Rob Halford: Next Judas Priest Album Combines Elements of ‘British Steel’ and ‘Painkiller’

Released in 1982, Judas Priest‘s ‘Screaming for Vengeance’ brought the legendary metal band enormous mainstream success, specifically with the classic tune ‘You’ve Got Another Thing Comin’.” Priest frontman Rob Halford recently sat down with Loudwire, and while he is in celebratory mode for the release of the special 30th anniversary edition of ‘Screaming for Vengeance,’ he and the band are also gearing up for some new music.

“We’ve already got a strong cross-section of ideas, some of them complete, some of them in bits and pieces,” Halford told us about the next Priest album. “It’s shaping up to be quite intense, in terms of the riffage and the strength of certain tracks. Much like every time you try and talk about music, it’s practically impossible to capture it. You can only point it in the direction of where things are shaping up, and it’s just glorious. If I try to pinpoint it, there are elements of ‘British Steel’ and there are elements of ‘Painkiller’ in terms of the vibe.”

Getting ready to celebrate his 61st birthday on Aug. 25, Halford is excited for what the future holds for his band’s next studio release. “We’ve got a really solid record coming together slowly in a strong metal way that will make all of our Priest fans around the world very happy and content,” he said.

In our exclusive interview with Halford, the legendary rocker also opened up about Lamb of God’s Randy Blythe, saying, “The next Lamb of God album is going to be colossal from an emotional point of view.” Don’t go far, our entire interview with Halford is coming soon. He talks about when fans can plan to hear Priest’s new album, discusses his favorite track from ‘Screaming for Vengeance’ and even explains how it feels to continue to carry the torch for metal.