WaMu Theater was a pretty neat place. My only complaint about the venue was that it was all seated. When I go to a metal show I like to be right down in the middle of the crowd, moshing and shrieking and pounding my fist in the air. It's euphoric, being close to the stage, battered and bruised, high off the music that pounds right through you....

So yeah, chairs? Not my favorite thing.

Since I didn't find out about the show until a few days before they played, our tickets weren't the best. Nils, Ian, and I were only a couple rows from the very back. But what seemed like bad luck at first actually ended up working out really well. WaMu Theater isn't that big, and although I couldn't make out the expressions on the musician's faces, we did have center seats and a full, unobstructed view of the stage. There's definitely something to be said for that.

Testament opened. Now, when I first started listening to metal all those years ago, there were three bands that got me hooked. Metallica, Queensryche, and Testament. These guys have been around for a while, I think somewhere between '85 and '87, and although I hadn't listened to them in a long time I was really excited to see them.

I ended up being pretty disappointed. The music was fine, very fast, simplistic, and thrashy, though I didn't particularly enjoy the tracks they played from their new album, Formation of Damnation. The band simply has little to no stage presence. I found myself leaning back in my chair thinking about things I needed to buy on my next grocery store run, and trying to decide whether or not I was going to go to my yoga class the next day. And it might be just me, but Chuck Billy sounded like he was trying really hard to do his best James Hetfield impersonation.

Ultimately I remembered why I don't listen to Testament any more.

After waiting through Testament's allotted hour of time we sat on the edges of our seats waiting impatiently for Judas Priest's stage set up to be completed.

Now I'm going to take a moment here and say I have seen a lot of live music. Especially a lot of metal. I've seen Cradle f Filth, Children of Bodom, Dimmu Borgir, Nile, Hammerfall, Edguy, Into Eternity, Nevermore, Opeth, Amon Amarth, Stratovarius, Gwar, Dragonforce.... the list goes on. The only reason I mention this is because when I say Judas Priest put on one of the BEST shows I have EVER seen I want you to appreciate that I have seen my fair share of bands.

So.

Judas Priest put on one of the BEST shows I have EVER seen.

Wow.

They started with a track from their new album, Nostradamus. Rob Halford appeared clad in a floor length, metallic silver robe, holding a staff taller than he was, banging it into the ground as he hunched over and shuffled around like an old man, screaming the lyrics "I am Nostradamus!"

Over the top? Yes. AMAZINGLY AWESOME? Yes.

From there he switched to a more conservative long silver trench coat and proceeded to deliver one of the best shows I've ever seen (yeah, yeah, I know I'm repeating myself). The entire band was dynamic and energetic, really catching and holding your attention. I can promise I wasn't composing a grocery list while they were playing, that's for sure.

I was glad that they only played two tracks from Nostradamus. It was nice that they recognized that the crowd (a wonderfully diverse group of people ranging from my parents' age to young adults to kids) in all probability wasn't there to hear their new stuff, they're looking for the old classics. They played 'Between the Hammer and the Anvil', one of my all time favorites. 'Painkiller' and 'Breaking the Law', of course. They played one track from Angel of Retribution and I was sad that it was 'Angel' and not 'Judas Rising', but it's still a fantastic song. Additional highlights included 'Electric Eye' and 'Hellbent for Leather'. Rob Halford drove his Harley out onto the stage and sang 'Hellbent for Leather' from the back of his bike - over the top and awesome.

The only thing that could have made the show better would be if they had played my all time favorite Priest song, 'Ram it Down'. But I'll give them a break. After all, they've been around for a good long while, it's not like they have a shortage of material to choose a set list from.

I had a couple people say to me before I went that Priest wasn't going to sound decent or put on a good show. "They've been around since the '70s, Becca. They're old guys. Why go? They don't sound good any more." All I can do is laugh at those poor, foolish souls. Of course I didn't get to see Judas Priest when they were in their prime so I don't exactly have much to compare my experience to, but I don't care how old those guys are, they still sound amazing.

Anyway, if you're a Priest fan, don't hesitate to check them out as they make their way across the states. Ignore the people who say that since they're older they can't blow your mind with their massive power of Awesome, because they can and will.