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ROB HALFORD: If We Didn't Play 'Nostradamus' Live In Its Entirety, I Think We Would Regret It
- June 26, 2008
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Mark Daniell of JAM! Music recently conducted an interview with JUDAS PRIEST frontman Rob Halford. A few excerpts from the chat follow. On touring: "It's the same no matter where we play. That's the joy of heavy metal music. We can walk out on a stage anywhere in the world and get the same reaction. The Japanese react the same way as the people in Texas, and the people in Texas react the same as the people in Rome. There's just this real love and passion for metal music and for PRIEST. That's a wonderful thing." On the band's decision after over three decades to release PRIEST's first-ever concept album: "I can't remember how long it's been, but I know that we've had conversations about doing a concept release more than once. It has been lurking in the wings for many, many years. . . A lot of concept records are really just made-up fantasy. But the idea of giving Nostradamus the heavy metal treatment was one that kind of stuck. . . We could have gone and done another studio record, but this just fired us all up and we couldn't wait to get stuck into the project." On JUDAS PRIEST's plans to showcase "Nostradamus" in a series of themed "special event" shows: "If we didn't play it live in its entirety, I think we would regret it. It'll be a real treat when we do play the whole thing live. We'll surround it with a great stage set, costumes and we'll do it at a storied venue like (London's) Royal Albert Hall. That will be a first for PRIEST; we've never ventured into that kind of experience." On the resurgence of interest in metal "I think metal has had just about every genre thrown at it. And still, so many new denominations of metal keep emerging. These days you have death metal, European metal, American-style metal and if something else comes up, I'll be delighted. It will be great to have a fresh metal experience." On being comfortable with PRIEST's place in rock 'n' roll lore: "We count our blessings we came along when we did. You look at today's situation, a band that's doing incredibly well right now, could be elsewhere in two, three years. It's very, very difficult to maintain a level of success in today's music industry. We've been fortunate to be able to put on the kinds of shows that people remember and want to come back and re-experience again and again. And what we're finding when we go onstage nowadays is that the front row is absolutely crammed with all these new metal heads. Barely into their teens, there they are, going crazy for PRIEST. They're seeking us out. So the journey is ongoing. I really can't see the end." Read more from JAM! Music. Rob Halford performing with JUDAS PRIEST on June 13, 2008 at the Download festival at Donington Park, Leicestershire, UK (photo uploaded by Flickr user " MrJolly"): 
Rob Halford performing with JUDAS PRIEST on June 22, 2008 at IJsselhallen in Zwolle, Holland (photo uploaded by Flickr user " KJGuch"): 
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COMMENT |
posted by :
6/26/2008 9:03:25 PM
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I've lived with the new record for a week and have come to love it. The only song that really doesn't work for me is WAR (Rob sounds really uncomfortable singing in so low a register) which of course is the 1st video. I for one am glad the boys are stretching their wings a bit and trying something different, instead of releasing an AOR clone. I'll be driving the 6 hours to Chicago to catch them in August.
And yes, Rob IS the metal God.
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COMMENT | Don't Bitch People!
posted by : ironmaiden316
6/26/2008 9:12:21 PM
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They've said they're going to do some shows playing the WHOLE album....you know ahead of time. If you're lucky enough to see one of these shows, don't get on here bitching that they didn't play all the old standards they've played a million times. Don't like the album? Then DON'T GO!!!!
Maiden told everybody ahead of time they were doing their whole album at shows....people went and then got pissed??? Idiots
The Priest double album does ROCK though!!!
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COMMENT | ..
posted by : Pod
6/26/2008 9:13:31 PM
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As long as they remember to scale the stonehenge monument correctly...
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COMMENT | I heart my gay metal god!
posted by :
6/26/2008 9:16:42 PM
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Rob not only looks gay, he is! It's June. Happy Pride.
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COMMENT | Even though I think the new Priest album is crap
posted by : Emannikcufesin
6/26/2008 9:30:56 PM
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I completely agree with Halford and wish more bands would follow suit. If you're going to release a new album and tour for it - play the damn thing from beginning to end. Be proud of your new material, I hate going to concerts and getting the same greatest hits package as last time. It's a waste of my time and money.
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COMMENT |
posted by :
6/26/2008 9:35:32 PM
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posted by : naturally_selected
6/26/2008 8:57:14 PM
that silver jacket actually succeeds in making rob look gay
bahaha
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COMMENT | Problem is,
posted by : His Royal Lordship of Excellence
6/26/2008 9:43:45 PM
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if you DO play it live in its entirety, everyone ELSE will regret it.
