Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford recently spoke with Goldmine about the 30th Anniversary of the Turbo album. Following is an excerpt from the discussion.

Goldmine: When the ‘80s first started you had the youthful anger of “Breaking the Law” and by the time Turbo came around, there was a brighter feel … experimentation with synthesizers, etc. And Priest, career-wise, were on top of the world. Was there a sense of “We made it!” within the band while recording Turbo? Did you feel that optimism?

Halford: "You nailed it on the head right there, yeah. It’s very cool that you mentioned British Steel briefly as well, because British Steel saw us coming through, you know, a really bad patch in the U.K. particularly, and I dare say, globally. As you get older, you see, the world seems to go in like decade cycles of events. Things start to happen at the beginning and the end of each decade. And generally through the middle bit, things are kind of not exactly coasting, but things are in general a little bit more balanced. I don’t know why that is but it seems to be the case. So with British Steel, 'Breaking the Law', 'The Rage', 'Rapid Fire', all that kind of stuff, my role as a lyricist at that point was to get out the angst, really, and to look around me and make comments on the state of my own country as I saw it at that particular time; although we did kind of find balance. You know the two big songs on that record, one was 'Breaking the Law', which was a real kick back on what we were experiencing in the U.K. — the Thatcher years and the miner strikes, you know, the whole country was in turmoil. The unions were just tearing everything up. Government was being very aggressive to any kind of union policy. So we had that attitude with one song, and then of course the flip side was 'Living After Midnight'.

So I think what I’m trying to say here is, that with you talking about the Turbo years, you seem to be having a great time and in a different place. We were exactly at that place. We were having a ball. We were in the middle of what I reference as probably one of the greatest decades of (heavy) metal. I don’t know whether you would agree. Do you look and listen to what happened from 1981 to 1989? It was just sensational, for everything in metal and rock, wasn’t it? When you think about the activity that was going on. And of course over here there was a power rise in the mid ‘80s. Am I right? In America, things were going great, weren’t they? The economy…"

Goldmine: It was a prosperous time.

Halford: "A very uplifted kind of vibe … and I think that’s reflected in the music of Turbo. It’s a very optimistic sounding record, isn’t it? It’s just got really good vibes and nothing to overly concern yourself about. Big hair, big costumes, big stage shows. It was all larger than life."

Go to this location for the complete interview.

Parliament Tattoo Studio has joined forces with iconic metal band, Judas Priet, to bring you Hell Bent For Leather: An exhibition of hand painted leather biker jackets inspired by the band’s albums and song titles by some of the worlds greatest tattoo artists.

In the video below, Planet Rock's Paul Anthony catches up with Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford at the launch of Hell Bent For Leather. Halford discusses the progress on Priest’s upcoming 18th studio album:

"Well, we're still tracking. I won't say we're at the end, but we feel like we're coming to some of the final moments. And it's just great to watch how a record comes together, from those early, early days where there was just me and Glenn (Tipton) and Richie (Faulkner) sitting in the studio with a couple of guitars and just, you know, doing what we do. You start the day with nothing, and then at the end of day, potentially, you've got a really great, classic Priest song that may live forever.

“So we're hard at it. We're still doing what we love to do. Priest is a working band more than anything else. It's that Midlands ethic, the work ethic of anybody that goes to work. I say it's work, 'cause it is work... you're working with your mind, you're being creative. And now we're moving through into other stages, we're preparing for another big world tour, getting stage designs sorted, lighting designs sorted. So this is the beginning of what's gonna be a very exciting 2018 period."

The first exhibition of its kind featuring tattooing nobility such as Grime, Jondix, Scott Move, Gregory Whitehead, XAM, and more, the landmark exhibition is set to make waves in both the music and tattoo art communities. Each artist taking part in the exhibition has selected their favourite Judas Priest song or album title from which to create their artwork - painting directly onto the back of biker jackets using specially designed acrylic leather paint - each piece represents hours of meticulous work resulting in some of the most exciting heavy metal artwork ever produced.

The one off pieces will be displayed publicly in London this May, at a free exhibition in the heart of Camden. An invitation only drinks reception will launch the original art event on Friday, May 5th at the Provender Building, right in the subculture epicenter that is the Stables Market. Visitors attending the Hell Bent For Leather Exhibition will not only get the chance to view these one off pieces, but also have the opportunity to purchase Judas Priest merchandise, music and more with proceeds being donated to charity.

Moving on from its stint in London, the jackets will head south to the prestigious Brighton Tattoo Convention on May 13th & 14th where they will exhibit alongside more than 300 world class tattooists, including several of the artists participating in the Hell Bent for Leather exhibition.

Following the events, the jackets will be auctioned off online along with a signed certificate of authenticity from Judas Priest to benefit both The Teenage Cancer Trust and the Ronnie James Dio Stand Up And Shout Cancer Fund - both extremely worthy causes close to the hearts of Judas Priest - the exhibition hopes to raise as much money as possible for the two charities.

More details at parliamenttattoo.com.