by Steve Huey

Following the underwritten, erratic Point of Entry, Screaming for Vengeance returned Judas Priest to the top of the metal heap, boasting a much more consistent set of songs, highlighted by the monumental "You've Got Another Thing Comin'." Some of the bluesier elements of Point of Entry are still here, but the heavier moments tend to dominate the album's flavor (particularly the title track); plus, there are arena-ready headbanging anthems like "Electric Eye," "Bloodstone," and, of course, "You've Got Another Thing Comin'," the latter two proof that the band really knew how to work a mid-tempo rock groove. Although the sound is commercial, Screaming for Vengeance doesn't feel like it's pandering as Point of Entry sometimes did; it's a catchy, accessible metal record in the best sense of the description, and it rivals British Steel as Priest's best album of the '80s.