JUDAS PRIEST - Rob Halford, Glenn Tipton, Ian Hill, Scott Travis, and new guitarist Richie Faulkner (DIRTY DEEDS, VOODOO SIX, LAUREN HARRIS) - have issued the following update:

"We would like to clarify a situation that seems to be confusing a few people out there.

When we issued our press release to announce the farewell tour - we stated that it was the last major world tour for Judas Priest - nothing has changed - we didn't say it was the end of the band or that we were going to retire or the band was going to break up... Just that it would be the last major world tour we would be doing which is still the case.

We have plans for a new album (which we have already announced in an earlier press release) plus possible future releases and we would still consider doing the odd live show - if it is something special or for a great cause - but no more world tours."

Judas Priest announced a Toronto date on the first North American leg of their Epitaph Tour, which features support from THIN LIZZY and BLACK LABEL SOCIETY. The show will take place on November 22nd at the Air Canada Centre.

Dates include:

October

12 - San Antonio, TX - AT&T; Center
14 - Corpus Christi, TX - Concrete Street Ampitheater
15 - Houston, TX - Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
16 - Dallas, TX - Allen Event Center
18 - Tuscon, AZ - Ava Ampitheater
19 - San Diego, CA - Cricket Wireless Ampitheater
21 - Phoenix, AZ - AZ State Fair
22 - San Bernadino, CA - SAn Mauel Ampitheater
23 - Las Vegas, NV - Hard Rock
25 - Los Angeles, CA - Gibson Ampitheater
26 - Oakland, CA - Oracle Arena
29 - Seattle, WA - WaMy Theater
30 - Vancouver, BC - Rogers Arena

November

1 - Edmonton, AB - Shaw Conference Center
2 - Calgary, AB - Scotiabank Saddledome
4 - Salt Lake City, UT - Maverik Center
5 - Denver, CO - 1st Bank Center
12 - Chicago, IL - The Venue At Horeshoe Casino
13 - Detroit, MI - Joe Louis Arena
18 - East Rutherford, NJ - Izod Center
22 - Toronto, ON - Air Canada Centre

Judas Priest recently outlined the following upcoming releases:

Single Cuts - CD Singles box set:

- The complete UK CBS/Columbia singles from 1977-2008 – featuring all 7" and 12" tracks from 1987-2008
- All singles will carry original artwork.
- This will box will only be available online and sold through the official Judas Priest website.
- Fans can pre-order the box starting in June; the product will ship later in the summer.

The Classic Albums Collection:

- Timed for the start of the US tour, Judas Priest will be releasing the Classic Albums Collection
- Box set - featuring all the albums from the classic line up years, including first two Gull records
- Includes 17 albums – 19 discs in total
- All remastered albums with original album artwork

Finland's KaaosTV conducted a video interview with bassist Ian Hill and new guitarist Richie Faulkner at the Sauna Open Air in Tampere, which ran from June 9th - 11th. They discussed the band's farewell tour, their forthcoming album, and how Faulkner ended up in the band. Check it out below:

The band held a press conference on Thursday, June 9th at the Sweden Rock Festival in Sölvesborg. Footage of the press conference can be seen below:

Judas Priest's Sweden Rock Festival setlist:

'Rapid Fire'

'Metal Gods'

'Heading Out To The Highway'

'Judas Rising'

'Starbreaker'

'Victim Of Changes'

'Never Satisfied'

'Diamonds & Rust '(JOAN BAEZ cover)

'Prophecy'

'Night Crawler'

'Turbo Lover'

'Beyond The Realms Of Death'

'The Sentinel'

'Blood Red Skies'

'The Green Manalishi (With The Two-Pronged Crown)' (FLEETWOOD MAC cover)

'Breaking The Law'

'Painkiller'

Encore:

'The Hellion' (taped intro)

'Electric Eye'

Encore 2:

'Hell Bent For Leather'

Encore 3:

'You've Got Another Thing Comin''

Check out fan-filmed footage below: