Editing Killing Machine

{{other uses|Killing machine (disambiguation)}}
{{EngvarB|date=September 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2019}}
{{Infobox album
| name       = Killing Machine
| type       = studio
| artist     = [[Judas Priest]]
| cover      = Judas Priest - Killing Machine album coverart.jpg
| alt        =
| released   = {{start date|1978|11|df=y}}<ref>{{cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/greatrockdiscogr00stro/page/446/mode/1up?q=Halford&view=theater|title=The Great Rock Discography|year=1995|page=446 |isbn=9780862415419 |last1=Strong |first1=Martin Charles |publisher=Canongate Press }}</ref>
| recorded   = August 1978<ref>{{cite book | last1 = Popoff | first1 = Martin | author-link1 = Martin Popoff | title = Decade of Domination | edition = 2nd | publisher = Wymer Publishing | year = 2018 | pages = 108 | isbn = 978-1-912782-63-5}}</ref>
| studio     =
* Utopia (London)
* CBS (London)
| genre      = [[Heavy metal music|Heavy metal]]
| length     = 35:06
| label      = [[CBS Records International|CBS]]/[[Columbia Records|Columbia]]
| producer   =
* Judas Priest
* [[James Guthrie (record producer)|James Guthrie]]
| prev_title = [[Stained Class]]
| prev_year  = 1978
| next_title = [[British Steel (album)|British Steel]]
| next_year  = 1980
| misc       = {{Extra album cover
 | header  = Alternative US cover
 | type    = studio
 | cover   = HellBentForLeather.jpg
 | border  =
 | alt     =
 | caption = The album's title was renamed "Hell Bent for Leather" in the US due to 'murderous implications' concerns of the original title.
}}
{{Singles
 | name        = Killing Machine
 | type        = studio
 | single1     = Before the Dawn
 | single1date = 27 October 1978<ref>{{cite web|url=https://dutchcharts.nl/showitem.asp?interpret=Judas+Priest&titel=Before+The+Dawn&cat=s|title=Judas Priest singles}}</ref>
 | single2     = [[Take On the World (Judas Priest song)|Take On the World]]
 | single2date = 5 January 1979
 | single3     = [[Evening Star (Judas Priest song)|Evening Star]]
 | single3date = 27 April 1979 
 | single4     = [[The Green Manalishi#Judas Priest version|The Green Manalishi]]
 | single4date = May 1979 (US)<ref>{{cite web|url=https://dutchcharts.nl/showitem.asp?interpret=Judas+Priest&titel=The+Green+Manalishi+%28With+The+Two%2DPronged+Crown%29&cat=s|title=Judas Priest singles}}</ref>
}}
}}

'''''Killing Machine''''' (also known as ''Hell Bent for Leather'') is the fifth studio album by English [[Heavy metal music|heavy metal]] band [[Judas Priest]], released in November 1978, by [[CBS Records International|CBS Records]] internationally, and received a United States release on 28 February 1979, by [[Columbia Records]]. The album pushed the band towards a more commercial style while still featuring the dark lyrical themes of their previous albums. At about the same time, the band members adopted their now-famous "[[Leather subculture#Representations|leather-and-studs]]" fashion image, inspired by [[Rob Halford]]'s interest in
[[Leather subculture|leather culture]]. It is the band's last studio album to feature drummer [[Les Binks]].

==International and American versions==
The album was retitled ''Hell Bent for Leather'' for its US release on 28 February 1979.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&se=Judas+Priest#search_section|title=RIAA|website=[[Recording Industry Association of America]] }}</ref> Singer Rob Halford simply said that their US-label found ''Killing Machine'' too much of a heavy statement to use, and suggested the alternative title to the band. It was feared that the ‘murderous implications’ of the original title would be too much for the larger record retailers to want to put the LP on its racks.<ref>{{cite book | last1 = Popoff | first1 = Martin | author-link1 = Martin Popoff | title = Decade of Domination | edition = 2nd | publisher = Wymer Publishing | year = 2018 | pages = 108 | isbn = 978-1-912782-63-5}}</ref> Both album titles are drawn from the titles of songs on the album with "[[The Green Manalishi (With the Two Prong Crown)]]", an early [[Fleetwood Mac]] cover, being added to the US release.

The album was also pressed in red vinyl in the UK.

