Sweden's MetalShrine has issued an interview with JUDAS PRIEST frontman ROB HALFORD, conducted by Niclas Müller-Hansen. The following is an excerpt from the interview, which took place on January 30th:

Q: Well, about the new Priest album, Nostradamus. Who came up with the idea of doing this album? Was it your idea?

A: It was our manager Bill and he came over to see us towards the end of the Angel Of Retribution tour last winter in Estonia and we just talked about what we'd be doing next. Our thinking was that we would go into the studio and make a follow up studio album to Angel Of Retribution, which was such a massive success. But he presented this possibility and we just embraced it and thought 'Oh God this is great!'. First of all it's a concept album, which the Priest have never done before. There are tons of Priest fans that have always been asking for it and then it's the story of this real man. We're dealing with reality and not fantasy. Nostradamus life was extraordinary and he's a very controversial figure still 500 years later. All of the things that he went through in his life, the struggle and the conflict, is very much in the world of metal. So it was just a great idea, a great platform for making a concept album about a real person and the things that he went through and the prophecies that he made. The music is absolutely incredible, it's just fabulous. Everything that you love about Priest is in this Nostradamus music, but it goes in further and into some areas that we've never done before."

Q: So how far have you come in the recording of the album? The structure of the songs, are they done and are you just working on the lyrics now or what?

A: "Like any band you go through the difficult stage, which is sitting down, like Glen and Ken and myself did with guitars and keyboards and go 'Ok, let's start!', but 'Where should we start?' (laughs). 'What part of his life do we do first?' and I think, what we tried to do is actually go on a timeline from when he first discovered these abilities to prophecise and all the other things that he went through in his life. And so, that's the initial challenge and the three of us put together very rudimentary demos fully in every aspect that we want to cover instruments and arrangements and construction and then really the joy that is to replicate those very rough demos to the fully, finished and final and musical pieces. And that's what the guys are doing in England, doing all of that right now and I´ll be going over there shortly to lay all my vocal tracks down."

Read the full interview at this location.