Ahead of Judas Priest's upcoming two-night stand at Austin's Moody Theatre (May 28, 29), co-founder/bassist Ian Hill spoke with Austin Chronicle about growing up in the Birmingham area, the roots of Judas Priest and the band's 50th anniversary, the current tour and reaction to their Firepower album, and more. An excerpt from the chat follows.

Austin Chronicle: The narrative in the press has been that the two new guitarists, Richie Faulkner and now Andy Sneap, have rejuvenated Judas Priest. Do you subscribe to that?

Ian Hill: "Yeah, it’s pretty true. When Richie came along - Ken (K.K. Downing) had decided to retire - he’s the same age as my eldest son. So he comes along and he’s got not just youth, but enthusiasm and energy. That rubbed off on the rest of us. He breathed new life into the band. And now Andy’s come along to fill in for Glenn (Tipton). He’s a fine performer as well.

"Obviously things are different onstage, but musically there’s absolutely nothing missing at all. It’s just fun. We all love doing it. Little changes and things that happen along the way, they just get absorbed. The band is still recognizably Judas Priest - at least from a sound point of view, and also from a performance point of view."

Read the complete interview at Austin Chronicle.

Judas Priest's current tour itinerary, with special guests Uriah Heep opening, can be seen below.

May
23 - Milwaukee, WI - Riverside Theater
25 - Chicago, IL - Rosemount
28 - Austin, TX - Moody Theater
29 - Austin, TX - Moody Theater
31 - Dallas, TX - Bomb Factory

June
1 - Little Rock, AR - Riverfest Ampitheatre
3 - St. Louis, MO - Stifel Theatre
4 - Kansas City, MO - Knuckleheads *
5 - Colorado Springs, CO - Broadmoor World Arena
8 - Saskatoon, SK - Sasktel Centre
10 - Lethbridge, AB - Enmax Centre
11 - Edmonton, AB - Rogers Place
13 - Dawson Creek, BC - Encana Events Centre
14 - Prince George, BC - CN Centre
16 - Kelowna, BC - Propera Place
17 - Abbotsford, BC - Abbotsford Centre
19 - Spokane, WA - Northern Quest Casino
21 - Seattle, WA - Showare Center
22 - Portland, OR - Moda Center
24 - San Francisco, CA - Warfield
25 - San Francisco, CA - Warfield
27 - Los Angeles, CA - Microsoft Theater
28 - Ontario, CA - Citizens Business Bank Arena
29 - Las Vegas, NV - The Joint

* Uriah Heep only