==Overview==
With ''Killing Machine'', Judas Priest began moving to a more accessible, commercial format that abandoned the complex, fantasy-themed songs of their previous three albums. While this album still had dark undertones, it was more grounded in realism. This was reflected in their change of stage costumes from flowing Gothic robes to leather, but was also a reaction to the rising [[Punk rock|punk]] and [[New wave music|new wave]] movements. [[K. K. Downing]] had expressed doubts about the [[new wave of British heavy metal]] stating "everybody was totally dedicated to having their own show, their own images". Priest were part of the influence on the [[NWOBHM]], but not part of it. The band's new, simpler sound was the result of several factors, amongst them being a desire to compete with the energy and speed of [[punk rock]], the need to produce songs that were easier to perform live, and the wish to appeal more to American audiences.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qRTEsW44NDQC&q=glenn%20tipton%20part%20of%20the%20new%20wave&pg=PT121 |title={title} |isbn=9780857122391 |access-date=15 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180416013134/https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=qRTEsW44NDQC&lpg=PT121&ots=ftML2Nw0ig&dq=glenn%20tipton%20part%20of%20the%20new%20wave&pg=PT121#v=onepage&q=glenn%20tipton%20part%20of%20the%20new%20wave&f=false |archive-date=16 April 2018 |url-status=live |df=dmy-all |last1=Daniels |first1=Neil |date=7 April 2010 |publisher=Omnibus Press }}</ref> Tracks such as "Burnin' Up" and "Evil Fantasies" are replete with S&M themes while "Running Wild" is about late-night partying and "Before the Dawn" a depressing ballad. "Hell Bent for Leather" reflected their newly adopted leather costumes as well as Rob Halford's soon-to-be-trademark entrances on stage riding a [[Harley-Davidson]] motorcycle.

The single "[[Take On the World (Judas Priest song)|Take On the World]]" was an attempt at producing a stadium shoutalong tune in the mould of [[Queen (band)|Queen's]] "[[We Will Rock You]]", and was also covered by [[New wave music|new wave]] band The [[Human League]] on their 1980 tour.<ref>[http://www.the-black-hit-of-space.dk/various_gig_1980.htm]  {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130104145745/http://www.the-black-hit-of-space.dk/various_gig_1980.htm|date=4 January 2013}}</ref> The song's influence endures : in 2021, the band [[Spoon (band)|Spoon]] released the single "Wild", which samples its drum patterns from "Take On the World." The record was released as a 7-inch single and was backed with a remix by [[Dennis Bovell]] which features the same drum pattern.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Spoon - Wild/Wild Remix (Indie Exclusive Limited Edition Vinyl Single) |url=https://recordstoreday.com/UPC/191401174473 |access-date=January 13, 2022 |website=[[Record Store Day]] |archive-date=December 21, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211221002037/https://recordstoreday.com/UPC/191401174473 |url-status=live }}</ref>

"Hell Bent For Leather" and a cover version of the [[Fleetwood Mac]] song "[[The Green Manalishi]]" were the two songs from ''Killing Machine'' which became standard parts of the band's live setlist, with the other songs being performed rarely ("Evil Fantasies", "Running Wild", "Rock Forever and "Take On the World") or not at all. "Running Wild" and "Delivering The Goods" became regulars on the [[Firepower (album)|Firepower tour]] setlists in 2018 after not being played since 1980, and the title track returned to the band's setlists at a show in Paris in January 2019 after being absent for 40 years.<ref>{{cite magazine | url=https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/judas-priest-killing-machine-tour-785315/ | title=See Judas Priest Play 'Killing Machine' for First Time in 40 Years | magazine=[[Rolling Stone]] | date=28 January 2019 }}</ref>

The lyrics on the album were simplified somewhat in comparison with the band's previous albums, adapted into a more mainstream [[arena rock]] format, but the instrumentation retains the band's characteristic aggressiveness with heavier guitar [[riff]]ing and elements of [[Blues]] influence returning on some songs. The album is certified gold by the RIAA.

==Reissues==
The album was remastered in 2001, with two bonus tracks added (three in the UK). The bonus track "Fight for Your Life" was the "original" version of Judas Priest's "Rock Hard Ride Free" from their ''[[Defenders of the Faith]]'' album. "The Green Manalishi (With the Two-Pronged Crown)" is considered a bonus track on the UK remaster, but a regular track on the U.S. version.

In 2010, [[audiophile]] label Audio Fidelity released a limited-edition 24-karat gold CD of ''Hell Bent for Leather''. Mastering was done by [[Steve Hoffman (audio engineer)|Steve Hoffman]]. This does not contain the bonus tracks from the 2001 edition.

==Recording and production==
This is the first Judas Priest album where [[Glenn Tipton]] incorporated the guitar technique of [[tapping]] into his soloing style,  which had been popularized by [[Eddie Van Halen]] earlier that year with the release of [[Van Halen]]'s popular [[Van Halen (album)|debut album]] (which incidentally was released the same day as ''[[Stained Class]]''). This can be heard in the solos of "Hell Bent for Leather" and "Killing Machine".

