Judas Priest Concert Review

November 23 2014 11:25am

Judas Priest redeems itself at Tacoma Dome “Redeemer of Souls” Tour Chugs On| Concert Review by Daniel Scanlon

When it comes to British heavy metal bands, only one band comes to mind, that of Judas Priest. Oh sure there are metal bands out there who have paid them the highest compliment of emulating their sound, but if you know your vocalists’ then you are adept at picking out one, Mr. Rob Halford. His distinctive wail is not for the faint of heart. I am still hearing it in my head as I write this.

As with any aging band, no matter what genre, there is that point where there is talk of retirement or completely disbanding. Case in point: Lead guitarist and founder, K, K. Downing decided that he had had enough and left the band in 2011, prior to The Epitaph Tour. Being the devoted band to their fans, Halford and company pressed on and brought on ace guitarist Richie Faulkner, who, I might add delivered the goods last night. What a great addition and kept the frenetic pace with his chugging guitar.

The “Redeemer of Souls” tour was certainly met with exuberant enthusiasm by the crowd, which although relatively small in size (approximately 7,000 “souls”) kept up their end of the bargain by making sure they made the noise that of a sold out venue.

With that being said, Judas Priest launched Saturday night’s performance with “Dragonaut” and went straight for the jugular with “Love Bites,”  “Halls of Valhalla,” and “Redeemer of Souls” among other favorites, that are too many to name. With all that energy being expelled, you would think that Halford’s primal but operatic wails would falter at some point. Not a chance, which is a testament to keeping your instrument conditioned and in good standing.

One thing you can count on in a Judas Priest show, amidst the leather, heavy plumes of smoke and fog, and signature guitar solos (being traded between Glenn Tipton and new member Richie Faulkner) is another staple in their dominating stage presence: Halford’s roaring Harley being brought out, front and center as though it was another member of the band, not merely a prop. It certainly met approval of the crowd.

The night ended with the real crowd favorites: “Hell Bent for Leather,” “Living after Midnight” and “You Got another Thing Comin’” What was surprising is the fact they didn’t include “Green Manalishi” in the set list. Still, they were hitting on all cylinders and stayed on stage after the performance ended, merely to give the crowd what they wanted, time with their band.

As for the opening act Steel Panther, what can one possibly say except, “Get off the (expletive) stage!”

This band should have been taken to their dressing room, whipped with Halford’s leathers, and been escorted out for sheer stupidity. Droning on about…well, it doesn’t matter! The point being, every other word was laced with an “F-bomb” and juvenile banter about female anatomy, at an all-ages show. For their “effort” I give them an “F” as they did the crowd.