Priestess (band) - Musical Style

Musical Style

"We just consider ourselves a rock band. Every band is different and we play rock our way. I guess it kind of dwells into heavy metal territory from time to time but I wouldn't go into a room full of 'metalheads' and say, 'Hey, this is my Priestess record, we're a heavy metal band!'"

Priestess are frequently cited as a classic rock revivalist act, using such rock 'n' roll staples as guitar solos, and are often compared to many legendary acts. Heppner denies that they are actively emulating the sound of classic bands such as Black Sabbath on purpose, arguing that they simply play what they want to play, and that such comparisons are only incidental.

The band have been variously labeled as hard rock, heavy metal, and even stoner rock, although the band do not try to define their style; Heppner once commented that "all labels beyond rock are useless to ," and also pointed out in 2005 that Cream were considered metal for their time, concluding that "in this ancient way, metal." Other bands that have influenced the group were also referred to as heavy metal in bygone decades. Watchorn only describes the band as hard rock, and argues that calling their music "metal" only limits the band's creative freedom. Drummer Vince Nudo has said that since the songs are not written to be "heavy", he does not understand the direct metal association. The band have opined that they are perhaps not "heavy" enough for heavy metal fans while they are too "heavy" for fans of softer rock, and have also denied that the music scene of Montreal has in any way defined, shaped, or helped them find their sound; Heppner once said, "We might as well be from anywhere," and the band are close friends with fellow Montreal acts. The band's name itself has been part of the confusion; Heppner, speaking English during an interview with a Canadian newspaper, stated that Priestess was "just this heavy name" and the reporter wrote, "parce que ça sonne metal" (which translates to "because it sounds metal").

Hello Master was intentionally written to be simple in terms of the music, while Prior to the Fire was meant to be somewhat more complex on purpose without being too different from Hello Master. The stylistic shift was attributed to the band's desire to create something more challenging for themselves. Their debut album also features twin harmonized guitar solos, something long considered to have gone out of style in rock music. Heppner largely wrote the first album himself and had the others' help in arranging it, but the second one featured much more writing input from his bandmates.