The day before this gig was the saddest in heavy metal history. With the death of Ozzy Osbourne, the genre lost its irrepressible everyman Prince of Darkness, and all the warmth, charm and folly that made him relatable to so many. But with this 35th anniversary tour for their Painkiller album, Judas Priest provide some therapy.
For years, the band have used Black Sabbath’s War Pigs as a walk-on song and the moment the tape kicks in, an impassioned and cathartic mass singalong sweeps across the amphitheatre. Any sense that this might be a sombre do is squashed in seconds. “Hello, metal maniacs!” says singer Rob Halford, wearing a bedazzled leather trenchcoat and aviator sunglasses.