This is also the final studio album for drummer [[Les Binks]] who had joined the band in early 1977 in time for the ''Sin After Sin tour''; he is credited with helping develop the traditional Priest percussive sound. Binks was dropped and replaced by drummer [[Dave Holland (drummer)|Dave Holland]] after the 1979 tour because of a financial disagreement where the band's manager Mike Dolan wanted Binks to "waive his fees" for performing on the platinum-selling 1979 live album ''[[Unleashed in the East]]''.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://kkdowning.net/steelmill/Interviews/beyond-realms-les-binks/ | title=Beyond the Realms of les Binks }}</ref>

==Critical reception==
{{Music ratings
|rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
|rev1score = {{Rating|4.5|5}}<ref name=AllmusicReview>{{cite web|title=Killing Machine review|url=https://www.allmusic.com/album/killing-machine-mw0000190448|publisher=AllMusic|access-date=16 August 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160816111747/http://www.allmusic.com/album/killing-machine-mw0002022787|archive-date=16 August 2016|url-status=live|df=dmy-all}}</ref>
| rev2 = ''[[Encyclopedia of Popular Music]]''
| rev2score = {{Rating|2|5}}<ref>{{cite book |last1=Larkin |first1=Colin |title=The Encyclopedia of Popular Music |date=2011 |publisher=Omnibus Press |isbn=9780857125958 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_NNmFiUnSmUC&q=judas+priest&pg=RA3-PA2005-IA45 |access-date=21 May 2019 |language=en}}</ref>
}}

In 2005, ''Killing Machine'' was ranked number 321 in ''[[Rock Hard (magazine)|Rock Hard]]'' magazine's book ''The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time''.<ref>{{cite book|title=Best of Rock & Metal - Die 500 stärksten Scheiben aller Zeiten|year=2005|publisher=[[Rock Hard (magazine)|Rock Hard]]|language=de|isbn=3-89880-517-4|page=82}}</ref> This album, as well as subsequent albums by the band, has somewhat divided fans, with some{{who|date=October 2019}} preferring the complexity and darkness of the early albums, while others{{who|date=October 2019}} prefer the more mainstream and polished later albums.

==In popular culture==
The song "Hell Bent for Leather" is featured in [[Ari Gold (filmmaker)|Ari Gold's]] 2008 film ''[[Adventures of Power]]'', the 2004 episode of the sitcom ''[[That '70s Show]]'' entitled "Surprise, Surprise" and also featured in 2009 game ''[[Guitar Hero: Metallica]]''.{{Citation needed|date=November 2021}}

==Track listing==
{{Track listing
| headline = Side one
| title1 = Delivering the Goods
| writer1 = [[Rob Halford]], [[K. K. Downing]], [[Glenn Tipton]]
| length1 = 4:16
| title2 = [[Rock Forever]]
| writer2 = Halford, Downing, Tipton
| length2 = 3:19
| title3 = [[Evening Star (Judas Priest song)|Evening Star]]
| writer3 = Halford, Tipton
| length3 = 4:06
| title4 = Hell Bent for Leather
| writer4 = Tipton
| length4 = 2:41
| title5 = [[Take On the World (Judas Priest song)|Take On the World]]
| writer5 = Halford, Tipton
| length5 = 3:00
}}
{{track listing
| headline = Side two
| title6 = Burnin' Up
| writer6 = Downing, Tipton
| length6 = 4:07
| title7 = [[The Green Manalishi (With the Two Prong Crown)#Judas Priest version|The Green Manalishi (With the Two-Pronged Crown)]]
| note7 = [[Fleetwood Mac]] [[cover version|cover]]; originally exclusive to ''Hell Bent for Leather'', also added to later releases of ''Killing Machine''
| writer7 = [[Peter Green (musician)|Peter Green]]
| length7 = 3:23
| title8 = Killing Machine
| writer8 = Tipton
| length8 = 3:01
| title9 = Running Wild
| writer9 = Tipton
| length9 = 2:58
| title10 = Before the Dawn
| writer10 = Halford, Downing, Tipton
| length10 = 3:23
| title11 = Evil Fantasies
| writer11 = Halford, Downing, Tipton
| length11 = 4:15
| total_length = 38:29
}}

{{Track listing
| headline = 2001 bonus tracks
| extra_column = Writer(s)
| title12 = Fight for Your Life
| note12 = Recorded during the 1982 ''[[Screaming for Vengeance]]'' sessions{{Citation needed|date=October 2021}}
| extra12 = Downing, Halford, Tipton
| length12 = 4:06
| title13 = Riding on the Wind
| note13 = Live at the [[US Festival]], [[Devore, San Bernardino, California|Devore]], California; 29 May 1983
| extra13 = Downing, Halford, Tipton
| length13 = 3:16
| total_length = 45:51
}}

