UK Metal Gods JUDAS PRIEST are currently in a UK studio putting the finishing touches to their highly anticipated, as-yet-untitled comeback record that is due out through Epic/Sony on December 28th. Always known for their visual appeal, frontman Rob Halford spoke to BW&BK recently about the art that is being created around the album.
"I think the artwork is gonna be another great classic moment for Priest," he says enthusiastically. We’re noticed for British Steel (1980) or Sad Wings Of Destiny (1976) or Screaming For Vengeance (1982) and I think that the artwork will come into the same degree of the qualities of those three. I think this new artwork has that kind of essence. It’s another unique moment. The artwork is always very, very important for this band. I think that what we wanted to try and do with this particular piece of artwork was try and capture all of the elements of the band in certain imagery, and we appear to have been able to have done that and we’re all kind of looking at it now in it’s final stages and nodding and agreeing. It’s had some little touch ups here and there along the way, but it looks great. All I’ll say is that it’s very simple and direct and pure. That’s the best way to describe it without letting the cat out the bag.
As for the artist, Halford reveals that "We used Mark (Wilkinson), who did the Painkiller release. Only because Mark’s got a great imagination and Mark is able to kind of sit down and listen to what we’re talking about, what we’re thinking about. Between the three of us, myself, Ken (K.K. Downing - guitar) and Glenn (Tipton - guitar), we’ve always been involved in the artwork. Again, like everything this band does is so closely monitored. We just threw out some ideas to Mark and he was, because of his talent, able to kind of come back with some sketches and we developed it until we all agreed and said, ‘Yes, lets go for this’, trying to bring something in the final stages of that idea."
As for a title and song titles, the Metal God remains tight-lipped: "We've got a handful of titles that we’re chewing over and we’ll do that - we’ll probably do that when we’re being held in a stranglehold by Sony, telling us, ‘Give us the title because we’re ready to press go.’ It’s time as much as everything else has taken it’s time because this is a very important record for the band. But everything connects, the music, the artwork, the title, it all connects in one piece."
Source: [a href=\'http://www.bravewords.com\' target=\'_blank\']Bravewords.com[/a]
"I think the artwork is gonna be another great classic moment for Priest," he says enthusiastically. We’re noticed for British Steel (1980) or Sad Wings Of Destiny (1976) or Screaming For Vengeance (1982) and I think that the artwork will come into the same degree of the qualities of those three. I think this new artwork has that kind of essence. It’s another unique moment. The artwork is always very, very important for this band. I think that what we wanted to try and do with this particular piece of artwork was try and capture all of the elements of the band in certain imagery, and we appear to have been able to have done that and we’re all kind of looking at it now in it’s final stages and nodding and agreeing. It’s had some little touch ups here and there along the way, but it looks great. All I’ll say is that it’s very simple and direct and pure. That’s the best way to describe it without letting the cat out the bag.
As for the artist, Halford reveals that "We used Mark (Wilkinson), who did the Painkiller release. Only because Mark’s got a great imagination and Mark is able to kind of sit down and listen to what we’re talking about, what we’re thinking about. Between the three of us, myself, Ken (K.K. Downing - guitar) and Glenn (Tipton - guitar), we’ve always been involved in the artwork. Again, like everything this band does is so closely monitored. We just threw out some ideas to Mark and he was, because of his talent, able to kind of come back with some sketches and we developed it until we all agreed and said, ‘Yes, lets go for this’, trying to bring something in the final stages of that idea."
As for a title and song titles, the Metal God remains tight-lipped: "We've got a handful of titles that we’re chewing over and we’ll do that - we’ll probably do that when we’re being held in a stranglehold by Sony, telling us, ‘Give us the title because we’re ready to press go.’ It’s time as much as everything else has taken it’s time because this is a very important record for the band. But everything connects, the music, the artwork, the title, it all connects in one piece."
Source: [a href=\'http://www.bravewords.com\' target=\'_blank\']Bravewords.com[/a]