The Epitaph World Tour was a
concert tour
A concert tour (or simply tour) is a series of concerts by an artist or group of artists in different cities, countries or locations. Often concert tours are named to differentiate different tours by the same artist and to associate a specific to ...
by English
heavy metal band
Judas Priest, at the time intended to be the band's farewell tour.
The tour commenced in June 2011 and concluded in May 2012. The tour was named after the 6th track from their ''
Sad Wings of Destiny
''Sad Wings of Destiny'' is the second studio album by English heavy metal band Judas Priest, released on 23 March 1976 by Gull Records. It is considered the album on which Judas Priest consolidated their sound and image, and songs from it su ...
'' album.
Guitarist
K. K. Downing
Kenneth Keith Downing Jr. (born 27 October 1951) is an English guitarist and a former member of the heavy metal band Judas Priest.
Early life and career
Downing was born in West Bromwich, West Midlands. In the late 1960s, he developed a p ...
abruptly left the band shortly before the start of the tour. He was replaced by then 31-year-old Briton,
Richie Faulkner
Richard Ian Faulkner (born 1 January 1980) is an English musician best known as one of the lead guitarists for the heavy metal band Judas Priest since 2011, replacing original member K. K. Downing. Faulkner has also performed with Lauren Harri ...
. The last date of the tour was held in an unusually small venue, London's
Hammersmith Apollo. This return to Judas Priest's homeland was filmed for a
live DVD
A live CD (also live DVD, live disc, or live operating system) is a complete bootable computer installation including operating system which runs directly from a CD-ROM or similar storage device into a computer's memory, rather than loading fr ...
.
Epitaph would ultimately turn out not to be the band's final tour, as they embarked on the
Redeemer of Souls Tour
The Redeemer of Souls Tour was a worldwide concert tour by English heavy metal band, Judas Priest, which was in support of ''Redeemer of Souls''. It was their first tour since the conclusion of the Epitaph World Tour in 2012, which was originally ...
two years later.
Production
![Judas Priest - Sofia Rocks](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/Judas_Priest_-_Sofia_Rocks.jpg)
On 10 May, the band announced that preparations for the tour had begun, including rehearsals, photos, stage construction, and special effects.
On 6 June, guitarist
Glenn Tipton
Glenn Raymond Tipton (born 25 October 1947) is an English guitarist. Often noted for his complex playing style and classically influenced solos, he is best known as one of the lead guitarists for heavy metal band Judas Priest.
Early life and ...
announced on his website that:
Rob Halford incident
On the 15 September 2011 show in
Brasília
Brasília (; ) is the federal capital of Brazil and seat of government of the Federal District. The city is located at the top of the Brazilian highlands in the country's Central-West region. It was founded by President Juscelino Kubitsche ...
, Rob Halford fell off his
Harley-Davidson
Harley-Davidson, Inc. (H-D, or simply Harley) is an American motorcycle manufacturer headquartered in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. Founded in 1903, it is one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the Great Depressi ...
motorcycle when he rode across the stage, only to slip off as "Hell Bent for Leather" was set to be performed. This was reminiscent of an incident that occurred on the
Operation Rock & Roll tour in 1991, but this time he did not sustain any major injuries. He was assisted by crew members as the intro piece began, and finished the show thereafter.
Tour dates
Setlist
According to a posting on Tipton's website on 27 January 2011, the tour will "include some classic Priest songs that we haven't played before -- and of course, the old favourites that everybody will want to hear." On 15 February, the band announced they were considering playing at least one song from each of their albums as part of the setlist.
The setlist for the first leg of the tour was as follows:
# "Battle Hymn"
# "Rapid Fire"
# "Metal Gods"
# "
Heading Out to the Highway"
# "
Judas Rising
"Judas Rising" is a song by heavy metal band Judas Priest. It is the opening track on the band's 2005 album Angel of Retribution. The song is about the Judas Priest ''Messiah'' on the cover of the albums ''Sad Wings of Destiny'', ''Painkiller' ...