==Personnel==
'''Judas Priest'''
* [[Rob Halford]] – vocals
* [[K. K. Downing]] – guitars
* [[Glenn Tipton]] – guitars, keyboards on "Before the Dawn"
* [[Ian Hill]] – bass except "Take on the World"
* [[Les Binks]] – drums except "Before the Dawn"
*[[Dave Holland (drummer)|Dave Holland]] – drums (bonus tracks)

'''Production'''
* Produced by [[James Guthrie (record producer)|James Guthrie]] and Judas Priest
* Engineered by James Guthrie, assisted by Damian Korner, [[Andrew Jackson (recording engineer)|Andrew Jackson]], Kevin Dallimore, and Andrew Clark
* Cover design by [[Rosław Szaybo]]
* Photography by Bob Elsdale

==Charts==
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders sortable" style="text-align:center;"
|-
! Chart (1978–1979)
! Peak<br />position
|-
!scope="row"|Japanese Albums ([[Oricon]])<ref name="JPN">{{cite book|title=Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970–2005|publisher=[[Oricon|Oricon Entertainment]]|location=Roppongi, Tokyo|year=2006|isbn=4-87131-077-9|language=ja}}</ref>
|62
|-
{{album chart|UK2|32|date=19781112|access-date=October 5, 2023|rowheader=true}}
|-
{{album chart|Billboard200|128|artist=Judas Priest|access-date=October 5, 2023|rowheader=true}}
|}

==Certifications==
{{Certification Table Top}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|relyear=1978|region =Canada|award=Platinum|certref=<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bonhams.com/auction/26708/lot/281| date = March 7, 2023|title=Bonhams:Judas Priest/K.K. Downing: A Sony/BMG Canadian 'Platinum' award for the albums Killing Machine, Unleashed In The East, British Steel and Defenders Of The Faith}}</ref>}}
{{Certification Table Entry|type=album|region=United Kingdom|award=Silver|relyear=1978|certyear=1978|certref=<ref>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-UK/Music/Archive-Record-Mirror-IDX/IDX/70s/Record-Mirror-1978-10-28-IDX-43.pdf|access-date=March 12, 2025|title=Call for the Priest!|magazine=[[Record Mirror]]|date=October 28, 1978|page=44}}</ref>}}
{{Certification Table Entry|region=United States|type=album|title=Point of Entry|artist=Judas Priest|award=Gold}}
{{Certification Table Bottom|nosales=yes}}

==Release history==
{| class="wikitable plainrowheaders"
|+Release formats for ''Killing Machine''/''Hell Bent for Leather''
|-
!scope="col" | Region
!scope="col" | Date
!scope="col" | Label
!scope="col" | Format
!scope="col" | Catalogue
|-
!scope="row"| Various
|scope="row" rowspan="2"| November 1978
|scope="row"| [[CBS Records International|CBS]]
|scope="row" rowspan="3"| {{hlist|[[LP record|LP]]|[[Cassette tape|cassette]]}}
|scope="row"| CBS 83135
|-
!scope="row"| Japan
|scope="row"| [[Epic Records Japan|Epic]]
|scope="row"| 25-3P-28
|-
!scope="row" rowspan="2"| {{hlist|United States|Canada}}
|scope="row"| 28 February 1979
|scope="row" rowspan="3"| [[Columbia Records|Columbia]]
|scope="row"| JC 35706
|-
|scope="row"| July 1986
|scope="row" rowspan="4"| CD
|scope="row"| CK 35706
|-
!scope="row"| Europe
|scope="row"| 22 October – 12 November 2001<ref name="2001Remaster">{{cite web |title=Judas Priest 2001 News Archive |url=https://judaspriest.com/news/news2001.asp#:~:text=Nation/WASHINGTON/DC-,Click%20Here%20for%20the%20Tour%20Info%20page.,VH1%20%2D%20Behind%20The%20Music |website=Judas Priest |access-date=14 December 2024 |date=4 October 2001}}</ref>
|scope="row"| CK 86181
|-
!scope="row"| Japan
|scope="row"| 23 October 2001<ref name="2001Remaster"/>
|scope="row"| Epic
|scope="row"| EICP 7011
|-
!scope="row"| United States
|scope="row"| 6 November 2001<ref name="2001Remaster"/>
|scope="row"| {{hlist|Columbia|[[Legacy Recordings|Legacy]]}}
|scope="row"| CK 86181
|}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Judas Priest}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:1978 albums]]
[[Category:Albums produced by James Guthrie (record producer)]]
[[Category:Columbia Records albums]]
[[Category:Judas Priest albums]]