JUDAS PRIEST's ROB HALFORD: 'It's So Cool To Play Some Of These Songs That We Haven't Done In The Longest Time'

JUDAS PRIEST has posted a new video of Rob Halford discussing the setlist for the band’s spring U.S. run with fellow classic heavy rockers URIAH HEEP. The 32-date trek will kick off on May 3 at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Florida and wrap on June 29 at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada.

“We’ve re-looked at the setlist compared to all the shows we’ve been doing recently,” Halford says in the clip, which can be seen below. “You know, there’s so much PRIEST material, isn’t there? It’s crazy. There’s so many songs that we wanna play, but just because of the time we’ve got, it’s just impossible. We would be on stage all night, which we know you would like, but let’s be practical.

“Here’s the thing: some songs we’ve not played in a long time or maybe never before,” he continues. “We haven’t done ‘Out In The Cold’ [from 1986’s ‘Turbo’]. ‘Rapid Fire’ [from 1980’s ‘British Steel’], you probably saw [a video of] us jamming that recently. What else? ‘The Sentinel’ [from 1984’s ‘Defenders Of The Faith’]. ‘All Guns Blazing’ [from 1990’s ‘Painkiller’], possibly. We ran through maybe 15 tracks or more while we were on a little bit of a break, and they all sound great — they sound wonderful.

“It’s just so cool to play some of these songs that we haven’t done in the longest time, and we know you’re looking forward to seeing them and we’re looking forward to playing them for you,” he adds. “New stage set, new lights, some new costumes. But most importantly, seeing you guys. We love you so much. Thank you for supporting PRIEST like you do. We can’t do it without you. We’ve said it a million times. So thank you, thank you, thank you!

“That’s it. Come and see us. It’s gonna be great. Throw your horns up. Get some heavy metal. The PRIEST is back. Oh, yeah!”

Other tracks that PRIEST has rehearsed for the upcoming tour include “Killing Machine” (from 1978’s “Killing Machine”), “(Take These) Chains” (from 1982’s “Screaming For Vengeance”) and two more songs from the band’s latest album, “Firepower”, “Traitors Gate” and “Necromancer”.

Back in January, JUDAS PRIEST performed “Killing Machine” live for the first time since 1978 during a concert at Zénith de Paris in Paris, France.

During last year’s “Firepower” U.S. tour, JUDAS PRIEST‘s set included rarities like “Running Wild”, “Bloodstone” and “Tyrant”, plus “Saints In Hell”, which had never been performed live before.

Bassist Ian Hill is the sole remaining original member of PRIEST, which formed in 1969. Halford joined the group in 1973 and guitarist Glenn Tipton signed on in 1974. Rob left PRIEST in the early 1990s to form his own band, then came back to PRIEST in 2003.

“Firepower” was released in March 2018 via Epic.