In the minds of many, Heavy Metal and Judas Priest are synonymous and have been for well over three decades. With Rob Halford back in the frontman's seat and brand new CD, Angel of Retribution, busy times lie ahead for these iconic Brummie bruisers. Guitarist K.K. Downing checks in and forges some British Steel.
Yourself and Ian Hill (bass) formed Judas Priest 34 years ago in 1971. Did you ever imagine you would achieve the success you've had when the band first started?
"Obviously not but, of course, I was always the optimist! I think like anybody else in a band, your first goal is to try and be successful in your home town. Your're not really looking for international success, you're just trying to do anything rather than sign on the dole (unemployment) or have to get a proper job!"
What is the current Priest line up?
"It's myself, Ian and Glenn (Tipton: guitar) obviously, with Scott Travis on drums and Rob Halford back on vocals. Thinking of it, apart from Scott, it's the exact same line-up as the one on our very first album, Rocka Rolla (1974)!"
It must be great to have Rob Halford back in the band after all this time (Halford left Priest in 1991 to pursue other projects and returned to the fold in 2004)?
"Yeah, we should all be rich and retired by now!"
Judas Priest is one of only a handful of UK metal bands to have achieved success in the States. Why do you think your music appealed to an American audience?
"It's quite simply really, I think that when we first went to the States we just had something new to offer and they quickly lapped it up. The American audiences at the time were used to seeing bands playing wearing denims, apart from Alice (Cooper), of course, who had his own thing going! So when they saw the leather clad Priest hit the stage like a well-oiled machine with a much more brutal sound, they thought 'What the hell is this? They rock!'
Obviously, when we first went over there, apart from headlining our own shows in little clubs, we would play larger venues supporting other bands. We did a couple of shows with Led Zeppelin and we did a couple of shows with Reo Speedwagon, that kind of thing."
How was it opening up for Led Zeppelin?
"That was pretty amazing. At that point Led Zeppelin were already well and truly established. We were just about to go home to England when we got a call saying, 'Can you go to the west coast and do a couple of shows with Zeppelin?' So we did! It was great that the people who set up the gigs thought, 'Judas Priest are a little outfit, send them over to play with Zeppelin at Oakland Coliseum!' The place was completely sold out on both days, we're talking 60,000 to 65,000 people, the gigs were fantastic, totally brilliant."
Congratulations on all the great reviews of your new CD Angel of Retribution.
"We haven't had one bad word said about it . . . yet (laughs)! I've never had that with any album, ever! As we've said all along, we wanted to make a record that would encourage and regenerate everybody's interest in metal, because there's been a lot of people that have been disillusioned over the last decade and left wanting. Like I said in an interview I did yesterday, this is an important album and if we didn't make it then somebody else needed to in order to encourage the fans to come back out to concerts again. Hopefully there's something for everybody. Hopefully everybody will be affected in their own little way when they hear the new Judas Priest album."
Which Marshall are you currently using live?
"I'm using the 9100 power amps that I've had for a few years and they have held me in very, very good stead. I've also happily rediscovered the Marshall MIDI preamp, the JMP-1. I'm delighted with it 'cos it sings, it really is a cool piece of kit."
Did you use the JMP-1 in the studio as well?
"No, what I used in the studio was my old '70s Marshall heads, the ones you guys just serviced for me. Glenn nicked the best one off me, though (laughs)! I had three going but I let him have the best one and I used the other two. They're all really nice but on the road I'm just using the JMP-1 with the 9100 power amp and that's it. My live rig is dead pratical, it's simplicity in itself really. Although you can use sh**loads of amps and lots of different effects in the studio, I think it's no secret that in a live situation you can get away with being relatively minimal. I've got 10 sounds I can call up with my MIDI board and, to be honest, if you can't do a whole show with 10 sounds then I think there's probably something wrong with you! My rig has also got to sound period correct. When I play songs like 'Breaking the Law' and 'Hell Bent for Leather' they've got to sound like they always did! Basically, I'm using modern gear and dialing in late '70s/early '80s tones, that's my goal. Reliability is important to me too because when you're out there playing in front of all those people, you can't afford to go down just because you've got this special piece of old kit that you have to keep soldering together!"
You've always used straight 4 x 12 cabs as opposed to angled ones. What's your reason?
"Good question. After speaking with Glenn about it, I would have to say that we've always had a preference for the straight cabinets, simply because we felt they were a bit meatier basically. There's a bit more weight to the sound of them, that's all there is to it. End of story."
Any last words about Marshall for our readers?
"I wish I owned it! Joking aside, just keep up the good work, what else can I say? Millions of musicians all around the world . . . they can't all be wrong, can they?!"
Angel of Retribution is out now