JUDAS PRIEST DISCUSS “REDEEMER OF SOULS”
Gary Graff of Billboard reports:
Rob Halford and his bandmates wanted to “reinvestigate the roots of (Judas) Priest” for Redeemer of Souls, the band’s 17th studio album and first set of new material since the concept album Nostradamus in 2008, released today (July 8). Watch a special behind-the-scenes video of the making of Redeemer of Souls, premiering exclusively on Billboard.com, below.
Halford tells Billboard that exploration started during Priest’s 2011-12 Epitaph World Tour, the group’s first outing with guitarist Richie Faulkner in place of co-founder K.K. Downing. “We played a little bit of everything from our recordings over the past decades, and I think that spirit seeped back into our musical consciousness somehow,” the frontman explains. “So when we got together to start writing the music for Redeemer of Souls, particularly from (guitarist) Glenn (Tipton) and my perspective, we were carrying a lot of eternal stuff from the beginning of the band. I think the general consensus is that most of this music is very classic Priest; there are textures and atmospheres and things from the 70s and 80s, maybe even the 90s to this music.”
…Halford says he and Tipton were slightly apprehensive about writing without Downing for the first time in the group’s history, but he says working with Faulkner — who joined Priest in 2011 — proved a seamless transition. “Richie’s contribution can’t be overstated,” Halford notes. “It really wasn’t that different — two guitar players and a singer as a writing team, so the format was very, very much the same as it’s always been. When you bring in a guitar player who’s also a very proficient writer and has great skill as a lead guitar player and a tremendous dynamic on stage, that’s got to have some kind of effect on you. I was watching a really cool clip of (Queen’s) Brian May and Roger (Taylor) sitting next to Adam (Lambert), and both Brian and Roger said that (Lambert) just kind of kicked them in the ass, brought another level of intensity and energy to the band. And I feel very, very strongly that’s what Richie did for us as well.”
Read more at Billboard.
source: billboard.com
I’ve got my deluxe version coming in the next day or so! Looks like all the reviews have been very good so far. Looking forward to listening to the entire cd as well as seeing them in Atlanta in October. Thanks Dana for keeping us in the loop! RHRF!
for me priest was at their best on the SIN after SIN album – they have written some amazing metal songs over the years, but every song on sin after sin was goose flesh raising, spine chilling , dark magic!
I AM ABSOLUTELY LOVING THIS ALBUM! And really excited about the bonus tracks that I finally got to hear today. This is their best work since Painkiller.
Eddie, can you find out if the band will actually release some real behind-the-scenes video of the making of this album?? From all of the clips, they obviously had cameras there. I would die to see a lot more of this stuff.
Got my tickets this morning to see them in Brooklyn, Izod Center and at Foxwoods!! WOOOOOO!!!!!
Listening to the new Priest right now!! An instant metal classic!! Halford’s scream in Walls of Valhalla is off the charts!! What a great summer for new metal & rock releases!!! Mastodon, Tesla, Ted Nugent (which I bought & listened to already today & is a solid record despite the negative criticism he’s received on here), Priest and more coming from Overkill, Accept, Ace Frehley and later Slash!!!
Listened to the CD on the way home from work. Really digging it a lot of good songs will take few listen to get the full just of it.