English translation from the Swedish Pop Magazine OKEJ. OKEJ was more or less the only music magazine in Sweden during the 1980’s and almost 90% of Swedish youth read it and then talked about in school. Are you interested in the OKEJ magazine phenomena, then read more here!
JUDAS PRIEST
Haunted by Evil Spirits
For a long time now, unexplainable things have been happening to the English Heavy Metal band Judas
Priest. Singer Rob Halford believes he knows the reason ...
I am absolutely convinced that we are haunted by evil forces, says singer Rob Halford of Judas Priest. He is wearing his "uniform", black boots, bracelets with rivets and various chrome chains.
Burned Albums
Black leather clothes are my armor, so to speak. "The clothes are my defense against some people's bad vibes," says Rob. Rob knows what he's talking about. During their last tour in the US, various fanatical religious sects burned Judas Priest's LPs. A bad omen? In any case, the group was haunted by countless unexplained events during the tour. Guitarist K.K. Downing's solo once sounded like funeral bells in the speakers, despite a thorough sound check. The almost two-ton star hanging over the stage came loose in Oregon and nearly crushed singer Rob. Rob later learned from his friends that such five-pointed stars are said to have magical powers and are used for spells in certain magical faith cults. Despite these ominous events, Judas Priest had no fear before the German tour, nothing that was noticeable, at least
Metal Gods
Power-charged, Rob jumped onto the stage wearing his favorite outfit and started the pressure together with guitarists K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton, bassist Ian Hill and drummer Dave Holland. Dave sits high above the others on a well-lit throne. The music thumps thickly like crude oil from the 15,000-watt speakers, and the audience is completely bathed in the Priest sound as the guys start playing "Metal Gods".
Dinosaur Steps
On the album version of that song, you can hear terrifying footsteps from some kind of otherworldly being, which seems to be getting closer and closer to the listener. Rob explains laughingly after the show how they did that trick with the "dinosaur steps": Glenn filled two boxes with knives and forks that he carried around the studio with.
Harley Davidson
Judas Priest were unhappy that they were not allowed to perform their complete stage show in Germany. In Munich, for example, they were not allowed to ride their Harley-Davidson motorcycle on stage, as Rob usually rides it to the song "Hellbent for Black Leather". "The risk of fire "was considered too big," says Rob. "But the tank is only filled with half a liter of gasoline and there are fire extinguishers all around, so all the talk about fire danger is idiotic. Maybe it was further proof that the dark and evil forces of darkness are after US
/ Photo: Rock Shots, Ellis