Surely this doesn't mean Halford is going to sing Ripper's material (the tour "will include songs from every PRIEST studio album"). Surely it also doesn't mean something on the order of a three-hour set, if they're playing a song (at least) from each album "plus all the old favorites."British metal legends JUDAS PRIEST have announced that original guitarist K.K. Downing has formally retired from the band and will therefore not be joining them on their forthcoming Epitaph Tour. The remaining members of the group respect his decision and naturally all wish him well. Having thought long and hard about how to proceed, singer Rob Halford, guitarist Glenn Tipton, bassist Ian Hill and drummer Scott Travis unanimously agreed that they should go ahead with the tour and not let fans around the world down. Fate also stepped in and delivered the perfect replacement — 31 year-old British guitar player Richie Faulkner (LAUREN HARRIS, DIRTY DEEDS). He has blended into the band perfectly and is a great talent who is going to set the stage on fire, according to a press release.
The Epitaph Tour will include songs from every PRIEST studio album and also tracks that they have never before performed on stage plus all the old favorites.
With a new album due to be released next year, the "metal gods" are preparing to tour the planet once more. Heavy metal at its best complete with lasers, lights, bikes and hellfire! It's a show not to be missed!
When questioned about his plans for the future after PRIEST completes its previously announced farewell tour, Downing recently said, "To be perfectly honest, I have not given any thought as to possible case scenarios after the final tour. At the moment though I feel that PRIEST has played its part in music history and feel very proud to have achieved what we have. So there is a good positive feeling inside me and, of course, I feel very indebted to the fans all over the world. As for the future, we probably need the help of Nostradamus."
No one here has seen a Priest show in recent years, right? I'd probably go if they actually showed up in my town (no chance), though the Nostradamus album certainly went a long way toward killing my geekiness over the band.