Legendary metal rockers Judas Priest played the final show of their 2022 North American tour at Hamilton’s FirstOntario Centre this past Wednesday April 13. The enthusiastic crowd of largely middle-aged headbangers seemed, at least for a few hours, to be blissfully unaware of the passage of time and soaked in 50 years of heavy metal history.
Nobody has been more resilient than the band itself over the past couple of years. Rob Halford was diagnosed with prostate cancer a couple of years ago, which required surgery, and then last year he underwent radiation treatment for a recurrence. If that wasn’t enough, he also underwent an appendectomy for a tumor found on his appendix. Guitarist Richie Faulkner nearly died on stage last September from an acute cardiac aortic dissection, ironically during the song 'Painkiller.' He somehow finished playing the song and then was rushed to hospital where he received life-saving surgery with very little time to spare.
There was no evidence of any trouble on this night. Leading off with 'One Shot at Glory' from 1990’s *Painkiller* album, this was their battle cry and a fitting song to start the night. Halford at 70 years old is not the Halford of his prime 40 years ago, but then, who is? His voice is still strong, and he can still hit the high notes, but he’s smart about it and uses it judiciously. Anyone at his age doing what he does and doing it that well has nothing but my utmost admiration.
The enthusiastic crowd of largely middle aged head bangers seemed at least for a few hours to be blissfully unaware of the passage of time and soaked in 50 years of heavy metal history.
It only took until the third song for them to play one of their biggest hits, 'You’ve Got Another Thing Coming,' and they drew heavily from their biggest years of the early '80s for this tour. Of course, any good band knows to end strong, and end with a bang they did during the encore, playing four bonafide fan favourites: 'Electric Eye,' 'Hell Bent for Leather,' 'Breaking The Law,' and 'Living After Midnight.' Any Priest fan knows a highlight of their shows is Halford riding on stage on his Harley for 'Hell Bent for Leather,' and he didn’t disappoint. Fifty years and counting, and Priest is still a great show. Long live the Metal God!
Supporting act Queensrÿche got the Hamilton crowd warmed up nicely with a solid 12-song set. The band’s original singer Geoff Tate left the band in 2012, but replacement Todd La Torre has done a nice job of filling the void since, and original guitarist Michael Wilton and bassist Eddie Jackson have kept the ship on course.
Leading with 1982’s 'Queen of the Reich,' the band played mostly songs from early in their career to the delight of their many faithful in attendance. 'Operation: Mindcrime,' 'Take Hold of the Flame,' and 'The Needle Lies' were some highlights of the set, finishing with fan favourite 'Eyes of a Stranger.