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COMMENT | Eh
posted by :
6/26/2008 9:50:39 PM
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I had a problem with Maiden doing it because their album just didn't seem like it would work live at all. Friends of mine who even liked the album said listening to AMOLAD in its entirety live was a grueling experience.
As for Priest, I think this could work a bit better because I think the live versions of these songs have the potential to improve upon their studio counterparts. So if they did this near me, I'd bite... cautiously.
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COMMENT | 2 words
posted by : sactown666
6/26/2008 9:53:18 PM
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PLEASE DON'T
who the hell wants to hear this lame 2cd in its entirety? not any of us hard core priest fans.
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COMMENT |
posted by : Gondor
6/26/2008 9:53:41 PM
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That second picture is totally METAL.
I'm not so sure about the silver jacket
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COMMENT | Go INTO YOUR ROOM!!!!
posted by : ShredderSchecter
6/26/2008 9:54:29 PM
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I liked it better when Halford was IN THE CLOSET!!!!
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COMMENT |
posted by :
6/26/2008 10:20:59 PM
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puke!
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COMMENT | Cool
posted by :
6/26/2008 10:43:36 PM
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That would be great to see live. Always enjoy reading Rob's interviews, carrying no ego or arrogance about him or the band, he's truly the ambassador of heavy metal. He's right about the business too, difficult time for new bands to come around and stick around in the age of mass media and short attention spans.
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COMMENT | ok
posted by :
6/26/2008 10:45:53 PM
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if that's what you want to do just make sure you let people know about it ahead of time. I unlike most of you people it seems haven't had the luxary of seeing priest multiple times,so to go and see them and not hear any of the hits would be a huge disapointment.to be clear there would nothing wrong with seeing them do the new record I would just like to know before I fork over the bucks to go.
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COMMENT | Bad Idea!
posted by :
6/26/2008 10:58:58 PM
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If Priest came and did that near me, I wouldn't bite.
So they better expect to be playing to less than half-filled ampitheaters and or smaller venues for these shows. Definitely out of their element I would say, as well as the album.
I for one hope Nostradamus isn't the swan song of the mighty Judas Priest, they both have done and deserve to go out better than this.
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COMMENT | Great Idea
posted by :
6/26/2008 11:05:57 PM
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I'd highly recommend listening to Nostradamus many times before drawing any conclusions. The album is growing on me. I too was skeptical however the album does evolve.
I think people just don't take the time to listen to music anymore. We just want the crack cocaine of music but not the magic. Not all music consists of just a chorus.
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COMMENT | PRIEST WITH NOSTR ROCKS
posted by : bmas020
6/26/2008 11:12:09 PM
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nostradamus album is awesome! Looking forward to the shows this year.....but not to listen to new album in it's entirety but to listen to old classics and lot of stuff from retribution album......Just purchased my nostradamus double cd and it rocks. But still don't know how to convert both albums into a single folder so that ipod can play both albums without intruption! any suggestions please??
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COMMENT |
posted by :
6/26/2008 11:20:56 PM
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I'm there if they end up doing one of these shows in NYC like they have mentioned before
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COMMENT | bmas020
posted by :
6/26/2008 11:23:25 PM
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make a playlist with the entire album or edit the album title deleting the (disc 1) and (disc 2) part
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COMMENT | Trash Can Man
posted by :
6/26/2008 11:40:09 PM
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I for one have listened to Nostradamus enough times to of drawn my conclusions on it, and that was one time. In my opinion everything Judas Priest did from Sad Wings up to Angel of Retribution (aside from Turbo) was an improvement on this outisde of basic production quality. But I still am a big Priest fan, its just that this particular album doesn't float my boat, and it feels alot like 86 revisited.
If you need more details, just read Keith Bergmann's review on this site. We are mostly of the same wavelength on this.
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COMMENT | What if
posted by :
6/27/2008 12:02:43 AM
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ACE PLAYS WYTH THE PRIEST
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COMMENT | I'd prefer not to hear any of this album live with the exception
posted by :
6/27/2008 12:17:42 AM
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of the title track.
When that song was released I had hopes for this album...HAD...
