Attention All Planets of the Solar Federation

Rush (Canada)

2112

April 20, 1976

Happy 4:20 everyone. Happy birthday Hitler. Here's an old album worth blazing a fat one to. I already posted Rush's Fly By Night, which only hinted at what was to come from these crazy canucks, boasting a youthful exuberance and less of a direct focus. 2112 is where all the pieces fell into place. That cover has got to be one of the best classic rock covers of all time too. The title track takes up all of side one, a crazy rockin' psychedelic spacey prog rock epic. Wooo. Fuck yeah. The coolest album by Rush. Mandatory to any fan of hard rock/metal/prog. Anyways, I'm pretty preoccupied to write about this (cough), so read more for a stream and light one up. Then repeat.

Tyrant, Every Man Shall Fall

Judas Priest (UK)

Sad Wings of Destiny

March 23, 1976

In my opinion, by far the most important and most influential Judas Priest album, and a monumental impression on the growth of heavy metal as a whole. Epic opener "Victim of Changes" sets the bar for badass attitude, feral fretboard mutilation and unheard of vocal acrobatics, and continues to be the best song they bust out live to this day. "The Ripper" prowls with midnight menace before "Dreamer Deceiver" slowly rises out of the psychedelic shadows that nightmares are made of into a spine chilling crescendo, charging right into the balls-out heaviest song on the album, "Deceiver". Side 2 opens with the musky and gothic "Prelude" before kicking into my absolute favourite Judas Priest song of all time, "Tyrant". This is classic heavy fucking metal, immaculately composed, hummable solos, anthemic chorus, chugging rhythms, and bloodlust ripping through the seams. "Genocide" is a bluesy bar rockin' number and "Epitaph" is the obligatory piano-driven cheese ballad. "Island of Domination" finishes things off with a confident upbeat stomp that even wades sadistically through some proto doom riffs that Black Sabbath wished had written. 36 years later, this is mandatory.