I have recently spent some time shut away in the Birmingham Central Library archive looking through the microfilm recordings of the local press for the august 1990; those with a good memory for metal madness will recall this as the period during which Judas Priest were taken to court for the alleged crime of inciting two young men to commit suicide by ‘Back Masking’ The words ‘Do it!’ onto their version of the spooky tooth classic ‘Better By you, Better Than Me’.

They were of course found innocent, however the Judge made it clear that this was not due to back masking not being in any way capable of influencing the listeners behaviour but rather that there was no proof that the messages had been deliberately placed on the recording in this instance.

The local press coverage for the trial has now been uploaded onto the web archive for your perusal.

Of some interest may be the unusual stories that are sharing the pages with the trial
coverage; my personal favourite being the sensational images of 1990s most similar couple….who ever said that opposites attract?!

For those of you interested in learning more about subliminal messaging follow this link to an informative video, alternatively you can track down the documentary ‘Dream Deceivers’ for a more in depth look at the trial including stunning footage from inside the court room.

For a scholarly look into pre-conscious stimulation look here for an article about the trial by Timothy E. Moore a witness for the defence in the trial.