JUDAS PRIEST Invincible Shield. Track By Track. Part One.

 

INVINCIBLE SHIELD. THE TRACK-BY-TRACK. ROB HALFORD TAKES YOU BEHIND THE SONG. PRE-ORDER NOW PANIC ATTACK So here we go, the opening track, 'Panic Attack'. We've always felt as a band that the first three new tracks that you release are really important because of the time that's passed from your previous release, your fans have been waiting for new music and you've really got to push out as much of where you're at at the specific time in your life in those first three tracks. By track three, everyone should be embracing the album. They really should. That's been my own personal belief for music for as long as I can remember, on albums, and Judas Priest is still, and always will be, an album band. The album represents who we are at this particular moment in time in the life of Judas Priest. Okay, so 'Panic Attack' ’The clamour and the clatter of incensed keys can bring a nation to its knees on the wings of a lethal icon bird of prey’ It speaks for itself that this song, message wise, is about the way that the world is run by the World Wide Web, by the internet, and all the things that it brings to that experience, you know, I can remember the first time I heard about the internet and what it was going to be able to do. To me, it was like this sword of Damocles that we talked about on the 'Redeemer of Souls' album, there's two sides to everything in life. Yeah, up and down, in and out, black and white. So the internet, to me, presented a wonderful opportunity for humanity to do great and wonderful things a bit like AI at the moment. But there's also this other side of the picture, which is, oh my God this could be a calamity, this could bring so much pain, and this could bring so much darkness to the world and that's definitely what we're talking about in 'Panic Attack’. We're talking about the way that the internet has been weaponized, you know, the internet has been put to some dark places, some places of foreboding. So this is just a reference to that side, you know. It's just something that I particularly am engrossed with because I love this thing, my phone and that I can see what's happening in the world at real time on the internet. It is just a feast for the brain but it also brings with it anger, frustration, sadness, besides being uplifted and glorious things that you see, you know, something that I think we have to keep perspective on, of and with the way that young people particularly can be affected mentally, the mental health and wellbeing of us all, has been dictated to some extent by what we witness on the internet. But in this case, we're looking at most of those facets but the whole object of this particular song lyrically was to push this, this idea that this is where we're at now in the world, that we're at the mercy of the internet. THE SERPENT AND THE KING Track two ‘The Serpent and the King’. Good and evil. The serpent is the devil, the king is God. The whole thing in life about battles that have happened, the battles that we’ve endured through history have always had some kind of underlying aspect of, of religion, theology. There are always extremes in all walks of life that can take something that is essentially beautiful and totally turn it into something quite brutal. But we're not, when I talk about idols to their worlds well the world is what it is, the idols in a way that we worship deities is the way that we commit ourselves to various aspects of religion. Manifesting anger idols Hello worlds manifesting anger, conjurors of evil times, we can sense the danger. As I'm speaking now, you just have to look at what's going on around us in the world. So this is really, you know, they play with stars and sulphur. I'm talking about the beginning of the universe. I'm talking about sulphur, you know, the hellfire and brimstone and all that kind of great stuff. So it really is a - a battle between good and evil. CROWN OF HORNS This is kind of an introspective of what can become of us when searching for love. And I think it's searching for hope. I learned the hard way that what you dream for comes from the pain you hold inside. ’On a long road there is no answer you have to hold the love you find’ This is very true - you have to hold the love you find. ‘I’d wait so helpless but love was waiting just like an angel in the dark heavy is the Crown of Horns’ It's all about waiting for the moment in life where you find that one special person to make you complete. ‘I’ll call out to the world tonight to raise your horns up high I'm calling to the world tonight to let your voices fly’ Again, we’re bringing in the unity of what we're all experiencing and joining together in this great search and the end of longing. ‘A place to rest now I found the answer to my prayer’ There it is. We all pray for love and we'll find it eventually. TRIAL BY FIRE ‘Shot down in cold blood didn't know my name no-one understood so I took the blame when I left my mark when the system fell you were in my grasp hid behind your veil’ We're talking about a relationship with one or two people - one person is submissive because they have this opportunity to stand with that other person whether it's a relationship or at work or at school or whatever. ‘Bound and abused branded a liar I've endured trial by fire’ There's always people talking behind your back, making accusations that are really unfounded and it literally is a trial by fire. ‘Hang me out to dry I broke every rule fell right in your trap played me for a fool catch you safe and sound tried to make you mine took this holy vow then you crossed the line’ This is the tipping point. ‘Committed no crime in my innocence I've endured trial by fire’ Sometimes you have to bite the bullet. Things can get so frustrating, like you're waiting for a miracle. So again, it's just finding this inner strength and the power to rally around what you're capable of doing and get through to the other side. PRE-ORDER NOW