Serpent's Kiss is the debut album of the union of original Judas Priest vocalist At Atkins and Christian metal guitarist Paul May. One look at the striking artwork from Rodney Matthews on the cover and you can pretty much guess that Serpent's Kiss is going to be an old school sounding metal affair, and that is exactly the case. Fans of vintage Judas Priest and Iron Maiden need certainly apply here!
Though it's almost 40 years since Atkins fronted Judas Priest, he still shows he can get his 'metal' on throughout this CD. Tunes like "The Shallowing", "Dream Maker", and "Fight" are proof that the current Holy Rage frontman can deliver the metal snarl and occasional high pitched scream, though at times he seems to want to pull off some Halford type passages, which is a bit of a stretch for him. May on the other hand is a wicked player, firing off a non-stop assault of crunchy riff-o-rama and blazing solos, making Serpent's Kiss one hell of a metal guitar record. Much of it is old school sounding, though you can hear some modern & nu-metal riffs on "Can You Hear Me?", one of the least successful tracks here and not a very good vocal performance from Atkins. "Signz" is a grinding, heavy tune very much in the early 80's Priest mold, "Judge" is total NWOBHM, and "Betta Than Twisted" has a catchy, almost Megadeth styled feel to it. Not quite sold on the cover of the KISS classic "Cold Gin", mostly due to Atkins hamming it up way too much, but they redeem themselves quickly on the epic closer "Theatre Of Fools", a solid majestic metal track with some crunchy riffs and powerful vocals.
There's plenty to recommend here on Serpent's Kiss, and it's strong enough to hope that Atkins and May decide to follow it up with a sequel at some point. Atkins may not have the range and power he once did, but for the most part he fits this type of material well enough, and May is a very talented player who needs more exposure. Good stuff!
Track Listing
01. The Shallowing
02. Traitors Hand
03. Dream Maker
04. Can You Hear Me?
05. Signz
06. Fight
07. Judge
08. Betta Than Twisted
09. Cold Gin (KISS cover)
10. Theatre Of Fools
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