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The Bakersfield Californian Thursday, October 20, 2011
Eye Street Editor Jennifer Self | Phone 395-7434 | e-mail jself@bakersfield.com
Index Scary for Charity ...................................... 23 Third Thursday ........................................ 24 20th annual Fall Home Show .................. 25 Arts Alive .................................................. 26 “Toy Story 3” on ice ................................ 27 The Lowdown with Matt Munoz.............. 28 Boo at the Zoo ........................................ 30 Calendar .............................................. 35-37
Hell bent for leather Metal titans Judas Priest grinding it out BY MATT MUNOZ Bakotopia.com editor mmunoz@bakersfield.com
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fter nearly four decades of leather-wearing, fist-pumping, heavy metal mayhem, veteran British rockers Judas Priest have decided to pull the brakes. The group announced last year that the current tour would be the final major spectacle and immediatly began planning a massive show poised to out-pyro all previous productions. Bakersfield will get a chance to feel that heat when it blazes into Rabobank on Tuesday. Weary of the incessant touring fans have come to expect since the 1974 debut of “Rocka Rolla,” original members Rob Halford, Ian Hill and Glenn Tipton are out to prove they still pack a mighty punch. And although the tour is called “Epitaph,” this is in no way the band’s swan song. “We don’t want to create confusion. All we’re saying is, we’re not going to do a world tour again that takes 18 months out of your life,” Tipton said during a phone interview with The Californian. “Maybe it’s the beginning of the end, but it’s certainly not the end.” Like The Beatles years before, Judas Priest was part of another British invasion that included Def Leppard and Iron Maiden, acts that followed the lead of the granddady of all metal bands, Black Sabbath. Halford’s operatic screams and love for motorcycles, as well as his fondness for S&M leather and studs, helped the band stand out in the crowd. But it wasn’t so much the bad boy antics as it was the twin lead guitars of Tipton and K.K. Downing that would profoundly influence American bands like Metallica and Slayer. “I think if along the way we’ve helped to inspire some young musicians, then that’s something we’re very proud of,” Tipton said. Pumping out razor-sharp anthems like “Breaking the Law,” “You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’” and “Love Bites,” Priest has released 16 studio and six live records, some featuring replacement band members, most notably vocalist Tim “Ripper” Owens, who stepped in after Halford left to pursue other projects.
PHOTO COURTESY OF JUDAS PRIEST
Judas Priest, which will be at Rabobank Arena on Tuesday night, was part of a British invasion that included Def Leppard and Iron Maiden, acts that followed the lead of the granddady of all metal bands, Black Sabbath.
Judas Priest with Black Label Society and Thin Lizzy When: 6 p.m. Tuesday Where: Rabobank Arena, 1001 Truxtun Ave. Cost: $30 to $90 Information: 852-7777 or ticketmaster.com
Halford eventually returned and, through it all, Tipton said fans have stayed fiercely devoted. “It’s something to be really proud of,” said Tipton. “A Judas Priest night is the whole thing, it’s not just us and the audience — it’s us and the audience together. So many young factions in the crowd, it’s just wonderful, really. They sing along, not just with the choruses, but with the lead breaks.” Reflecting on the group’s humble beginnings in the workingclass trenches of Birmingham, England, Tipton recalled a few of those early struggles.
“We were just like every other young band. We’d do one gig, and get enough gas money to maybe buy a bag of chips between us and get to the next gig. When we did our first album it wasn’t much better. I remember sleeping in the van outside the studio in the middle of London on top of the equipment, and we were allowed two meal tickets a day to eat at the studio canteen. Things looked up eventually.” After achieving arena stardom, Priest became the focus of controversy in 1990, when the band was pulled into court, accused of including a subliminal message on an early cover of the song, “Better by You, Better than Me.” The band was accused of complicity in the suicide attempts of two Nevada teenagers. The case drew headlines and was eventually dropped, but the notoriety put Priest at the forefront of the controversial campaign to force record labels to put parental advisory stickers on some rock and rap albums. “You know, it just didn’t make
sense. But having said that, it was a serious six weeks to two months in court and we came out of it, proving that we hadn’t put any reverse messages on the album. We flew the flag, not just for heavy metal, we felt, but every album that was recorded, every album that was designed, every book, every book cover — even films. Because I think if we’d have lost that case it would have set a precedent that would have started a roller coaster of lawsuits. It was a tragic case of two kids and their families who had been talked into going on trial when there was no case, really.” The band’s latest double-album, “Nostradamus,” continues in the tradition of Priest’s recent conceptual works, and for Tipton it’s every bit as good as even their signature work. “Like it, love it, hate it, understand it, this record certainly was a mammoth project that stands alongside some of our best records.”
Win Judas Priest tickets Tune in to “Californian Radio” on KERN 1180 AM at 9 a.m. today for your chance to win tickets to the Judas Priest concert Tuesday at the Rabobank Arena. Just listen for the cue to call and then phone 661-842-KERN.
Tipton said fans can expect more new music after the tour wraps in April, though Tuesday’s show will have a retrospective feel to it. “It’s going to be a Priest extravaganza. We’re doing a track off of every studio album and playing songs we’ve never played before live like “Blood Red Skies,” plus everyone’s got their favorites — just a rockin’ night of great metal not to be missed.” Also performing in the current lineup are drummer Scott Travis and guitarist Ritchie Faulkner. Opening acts are Black Label Society and Thin Lizzy, featuring original guitarist Scott Gorham.