In a recent interview with “The Best Show Starring Tom Scharpling”, JUDAS PRIEST singer Rob Halford talked about the band’s need to keep creating new music and not rest on their laurels. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “That’s been vital for PRIEST. Every time we’ve toured, other than this particular tour cycle – the “50 years of heavy metal” in JUDAS PRIEST, where we really celebrate so much that we’ve done and accomplished – we’ve always released a new record. That was the idea we started with. The reason we’re here is to play the songs you already know, but more important to us is new material. This is how we represent ourselves now. This is us in the 70s, 80s, 90s, nothings. Every time we take the stage – as we will for the next PRIEST disc which is almost finished – it is to show the things that we have created. And that, for us as a band, is important for us because, yes, we can always go into the studio at the start of a day and have nothing but at the end of the day we have a great song that we I hope we end up recording and it will live forever. This is the great testimony of groups who still feel the need, the desire and the hunger. There’s always an endless innate curiosity about adventure: ‘How about we do this?’ “What if we did that? “It’s about the need to express yourself in a new song or in a new album.”
Rob continued, “I learned a long time ago that nirvana is unreachable, but it’s a great place to aim for. Why [professional basketball player] james lebron keep playing? Well, because he has a new move to show; he feels like he wants to show you how he gets from one end of the court to the other with these moves he comes up with. It’s about finding a new form of expression in something we love and enjoy – a band, an athlete, whatever; this thing that seduces us and brings us together is really important.”
Halford added: “I just want to quickly touch on something here: nostalgia. For a very long time I had a real problem with nostalgia, what that word meant. Because in my mind, for a period of my life, it was just like, ‘Oh, it’s over, we’re in nostalgia mode.’ Now I realize that was a very bad idea. I learned and grew from that not – not “negative”, because I had this word “negative”, but this misconception nostalgia Because when you’re going to see JUDAS PRIEST and we play ‘Break the law’ Where “Living After Midnight”, it’s not 2022; it’s 1980. And you’re with your girlfriend, your boyfriend, your significant other, whoever it is, or on your own, and you hear this song and you’re in college, you’re in school, you’re in the back of the bus, you’re in the back of the car, you’re on vacation, all those beautiful, beautiful feelings and emotions burst out in that word “nostalgia.” And so I know that, and we appreciate that as a band, the emotional opportunities that arise when you play these songs. Because I see it on people’s faces, I see it on our metal maniacs. Sometimes there are tears in the house because it’s such an important memory. And that’s the beauty of music, the way it touches that clock of our existence and takes us from present to past and back again.”
British heavy metal legends JUDAS PRIEST received a special plaque commemorating 50 incredible years in music and over 50 million albums sold worldwide. The presentation was made on the eve of the band’s induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Los Angeles last month.
There are few heavy metal bands that have managed to reach the heights that JUDAS PRIEST have during their 50-year career. Their presence and influence remain at an all-time high as evidenced by the 2018s “Firepower” being the highest charting album of their career, a 2010 Grammy Award winning for “Best Metal Performance”, in addition to being a 2006 VH1 Rock Honors recipient. JUDAS PRIEST originally formed in 1969 in Birmingham, England (a region which many believe was born out of heavy metal). Rob Halford, Glenn Tipton, KK Downing and Ian Hill would be the core of musicians (with several different drummers over the years) that would change the face of heavy metal. The current range, which changed in 2011, consists of Halford, Tipton, Hill, Richie Faulkner and Scott Travis.
After the first albums such as “Rock’n’roll”, “Sin After Sin” and “Sad Wings of Fate”, JUDAS PRIEST redefined heavy music forever with the 1980 release of an iconic album “British Steel”. Subsequent albums such as “Scream for Revenge” and “Pain killer” established the band as “Metal Gods”, identified by Charismatic Halfordthe characteristic high-pitched voice of.
PRIEST received the Musical Excellence Award this year Rock and Roll Hall of Famewho honored Eminem, Dolly Parton, DURAN-DURAN, Lionel Richie, Pat Benatar, EURYTHMIC and carly simon in the Performers category.
The JUDAS PRIEST members who have been inducted include current members Halford, Hill, Tipton and Travisas well as former members downing, The Binks (drums) and deceased drummer david holland.
Halford, Hill, Tipton and Travis were joined by Binks, downing and Faulkner for a three-song medley of “You’ve Got Another Thing Coming”, “Break the law” and “Living After Midnight”.
The members of PRIEST have faced various health setbacks in recent years. Halford recently went public that he battled prostate cancer during the pandemic. He previously mentioned his battle with cancer in the new chapter added to the updated paperback edition of his autobiography, “Confess”. In “Confess”, Halford revealed he had been diagnosed with cancer after experiencing symptoms for at least two years.
Faulkner suffered an acute cardiac aortic dissection during the band’s performance at stronger than life festival in September 2021. Faulkner was rushed to UofL Health – Jewish Hospital where the cardiothoracic surgery team needed around 10 hours to perform a life-saving operation.
Tipton was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease eight years ago – having been struck down by the disease at least half a decade earlier – but announced in early 2018 that he would be taking time off from touring activities to support PRIESTthe last album of, “Firepower”. It was replaced by “Firepower” producer Andy Snapewho is also known for his work in the NWOBHM revivalists HELL and cult thrash outfit SABBATH.