Nostradamus (album)
Nostradamus | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 16 June 2008 | |||
Recorded | 2006 –2007 at The Old Smithy Studio, Kempsey, Worcester, UK | |||
Genre | Heavy metal, speed metal,[1][2] symphonic metal, progressive metal | |||
Length | 102:48 | |||
Label | Epic | |||
Producer | Glenn Tipton and K. K. Downing | |||
Judas Priest chronology | ||||
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Nostradamus is the sixteenth studio album by English heavy metal band Judas Priest, focusing on the 16th-century writer Nostradamus.[3] It is a double album and the band's first concept album.[4] It was originally intended to be released in late 2006 before being pushed back to a 2007 release,[5] and was finally released in June 2008 on Epic Records. It is the band's final album to feature K. K. Downing, before his retirement.[6]
Judas Priest toured with Motörhead, Heaven & Hell, and Testament on the Metal Masters Tour to promote Nostradamus. The band also performed a world tour in 2008 and 2009 in support of the album.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Blabbermouth | 5/10[7] |
PopMatters | 5/10[8] |
Rock Hard (de) | 6/10[9] |
Record Collector | ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() ![]() |
Development
The Nostradamus concept idea originated from manager Bill Curbishley[11] and was pitched to the band while on tour in Estonia in 2005. Guitarist K. K. Downing revealed in a February 2007 interview with Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles that 18 tracks had been recorded with a total length of more than 90 minutes and that there was not much he would like to cut down. Musically, the album contains symphonic orchestrations, including the use of keyboards and choirs, which is unlike anything the band has previously attempted.[5] In November 2007, the band began mixing the album.[12]
Release
In November 2007, singer Rob Halford indicated that it was still undecided whether it would be a double-disc set or not. In April 2008, it was confirmed that the album would be released as a double-CD/triple vinyl LP.[13]
"Nostradamus" sold 42,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 11 on The Billboard 200 chart. This was the band's highest-ever chart position in the US before being surpassed by Redeemer of Souls in 2014, when it took the No. 6 position. According to Billboard.com, the album was released in Europe on 16 June 2008 and 17 June in United States. Three configurations of Nostradamus have been issued. The most common is a regular jewel-cased double CD, but there is also a "CD deluxe hardbound version", which features a 48-page booklet, while a "super deluxe version" includes three vinyl records (in addition to the CD deluxe packaging, plus a poster).[14]
The title track was released on 12 April 2008 as a free download on Judas Priest's website through Epic Records.[15] The second single "Visions" was released on 4 May 2008.
The title track was nominated for Best Metal Performance at the 51st Grammy Awards.[16] The song "Visions" was also nominated for a Grammy in the category Best Hard Rock Performance.[16]
The band has repeatedly made mention of a desire to perform the album in full, as part of a theatrical production, but the idea was scrapped, possibly due to the album's lukewarm reception by fans.[17] Only two of the albums songs were performed live on the subsequent tour, "Prophecy" and "Death", with the former reappearing in the setlist in 2011-12.
Reception
Sputnikmusic said that with Nostradamus the band "has cast away both speed metal and hard rock in favour of a more symphonic metal approach", with the album having a "greater emphasis" on synthesizers, but not in the unsatisfying manner of their 1986 album Turbo. The reviewer said he thought it was "painfully obvious" that the band had been struggling to work in an unfamiliar style.[18] Allmusic said that the album represented "epic metal" of the sort previously produced by Iron Maiden in 1988's Seventh Son of a Seventh Son. The album was seen to contain Spinal Tap-style clichés such as "melodramatic spoken interludes". "Dated" synthesizer string sounds added to the sense that the band was seeking filler material to make a double album, which "should have been" trimmed down to a single album.[1] The album has sold over 100,000 copies in the US and 500,000 copies worldwide as of 2009. [19]
Story line
Nostradamus centres on the life and times of the seer. The first disc details various forecasts he has about the future and the end of the world.
