Concert review: Judas Priest at Nokia Theatre Grand Prairie (August 13)

by Justin Press of Justin Press: Dallas Rock Music Examiner

It was a call to arms for the "defenders of the faith" that heavy metal is still the blood that flows through our veins.

"WELCOME TO THE HOME OF BRITISH STEEL" read the stage curtain. This ominous message was the first site that greeted you upon entering the theatre. Arguments can be made, but the Priest's masterwork was essentially the first true metal album. And along with fellow Brummies, Black Sabbath, they helped set the standards for all things heavy. Even with the withdrawal of Whitesnake due to Coverdale's throat problems, it was a non-issue because once the house lights went down, the energy went through the roof!

The intro of a mechanized beating of hammer and anvil lent to the manifesto of the evening, all killer, no filler. With that, searchlights illuminated and the curtain dropped to the strains of "Rapid Fire," the opening cannon shot from the British Steel album. The stage set was stripped down by Priest's usual standards and lent an old school "Hammersmith" feel to the gig. Amplifier rigs were covered in Union Jacks and drummer Scott Travis's kit was placed 8-feet high, silhouetting the JP Razor logo. Lasers, strobes, tracking lights and 120 dbs were pile-driven into your synapses. "Breaking The Law," "Grinder," and "Living After Midnight" were part of the onslaught celebrating 30 years of British Steel. Album closer "Steeler" was just blistering with Tipton, Downing, and the always steady Ian Hill just slaying the track, albeit with the same enthusiasm they always seem to embody. It goes without saying that this band, for all the shows they've played, the albums they've delivered, and the thousands of bands that have been inspired by them, are truly into what they do, creating single-minded heavy metal with no quarter given.

At the conclusion of their seminal works from the Steel album, they shifted into exploring their catalog as "Free Wheel Burning" included the entrance of the Harley (IMO "Hell Bent For Leather" was sorely missed), while the bottom heavy blues thunder of "Victim of Changes" borrowed a page from the book of Iommi and how to make a simplistic riff a mighty beast. The thrill of the early stormer "The Ripper" tore the faces off the front rows and the Baez classic "Diamonds and Rust" (which for all practical purposes is owned by the Priest these last three decades) was a spotlight for how well Halford's voice has held up all these years -- the Metal God indeed.

If the stage show was a lesson in economy with the focus shifted to the music, then Judas Priest showed to the 2,500 strong in attendance that it's always been the power and velocity of the songs that has connected us together for so long. The band's always been an essential part of the metal puzzle and never fail to deliver as a live entity, but this night, this one was special. It was a call to arms for the "defenders of the faith" that heavy metal is still the blood that flows through our veins.