Judas Priest frontman Rob Halford has given an update on his long-rumored black metal project in a new interview with Noisey, revealing that he's eyeing potential collaborations with two of the most reputable names in the genre: Behemoth's Adam "Nergal" Darski, and Emperor figurehead-turned-solo artist Ihsahn.
Asked by Noisey's Kim Kelly for a potential release date for the black-metal endeavor, Halford responded: "The black metal project! It keeps being about to lift the launchpad, but it never quite gets anywhere. I met Nergal from Behemoth recently, and I said to Nergal, 'You know I love your kind of music. I would love to kind of put my toe into the water and see what would happen.'
"So now I've got these two very nebulous but I hope at some point very real opportunities to do something with Nergal, and still something to with Ihsahn," he continued, going on to name Anthems to the Welkin at Dusk as his favorite Emperor album. "Both of them are incredible," he concluded of the aforementioned musicians. "They just have this real mastery of their world."
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Elsewhere in the interview, Halford discussed his personal commitment to social justice ("The battle goes on for me; as a gay man. I shall not be happy until I see equality across the board."), Judas Priest's impact on fashion ("Even now, when you see Rihanna with a Priest shirt on, that's because the shirt looks cool. We've always thought about that."), what he's been listening to lately ("Willie Nelson, Hank Williams, Pavarotti, Barbra Streisand, Beethoven, Michael Bublé, the Eagles"), and much more.
Judias Priest's new album Firepower is available now, and the band is currently touring behind the album, with support from Saxon and Black Star Riders; find a full itinerary here.
In Revolver's Dec/Jan issue, we featured a collection of rock photographer Ross Halfin's iconic shots of classic-era Judas Priest, titled "Leather, Whips and Motorcycles." Below, watch Halford dish about the stories behind the moments, from striking "bitch" poses in rural England and posing like GQ models in Rio, to the Judas Priest tour that likely inspired Spinal Tap:
