10 Best Metal Music Videos Of All Time
2. Breaking The Law - Judas Priest
Arguably this is one of the first sensational heavy metal videos ever made. Judas Priest had always been a band to cultivate the heavy metal name, but their use of visuals for their ode to down-on-their-luck criminals felt like it was meant for a more cinematic vision.
As the song's story of living outside the law to put more action in your life is told, the band proceeds to pillage through England as they hold up a bank and terrorize the clientele everywhere they go. The actual crime of stealing their own gold record was a great climax for the song while also having subtle commentary about the unfairness of the record industry. The way that guitarists Glenn Tipton and KK Downing use their instruments in the video feel more like actual weapons which they can use to wipe out their naysayers.
When asked about the song, composer Rob Halford talked about his inspiration for it coming from people breaking the law out of frustration of not getting what you seemed to have been promised after adolescence. Once the band cast the first stone for metal, the door was open for all heavy acts of the 80's to bring their trademark menace to the screen.