HOW?
This band is legitimately fifty years old. Rocka Rolla, Judas Priest’s debut album, released on September 6, 1974. Vocalist Rob Halford had just turned a fresh-faced 23 years old. And now, forty-nine-and-a-half years later, Priest has released their 19th studio album, and Halford is 72.
At his age, he should be running for President, though he’d still be the youngest candidate.
Instead, he’s still fronting Judas Priest with a zeal you’d expect from a man literally half of his age. And there are vocalists half his age who don’t give half of his effort.
Now, it’s important to note that Halford hasn’t been Priest’s only frontman – for those unfamiliar with the band’s history, there was an eleven year gap, from 1992 to 2003, where Halford wasn’t singing for the band due to some internal strife and/or a miscommunication of some sort.
But Halford isn’t the only mainstay, either:
Guitarist Glenn Tipton has been with the band since just before that debut album released; he’s 76
Bassist Ian Hill is the longest-tenured member, having joined in 1970 when the band’s original bassist left; he turned 72 in January
Drummer Scott Travis joined the band in late 1989, the year Taylor Swift and my wife were born, after a long string of drummers who didn’t stay very long; he is the band’s tenth drummer, but has been with them for over thirty years now, and he is only 62 years old.
The band’s youngest member, at 44, is guitarist Richie Faulkner, who joined the band in 2011 after the departure of K.K. Downing.
So, again, I ask: How?
Because Invincible Shield is actually very good. The question really becomes how good – there’s certainly a valid point in the observation that Invincible Shield gets nowhere near the hardest tracks in their back catalogue, so fans looking for something extremely heavy may walk away disappointed, or simply wonder at what the point is when Painkiller already exists. But there’s something so beautifully METAL in the spirit of these legendary old men who are so dedicated to their craft that they refuse to hang it up – and they continue to spit in the face of Father Time and the Reaper by producing iconic metal tracks and headlining shows and festivals with sprightly vigor.
Okay, maybe not “sprightly”, cause Halford is getting around with a cane. But a buddy of mine was there for Powertrip 2023, and he, an avid Tool and Metallica fan, said Priest was the best show that weekend.
They’re still at the top of their game, and you can feel it on this album. They may not be able to go as aggressively as they used to, but they’ve subbed in their experience, and it really pays off. The album still feels plenty heavy, and there’s not a bad song to be found. Invincible Shield is a solid modern Heavy Metal record on all fronts.
I really don’t have any more to say. It’s just good (and I’ve been rather braindead this week).
Rating: Blue
Sooo good! Halford stole the show at PowerTrip! It was amazing to watch. Not a single person not head banging and throwing up the horns. \m/