Heavy Metal’s birth is still debated, with a few bands laying claim to having been at ground zero. Of the bands credited with metal’s inception, most of them are from England. While Judas Priest is not in the conversation as originators, their 1980 release, British Steel, is one more argument that during its zenith, metal’s flag was firmly planted in U.K. soil.
They might not be the first, but Priest certainly established themselves as one of metal’s most iconic bands; shaping the sound, the fury, and even the fashion, for all bands that would follow in the metal heavy eighties. British Steel, fortified by the dual lead-guitar attack, driving rhythms, and the snarl and scream of Rob Halford, influenced a generation of bands that could only dream of joining the Priest as one of metal’s foundational bands.