Judas Priest delivered a flame throwing hurricane at Rockfest last Thursday (6/12) in Finland with deep cuts, a pair of live debuts and so much Painkiller.
Headlining the opening night, Rob Halford (vocals), Richie Faulkner (guitar), Andy Sneap (guitar) Ian Hill (bass), and Scott Travis (drums) knocked out 19 tunes for the fans.
The heavy metal legends were celebrating both their latest album, Invisible Shield, and the 35th anniversary of Painkiller, those two LPs accounted for more than half the tracks.
Despite being an unstoppable force in the '80s, Painkiller was a pleasant reminder to critics in 1990 that Priest had not stopped maturing and growing.
The album shot to #74 on the Billboard charts in the US and earned the Brits their first Grammy nomination. Their intense title track lost out to Metallica's “Stone Cold Crazy” Queen cover for Best Metal Performance, which is nothing to be ashamed of.
Their Rockfest set started off with "All Guns Blazing," setting the Painkiller-heavy tone of the night.
The track hadn't been performed live since 2019 and it was the first time the band ever led off with it, which is a testament to the group because it rips, even now, decades after it was given to us.
Next came "Hell Patrol," which was the second track off Painkiller and on the album preceded "All Guns Blazing."
Always a bridesmaid, "Hell Patrol," never the bride?
That was followed by Priest's biggest hit, "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" from their double platinum 1982 Screaming for Vengeance classic.
Risky move, setlist-wise, to toss such a banger that early in a set during a festival. Some might warn against it because it might give worn out rock fans an excuse to head home and beat the traffic.
Fortunately the Fins appreciate how lucky they are to experience 73-year-old Halford, whose voice is still stellar, in a festival setting where one can get as close as one dares.
Those who made it through were rewarded with the live debut of "Giants in the Sky," which is the last track of Invisible Shield. About 3 1/2 minutes into the tune, the screen behind the band displayed images of fallen rock legends from Lemmy to Janis Joplin to Taylor Hawkins and several others.
One of the faces is Ronnie James Dio who Halford told Classic Rock last year he misses a great deal.
“Ronnie was an extraordinary man. He was very friendly, very affable, he liked to laugh, he didn’t put anyone down," he said.
"But he was very serious about his music. When we did the Hear N’ Aid thing all those people in that room looked up to Ronnie. Whatever he suggested, everybody listened."
The regular set finished up with a nice long version of "Painkiller" complete with a video intro leading into that familiar drum beat.
The encore of "Hell Bent For Leather" and "Living After Midnight" were the perfect 1-2 punch to send everyone home and humming to the parking lot.
Priest continues the European leg of its tour with a variety of festivals including on in Germany honor one of their few peers that have been rocking longer than they have: The Scorpions, who have been doing it for 60 years.
In September they come to North America, hitting up many of the major cities. Catch this red hot band while you can. Tickets available on Judas Priest's website.
Shield of Pain 2025 World Tour
Jun. 21 – Hellfest, Clisson, France
Jun. 22 – Graspop Metal Meeting, Dessel, Belgium
Jun. 25 – Resurrection Fest, Viveiro, Spain
Jun. 27–29 – Evil Live Festival, Lisboa, Portugal
Jun. 29 – Rock Fest Barcelona, Santa Coloma De Gramenet, Spain
Jun. 30 – Miribilla. Anfiteatro/Basketball, Bilbo, Spain
Jul. 2 – Ferrara Summer Festival, Ferrara, Italy
Jul. 3 – Hallenstadion, Zürich, Switzerland
Jul. 5 – The Scorpions "60th Anniversary – Coming Home", Hannover, Germany
Jul. 7 – Atlas Arena, Łódź, Poland
Jul. 10 – Dalhalla, Rättvik, Sweden
Jul. 13 – Olympiahalle, München, Germany
Jul. 15 – Festival de Carcassonne, Carcassonne, France
Jul. 17 – Sion Sous Les Étoiles, Sion, Switzerland
Jul. 19 – Rockhal, Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
Jul. 20 – Rudolf Weber-ARENA, Oberhausen, Germany
Jul. 23 – Scarborough Open Air Theatre, Scarborough, United Kingdom
Jul. 25 – The O2, London, United Kingdom
Sep. 16 – Mississippi Coast Coliseum, Biloxi, MS
Sep. 18 – Ameris Bank Amphitheatre, Alpharetta, GA
Sep. 20 – PNC Music Pavilion, Charlotte, NC
Sep. 21 – FirstBank Amphitheatre, Franklin, TN
Sep. 23 – Hartford HealthCare Amphitheater, Bridgeport, CT
Sep. 24 – Veterans United Home Loans Amphitheater at Virginia Beach, Virginia Beach, VA
Sep. 26 – PNC Bank Arts Center, Holmdel, NJ
Sep. 27 – Broadview Stage at SPAC, Saratoga Springs, NY
Sep. 29 – Budweiser Stage, Toronto, ON
Oct. 1 – The Pavilion at Star Lake, Burgettstown, PA
Oct. 2 – Pine Knob Music Theatre, Clarkston, MI
Oct. 4 – Riverbend Music Center, Cincinnati, OH
Oct. 5 – Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre, Tinley Park, IL
Oct. 8 – Intrust Bank Arena, Wichita, KS
Oct. 10 – Broadmoor World Arena, Colorado Springs, CO
Oct. 12 – Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre, West Valley City, UT
Oct. 14 – Shoreline Amphitheatre, Mountain View, CA
Oct. 15 – Toyota Amphitheater, Wheatland, CA
Oct. 18 – North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre, Chula Vista, CA
Oct. 19 – Kia Forum, Inglewood, CA
Oct. 22 – Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre, Phoenix, AZ
Oct. 23 – Isleta Amphitheater, Albuquerque, NM
Oct. 25 – Germania Insurance Amphitheater, Austin, TX
Oct. 26 – The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, Houston, TX
