Judas Priest, Saxon, Uriah Heap
3Arena, Dublin
★★★★★
Saxon and Judas Priest were once part of the new wave of British heavy metal (NWOBHM). More than four decades later they are growing old disgracefully, still producing albums, still touring and still crazy after all these years. Judas Priest played You Don’t Have to Be Old to Be Wise on Friday night at the 3Arena, Dublin, for the first time in 14 years. It was released in 1980. Where have the years gone?
Neither band were fashionable enough to ever fall out of fashion. Instead, they have retained a loyal fan base who buy their music the old-school way. At No 2, Judas Priest had their highest ever UK chart placing this week with their 19th album, Invincible Shield, albeit in a completely changed musical environment.
Singer Rob Halford is now 72. With his bald pate and candyfloss white beard, he resembles the head of one of the Greek gods you find in the British Museum or a statue on Easter Island. Not many septuagenarians can wear a studded leather coat and leather trousers and get away with it; fewer still can reach the operatic heights his vocals soar to.
The years have taken their toll on Judas Priest. The twin guitar attack of Glenn Tipton and KK Downing, which created their signature sound, is no more; Tipton, now 76, cannot tour because of Parkinson’s disease, Downing left in controversial circumstances in 2011. Their replacements, the relatively sprightly Richie Faulkner (44) and producer-turned-guitarist Andy Sneap, are more than adequate; Faulkner, in particular, relishes the stage.
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As Halford told the crowd, they are the first heavy metal band to release albums 50 years apart, Rocka Rolla in 1974, Invincible Shield in 2024. Invincible Shield is up there with anything they have done in the past. The anthemic Crown of Horns was played for the first time, along with the set list opener Panic Attack and the song Invincible Shield.
Musicians come and go, but Halford is irreplaceable. Could he reach the vocal heights on Painkiller? He didn’t just reach them, he vaulted past them, and some more.
The same could be said for Biff Byford, the lead singer from Saxon, who are supporting Judas Priest on this tour. Saxon are another band that refuses to be their own cover act and have a new album to tour, Hell, Fire and Damnation, their 24th.
Saxon set was all killer,no filler, which delighted many in the crowd who would rate this band the equal of the headline act. “We shouldn’t be able to reach the high notes at this stage,” said Byford, but he did.
Kudos to the sound people in the 3Arena too who produced a pitch-perfect clarity that is the best I have heard in this venue for a metal band.
A word too for the openers Uriah Heep, who played a short but on-point set in front of a large crowd who had four hours of music in front of them. “Judas Priest, Saxon and Uriah Heep, I’d buy a ticket for that,” exclaimed Byford.
Fortunately, those who did will have been well satisfied.
