is simply some of the best rock organ work I have heard. Although a fairly standard 1970s rocker, the alternation between Hughes and Coverdale is quite enjoyable, not unlike other multi-vocalist bands like the Band. Lay Down, Stay Down sounds very much like a Whitesnake song.  Centred around a Zeppelin-esque riff, the song is quite a stomper. Although both singers take turns here, I think that this very bluesy tracked is much more suited to Coverdale’s raspy blues howl. Hughes’ voice is a tad too high during this track, sounding somewhat comical and over-the-top. It is almost as if both men are fighting for dominance of the track, somewhat distracting. Additionally, like many of the songs on the album, the solos are simply way too long and get boring quite quickly. Although he is no doubt a great player, Blackmore’s playing had started to become quite bloated in terms of length.  Deep Purple get funky with “Sail Away”, with keyboards sounding somewhat lifted from Stevie Wonder. The song is quite dark sounding, with a funky but murky bass/organ and effect-masked lead guitar. Coverdale delivers one of his best Purple vocals on this one, and has an intensity and strength in his voice that Hughes could only have hoped to have. Great song. 

                Side Two begins with the very 1960s sounding “You Fool No One”. The song reminds one of Cream, and the team vocals definitely start to become somewhat annoying at this point. However, it is on this track that Hughes really lets loose and shows quite a bit of range with a soaring vocal on the chorus. The lengthy solo did not really hold my interest, and sounded somewhat like a Santana knockoff. Overall, not a highlight at all. “What’s Goin’ On Here” is a very conventional blues rocker, sounding very 1950s inspired.  The piano sounds straight out a blues club, but lies quite low in the mix, buried beneath Blackmore’s guitar until the piano solo. I think the song would have benefitted more from a screaming organ, and the piano just feels quite underpowered.  The song is very standard, and feels like a quick jam cobbled together in a short time in the studio. “Mistreated” again reminds one of Whitesnake. The bluesy lament about lost love is a theme visited many times by Coverdale. The slow and plodding riff is quite well-suited to the vocals, which reek of sorrow and desperation. A great breakup song. My only complaint is the hefty solos by both guitar and organ. The song is a little lengthy, and did not need to be this long at all. The album closes with “A” 200, a more spaced-out adventure into recording. Synthesizers are accompanied by a marching-like beat sounding almost like a fanfare. An interesting instrumental, but the lack of vocals s simply cannot be forgiven with vocalists as good as Hughes and Coverdale in the roster. Blackmore does come in with some guitar solos, but it is too late to save this lame duck. 

                Burn is a good album, however far from classic. There is probably more here for fans of Whitesnake and Rainbow here than for Deep Purple fans. The bloated organ and guitar solos, and the competition for vocal dominance make the album feel a little showy, like the battle of five huge egos.

Rating-7/10

Motorhead-Orgasmatron Review

           Motorhead returned with a new lineup and with their seventh album in 1986. Orgasmatron has generally been cited as having solid songs but lacking adequate production. Let’s take a look at what I believe to be an unsung classic deserving of a little more attention and see if the complaints of production are really formed in fact. 

                The album opens with “Deaf Forever”. The song, like many a Motorhead tune is about blood and stone. The tale seems to concern the battles of the Vikings, and is of course quite violent and gory. The song is fairly standard for the band, but battle samples distract the listener somewhat and don’t really add much to the song in my opinion. Not bad, but not really a classic. The next track is a true pleasure. “Nothing Up My Sleeve” is classic Motorhead, and the minute the insanely overdriven bass kicks in you know you are in for a dose of musical adrenaline. The song is basically about distrustful and slippery woman, of whom Lemmy has surely met many during his adventures. The song has a very familiar beat, basically more of the same thrashy rock that Motorhead had been perfecting for years at this point. New drummer Pete Gill does not quite hit the sticks as hard as regular drummer Phil Taylor but does a more than adequate job here. An underrated Motorhead classic. “Ain’t My Crime” is basically Lemmy telling a cheating and lying woman off yet again. It is here we see Lemmy having little regard or concern for this woman, basically expressing his lack of interest or concern in the failed relationship. Stone Cold forever indeed. Late guitarist Wurzel was added to the band’s lineup just before the recording of this album, but I believe that Motorhead has and will always work better as a trio. Wurzel’s solos often fail to impress, and he did not really add much to the band’s sound in my opinion. The solo for this song feels quite limp, lacking raw energy and overdrive. “Claw” is Motorhead taking the piss a  little. The song is about the power of a man’s ….well… you know what.  In the song, Lemmy is able to lure other men’s women into bed with him to do the  ”horizontal dance”.  No messing around, plain and simple Lemmy is purest rock star on Earth and when he says he will steal your girlfriend, he means it. The double-bass drum work is quite good, and meets the Motorhead standard set by Phil Taylor. The end of the song is slightly goofy, with Lemmy messing around screaming about his “Claw”. Despite the end, the song is very good.  I would like to have heard a longer solo however, and some sampled “block” sounds are totally unnecessary. 

