Hear Judas Priest’s Thunderous New ‘Dragonaut’ – Premiere
After a giant clap of thunder, Judas Priest introduce their first record in six years, Redeemer of Souls, with “Dragonaut,” a song that contains all the hallmarks of classic Priest: chunky riffs, fiery solos and frontman Rob Halford’s cutting vocals about imminent death. “‘Dragonaut’ really goes straight between the eyes from the offset,” Halford tells Rolling Stone. “And it just charges through with all this wonderful imagery that Priest has created over the years.”
Readers’ Poll: The 10 Best Metal Albums of the 1980s
In April, when the single “Redeemer of Souls” came out, the vocalist told Rolling Stone that the album would be “very heavy.” “It’s gonna be a great moment for Priest and for metal, hopefully,” he said at the time. “We felt it was time to re-create the essence of where Judas Priest kicked off from.”
And since then, the group has announced its first concert appearances to support the album: In October, they will appear at Louisville’s Louder Than Life and in November, Austin’s Fun Fun Fun Fest. These performances will be the first since the group concluded its self-proclaimed “Epitaph Tour,” which it had announced would be its last full-scale world tour.
The album, which contains 13 new songs and will be available in a deluxe edition with five bonus tracks, is due out July 8th and available for preorder on iTunes and Amazon.