No real metal listener needs a history lesson about Judas Priest, so I’ll just skip that. I’ll start by saying that this is another fucking heavy, fucking great and fucking classic Judas Priest album! RAM IT DOWN contains some of the best material Priest has written (‘Ram It Down’, ‘Hard As Iron’, ‘I’m A Rocker’), as well as some of their best leads and anthem-choruses! Released in 1988, with good production by Tom Allom, all five musicians have their guns blazing full-on, especially the guitar duo of Tipton and Downing… Rob Halford on vocals is at his godlike best as well! The lyrics mainly indulge in great, cheesy "Heavy metal rules the world" anthems, as well as some good ol’ Priest "sexual" fun (‘Love Zone’, ‘Love You To Death’). After finding out that Rob is homosexual, those songs seem to have a completely different meaning sometimes!! Into the music…. The title track ‘Ram It Down’ is arguably one of the best heavy metal songs ever written, and it definitely contains the second-best lead ever written (Randy’s solo on Ozzy’s ‘Mr. Crowley’ being the greatest)!!! A fast anthem, with a killer riff and shout-along-with-fists-in-the-air lyrics/singing. My favourite part of the song is the "Shout it out, we are together…" bit, with its ‘metalheads unite’ feeling and all! A perfect metal song. ‘Heavy Metal’ comes in next, another ace song, with lyrics about…. Yeah, guessed it!!! (DOH!) I absolutely love the riff and the mid-paced feel of the song. The chorus completely owns – "HEAVY METAL! WHAT DO YOU WANT!" – Rob sounds fucking godlike. Who said Ian Hill isn’t a good bassist? In my opinion, not only is he one the greatest metal bassists, but also the tightest… no thrills, but the man knows how to keep with the beat and still sound fucking heavy! And he proves himself on this song! Oh, more great lead playing too! ‘Love Zone’ – so it’s cheesy, ok, so it’s way too cheesy! It’s still one amazing song, probably one of my favourites! Halford’s screeching is tops, and the riff is nice, matching the chorus tune. The chorus, well… it has me taking off my shirt, hold an air-microphone, and get back to the glam days! Satisfaction guaranteed! I think the lyrics are about how Priest treat their groupies! Another great lead, and a powerful rhythm section. ‘Come And Get It’ – a more rock n’ roll sound on this one, the riff and the weird guitar tone. Still a great mid-paced song, offering days of headbanging and heavy metal worship – "Metal lives forever, blazing on and on!" My only problems with this song is that even though it has well-written lead, the thin guitar tone ruins it to an extent, and the chorus goes on for a while too long in the end. The weakest song on the album, though still pretty darn awesome! You don’t get more metal than ‘Hard As Iron’! What a song – great fast riff, awesome lyrics, and one of the best choruses ever written! Everything is perfect about this, and Dave Holland’s drumming is simple, yet outstanding. If it was up to me, I’d make RAM IT DOWN a learning-album for lead guitarist, because the leads are out of this world, and the one of this song is nothing less! The song also contains nice earthquake and lightning effects for full metallic feel! ‘Blood Red Skies’ – a different sounding Priest song, and I welcome it with no grudges. Actually, the only thing that differentiates this song from the others is the electronic, almost-dance drum beat, which kicks in after the intro. Some people may be pissed at this, but I think it suits the song well. A mid-paced song with nice lyrics about standing up and fighting, metal-style! Rob hits the high-notes like a god, I tell you! "I FIGHT YOU UNDER BLOOD RED SKIIIIIIIIIEEEESSSSS!!!" \m/ Not nearly my favourite song on the album, but very good anyway. ‘I’m A Rocker’ reminds me of all the real metalheads out there, this one’s for us! I completely agree with the lyrics, which are written well too – "I’m a rocker, and no one can take that away!" Yeah, no one can stop the madness! This is one more for the list of awesome mid-paced Judas Priest anthems. The lead playing is outstanding, and the feel of the song, the way it’s sung, will have you hold your head up high, hands in a \m/ shape! Killer! Anyone for some Chuck Berry? When I first heard Priest’s cover of ‘Johnny B. Goode’, I thought it was the only song Priest has covered with mediocrity. After getting the CD and listening to the songs a few more times, I love it as much as anything else on the album. It suits the theme of the album, and Priest has made everything a lot heavier and faster than the original. Rob absolutely shines on this one! GO JOHNNY GO! Another song with a mid-paced rock n’ roll riff is ‘Love You To Death’, and this one is pure cheese, but so well done! The drumming is very powerful, and the song becomes very interesting towards the end when Rob goes into high-pitch mode, and sounds exactly like Robert Plant, with the "ohh ohh" and very similar vocal pattern as on "Whole Lotta Love". Good stuff! Finally, the album ends with a proper Priest anthem – ‘Monsters Of Rock’. I couldn’t really ask for a better conclusion to this great release, it really sums up the theme well. The chorus is has me screaming along; this is a great crowd sing-along mid-paced song, with nice melodic lead playing. Some of these themes have been exploited better on the next classic album – Painkiller, but that takes nothing away from the genius that is RAM IT DOWN. The album isn’t perfect, but gets close enough to be called a classic of the metal genre. If you don’t already have this, you now want it, so go and get it!! (4.75/5) Recommended tracks: Ram It Down, Heavy Metal, Love Zone, Hard As Iron, I’m A Rocker. "I’m a rocker! Do as I feel as I say! I’m a rocker! And no one can take that away!" – I’m A Rocker.