Judas Priest: Richie Faulkner talks Firepower’s “great vibe”

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Guitarist Richie Faulkner says their upcoming album Firepower mixes classic Judas Priest with a modern touch

Judas Priest
Judas Priest (Image credit: Justin Borucki)

Judas Priest guitarist Richie Faulkner reports that the band’s upcoming album Firepower has a “great energy and “a great vibe.”

Priest’s 18th studio album and the follow-up to 2014’s Redeemer Of Souls will arrive on March 9 via Columbia Records, with the metal veterans unleashing the track Lightning Strike last month.

And when asked by Rock Overdose if he thought the record was one of the band’s best, Faulkner says: “It’s hard to say when we are so close to it. We wrote the songs, we recorded the songs – we’ve lived with them for a while now. So it’s very hard to be objective about it.

“Obviously, we feel like it’s a progression from Redeemer Of Souls. Everyone said it. I think this is a better album than the last one.

“If it wasn’t a better album, there would be no point in releasing it. We wanted to do something that was better, that was different, that was classic Judas Priest but modern Judas Priest for 2018. I think we’ve done that.”

Faulkner adds: “We love the songs. It’s got a great energy, a great vibe. We recorded it differently – we recorded it more cohesively. We rehearsed the songs, so it was a great experience to record and to write. I think that comes across.

“I think it’s a great record. I’m super proud of it – we all are and I hope the fans love it.”

Judas Priest will head out on the road across North America next month, before retuning to Europe for several dates, including a headline set at the UK’s Bloodstock festival.

Find further details below.

Judas Priest Firepower tracklist

  1. Firepower
  2. Lightning Strike
  3. Evil Never Dies
  4. Never The Heroes
  5. Necromancer
  6. Children Of The Sun
  7. Guardians
  8. Rising From Ruins
  9. Flame Thrower
  10. Spectre
  11. Traitors Gate
  12. No Surrender
  13. Lone Wolf
  14. Sea Of Red

Judas Priest 2018 Firepower tour dates

Mar 13: Wilkes Barre Mohegan Sun Arena At Casey Plaza, PA
Mar 15: Youngstown Covelli Centre, OH
Mar 17: Uniondale Nassau Coliseum, NY
Mar 18: Washington The Anthem, DC
Mar 20: Newark Prudential Center, NJ
Mar 22: Uncasville Mogehan Sun Arena, CT
Mar 25: Ottawa The Arena At TD Place, ON
Mar 27: London Budweiser Gardens, ON
Mar 28: Oshawa Tribute Communities Centre, ON
Mar 30: Rama Casino Rama, ON
Mar 31: Detroit Masonic Temple, MI
Apr 03: Milwaukee Riverside Theater, WI
Apr 05: Green Bay Resch Center, WI
Apr 08: Bloomington Grossinger Motors Arena, IL
Apr 10: Casper Events Center, WY
Apr 11: Loveland Budweiser Events Center, CO
Apr 15: Kent ShoWare Center, WA
Apr 17: Portland Veterans Memorial Coliseum, OR
Apr 19: San Francisco The Warfield, CA
Apr 22: Los Angeles Microsoft Theatre, CA
Apr 24: Phoenix Comercia Theatre, AZ
Apr 26: Tulsa BOK Center, OK
Apr 28: Dallas Bomb Factory, TX
Apr 29: Sugarland Smart Financial Centre, TX
May 01: San Antonio Freeman Coliseum, TX
Jul 19: Athens Rockwave Festival, Greece
Jul 21: Plovdiv Hills Of Rock Festival, Poland
Jul 31: Munich Zenith, Germany
Aug 08: Dortmund Westfallenhalle, Germany
Aug 10: Bloodstock Festival, UK

Buyer's Guide: How to buy the best of Judas Priest

Scott Munro
Scott Munro
Louder e-commerce editor

Scott has spent 35 years in newspapers, magazines and online as an editor, production editor, sub-editor, designer, writer and reviewer. Scott joined our news desk in the summer of 2014 before moving into e-commerce in 2020. Scott keeps Louder’s buyer’s guides up to date, writes about the best deals for music fans, keeps on top of the latest tech releases and reviews headphones, speakers, earplugs and more for Louder. Over the last 10 years, Scott has written more than 11,000 articles across Louder, Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog. He's previously written for publications including IGN, Sunday Mirror, Daily Record and The Herald, covering everything from daily news and weekly features, to tech reviews, video games, travel and whisky. Scott's favourite bands are Fields Of The Nephilim, The Cure, New Model Army, All About Eve, The Mission, Cocteau Twins, Drab Majesty, The Tragically Hip, Marillion and Rush.