                “Mean Machine” is Motorhead at hyper speed.  The song is blistering fast, perhaps a little bit too much. I could not really make heads or tails of the lyrics, but the song appears to either be about a lost woman or a bomber and its pilot blowing up things. In any case, the song is simply too fast for my taste. The song feels rushed through and almost produces a headache. Drumming is intense and tight, but the guitars sound somewhat tame and processed compared the edgy and raw Punk-like guitars of earlier albums. Skip this one. “Built For Speed” brings to mind the classic sound of the band and slows down the beat to a nice pace. The song is basically Lemmy’s mission statement, proclaiming a long life and a long time spent partying, drinking, and bedding a “million” girls. The song is one of the band’s most “Metal” songs and is fairly crunchy and heavy. The song is quite enjoyable, despite the very simple guitar solos. “Ridin’ With The Driver” appears to be about the power of one of Lemmy’s loves; trains. The song again has quite a Metal feel to it, and the beat sounds like the clacking of train tracks. The verses are quite interesting, and chug along like a locomotive billowing black smoke out into the countryside. However, the chorus is quite an odd stylistic move for the band and does not really work musically for me. The listener begins to notice a difference between the two guitars and their interplay, one guitar is often distorted and the other is quite clean and often uses common 1980s guitar effects like reverbs and compressors. The result is a strange contrast between the two guitars, as in the chorus of this song. This is again why I believe that Motorhead works better as a one- guitar band. 

                “Doctor Rock” is one of the band’s most famous songs.  I have never been very fond of the song, and the song sounds like a cheap Kiss knock-off. The lyrics consist of Lemmy rhyming words such as “ill” and “pill” with each other, and they are dunderheaded even for him. The song is repetitive, and the stupid lyrics are repeated over and over. The song really lacks any bells and whistles, and the lack of a definable solo disappoints the listener. Not a highlight of this album. The album closes with “Orgasmatron”. The song is a Motorhead classic, and for many one of their most progressive songs. The song is basically about a post-apocalyptic situation where the world is suffering at the hands of an evil demi-god. Lemmy adopts the voice of Orgasmatron, and gives a deep growl that he uses from time to time. The song is interesting, and fairly long for the band. 

                Orgasmatron is an interesting album, but non-fans of the band will probably not find much to convince them otherwise here. For those who enjoy Motorhead, this is a fairly essential piece of their canon despite for obvious filler. Good, but not a bona fide classic.  

Rating-7.5/10

     1975's "Caress of Steel" is a very controversial entry in the Rush canon. Most hardcore Rush fans agree that it is a lost masterpiece, while the public largely ignored it. In my opinion, "Caress of Steel" is a true lost masterpiece of progressive rock and deserves the attention of anyone remotely interested in the genre as well as Rush in general. Let's take a look at this misunderstood album and see what makes it so great.

     The album begins with the semi-famous classic "Bastille Day". The homage to the French Revolution is probably the most well-known track on the album. The song is fairly standard for early Rush in terms of sound. Numerous time signature changes permeate the song, resulting is a tremendous racket of thumping bass, thundering drums, and jagged guitar. The "anthem-like" section at the end of the song adds a regal quality. Next, Rush continue to get the "Led" out on the Zeppelin-esque "I Think I'm Going Bald". The song is a fairly straightforward rocker with not nearly as much complexity as later Rush material on this album and over their career in general. The song is about confronting the aging process in your own way. It's hard to believe that a group of young men could write such a genuine song about aging when they had barely reached adulthood themselves. Next is "Lakeside Park". I personally love this song, and it recalls long-weekends on "Victoria Day" in Canada. The song is about the fireworks, music, and celebration of early spring in Canada amid family and friends. A true Canadian classic with beautiful and honest lyrics from master bard Neil Peart. 

   Side one concludes with the controversial "Necromancer". The song is considered one of Rush's first major conceptual works. The song is certainly not for the faint of patience. At almost thirteen minutes, the song is certainly an earful. The song begins with an eerie spoken voice, narrating the story of the titular character. This song is Rush at their most Dungeons and Dragons-like. The fantasy-inspired lyrics draw to mind the works of Tolkein and other fantasy writers. After the slow mostly instrumental first movement, the song picks up with a heavy riff-based second section that echoes battle in a musical form. Then, the second movement concludes the epic musical "battle" by reaching a crashing climax of rapid drum pounding and lightning-fast guitar and bass. The third and final movement is a "Sweet Jane" like mellow groove of a song about the aftermath of the successful battle that the heroes engaged in.The Necromancer is Rush at their nerdiest. Seeing that most of their fans (myself included) are nerds, there is nothing wrong with that and this style of lyrical content works quite well for them. A great song.

