Rob Halford -Celestial Album Reveiw

Rob Halford - Celestial (2019)

Players:

Rob Halford - Vocals

*(The rest of the players are covered in the review)

Celestial marks the first Halford solo effort since 2010's Halford IV: Made of Metal. He has released two albums with Judas Priest since that time, 2014's Redeemer of Souls and 2018's Firepower.

First Impression:

More holiday cheer from the Metal God...I'm up for that.

Anyone who knows me knows that I hate most Christmas music (I am a sucker for "Winter Wonderland" though). It's trite and boring and usually kinda pisses me off. However there are those "Special" albums that come along that take those songs and turn them on their head and reinterprets them in a different style. Being a metalhead, metal versions of these tired old holiday classics are a mixed bag but when Rob Halford released his "Winter Songs" album in 2009 I finally had a collection of these songs reinterpreted in a style that I loved plus a couple new ones to boot. Now in 2019 Rob released a new collection of more reimagined classics plus 4 new songs with the help of real family and friends. Rob assembled a lineup of family and friends for this release. Halford's brother Nigel plays drums, while his nephew Alex — who is the son of Judas Priest's Ian Hill — rounds out the rhythm section on bass. Additionally, Robert Jones and Jon Blakely play guitars. And finally, Halford's sister "plays the bells." If it wasn't obvious enough already, "Celestial" is intended to be a very fun album, and to be honest it really is...but how fun is it you ask? Well let's ready the sleigh and trample through this one track by track and find out....Let's Do This!!!

01. Celestial [new song] 1:32

The album's intro, not much more than that. Sets a good tone though and treats this album like a concept album...which leads to....

02. Donner and Blitzen [new song] 3:31

The pitched first single that was out before the album. It's a good mid tempo track about 2 of Santa's reindeer. To be honest this track is just pure magical fun packed into 3 minutes and is a joy to listen to, plus it doesn't get boring at all.

03. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen 2:46

A ramped up arrangement of a traditional droner. This one keeps up the tempo and keeps you throwing up your fists in pure joy and rocking fun. This is an energetic one that I really like, even if the arrangement sounds a bit like early OZZY...maybe he should make a holiday album too.

04. Away In A Manger 4:03

A traditional slower track....Rob arranged this one to sound like a western/bluesy type track...a kinda "Blaze of Glory" type song. This choice really makes this one pop a bit more than the original and makes it far more listenable.. I really like this one, it really conveys a feeling and makes a boring old traditional song sound far more interesting.

05. Morning Star [new song] 4:14

This is a slower track with a bit of a Eagles feeling. Kinda poppy but not in a bad way, it is pleasant sounding and would be easily enjoyed on a cold winter day with a nice hot coco. It makes me smile just listening to it.

06. Deck The Halls 5:03

Well....let's get heavy again....and this does. This is one of those traditional songs that has been covered by all types of musicians over the decades to some very polarizing mixed results but Rob pulls it off here. It is a well presented and executed high tempo (but not too fast) metal arrangement. The guitars are the stars here though, great riffs and killer solos...and of course Rob's stellar vocals. No complaints about this one at all.

07. Joy To The World 2:48

Well...a Queen sounding guitar intro starts this one off nicely, that flows into a mid tempo arrangement. It's a basic track with more Brian May sounding guitar flair in it. It isn't a bad track at all, just a bit short...great solo in it though. It does directly connect to the next track.

08. O Little Town Of Bethlehem 5:31

A slower track that continues off the end of the last track. A bit of a moody yet oddly hopeful sounding piece which traditionally is a monotone bore fest of a song. Rob brings a bit of life and emotional context to this one, it is executed very well and is as tight as any song can be. This version makes me like it alot, especially around the 3:40 mark when it ramps up in power a bit and really drives things home, only to slow down a bit to wrap this one up...very nice arrangement on this one.

09. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing 2:06

A slightly pop punk arrangement of this traditional song...not a bad choice in my opinion and serves the album as a whole pretty well...I have no complaints about this one.

10. The First Noel 4:24

A traditional slow droner and pretty much my most hated traditional Christmas song, It's just so boring. Rob didn't up the tempo on this one but he did infuse more vocal power and character in this one, the background singing isn't overbearing and kept at a distance. It is a faithful arrangement but it has more feeling than the original. I can say this is not a bad version of a song I truly can't stand, I can listen to this version and feel some peace. I hate this song, but not this version...it's very pleasant.

11. Good King Wenceslas 7:28

Get comfy....this is a long one. This is a song I had to solo in elementary school in the 4th grade Christmas show...ugh. Thankfully my version wasn't this long...but this version has an intro on it to build an environment for it to reside in. It has a middle eastern type feeling to it but not an obnoxious one. Rob's voice does a good job here with the phrasing he applies to the traditional lyrics. It picks up around the 4 minute mark which adds a nice dynamic to the song that keeps it from feeling stale. Over all this is another well executed arrangement of an annoying traditional holiday classic. 

12. Protected By The Light [new song] 1:48

The closer to the album, the accordion ads a nice touch to the end of the album...this is a sweet little song that leaves you with a smile. Nice closer to a spectacular album.

Conclusion:

Well Rob did it again. Another great holiday themed album that can serve as a companion piece to his 2009 release "Winter Songs". In all honesty Rob Halford has made me enjoy Christmas songs much more with his arrangements of these stale old songs. He breathes new life into these songs and even adds new classics to the songbook. Over all I really enjoyed this one as much as his aforementioned 2009 album. Guess a jaded old metalhead like myself can do a Grinch too and change my outlook on all things Christmas with the proper motivation...and Rob's holiday offerings is that motivation. Do yourself a favor and get this one in your collection, it's worth every penny and then some.

Score: 5/5