During a question and answer session this past September at the Rock ‘N’ Roll Fantasy Camp in Hollywood, CA, Judas Priest guitarist Richie Faulkner spoke about the band’s songwriting process for the Firepower album.

Faulkner said, “We kind of go away after a tour, and we will put down… You get an idea and you put it down in your voice-memo thing or whatever. And we'll put down ideas, riffs at home, so when it comes to the time when we're gonna get together, me, Rob (Halford, vocals) and Glenn (Tipton, guitar) will go and get the riffs out, the song ideas out. Rob might come in with a vocal melody or an idea, and I've got exactly the thing to go with that. And it's so relaxed — there's no ego; nothing like that. It's just three buddies making music to hopefully the best they can do. So it's really free and really relaxed. So, yeah, we do a lot of it on our own and then bring it together and put it all in a pot. And hopefully a great album comes out."

The Judas Priest: Firepower 2018 Tour will kick off on March 13th in Pennsylvania, and wrap up on May 1st in Texas. Support comes from Saxon and Black Star Riders.

The new album (which was produced by Andy Sneap and Tom Allom) is due in early 2018 and the tour will feature the lineup of singer Rob Halford, guitarists Glenn Tipton and Richie Faulkner, bassist Ian Hill, and drummer Scott Travis.

All dates will be running a Judas Priest Fan Presale starting Wednesday, October 25th at 10 AM local time with the password: FIREPOWER that fans can use to purchase tickets in advance. Check the local venue for additional information.

There are few heavy metal bands that have managed to scale the heights that Judas Priest have during their 40 year career - originally formed during the early '70s in Birmingham, England, Judas Priest is responsible for some of the genre's most influential and landmark albums (1980's British Steel, 1982's Screaming For Vengeance, 1990's Painkiller, etc.) and for decades have been one of the greatest live bands in the entire heavy metal genre including an iconic performance at Live Aid in 1985 - they also brought metal to the masses by their appearance on American Idol in 2011 - plus Judas Priest were one of the first metal bands to exclusively wear leather and studs - a look that began during this era and was eventually embraced by metal fans throughout the world! And in 2017, the band was nominated for induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

And come 2018, North American headbangers will get the opportunity to experience the mighty Priest on a nearby concert stage!

Confirmed tour dates:

March
13 - Wilkes Barre, PA - Mohegan Sun Arena at Casey Plaza
15 - Youngstown, OH - Covelli Centre
17 - Uniondale, NY - Nassau Coliseum
18 - Washington, DC - The Anthem
20 - Newark, NJ - Prudential Center
22 - Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun Arena
25 - Ottawa, ON - The Arena at TD Place
27 - London, ON - Budweiser Gardens
28 - Oshawa, ON - Tribute Communities Centre
30 - Orillia, ON - Casino Rama
31 - Detroit, MI - Detroit Masonic Temple

April
3 - Milwaukee, WI - Riverside Theater
5 - Green Bay, WI - Resch Center
8 - Bloomington, IL - Grossinger Motors Arena
10 - Casper, WY - Casper Events Center
11 - Loveland, CO - Budweiser Events Center
15 - Kent, WA - ShoWare Center
17 - Portland, OR - Veterans Memorial Coliseum
19 - San Francisco - The Warfield
22 - Los Angeles, CA - Microsoft Theater
24 - Phoenix, AZ - Comerica Theatre
26 - Tulsa, OK - BOK Center
28 - Dallas, TX - The Bomb Factory
29 - Sugarland, TX - Smart Financial Centre

May
1 - San Antonio, TX - Freeman Coliseum