    Side two is where most of the controversy concerning this albums lays. The whole side is a six-part conceptual titled "The Fountain of Lamneth". The song concerns a young man's journey to find a mystical fountain. The various sections deal with the different stages of the journey. The story of each section tells a small part of the overall story. The first movement is by far the mostly musically pleasing of the six parts. A short and mostly acoustic number, it tells us the story of our hero as he is born and sets out on his voyage to find the fountain. At almost twenty minutes, "The Fountain of Lamneth" is at times beautiful, at times baroque, and at times downright frustrating both lyrically and musically. However, the song was a bold experiment at the time of its release. Rush were truly pushing the limits of their audience and themselves both musically and lyrically. I quite enjoy an occasional listen-through of this song, although I would not recommend it for those who shun progressive rock and fantasy. "The Fountain of Lamneth" is a great companion to "2112" and other side-long conceptual tracks by Rush.

  In conclusion, "Caress of Steel" is my favorite Rush album. It represents their accessible side (Lakeside Park and Bastille Day) as well as their complex and conceptual side  (Necromancer, Lamneth) equally. I think it is their most balanced effort in terms of showcasing their complex and varying sides. Highly recommended for those with a love of either Rush, prog rock, fantasy, or any combination of those elements.

Rating-9.5/10

Judas Priest-Point of Entry Review

  Point of Entry is the seventh album by the "Metal Gods" to be released. Point of Entry represents a transitional phase for the band, in between the jagged and harder 1980's Priest and the rawer and more progressive 1970's Priest. "Point of Entry" may be transitional, but it is easily one of the best "Priest" albums. Let's take a look at what makes this album so beloved and hated at the same time by hard rock and metal fans.

Coming off the heels of 1980's "British Steel", "Point of Entry" certainly had a lot of live up to. "British Steel" is widely considered to be the band's pinnacle, both artistically and sales-wise. The two albums are extremely different, but each has their place in Priest's long discography. While British Steel is quite aggressive, dissident, and angry; Point of Entry is longing, contemplative, and sensitive at times. Opening track "Heading Out to the Highway" sets the tone for the album. The songs' chugging rhythm replicates the revving of a Harley engine. One of Priest's first great "motorcycle anthems", the song contains "twin solos" that really show why K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton are absolutely the most trusted names in metal leads. Next up is "Don't Go", a fairly well-known song by Priest. I have never really been a huge advocate of this song, it's fairly slow and clunky sounding. Also, the musical limitations of bass player Ian Hill are quite apparent in this song. The chorus is quite catchy, but not a stand-out track for me. On to "Hot Rockin". This is one of the few songs by Priest that make me cringe somewhat. I do not like this song at all. The lyrics are goofy and laughable, and it lacks the edge and bravado that Priest are synonymous with. "Turning Circles" comes in next. Although many hardcore Priest fans adore this song, I have never loved this song. Quite short and simple, it echoes the feel of the album but I find it to be somewhat "pedestrian" when considering the caliber of other Priest songs of this era. Next.

The album continues with what me and many others consider to be the best Priest song ever released. "Desert Plains" is the epitome of classic Priest. Similar in musicality to "Heading Out", but even more desolate and sexual-charged, galloping like a calvary-charge of pure metal. Halford's vocals are absolutely untouchable, and in my opinion, were never bettered except possibly on "Painkiller".  The song has survived as a live staple, and the roar of the crowd can be heard every time it is played live. Flawless. "Solar Angels" comes next. Quite a slow song, with mystical lyrics about heavenly creatures in the sky. I have always preferred Priest songs grounded in the "real" rather than mythical. But, certainly not a bad tune, just a little plodding and slow for me. On to "You Say Yes". I absolutely hate this song and I immediately skip it. Like "Hot Rockin", the song represents Priest's cartoony and "metal lite" side. Despite this, the song is frequently cited as an important example of Halford's "coming out" via lyrics about homosexuality. But, the music just doesn't stand up for me.

"All the Way" shows the more traditional side of Judas Priest. A retro-rocker, the song reinforces the bands' love of Chuck Berry and other early-rockers. For some reason, the song reminds me of something that Gene Simmons of Kiss would write. The song is below the musical capabilities of Priest, but is a fun rocker and a great party anthem. "Troubleshooter" continues the 1950's theme. Highly loathed by many Priest fans, the song is fairly basic and generic both lyrically and musically. I am glad that Priest adopted a much harder edge on "Screaming". Troubleshooter and All the Way are not as bad as people say, but for me they are goofy, basic, and far below the talents of a band that wrote such classics as "Beyond the Realms of Death" and "Painkiller'. Fairly run-of-the-mill rockers. The album closes with "On the Run". Continuing the theme of motorcycles and escapism, the song is much better than anything else of "Side 2". The song shows that Priest can certainly flex their swagger, especially when singing about what they do best, breaking laws and heading out to the highway. Great track that encompasses the "motorcycle bandit" theme that covers most of the album.

"Point of Entry" is essential if only for the classic "motorcycle" anthems of "Heading Out to the Highway", "Desert Plains", and "On the Run". Other than these gems, the album contains a great deal of filler. Seeing as many of the classic tunes can be found on numerous compilations released over the years, I cannot recommend a casual Priest fan to buy this album in its entirety. For the hardcore, "Point of Entry" represents a decent, but transitional Priest album that is almost great.

Rating-7/10