"
# "Starbreaker"
# "
Victim of Changes"
# "Never Satisfied"
# "
Diamonds and Rust
''Diamonds & Rust'' is the sixteenth studio album (and eighteenth overall) by American singer-songwriter Joan Baez, released in 1975. The album covered songs written or played by Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder, The Allman Brothers, Jackson Browne and J ...
" (acoustic to heavy version)
# "Prophecy"
# "Night Crawler"
# "
Turbo Lover
"Turbo Lover" is a single by heavy metal band Judas Priest from their album ''Turbo''. Unlike the album, most of the reception for this song has been positive, and it is considered a Judas Priest classic.
Lyrics
The song's lyrics have been ...
"
# "Beyond the Realms of Death"
# "The Sentinel"
# "Blood Red Skies"
# "
The Green Manalishi (with the Two Prong Crown)
"The Green Manalishi (With the Two Prong Crown)" is a song written by Peter Green and recorded by Fleetwood Mac. It was released as a single in the UK in May 1970 and reached No. 10 on the British charts, a position it occupied for four consec ...
"
# "
Breaking the Law
"Breaking the Law" is a song by English heavy metal band Judas Priest, originally released on their 1980 album '' British Steel''. The song is one of the band's better known singles, and is readily recognized by its opening guitar riff.
Com ...
"
# "
Painkiller
An analgesic drug, also called simply an analgesic (American English), analgaesic (British English), pain reliever, or painkiller, is any member of the group of drugs used to achieve relief from pain (that is, analgesia or pain management). It i ...
"
#;
# "The Hellion"/"
Electric Eye
An electric eye is a photodetector used for detecting obstruction of a light beam. An example is the door safety system used on garage door openers that use a light transmitter and receiver at the bottom of the door to prevent closing if there is ...
"
# "
Hell Bent for Leather"
# "
You've Got Another Thing Comin'
"You've Got Another Thing Comin'" is a song by English heavy metal band Judas Priest. It was originally released on their 1982 album '' Screaming for Vengeance'' and released as a single later that year. In May 2006, VH1 ranked it fifth on thei ...
"
#;
# "
Living After Midnight
"Living After Midnight" is a song by English heavy metal band Judas Priest. It was originally featured on their 1980 album '' British Steel'', which was their first gold album in the United States selling more than 500,000 copies (and eventua ...
"
Note: The band played a shorter set with omitted songs at certain festival appearances.
Reviews
A review of the band's performance at the
Sonisphere Festival
The Sonisphere Festival was a touring rock music festival which took place across Europe between the months of June and August. The festival was owned by John Jackson and Kilimanjaro Live. It was jointly promoted by K2 and Kilimanjaro Live. It ...
in Basel, Switzerland by RockAAA.com was favourable, praising both
Rob Halford's vocal performance and Richie Faulkner's guitar playing.
The reviewer said that Halford's "tone is astonishing...and
isdelivery as good as there is in the business."
Support acts
*
Black Label Society
Black Label Society is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles, California in 1998 by guitarist/singer Zakk Wylde. To date, the band has released eleven studio albums, two live albums, two compilation albums, one EP, and three vid ...
(12 October – 3 December 2011)
*
Crash
Crash or CRASH may refer to:
Common meanings
* Collision, an impact between two or more objects
* Crash (computing), a condition where a program ceases to respond
* Cardiac arrest, a medical condition in which the heart stops beating
* Couch su ...
(4 February 2012)
* Diablo ft.
Yim Jae-beom
Yim Jae-beom (; also spelled Yim Jae-bum; born October 14, 1962) is a South Korean rock ballad
A sentimental ballad is an emotional style of music that often deals with romantic and intimate relationships, and to a lesser extent, loneliness ...
(4 February 2012)
*
Duff McKagan's Loaded (20 June 2011)
*
Exodus
Exodus or the Exodus may refer to:
Religion
* Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible
* The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan
Historical events
* Ex ...
(10 August 2011)
*
HammerFall
HammerFall is a Swedish power metal band from Gothenburg. The band was formed in 1993 by ex- Ceremonial Oath guitarist Oscar Dronjak.