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COMMENT | Just think -
posted by : His Royal Lordship of Excellence
6/27/2008 12:28:27 AM
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People are bitching now about paying 12 bucks to hear this whole album in its entirety on their CD player.
Imagine paying five times that amount to hear it live!
HAHAHA!! What a shitty deal that is.
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COMMENT | What a crock of negativity.
posted by :
6/27/2008 1:16:50 AM
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You guys talk like everyone hates the album. Not so. It's got a lot more positive than negative ratings right here on this site. I'm confident they'd sell those shows out.
These shows wouldn't be a typical concert, and they probably won't do more than a handful. You'd have to be an oblivious dumbass to walk into the Royal Albert Hall (or someplace like Radio City or Carnegie here) with "Nostradamus" plastered on the billboard and be surprised by what you were getting.
METAL MASTERS!!! Aug 28th.
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COMMENT | KISS.........
posted by :
6/27/2008 1:17:39 AM
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Has been doing this for 10 years now.Every show,every tour.They play their new CD from song 1 to the end.Then again their last 10 cd's have been Greastest hits with the same songs and different covers.
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COMMENT | For all you so called hard core Judas Priest fans
posted by : headshrink
6/27/2008 1:48:33 AM
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Sorry, if your first exposure to Priest was the album Painkiller and you want every album to sound exactly like that you don't fucking count. Don't get me wrong, I like Painkiller but it is only a small part of Priest and personally I could make the argument that Painkiller was a real departure from their previous work. If you really know Priests work I don't think many of the aspects of the new cd are that surprising or that outrageous of a stretch. I want some of you fuckers to go throw on Sad Wings of Destiny and listen to "Epitaph" for a real shocker. Also, if you are really a fucking Halford fan songs like "Awakening" and "Sands of Time" are things of beauty and the concept of dynamics is over your fucking head. I would love to hear Rob perform these in a classical setting. They also take some of us back to tracks like "Dream Deceiver. Shit, I would love to seem them do it if nothing else to possibly expose some people they might not normally reach to Rob's voice and gain him even more well deserved respect. On the recent Heaven and Hell DVD a roadie talks about Dio's ability to capture sadness in his voice on mellower tracks. Halford has that quality in abundance. The new album demonstrates Rob's range and that of the band. I enjoyed Angel of Retribution but would also say it was pretty safe. But then again it also had a track like "Eulogy" which is another example of Rob's emotional range.
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COMMENT | yeah well...
posted by : Magical_Rainbows_From_Hell_666=Most_Banned_Name_Eva!
6/27/2008 2:19:46 AM
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If they DO play the album live, then I'll regret buying a ticket.
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COMMENT |
posted by : Skanna
6/27/2008 2:49:25 AM
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If they play Nostradamus live, I will be there.
Now, I'd like to send out a special FUCK YOU to all the modern kiddies with the attention span of a gnat who don't have the patience to sit down and listen to this album. And that goes double to the parasites who listened to a free download once before passing their esteemed judgment on it.
As for you SACT666. Hard core Priest fan? Don't make me laugh.
The great thing about Priest is that they make albums that are different to each other. It's not like Maiden or AC-DC whose records sound much the same from album to album. Nostradamus? Interesting record, and much better than the by numbers AOR.
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COMMENT | Ace Frehley rules.
posted by :
6/27/2008 3:25:19 AM
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He should drink some more booze and be happy.
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COMMENT | jeeeeez!!!
posted by : BleakOutlook
6/27/2008 6:40:48 AM
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OK, Am I the only one that realizes that Judas priest follows everything Iron Maiden does??? First they change their sound when the album Killers comes out, then later Rob quits after Bruce does and goes solo...then uses Roy Z, then goes back to Prist after Bruce goes back to Maiden...then both come out with the "come back" album". Then Maiden performs their newest album in its entirety live..now Priest.
I love both bands! But please...the new Priest kinda sucks. We don't need Defenders of the Keyboard in Priest!
Go back to Roy Z, Rob!
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COMMENT | yes, yes..ok...
posted by : BleakOutlook
6/27/2008 6:42:55 AM
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Before all the English teachers come on...I realize the typos. I'm drunk and typing...and smoking a cig in school. Bite me.
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COMMENT | I don't know about this...
posted by : danimal_73
6/27/2008 7:32:58 AM
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I've seen Dio perform the entire Magica album live which I love the album but for fucksakes he on;t played about 8 classic (rainbow/sabbath/dio) songs the rest of the night. The sucked.
