Hello, Rocksmith fans!

We interrupt #HendrixGate to bring you another Legacy DLC Review. Today, we’ll be looking at the Judas Priest pack from April 17th, 2012, featuring hits from British Steel and Painkiller.

In the interest of fairness, I should disclose a little something about my own musical tastes: With a few exceptions, I’m not much of a fan of heavy metal music. Not that I think that there’s anything inherently wrong with the style, it just isn’t something I regularly listen to. (This is why you won’t see me reviewing the Megadeth or 3 Doors Down DLC packs, even though 3DD is more alternative hard rock and post-grunge than metal) Those aforementioned exceptions to this rule are early proto-metal bands (i.e. Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, and Black Sabbath) and, of course, the subject of today’s review.

Song: Breaking The Law
Arrangements: Lead, Rhythm, Bass (Fingered)
Tuning: E Standard

This is easily the most accessible song in the pack, and probably one of the most recognizable in Judas Priest’s entire discography. Both the Lead and Rhythm arrangements are exactly the same until just after the bridge, where the Rhythm part plays the main riff an octave higher than the Lead, and then plays only the cords for the final few chorus repeats. While not very challenging, it’s still a lot of fun to play along to, and it helps as a good stat-booster or an easy way to get the achievements/trophies that require FC’ing a song. I’d recommend it to anyone who’s either first starting out or just in need of something easy and catchy to play.

The bass arrangement is pretty standard fare here. It’s repetitive, it doesn’t deviate from the guitar parts much, and is quite easy to FC, especially given the short length of the song. Not a bad bass track, but it isn’t really unique or memorable either.

Song: Living After Midnight
Arrangements: Lead, Rhythm, Bass (Fingered)
Tuning: E Standard

While it may have a slightly more radio-friendly sound than Breaking The Law, it certainly isn’t a slouch on guitar. In addition to being slightly longer, Living After Midnight also has a short solo near the middle that, while not nearly as challenging as the solo in a certain other song in this DLC, adds quite a bit of depth to this arrangement. The chorus follows a rhythm that, while predictable, is incredibly catchy and really fun to play along to. Like most other songs in the Rocksmith catalog, the Rhythm and Lead arrangements are both exactly the same except for the addition of a short solo in the Lead, so consider practicing on the Rhythm track if you’re having trouble soloing in general before tackling Lead.

The bass arrangement for this song is definitely the weakest of the pack. I understand that Ian Hill’s bass parts are meant to be simple and melodic to lay the foundation for Glen Tipton’s and K.K. Downing’s more complex guitar tracks, but it just isn’t that interesting to play when the bass consists of the same 4-5 notes over the chorus and just 1-2 notes over the verses. That being said, bass guitarists can certainly learn from this song about how even simple bass groves can add just as much depth to a song as more complex driving grooves found in other rock bands of the era.

Song: Painkiller
Arrangements: Lead, Rhythm, Bass (Fingered)
Tuning: E Standard

Do you remember when I referred to the “other” song with a solo from the Living After Midnight section of this review? Well, this is that song. Painkiller makes for quite a contrast to the other songs in this pack; Not only is this song damn hard on all arrangements, (I only managed just over 65% on lead, while I managed over 92% and 99% on Living After Midnight and Breaking The Law respectively) there are actually two really long solos rather than just one during the lead. The main riff on Bass and Rhythm is also incredibly hard to master, mostly due to the fact that this is also quite possibly one of the fastest songs in Rocksmith next to Queen‘s Stone Cold Crazy. If you’re up for a challenge, this will certainly be the song for you regardless of arrangement. This is also one of the few songs in the game that goes up to 24 frets on Lead guitar, so keep that in mind if you plan on playing it. For everyone else, I’d recommend practicing the solos slowed down in the riff repeater first before taking it on at full speed.

Pick of the pack: Living After Midnight

Perhaps it’s my inherent bias over metal in general that made me pick the softest and most radio-friendly song in the pack. See you all next time!