KK Downing On The New KK Priest Album “Sermons Of The Sinner,” Judas Priest’s Legacy & More
Formed in 1969 in West Bromwich, England, Judas Priest has sold over 50 million albums to date. Still playing arenas and festivals around the world, Priest has won honors in recent years from the Metal Hammer Golden Gods Awards, the Metal Storm Awards, and the Planet Rock Awards. And none of that would have happened without the contributions of founding Judas Priest guitarist KK Downing.
KK Downing emerged on stage in August 2019 when his former bandmates had been given the Heavy Metal Hall Of Fame award at Germany’s Wacken Open Air festival that summer, and HMHOF board member Steve Goldby wanted to give the guitarist his award at Bloodstock. From there, the conversation led to Downing performing a few songs with Manowar guitarist Ross The Boss. The performance electrified the crowd and reinvigorated Downing. In November of that year, he put on a show in Wolverhampton, England with former Judas Priest singer Tim “Ripper” Owens, former Priest drummer Les Binks, former Megadeth bassist David Ellefson and Hostile guitarist A.J. Mills. Spanning Judas Priest’s catalog, this superb and successful show sent shockwaves throughout the metal world.
Fast forward 2 years and KK’s Priest — the band comprised of Downing, Owens, Mills and bandmates Tony Newton and Sean Elg — is about to release the album Sermons Of The Sinner out via Explorer1 Music Group/EX1 Records on October 1, 2021. “Raise Your Fists” is the latest single off the full-length and the music video for the track features a live performance by the quintet. Fans are still able to pre-order this debut album in various physical configurations, including an exclusive limited edition autographed Metal Vinyl (Silver Disc) with bonus CD album, via the band’s official online store.
I had the pleasure of speaking with KK Downing again in July 2021, this time via Zoom, as embedded below. More on Downing, KK’s Priest and Sermons Of The Sinner can be found here, here and here.
About the Author
Darren Paltrowitz Darren Paltrowitz is a New York resident with over 20 years of entertainment industry experience. He began working around the music business as a teenager, interning for the manager of his then-favorite band Superdrag. Since then, he has worked with a wide array of artists including OK Go, They Might Be Giants, Mike Viola, Tracy Bonham, Loudness, Rachael Yamagata, and Amanda Palmer. Darren's writing has appeared in dozens of outlets including the New York Daily News, Inquisitr, The Daily Meal, The Hype Magazine, All Music Guide, Guitar World, TheStreet.com, Businessweek, Chicago Tribune, L.A. Times, and the Jewish Journal. Beyond being "Editor At Large" for The Hype Magazine, Darren is also the host of weekly "Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz" series, which airs on dozens on television and digital networks. He has also co-authored 2 published books, 2018's "Pocket Change: Your Happy Money" (Book Web Publishing) and 2019's "Good Advice From Professional Wrestling" (6623 Press), and co-hosts the world's only known podcast about David Lee Roth, "The DLR Cast."
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