History
Early days (1993–1996)
HammerFall was formed when rhythm guitarist Oscar Dronjak quit Ceremo ...
(22–25 April 2012)
*
Hatebreed
Hatebreed is an American hardcore band from Bridgeport, Connecticut, formed in 1994. The band released its debut album '' Satisfaction is the Death of Desire'' in 1997, which gave the band a cult following. The band signed to Universal Records ...
(3 July 2011)
*
Kobra and the Lotus
Kobra and the Lotus (also initialized as KATL) is a Canadian heavy metal band formed in 2009 by lead vocalist and songwriter Kobra Paige.
History
Formation, ''Out of the Pit'' (2009–2010)
Kobra and the Lotus was formed by classical sing ...
(26 May 2012)
*
Lamb of God (20 February 2012)
*
Morbid Angel
Morbid Angel is an American death metal band based in Tampa, Florida, formed in 1983 by guitarist, primary composer and sole remaining original member Trey Azagthoth, vocalist and bassist Dallas Ward, and drummer Mike Browning. Widely considered ...
(10 August 2011)
*
Motörhead
Motörhead () were an English rock band formed in London in 1975 by Lemmy (lead vocals, bass), Larry Wallis (guitar) and Lucas Fox (drums). Lemmy was also the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band are often considered a precu ...
(29 July – 2 August 2011)
*
Queensrÿche
Queensrÿche is an American heavy metal band. It formed in 1982 in Bellevue, Washington, out of the local band the Mob. The band has released 16 studio albums, one EP, and several DVDs, and continues to tour and record. The original lineup ...
(15–27 July 2011)
*
Rival Sons
Rival Sons is an American rock band formed in Long Beach, California, in 2009. The band consists of Jay Buchanan (lead vocals), Scott Holiday (guitar), Dave Beste (bass guitar) and Michael Miley (drums). They are joined by keyboard player To ...
(15–24 July 2011)
*
Sabaton
A sabaton or solleret is part of a knight's body armor that covers the foot.
History
Fourteenth and fifteenth century sabatons typically end in a tapered point well past the actual toes of the wearer's foot, following fashionable shoe shapes ...
(9 August 2011)
*
Saxon (29 July – 2 August 2011; 23–26 May 2012)
*
Thin Lizzy
Thin Lizzy are an Irish hard rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. Their music reflects a wide range of influences, including blues, soul music, psychedelic rock and traditional Irish folk music, but is generally classified as hard rock or som ...
(12 October – 3 December 2011; 27 April – 4 May 2012)
*
Vader (10 August 2011)
*
Whitesnake
Whitesnake are an English hard rock band formed in London in 1978. The group was originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their own en ...
(27 June – 10 July 2011; 10 September – 3 October 2011)
*
Leash Eye (14 April 2012)
Personnel
*
Rob Halford – lead vocals
*
Glenn Tipton
Glenn Raymond Tipton (born 25 October 1947) is an English guitarist. Often noted for his complex playing style and classically influenced solos, he is best known as one of the lead guitarists for heavy metal band Judas Priest.
Early life and ...
– guitar
*
Richie Faulkner
Richard Ian Faulkner (born 1 January 1980) is an English musician best known as one of the lead guitarists for the heavy metal band Judas Priest since 2011, replacing original member K. K. Downing. Faulkner has also performed with Lauren Harri ...
– guitar
*
Ian Hill
Ian Frank Hill (born 20 January 1951) is an English musician, best known as the bassist and the sole continuous member for the heavy metal band Judas Priest.
Biography
Hill learned how to play the double bass from his father, a bass player ...
– bass
*
Scott Travis
Mark Scott Travis (born September 6, 1961) is an American metal musician, best known as the drummer for the English heavy metal band Judas Priest, the Irish rock band Thin Lizzy and the supergroup Elegant Weapons. He was also a longtime member ...
– drums
References
External links
Announcement of tour by Judas PriestCurrent tour dates
{{Judas Priest
2011 concert tours
2012 concert tours
Judas Priest concert tours
Farewell concert tours