I've seen Maiden perform the entire AMOLAD a;bum live which the album was so so and live was even terribler. But ONLY 5 other Madien classics the rest of the night!
And don't get me started on the whole Queensryche Mindcrime show (1st album is classic, 2nd album is some poop).
The Priest should definitely do an album in it's entirety but whtynot play British Steel or Defenders in it's entirety if you want to play a whole album. I don't think I can sit through, or stomach to listen to 90 minutes of Nostradamus live.
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COMMENT | New album uninspired
posted by :
6/27/2008 7:36:09 AM
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Priest's riffs were very good on Jugulator, I thought--probably the best of their career, with the exception of Painkiller. AOR had more generic riffs, and this album has, from the sound samples and my listening to a few of the tracks on youtube, very uninspired riffs.
This is my take: like Dave Holland's entry in the late 70s, Priest waters down their writing for accessibility, it seems. From Les Binks to Dave Holland, from Hell Bent to British Steel, it's all about simplifying. You don't get Dissident Aggressor and Painkiller, the songs that inspire metal bands--you get Metal Gods and Living After Midnight.
And now, Priest seems to have gone in the direction of Sir Elton John with his Aida.
Personally, I was listening to Rainbow Rising and We Sold our Souls for Rock and Roll before I discovered Sin After Sin and Hell Bent for Leather way back in the 70s, so Heaven and Hell are my focus now--and I think THEY are writing as well as ever.
My prediction, from Priest's old pattern is--commercial POS followed by metal back to basics album. So I expect something like "Resurrection" or "Painkiller" after this...whatever it is.
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COMMENT | BleakOutlook
posted by :
6/27/2008 8:28:15 AM
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Wow, that's BADASS!!!111
Warning: this post may contain sarcasm
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COMMENT |
posted by : Acacia70
6/27/2008 9:20:15 AM
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rob halford and the technicolor dreamcoat.
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COMMENT | Skanna
posted by : Blackthorned
6/27/2008 9:26:28 AM
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Don't patronise people - do you think the fact many don't like the album might have to do with it being a badly produced collection of shoddy and plodding songs rather than us having short attention spans. Do you think that might be it, Sherlock?
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COMMENT |
posted by : Skanna
6/27/2008 9:48:23 AM
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No, I don't, Watson. I suspect that most of the people trashing the album on this site have not even bought it, and have listened to half of a free download once or twice. They have then made a quick judgment and posted their views here.
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COMMENT |
posted by : I 4 N I
6/27/2008 10:46:20 AM
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Haha he looks freddie mercury, the heavy metal version, in that first pic lol. Halford owns regardless.
HAIL PRIEST!!!!!! SEPT. 7 @ VECTOR ARENA!!!! :D :D :D
Np: Bruce Dickinson - The Tower
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COMMENT | Naysayers
posted by :
6/27/2008 12:34:39 PM
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I am 22 and a massive preist fan. I own every single album and really think Nostradamus is an excellent piece of work. I love it and it sits nicely in my piest catalouge. If you listen 2 every single album there are great songs on all of them and for me Nostradamus is one of the stongest with Defenders and Painkiller.
Those who don't appreciate this album are too narrow minded to appreciate class music when it arrives.
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COMMENT | save it for your own show
posted by :
6/27/2008 12:58:46 PM
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just don't play the new stuff on tour with heaven and hell and motorhead. Most people didn't shell out all that money to hear priest play that.
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COMMENT | Cool
posted by : RiotAct666
6/27/2008 1:29:19 PM
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If they played the whole new CD live. I'll be there for sure. It is a amazing piece of music both disc are.
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COMMENT |
posted by :
6/27/2008 4:16:32 PM
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Ditch that silver jacket!!!!
(wishful thinking)
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COMMENT | people
posted by : And Then There Were None
6/28/2008 1:35:41 AM
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it's not just the silver jacket.
it's the pose combined with the jacket. it's like gay chemistry: two elements combined are greater than the sum of the parts... fuck it, you know what i mean. a match by itself is powerless, and so is a piece of paper, but together...
that said, let Rob enjoy whatever orifices make his pleased.
no comment on the new priest record. but i am liking Stained Class more these days.
cheers.
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COMMENT | that should be
posted by : And Then There Were None
6/28/2008 1:36:25 AM
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makes HIIM pleased.
drunken latenight BMing.
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