Track listing
All tracks are written by K. K. Downing, Glenn Tipton and Rob Halford
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Dawn of Creation" | 2:32 |
2. | "Prophecy" | 5:27 |
3. | "Awakening" | 0:53 |
4. | "Revelations" | 7:05 |
5. | "The Four Horsemen" | 1:35 |
6. | "War" | 5:05 |
7. | "Sands of Time" | 2:37 |
8. | "Pestilence and Plague" | 5:09 |
9. | "Death" | 7:34 |
10. | "Peace" | 2:22 |
11. | "Conquest" | 4:42 |
12. | "Lost Love" | 4:28 |
13. | "Persecution" | 6:34 |
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Solitude" | 1:23 |
2. | "Exiled" | 6:33 |
3. | "Alone" | 7:50 |
4. | "Shadows in the Flame" | 1:10 |
5. | "Visions" | 5:24 |
6. | "Hope" | 2:10 |
7. | "New Beginnings" | 4:57 |
8. | "Calm Before the Storm" | 2:05 |
9. | "Nostradamus" | 6:43 |
10. | "Future of Mankind" | 8:30 |
Personnel
Credits adapted from liner notes:[20]
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Charts
Chart (2008) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australian Albums (ARIA)[21] | 17 |
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[22] | 13 |
Canadian Albums Chart[23] | 9 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[24] | 79 |
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[25] | 50 |
Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[26] | 17 |
Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[27] | 38 |
French Albums (SNEP)[28] | 38 |
Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[29] | 3 |
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[30] | 5 |
Italian Albums (FIMI)[31] | 26 |
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[32] | 31 |
Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[33] | 12 |
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[34] | 26 |
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[35] | 5 |
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[36] | 12 |
UK Albums (OCC)[37] | 30 |
US Billboard 200[38] | 11 |
Release history
Country | Date |
---|---|
Germany | 13 June 2008 |
Australia | 14 June 2008 |
United Kingdom | 16 June 2008 |
Canada | 17 June 2008 |
United States | |
Japan | 25 June 2008 |
References
- ^ a b c James Christopher Monger (17 June 2008). "Nostradamus - Judas Priest | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ^ Wiederhorn, Jon (29 June 2006). "Judas Priest's Nostradamus Concept LP: A Heavy-Metal 'Phantom Of The Opera'". MTV News. Archived from the original on 11 October 2014. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
- ^ "Judas Priest Confirmed For Denmark's Roskilde Festival", blabbermouth.net, 10 March 2008.
- ^ "Judas Priest Meets Nostradamus On New CD" Archived 23 September 2013 at the Wayback Machine, Greg Prato, Billboard, 12 April 2006.
- ^ a b [1] Archived 13 March 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "News - Judas Priest announce farewell EPITAPH World Tour!!". JudasPriest.com. Archived from the original on 28 January 2011. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ^ Bergman, Keith. "Review: Nostradamus". Blabbermouth.net. Archived from the original on 5 January 2010. Retrieved 16 March 2010.
- ^ Begrand, Adrien. "Judas Priest: Nostradamus". PopMatters. Archived from the original on 9 August 2008. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ^ Kaiser, Boris. "Rock Hard review". issue 255. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
- ^ Geesin, Joe. "Nostradamus - Record Collector Magazine". Record Collector. Retrieved 15 May 2019.
- ^ "{title}". Archived from the original on 11 October 2014. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
- ^ "Judas Priest Mixing 'Nostradamus'". Ultimate-Guitar.com. 19 November 2007. Archived from the original on 2 February 2010. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
- ^ "Judas Priest Begins Mixing 'Nostradamus' - Blabbermouth.net". Roadrunnerrecords.com. 18 November 2007. Archived from the original on 21 April 2008. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ^ "Judas Priest Finally Takes On 'Nostradamus'". Billboard. 16 April 2008. Archived from the original on 5 October 2013. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ^ [2] Archived 22 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ a b "Grammy 2009 Winners List". MTV. 8 February 2009. Archived from the original on 15 February 2009. Retrieved 6 February 2012.
- ^ Saulnier, Jason (16 April 2011). "Rob Halford Interview, Judas Priest Singer talks Rare Recordings". Music Legends. Archived from the original on 4 August 2013. Retrieved 3 May 2013.
- ^ Stagno, Mike (14 June 2008). "Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Sputnik Music. Archived from the original on 3 November 2014. Retrieved 2 November 2014.
- ^ Browne, Nichola (10 January 2009). "Precious Metal". Billboard. Archived from the original on 28 April 2018. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
- ^ a b Nostradamus Liner notes. Epic Records. 2008. pp. 3, 23.
- ^ "Australiancharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Austriancharts.at – Judas Priest – Nostradamus" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Judas Priest's 'Nostradamus' Is Band's Highest Charting U.S. Album To Date". Blabbermouth.net. 25 June 2008. Archived from the original on 16 April 2014. Retrieved 19 May 2014.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Judas Priest – Nostradamus" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Ultratop.be – Judas Priest – Nostradamus" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Danishcharts.dk – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Judas Priest – Nostradamus" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Lescharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Judas Priest: Nostradamus" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Officialcharts.de – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Italiancharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Charts.nz – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Norwegiancharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Spanishcharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Swedishcharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Swisscharts.com – Judas Priest – Nostradamus". Hung Medien. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Judas Priest | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
- ^ "Judas Priest Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 23 March 2015.