Judas Priest: Epitaph Blu-ray Movie

Rating summary

Movie		5.0
Video		4.5
Audio		4.5
Extras		0.0
Overall		4.5

Judas Priest: Epitaph Blu-ray Movie Review

Reviewed by Dr. Svet Atanasov June 5, 2013

Judas Priest: Epitaph captures the legendary British rockers during their final stop at the notorious Hammersmith Odeon in London on May 26, 2012. After 119 shows in 37 different countries, Judas Priest returned home to England to stage one last concert, part of their final large-scale world tour.

The band is in top form here. They look slightly heavier but sound every bit as impressive as they did back in the days. Rob Halford, in particular, sounds every bit as fresh as he does on the band’s many studio albums. Some people may have a difficult time believing it, but I urge you to listen to “Painkiller”. Frankly, I cannot think of any heavy metal singers that can match the clarity and intensity of Rob’s voice in this live performance.

K. K. Downing’s replacement, Richie Faulkner, also does not disappoint. His playing is confident and full of energy. Anyone doubting that he can match the pure power of the classic solos in so many of Judas Priest’s big hits and be Glenn Tipton’s partner will again have to hear only a couple of songs to realize that he was indeed the right man to replace Downing. Faulkner’s improvisations are also outstanding – see the long solo in “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming”.

Judas Priest perform a total of 23 songs, with at least one song from each of their albums. Amongst them are such classics as “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming”, “Breaking the Law”, “Hell Bent for Leather”, and “Metal Gods”.

The highlights of the show are the two super energetic performances of “Turbo Lover” and “Breaking the Law”. The latter in particular gets the whole venue rocking – the fans sing the entire song under Rob’s direction. Cracking show!

Judas Priest’s line-up for this show was: Rob Halford (vocals), Glenn Tipton (guitars), Richie Faulkner (guitars), Ian Hill (bass guitars), and Scott Travis (drums).

Epitaph was filmed by Breakaway Productions in association Brickwall Films. It was directed and edited by Alex Walker. The music was produced, mixed and mastered by Tom Allow and Richard Kayvan for Breakaway Productions.

I'm Your Turbo Lover

Tracklisting

1. Heading Out to the Highway
2. Victim of Changes
3. Diamonds and Rust
4. Beyond the Realms of Death
5. The Green Manalishi (with the Two Pronged Crown)
6. Breaking the Law
7. The Hellion
8. Hell Bent for Leather
9. You've Got Another Thing Comin'
10. Battle Hymn
11. Rapid Fire
12. Metal Gods
13. Judas Rising
14. Starbreaker
15. Never Satisfied
16. Prophecy
17. Night Crawler
18. Turbo Lover
19. The Sentinel
20. Blood Red Skies
21. Painkiller
22. Electric Eye
23. Living After Midnight

Judas Priest: Epitaph Blu-ray Movie, Video Quality 

Presented in an aspect ratio of 1.78:1, encoded with MPEG-4 AVC and granted a 1080i "live" transfer, Judas Priest: Epitaph arrives on Blu-ray courtesy of Sony Music Entertainment.

Filmed at the notorious Hammersmith Odeon in London, Epitaph looks terrific in high-definition. Multiple strategically positioned cameras follow the legendary rockers on a mid-size stage with a rather large screen positioned right in the middle of it. There are plenty of close-ups as well as larger shots capturing the band and their fans. Clarity is consistently great and there are no shadow problems. The stage lighting plays an important role throughout the show but never becomes overwhelming. Motion-judder is not an issue of concern. Even when the camera quickly moves from one band member to another, clarity remains very pleasing. Lastly, there are no purely transfer specific anomalies to report in this review. All in all, this is a very fine looking show that should make fans of the British rockers very happy. (Note: This is a Region-Free Blu-ray release. Therefore, you will be able to play it on your PS3 or SA regardless of your geographical location).

Judas Priest: Epitaph Blu-ray Movie, Audio Quality 

There are two standard audio tracks on this Blu-ray release: DTS-HD Master Audio 5.1 (48kHz, 24-bit) and LPCM 2.0 (48kHz, 24-bit).

Mixed and mastered by Tom Allom and Richard Kayvan, Epitaph sounds great. The lossless 5.1 track has very good depth and balance between the guitars and Rob's vocals is indeed very pleasing. The drums are solid, never sounding flat. More importantly, during faster and more intense songs the sound never gets muffled - clarity and crispness are not compromised. The echo effects on Rob's vocals are never left hanging either. Between select songs Rob also occasionally talks about the band's evolution - the dynamic levels here are also very good. Finally, the crowd's presence is definitely felt, but it never becomes distracting. To sum it all up, the mixing is indeed very good, which is why I am convinced that fans of the British rockers will be enormously satisfied with the audio treatment.

Judas Priest: Epitaph Blu-ray Movie, Special Features and Extras 

Most unfortunately, there are no supplemental features to be found on this Blu-ray release.

Judas Priest: Epitaph Blu-ray Movie, Overall Score and Recommendation 

Believe the hype - this show is as good as advertised. Judas Priest may look slightly older, but in front of their fans they sound as good as I remember them. Judas Priest: Epitaph also looks and sounds great. My only complaint is the lack of supplemental features. Considering the fact that this was the last show from Judas Priest's final large-scale world tour, it would have been nice to at least have some interviews with the band members. Regardless, if you do not get Judas Priest: Epitaph, you will miss out on one of the year's best music releases. VERY HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.